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On Sunday I went to the fabled Lapeer pit with my friends Craig Craig s son Daniel up for a visit from Chicago and Aaron Thankfully Aaron s name is very easy to remember The only problem was that on the way up he was driving and I was navigating so we were in front and Craig and Daniel behind The conversation went something like this Craig Hey Aaron Aaron Yes Aaron Yes Craig No the other Aaron Aaron Him Aaron Him Craig No the other Aaron Aaron huh Aaron huh Craig The one drivingAaron Oh Ok Aaron Yes Craig How about discussion ensues Aaron Aaron while you were chatting you just missed a turn We got there via a circuitous

route indeed but it all worked out The range has been neatened up recently by the DNR the big rocks removed the area regraded some concrete berms put in to form a shooting line so ts pretty nice It was pretty busy but we eventually got set up and put our targets out Daniel Craig and the other Aaron had never shot an Uzi before and after safety instruction and a demonstration by yours truly they really enjoyed themselves Unfortunately when I told them to buy 9mm fmj full metal jacket they went out and bought a ton of the not very common 147 gr truncated cone fmjs that the Uzi really did not like Luckily I brought along a lot of round nose fmjs and much fun was had They also got to shoot my AR15 pistol which I m happy to report after a complete detailed cleaning disassembly of the bolt and lubrication ran like a top We also got to shot my Saiga 12 shotgun The Saiga 12 is a 12 gauge semi automatic detachable box magazine fed shotgun Based on the famed Kalashnikov action it offers Kalashnikov level reliability and good ergonomics and excellent shooting with the 12 gauge The Saiga arrived because of restrictions on how it can be imported into the country for sporting purposes looking like this This would not do for real sporting purposes and so I sent it off to Alex Wakal of Dreadnaught Industries to be suitably restored A few words about Dreadnaught Industries Unlike another smith to whom I sent an inquiry who then failed to respond after a very short exchange never getting an answer or a real quote Alex responded and took this Saiga newbie through the multitude of Saiga possibilities giving me excellent guidance as to what worked and didn t work as opposed to just looking cool Indeed Alex saved me money by straightening me out to build what I needed rather than what I mistakenly thought I wanted Because he shoots the Saiga in 3 gun competition the same sport for which I wanted to use the Saiga his experience and knowledge were invaluable in the decision making process That kind of interaction sold me on him and off the Saiga went It came back with the quickest turnaround I could have dreamed about and it came back looking like this Now that s a sporting Saiga US made parts are nicely installed replacing the foreign parts to reach the appropriate parts count to permit it to have a pistol grip and folding stock A sight rail is beautifully and nicely machined on so that you would think it had always been a part of the firearm the trigger much improved an extended magazine release installed for quicker magazine changes the bolt modified to allow a loaded magazine to be loaded with the bolt closed an ergonomic Tromix stock affixed and the usability factor was thus highly increased The acid test of course was how well did it shoot The answer darn well With my EOTech mounted on the rail and firing 00 Buck it shot 5 rounds quickly accurately and with far less perceptible recoil than my 870 pump the gas system helps bleed off some of the recoil impulse and every shot was a winner With 7 1 2 shot it was a bit finicky jamming on Winchester Super X but liking the Federal brand once the gas system was set to 2 for lighter shells rather than the standard 1 setting Given that it was brand new and unfired before Sunday for lack of an opportunity to head to the range a little breaking in period is not uncalled for Chris Aaron and Daniel were very impressed with the Saiga as was I Of course after shooting I had to clean all the firearms I had brought along For cleaning the Saiga comes apart like any Kalashnikov clone and cleaning is simple and straightforward as is reassembly I can heartily recommend Alex Wakal of Dreadnaught Industries for any Saiga work you might need he certainly knows his craft and has truly excellent and responsive customer service and he can build you a fantastic Saiga