Tony Grist
All was well in my world until my pal, Jason, picked up a 20-inch barreled PSA AR15A4 from Palmetto State Armory (PSA).
We hit the range, and as soon as I picked the rifle up, I must have had the same nostalgic smile on my face that we see the old veterans get when they pick up an M1 Garand.
The instant I held it brought back a flood of memories from my time on the sniper team and my youth. The rifle just felt…right. The balance was great, and the extra weight helped to steady it while making shots on the range.
Nostalgia
In the beginning, the AR-15 was available with a 20-inch barrel. When Colt introduced the AR-15A2 in 1986, I worked the entire summer to save up enough money to buy one, and it was my prized rifle for many years.
At the time, everything was in 20-inch barrel lengths, aside from the CAR-15, but that wasn’t the A2.
Back in the 1990s, I was issued the Colt HBAR, a heavy-barreled version of the AR-15A2, as a sniper on my agency’s tactical unit. Our primary weapon was a Remington 700 PSS in .308, but our cover weapons were the Colt HBAR, which provided more firepower while still being very accurate.
Our teams were set up similarly to military sniper teams with the bolt gun and a semi or full-auto rifle. More on that later.
After a time, the military adopted shorter versions of the M16A2, namely the M4 carbine. Special Operations units were first issued these weapons, and soon the civilian world followed. Naturally, all the cool kids had to have them!
These days, the shorter the barrel, the cooler the AR-15. 16-inch barrels are pretty much standard now, giving a nice balance of short length and decent velocity, while toeing the legal limit of 16 inches.
Certainly, there’s nothing wrong with carbine length barrels, as they make for a great handling carbine.
The PSA AR15A4
Putting the PSA AR15A4 through its paces made me want one badly, so I decided to pick one up for myself.
This came as no surprise to Jason, who confided, “As soon as you picked it up, I saw the way you carried it and I knew you’d be getting one.” Yeah, I guess I was that obvious. Like I said, I had to smile when I picked it up and the memories came back.
Is It Practical?
And how does is stack up to today’s rifles? Currently, AR-15s have a wild array of rails and ways to mount lights, lasers, optics, and whatever else one can think up to bolt onto his rifle. If you want to turn your rifle into a crew-served weapon, you can easily do it by adding 13 pounds worth of gadgetry to your little carbine.
The retro rifles, however, are typically “slick” in that they don’t have railed handguards. Granted, the PSA AR15A4 that I chose does have a removable carry handle that attaches to a Picatinny rail on the top of the receiver.
Yes, that means it’s not a totally accurate AR-15A2, but I like it because I can run it with the standard carry handle in place, so it looks pretty much like a standard A2. Or I can mount optics on the Pic rail for versatility. To me, it’s the best of both worlds.
The standard handguard has no provisions for mounting other doo-dads, and that’s fine by me, since I really don’t yearn to mount anything on it. For me, the basic rifle is just fine.
The Long And Short Of It
Of course, the barrel on the PSA AR15A4 is 20 inches, a marked departure from the very popular 16-inch length that has become all the rage. So why would I go with a 20-inch barrel?
20-Inch Barrel
The longer barrel does have some advantages.
- Increased velocity.
- Increased accuracy and range.
- Increased weight, equaling less recoil.
- Increased penetration against targets and barriers.
Heavier weight can be a detriment, aside from cutting down on recoil. As well, the longer barrel is less maneuverable in tight spaces. Don’t forget, however, that the original M16 featured a 20-inch barrel, and we got along just fine with it for years.
Velocity from a 20-inch barrel will usually be about 3,100 feet per second, depending on twist rate and bullet manufacturer, as well as the projectile’s weight.
16-Inch Barrel
- Increased maneuverability.
- Lighter weight.
That’s really about the only advantage of the shorter barrel. It’s louder than the 20-inch version, the velocity is less, and it penetrates less.
A 55 grain bullet from a 16-inch barrel will generally travel around 2800 feet per second, give or take, depending on the manufacturer and twist rate of the barrel.
Overall Effectiveness
Let’s not forget that, before all the enhancements were added to these base rifles, the original (now, “retro”) rifles performed admirably. And while they might not have all the bells and whistles on them, they will still perform as well today as they did way back in the day.
These days, I’m willing to accept the extra weight and length of the 20-inch barrel for the extra performance that it imparts on the 5.56mm round.
The ACOG
Back in 1987, Trijicon introduced the ACOG (Advanced Combat Optical Gunsite). I’m not going to go over every model because there are a couple dozen of them out there. Suffice to say that they cover a wide range of magnifications, but the most popular seem to be between 3 and 4-power.
The current model that I have (the TA31) is used by the Army and Marines, and is 4x32mm with a fiber optic unit that illuminates the reticle during daylight. For dim light use, the reticle is powered by tritium, which glows in the dark.
These scopes are, for the most part, short and light, very compact, so they don’t take up a lot of real estate on your rifle or carbine.
They also took off extremely quickly, with many units in the military adopting them, in addition to numerous law enforcement agencies, and civilians as well.
Aside from being handy, one of their claims to fame is their durability, which is legendary. It’s just hard to kill these scopes.
The optical clarity is outstanding, in keeping with Trijicon’s sterling reputation (and high price tag).
Another advantage is that an operator can keep both eyes open, using the BAC (Bindon Aiming Concept), to use the ACOG similarly to a red dot. With both eyes open, the glowing reticle is superimposed on the target, mimicking the performance of a red dot scope. It’s very fast at close range, and effective.
The down side is that most ACOGs are in the $1,000+ range, so that puts it out of the reach of many people.
The Mount
My ACOG came with a mount that will easily attach to a Picatinny rail with two thumb screws, and it can also be removed from that rail and mounted on a standard carry handle such as the one found on the M16A2/AR15A2. It’s great from a versatility standpoint.
Accuracy
The ACOG’s job isn’t to make an M16 into a sniper rifle, but rather to extend its range appreciably. Minute-Of-Bad-Guy is the accuracy goal, and to that end, it succeeds. The range estimating reticle has hold overs out to 600 yards, and with the 4x magnification, it does a good job of helping us see targets farther away in a clear fashion.
I shot some fairly tight groups with the ACOG mounted on my PSA AR15A4, but my range session with it was brief. I plan to have a more in-depth session in the near future to fine tune it. Still, I was quite satisfied with the results I got so far, which were in the 2-inch group range.
In Summary
PSA’s AR15A4 has proven to be a reliable, good quality rifle at a reasonable price point. I’m really liking the 20-inch barrel because of the increased accuracy and velocity, as well as the nostalgia factor. And to be honest, it just balances very nicely and feels so solid in the hands.
Teamed up with Trijicon’s ACOG, it truly extends the rifle’s effective range.
Check out a Palmetto State Armory rifle, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. In full disclosure, I want to add that I purchased this rifle completely with my own funds. Nosler was kind enough to supply some of the ammo used in the testing.
The bottom line is that you don’t necessarily have to have the latest, greatest, whiz-bang Gucci gear. Without question, you cannot buy skill. A skilled person can very well make due with older, more basic gear, whereas someone with little training and poor skills will not be benefitted by cutting edge gear.
My advice is to skip the high-dollar add-ons and invest your money in ammo and training. It will serve you well.
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