Advantage Arms Conversion Unit Test

[robot1911]

For those who've been waiting, here 'tis: I've been testing this new product for the past year with modifications being made periodically by the manufacturer. I've run over 10,000 rounds of Aguila SV through it, in addition to a few hundred rounds of 'others', like CCI-SV, Eley 10x, Remington Rifle Match, Winchester Expert, Olin Match, Federal Gold Medal 900, etc. and it is now functioning 100% with all of them. With one exception. Whenever I get a 'light load' with the already light Aguila, it chokes because the slide can't recoil far enough to pick up the next round. This same failure also occurs in several other 22 pistols and conversion units, so I can't fault the AA for it.

The Unit is very well made and is a near-clone of the Marvel Unit I. The differences are: The Advantage Arms has a built-in, replaceable recoil buffer that prevents the recoil spring tunnel from being battered by contact with the front of the frame rails.
The steel 'bolt' inside the slide that contains the firing pin has an oversized torx screw retaining it in the slide that should prevent the screw from shearing like the Marvel's occasionally do.
The junction of the left side of the slide between the main (rear) part and the stepped-down part (front) has a radius that will prevent a crack forming there. Marvel uses a stop-drill at the same stress point.
The AA has a steel insert in the slide lock-back notch to prevent battering by the steel slide stop and this modification alone allows the slide to lock back after the round from the magazine.
There is no 'takedown' notch in the slide for the slide stop to slip between the slide and frame. The slide stop is captive and has been modified so it will lock into the slide with gentle pressure against the plunger tube's plunger. No more danger of scarring the frame while inserting the slide stop.
The magazine is a nylon/fiberglass composite with no adjustable lips and holds 10 rounds. It has a removable base and is easily stripped for cleaning. A Mag Feeder is included with the Unit, as is a cleaning kit. A Metalform/Colt Ace mag may also be used if you want...and the AA Mag retails at $25.
This Unit uses a Mossberg barrel blank and accuracy is comparable to the Marvel at 25 yards. I'm unable to test at 50 yards but I'm satisfied that it will hold X-ring at that distance with good, match ammo. With Eley 10x, Olin Match and one lot of Aguila I've been getting well under 1/2" groups with the Ransom Rest at 25 yards with many groups at 1/4" and 3/16".
The AA uses Champion adjustable sights, same as the Marvel, and a Weaver scope base is available. I've been shooting this sample with that base and an Ultradot scope and the weight/balance is right where it should be for most shooters. I prefer a muzzle-heavy configuration so I've put 2oz of tungsten on top of the base at the muzzle and it's perfect for me...maybe a tad heavy for most.

I've been using a series 80 Colt frame for this Unit and have also tried it on Caspian, Essex, and Springfield
Armory frames. It fit each of them and functioned perfectly. However, the magazine base will not clear a frame with some aftermarket mag-wells, such as the Smith and Alexander.

Overall, I like this conversion unit a lot and find I shoot it more than my Pardini. I've owned other conversions, including 2 Marvels, and the Marvel is the only other Unit I would consider buying because it is also an excellent Unit.

I'm sure there are things I've failed to report here, so if you have any questions I'll be happy to try and answer.

I have no financial, proprietory or other intertests in the manufacturer of this Conversion Unit.

Bob

[clughog]

Bob, thanks for the excellent report! I think I made the right decision to go ahead and order one yesterday even before reading your writeup. That's good to know about the ACE magazines...I currently have a Colt .22 Conversion Unit that I'm using and have bought a couple of the Metalform ACE mags for it. I'll try them out with the Advantage Arms conversion before I invest in more mags from any source. Can't wait to get mine!

[Pakn1911]

Bob,

Thanks for the update. I think I will be ordering one soon.

TM

[John]

:wl:

[robot1911]

Okay John. Pics of what?? The conversion or the test targets.
I now have some great test ammo...Eley 10X and RWS R50 and will be testing with the Ransom Rest this Wednesday. I can only do 25 yards but with a 22, that's a pretty good indicator.
I'll post some pics of the Unit hopefully, today.
You can see the Unit on their web site, but I'll break it down into its components.

Bob

[John]

For God sake, both. Don't you know that it is ... mandatory?

Basically the conversion unit, but the targets you shot with it are also welcome. Eley Tenex are some great ammo. I remember them from when my ex was competing with the Greek National Team. Very accurate things.

[robot1911]

Here's a shot of all the components. It took me 2 hours to figure out how to get the pic from Adobe photoshop into Photobucket. I'm not so sure I want to go through that again.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f380/robot1911/DSC02161_edited.jpg

If anyone knows how to get pics from my camera into Photobucket, I'd sure appreciate some instructions.

Bob

[robot1911]

I just figured out a relatively easy way to get the pics into Photobucket. Here's the shot of the complete Unit.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f380/robot1911/DSC02160_edited.jpg

Bob

[John]

You can't do that directly. You have to bring the pictures from the camera to your computer (using the cable supplied with your camera) and from there you can post them in Photobucket.

Read the FAQ section of our site.

[robot1911]

I did read the FAQ, and I knew the process from the point of getting the pics into Photobucket onward but the FAQ didn't tell me how to get them there initially. Oh well, I figured it out and it's done. Here's a pic of a test target I did with the first unit they sent me, last year. These are Mossberg barrels and I'm about to find out how consistent they are from one blank to another. I have 3 Units on hand right now, excluding that first one, and I'll test all three Wednesday.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f380/robot1911/DSC02068_edited-1.jpg

Bob

[Vic S]

I am getting ready to order the unit but got confused when I read the FAQ's on the Advantage site. Do they recommend high or stadard velocity ammo. Could you enlighten this dummy? The FAQ says :
Q:Can I use Standard Velocity ammo in my conversion kit?
A:NO. 99% of the time Standard Velocity ammo will not cycle the slide.

It then says:
Q:What type of accuracy can I expect from my conversion kit?
A:You should get 2” or better groups at 25 yards with the 1911-22S “Standard Kit”. The 1911-22T “Target Kit” should produce better than 1” groups at 50 yards, using quality, standard velocity target ammo like Eley 10X.

Not sure what they mean. Thanks for the help Bob.

[robot1911]

I am getting ready to order the unit but got confused when I read the FAQ's on the Advantage site. Do they recommend high or stadard velocity ammo. Could you enlighten this dummy? The FAQ says :
Q:Can I use Standard Velocity ammo in my conversion kit?
A:NO. 99% of the time Standard Velocity ammo will not cycle the slide.

It then says:
Q:What type of accuracy can I expect from my conversion kit?
A:You should get 2” or better groups at 25 yards with the 1911-22S “Standard Kit”. The 1911-22T “Target Kit” should produce better than 1” groups at 50 yards, using quality, standard velocity target ammo like Eley 10X.

Not sure what they mean. Thanks for the help Bob.
The Standard Unit needs HV ammo to function properly. I've never seen nor tested one so can't comment on accuracy. The Standard Unit is very different in design and function from the Target Model.
The Target Model is designed for SV ammo and should shoot 1" or under at 50 yards. You can also use HV ammo with this Unit but need the heavier recoil spring and accuracy won't be as good because most HV ammo is inherrently inaccurate out of a pistol barrel.

I understand they have shipped some Target Models to Midway with the heavier, HV, spring. I have suggested they include both springs but don't know if they have or not.

Bob

[MacEntyre]

I would consider getting one of those, but...

I have a Kimber RimfireTarget pistol, which is the aluminum 22 conversion slide, without a cut for the ejector, on a dedicated aluminum frame. It's a lot of fun to shoot, and deadly accurate! It likes high power ammo like Aguila SuperMax.

The AA unit is a better training tool when it is on your 45's steel frame, with the trigger you use all the time.

[Vic S]

The Standard Unit needs HV ammo to function properly. I've never seen nor tested one so can't comment on accuracy. The Standard Unit is very different in design and function from the Target Model.
The Target Model is designed for SV ammo and should shoot 1" or under at 50 yards. You can also use HV ammo with this Unit but need the heavier recoil spring and accuracy won't be as good because most HV ammo is inherrently inaccurate out of a pistol barrel.

I understand they have shipped some Target Models to Midway with the heavier, HV, spring. I have suggested they include both springs but don't know if they have or not.

Bob

Thanks for the clarification.

[Vic S]

Just ordered the target kit from AA and was told it ships with a spring designed for high velocity ammo. You have to order a lighter weight spring for standard velocity ammo and sign a statement acknowledging that using HV ammo with the lighter spring will damage the kit. The target springs are only $7.50.

Can't wait to take it to the range!

[robot1911]

I suggest you try it with some SV ammo first. If it ejects and locks back after the last mag round, you're good to go with the spring that comes with it.

[robot1911]

I did the final accuracy test today, using 3 conversion units and one box of Eley 10X ammo with the Ransom Rest at 25 yards. Sorry I couldn't do 50 yards.
As you can see by the pics, the groups in each Unit were about the same and they tightened as more rounds were fired. The test started at the bottom, right side of the target and went bottom to top, then changed units and repeated.
The difference in spread is caused by the number of rounds fired. First group in each Unit was fouling/seating, second group the same and the 3rd group close to the Unit's capability. Had I fired a few more groups in each Unit, I'm sure the groups would have tightened even more.
The best groups in this test were 3/8", which is acceptable, but I'm sure would have been down to 1/4" with more groups fired.
The tests I did last week which included a Marvel showed about the same performance.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f380/robot1911/DSC02163_edited.jpg

Bob

[Vic S]

I suggest you try it with some SV ammo first. If it ejects and locks back after the last mag round, you're good to go with the spring that comes with it.

Will do. I will start with the original spring and see what happens. Pretty impressive groupings and I was suprised how the groups tighten in the same manner.

[robot1911]

Be sure to use some light lube on it...like FP10. You don't need any friction.

Bob

[dakota1911]

Gotta buy one, gotta buy one, gotta buy one...........

[Bud White]

I know the kit i have likes a lot of lube if it drys out it starts jamming has a super tight chamber lucky if you get 100 rounds before needing to clean it

[GSP]

If the target model truly competes with the marvel accuracy wise , it will be popular in the bullseye crowd. The fact that it locks open on the last round is a big plus . Hope some one does a ransome rest test soon at 50 yards . Am leaning towards a dedicated lower with a marvel when I upgrade my 22 but this definitely may add another option.