Author Topic: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler  (Read 13315 times)

billt

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Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« on: July 19, 2016, 08:34:58 AM »
Shooting AR-15's out here in the Summer really heats up your barrel, with no way to cool it down. About the best I could come up with was bringing one of those cans of "Canned Air" along with me to the range. Then shoot it down the barrel in an attempt to cool it off. It worked OK, and helped, but I could easily go through a can in one range session. Sometimes more. And that got expensive.

When I saw this gadget advertised on the Outdoor Channel's, "Shooting USA" program by Jim Scouten, it looked promising. So I went ahead and ordered one on Amazon. This thing really works well. It comes with rechargeable Lithium Ion batteries built into the unit. It charges up pretty quick with the included charger. And it can run for a couple of hours on a single charge. More than enough for a day at the range on a hot day, (100F+).

With the bolt locked back you simply insert it into the magwell, and turn on the switch. It's designed to blow a forceful stream of air down the chamber, barrel, and into the gas tube. I usually stop shooting when my barrel is too hot to keep my hand on it. Then I just stick the unit in the gun, switch it on, and in about 2 to 3 minutes it's cooled down enough to resume shooting. For guys that live in cooler climates it's not really necessary. But for guys like me who deal with 3 digit Summer temperatures 5 months out of the year, it's a real blessing. For anyone who's interested Amazon is the best place to buy. They had the best price I could find.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B7OYN4Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Solus

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #1 on: July 19, 2016, 11:02:05 AM »
Careful, Bill. 

It looks wicked in the picture showing it installed. 

If the anti-gunners go crazy over a bayonet lug, this will send them farther off the edge..
Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"
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— Daniel Webster

tombogan03884

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #2 on: July 19, 2016, 02:12:29 PM »
What did the troops in Iraq use ?
Men have been fighting IE large volume firing in extremely hot environments, as long as there have been guns.
Originally they used water cooling or finned barrels for cooling but quit because performance did not compensate for the weight.
If a full auto M-4 can be reliable in Iraq, or Sudan, or Somalia then there is no reason you should have worse results with a SEMI auto in a similar climate.
If you are having issues beyond burning your hand I would look for things interfering with the natural cooling process of the design, like a heavy barrel holding more heat, or a steel alloy that holds the heat longer, or maybe the ventilating properties of your handguard are flawed.

billt

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #3 on: July 19, 2016, 03:18:30 PM »
Military combat is entirely different. You basically shoot until 1.) The bad guys give up or are all dead. 2.) You run out of ammunition. 3.) You die. 4.) Your gun stops running, (See #3)...... Which quite a few M-4's have done over the years. As far as barrels, the taxpayers can always pay for more.

In civilian use the cooler you keep a barrel, the longer it will last. Shooting a barrel that is too hot to touch will greatly accelerate wear, and degrade accuracy. Out here in the Summer it's all but impossible to actually "cool off" a barrel once you heat it up. Especially if it's over 100F and you're shooting in direct sunlight. A tool like this can really help keep things cooler than you could otherwise.

I'll admit I'm a little more anal about it than most. For run and gun, or full auto shooters something like this can really help. While I can certainly live without it, it's a nice gadget to have on hand. I just let it run while I refill my magazines, and it really helps keep the barrel cool. It's also nice to cool the gun down before you case it, and head for home. Not so much here, but in Illinois I've cased hot guns in very warm, humid weather, only to find condensation on them after I got home. This helps eliminate that condition. 

PegLeg45

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #4 on: July 19, 2016, 03:59:34 PM »
The only time I've purposely cooled barrels on guns was during accuracy/load testing. We had electricity close at hand, so we just used compressed air from a small air compressor.

I can see this item being beneficial at speeding the test process up as well if time is a concern.
"I expect perdition, I always have. I keep this building at my back, and several guns handy, in case perdition arrives in a form that's susceptible to bullets. I expect it will come in the disease form, though. I'm susceptible to diseases, and you can't shoot a damned disease." ~ Judge Roy Bean, Streets of Laredo

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"When it comes to the enemy, just because they ain't pullin' a trigger, doesn't mean they ain't totin' ammo for those that are."~PegLeg

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #5 on: Today at 06:18:29 AM »

tombogan03884

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #5 on: July 20, 2016, 06:04:49 AM »
Ahh, I see your point, especially about buying your own replacements.  LOL.
ON  a side note, I was just watching one of Ian's video's at Forgotten Weapons where he mentioned that the German's issued 3 spare barrels with the MG 34 (rate about 1000 rounds per minute) the drill was to change barrels every 250 round belt.

alfsauve

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2016, 08:05:05 AM »
Don't trap/skeet shooters just stick a water hose in the breech?

At the National Glock Match they have a master level shootoff and use factory supplied guns so everybody's shooting the same hardware.   I believe they just drop them in a bucket of water between competitors.

On a less drastic note, I've had a small 5v fan for a number of years that I've used mainly on revolvers and pistols.   This device looks cool, but compared to cheap little fans, I think I could rig something up with what I've got.  Plus when not cooling the gun, it works on moi.  USB powered fans are less than $10.



Will work for ammo
USAF MAC 437th MAW 1968-1972

billt

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #7 on: July 21, 2016, 08:57:30 AM »
Those are all good methods. The problem I have at my range is there are no 110 outlets. They have 110 volt fluorescent lighting above, so it wouldn't be that expensive to install them.

 I would like to see Caldwell make an adapter with a piece of surgical hose. that way it would work for bolt actions and pistols as well. With the Lithium Ion batteries, It really blows a forceful stream of air. Most of the Trap shoots I've been to out here in the Summer, shooters wipe their barrels with a cold, wet towel if they are getting a bad mirage from heat. I never did because I was afraid of rust. Hot shotgun barrels are really a lot more prone to heavy plastic fouling from the wads.

alfsauve

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #8 on: July 21, 2016, 01:10:03 PM »
I'm fortunate in that my club has outlets on every bay on every range.

However, if the fan, such as mine is "USB" (5V) powered, then there are plenty of  rechargeable power packs that will run them.  I use one such pack for my chronograph.  Got it on sale at OfficeMax/Depot for less than $20.   2Ah capacity I think. 

Thanks for the reminder.   Tomorrow is designated, "Shoot the heck out of my 9mm guns" day at the range, and I'll take the fan.   With revolvers it's not the barrel so much as it is the frame area around the crane.  Run 200 rounds through in under an hour and it'll burn you when you reload.
Will work for ammo
USAF MAC 437th MAW 1968-1972

tombogan03884

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Re: Caldwell Accumax AR-15 Barrel Cooler
« Reply #9 on: July 21, 2016, 02:14:44 PM »
This is some thing I DO know about for sure.
When I was in Boot Camp the night before rifle inspection the Drill Instructors took GI cans into the shower and filled them with hot tap water we then dunked our M-16's.
The tap water was hot enough to evaporate immediately.
In the reverse, wiping down a hot shotgun barrel, the same thing should happen with no threat of rust.

 

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