Ethan’s Budget 300 Blackout Pistol Build
- March 28, 2018
- By tatargets
Sometimes life throws you deals that are just to good to pass up.
I’m known to impulse buy AR-15 style rifles. This has been a blessing and a curse for many more reasons than one. The curse is at first, they never start out very nice and look as cheap as they are. But as time moves on the random deals just keep showing up that I’ll never pass up, and the parts just keep piling up as I move toward the end goal. Meanwhile having fun the whole time as I tear them down and build them up to slowly but surely build what I wanted from the very beginning.
The seekins precision complete upper fell in my lap at the Great American Outdoor Show In January of 2017. I bought it from freedom munitions on the last day of the show. They sold it to me for 230 bucks….. A complete 10.5” 5.56 upper with the bolt carrier and charging handle. Needless to say they were trying to unload stuff so they didn’t have to ship it home again. The lower was bought as a complete Anderson pistol lower from a friend that didn’t have a use for it anymore for 100 bucks. After the upper and lower were married it was a fun little blaster for about a year before I tore it down again to build what I really wanted from the very beginning; A 10.5” 300 blackout.
Black Friday rolled around and Rosco Manufacturing was having a special 20% off and I ordered one of their 10.5” Bloodline Barrels for around 140 bucks in 300 blackout. When it arrived, I knew I had bought a high quality product that was going to change this rifle into the rifle I had dreamed about over a year prior. It came in a custom box branded with their logo with the barrel tucked neatly into foam. The first impression was amazing and I couldn’t wait to get it together to shoot it to confirm my impression.
While sighting this rifle in I confirmed how good it was that I put the best scope I own on it. A few years back I picked up a Leupold VXR 3-9 power with a 30mm tube and 50mm reticle. I stole it from my 308 that never shot groups well for this blackout build with this Rosco Mfg. barrel having high expectations. I wasn’t disappointed. As far as the fire controls I threw in a Hiper Fire single stage 4.5 pound trigger.It isn’t the lightest trigger but it is very smooth. You will also notice that I added offset iron sights. The large scope is not very handy for extremely close situations. The iron sights are perfect for those close range target engagements.
One of the most important things to accompany a quality rifle is quality ammo. Poor ammo equals poor results down range. I knew what I needed so I contacted Paul with Maker Bullets. He hooked me up with some Solid copper expanding 200 grain sub sonic blackout ammo. This ammo is not cheap but let me tell you it gets the job done. The groups I see from this ammo at 100 yards with the Rosco manufacturing barrel are fantastic, 1 MOA or better to be exact. Expansion and energy transfer at sub sonic velocities is great….. let’s just say it leaves a path of devastation behind it. You can clearly see this in the picture below:
Having the ability to cycle both 110 grain Hornady A-max supersonic ammo and 200 grain sub sonic ammo through the same gun poses its own problems. How exactly do you switch between the two and still shoot accurately? Here’s where the Leupold with a turret that has visible numbers to turn to shines. After about 2 hours of shooting and studying the paper I was shooting I was able to create a simple dope chart that allows me to switch mags and dial my scope for whatever ammo I have in the rifle at any given time. I switch depending on what I’m shooting at, how far I’m shooting, and weather I need to be sneaky or not. If I’m going to be shooting just 100yards or less I use subsonic ammo If I need to shoot farther I shoot supersonic and dope my scope to match.
Above Left: 110 Grain Hornady V-MAX Projectile Above Right: Maker 200 Grain Subsonic Projectile
Every rifle needs a light. One of the main reasons we build platforms like this is for small to medium size game like coyotes, foxes, racoons, rabbits, and groundhogs. We tend to hunt predators at night so a light is a MUST. Some like to spend hundreds to put a light on a gun to have “the name.” I on the other hand am the first one to say “if it works don’t bash it.” So when our CNC Table operator came to me and said you need this 30 dollar light from Amazon to go predator hunting this weekend I was like sure why not. What’s there to lose? Turns out you can kill at over 100yards and see perfectly with a 30 dollar red LED amazon light and a 600 dollar Leupold. As you can see in the picture there’s a piece of PVC pipe on the front of the light that is spray painted black, this is in place to keep any light splash off me and the rifle at night so the critters we’re after can’t see us. As far as a defensive light, I am also running an Inforce Second generation APL pistol light. Cue the trolls saying “you can’t put an APL on a 300 blackout!” It has taken the abuse and has never let me down or malfunctioned.
Some things still do go unseen at night while solely using red lights. This is where thermal imaging comes into play. With the right thermal optic many things that are missed with red lights are picked up. Here you see the Pulsar Helion XP 38 with the blackout. These two together are a deadly combination. But as deadly as they can be together they are that much safer together at night with the heightened ability to clearly identify your target. The Helion is capable of so much as a hand held thermal I’m still only starting to tap into its potential. Wifi, internal memory, video recording, pic taking, and much much more.
Remember how this rifle started black? Thanks goes to Keystone Carry Cerakote for the sexy FDE color change you saw from this rifles early form. Cerakote adds some customization to a build but it also protects the metal parts from abrasion or chemicals and salt.
At the end of the day I have about 1000 dollars in this Budget 300 blackout build. That’s obviously not including the 1500 I have in the Silencer Co Hybrid 46 caliber suppressor, and the 3800 I have in the Pulsar Helion. But at the end of the day its all pocket change right? LOL
All joking aside, this 300 blackout build ended up making a complete 180 direction change. There is something to be said about coming up with a plan and executing, but there is also something to be said about being flexible and grabbing deals when they pop up. You may not end up exactly where you planned, but at the end of it you’ll have a pretty mean little carbine to hunt or hit the range with.
Here are a few links to the companies I used for this 300 blackout pistol build:
Rosco Manufacturing 10.5″ Bloodline 300 Blackout Barrel
Purchase your own Pulsar NIght Vision Products here: Keystone State Optics
