Bravo For This AR

The BCM RECCE KeyMod 18 Has
Downrange Capabilities To Burn
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I had the good fortune to team up with Stan Jarosz—one of our top service rifle competitors—to check out Bravo Company’s BCM RECCE KeyMod 18, along with Meopta’s top-of-the-line ZD 4-16×44 tactical scope.

By virtue of his part-time work behind the counter at Cabela’s, Stan’s finger is on the pulse of the gun market. Gun sales are brisk, particularly in regard to AR’s. The overwhelming motivation appears to be personal—and family—defense in a climate of perceived instability and unrest. Basic M4-type carbines are quite popular but, as always, a substantial percentage of buyers are interested in high-end equipment designed and vetted for critical use. And long-range shooting (300 yards and beyond) is generating real interest.

Bravo Company USA is a top-of-the line marketer of AR-15 components both bearing the proprietary BCM logo and accessories from other top-tier suppliers. Complete Bravo Company weapons systems range from AR pistols and fully accessorized tactical carbines to competition-ready match rifles and intermediate-range special purpose rifles like the RECCE KeyMod 18. When equipped with a suitable sight, this model is ideal for designated marksman applications as well as competitive events.

Features include a BCM Gunfighter compensator ahead of a stainless 18-inch SS410 barrel of 0.75-inch diameter. The twist rate is 1:8. The 15-inch key-mod handguard is made of lightweight aluminum/magnesium alloy coupled with Picatinny rails for sight and accessory mounting. The top rail and the rail over the action are mounted—fore and aft—with BCM folding battle sights.

The BCM lower has a crisp, single-stage 5.5-pound trigger. The adjustable stock features a positive indexing system that prevents stock collapse from contact with various shooting supports. It includes a minimalist vertical fore-grip, large enough to enhance control but short enough for use with various rests or field positions.

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The excellent Meopta ZD4 4-16×44 tactical scope features
mil-dots, an illuminated reticle and a parallax-adjustable objective.

The Meopta ZD4-16×44 is designed to take full advantage of the capabilities of the .223/5.56 round and to survive in a range of field conditions. The reticle is a fine center crosshair above mil-dots calibrated at approximately 200 to 500 meters.

The target turrets address windage and elevation with 1/4-minute increments out to an advertised 800 meters with front objective parallax correction. A left-side turret controls reticle illumination intensity—enhancing the precise crosshair for less-than-ideal lighting. Ours is mounted via the excellent 30mm Leupold AR 1-piece mount.

The rifle, coupled with the Meopta scope appeared at first glanced to be equal to the demands of the elite military special operations groups that have been customers for Bravo Company systems. Our range work confirmed this.

For accuracy testing, we used a Caldwell Lead Sled on a steady bench at 100 and 200 yards. Our ammo selection included only one 50-grain load—Hornady’s Full Boar loaded with a flat-based hollowpoint bullet rather than the GMX configuration used in heavier bullets within the Full Boar line.

Of primary interest were the 69-grain Sierra MatchKings as loaded by Black Hills and Wilson Combat (producing velocities of 2,617 fps and 2,688 respectively). These two gave us groups of 1.05-inch and 0.65-inch at 100 yards. Hornady’s 75-grain BTHP Superformance load (2,758 fps) gave us a 0.75-inch 5-shot group.

Both Black Hills and Hornady have built solid reputations for competition and tactical ammo. Their respective loads shot to the same sight setting with zero at 100 yards, and again at 200 with six, 1/4-minutes of elevation correction. My fairly casual 200-yard groups were well under one MOA and Stan got several MOA groups at the same distance with the Black Hills load. Groups with the 75-grain Hornady were a bit smaller, with one in the 1/2-MOA range. The 69-grain Wilson Combat load scored the best 100-yard group at 0.65 inch.

We derived downrange performance with the Hornady online calculator, adjusting the sight height to 2.6 inches and inputting standard deviations provided by Black Hills and Hornady. The 50-grain Full Boar load (BC 0.215, velocity 3,065 fps) had no energy advantage over the slower, heavier projectiles from the muzzle and lost all velocity advantage before the 300-yard mark. Of interest to precision shooters, the 69-grain loads remained at over Mach 1 out to 700 yards. The 75-grain Superformance load stayed over 1,120 fps mark out to almost 1,000 yards.

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BCM is highly regarded for top-tier AR components as well as weapons systems.

Stan’s Place

We did the extended-range shooting at Stan’s facility near Crawford, Texas. His primary range extends 1,000 yards with shooting positions at several known distances. The range is within hearing distance of thunderous blasts from the Space-X rocket facility. It’s also a couple of miles from Cindy Sheehan’s Crawford “Peace House” where, during the Bush Administration, there were a number of protest marches and similar rallies.

Stan was helping junior shooters prepare for Camp Perry on the day of a scheduled march and treated Ms. Sheehan and her followers to some discomfort from all the noise. Various law enforcement agencies came to the range to see what was going on, some pretty happy with the protestors’ consternation. One frantic marcher declared the downrange windsocks were flags “of a country unfriendly to the United States!”

Mud from heavy rains made shooting from 300 yards high risk for getting stuck, so we moved to 400 after setting up the portable bench and bag apparatus. We had clear conditions in early morning—40 degrees with no mirage at maximum magnification and a variable wind of about 5 mph. Referring to the Hornady Calculator for the Black Hills 69-grain Match ammo, which included a “Come-Up” value in MOA, Stan doped the wind precisely and the calculated elevation adjustment landed the first shots on target, a few inches low. So we quickly corrected to zero. Range compensation with the elevation turret was easily accomplished at known ranges. When he shot “for record” on a B27 target, the left to right wind speed had kicked up enough to move the 1-MOA 5-round group a few inches to the right. Several groups at 400 yards confirmed the tendency of this Black Hills load to produce groups of under MOA to slightly over. The Hornady 75-grain load—in accord with the calculated trajectory—hit 6 or 7 inches higher with the same sight setting.

The 5.5-pound single-stage trigger proved completely suitable for our rested shooting. The weight gave good control with a crisp break. There was no danger of an unintended bump-fire sometimes a problem with light match triggers and a shooter who applies maximum finesse to his release. Stan was impressed with the trigger as well as the clarity and adjustment integrity of the Meopta scope—high praise indeed coming from somebody with Stan’s qualifications.

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Stan Jarosz shoots the Bravo RECCE at extended range.
Accurate range estimation and a good eye for wind direction
are needed. High-performance ammunition from Black Hills,
Wilson Combat and Hornady produced a number of MOA
and smaller groups. The same sight settings were useful
with the 69- and 75-grain loads out to 500 yards.

This Hornady Full Boar 50-grain bullet is a flat-based hollowpoint.
The heavier bullets in the Full Boar line use the new lead-free
GMX copper bullet with heat-resistant plastic tip. Photo: Mike Cumpston

These 100-yard groups were shot from Caldwell Lead Sled.
The loads are Hornady Superformance 75-grain HPBT and
Black Hills 69-grain MatchKing.Photo: Mike Cumpston

This spectacular 0.65-inch, 5-shot group was shot with the
69-grain Wilson Combat Load. Wilson’s proprietary rifle and
pistol ammunition is very consistent and accurate.
Photo: Mike Cumpston

Backing up to 500-yards—standard training distance for the Squad Designated Marksman program Stan and a cadre of top service rifle competitors developed for the Army—we left the windage the same and consulted the tables, predicting the probable drop from the 400-yard zero. Using the top of the head portion of the B27 target, Stan placed a well-centered group just below the X-ring. The Black Hills load landed in a group less than 1-minute tall with about 9 inches of horizontal spread owing to gusting wind—the cluster well contained in the torso of the target.

A few yards closer, there was an iron silhouette, about the same size as the B27. It was freshly painted black with a 10- or 12-inch white center. We figured aiming at the top of the head would drop the 69-grain bullet into the center white and the 75-grain Hornady would hit a bit higher. I chose the Hornady round and centered the crosshair on the top of the head. The wind gusts spread my 5-round string out 8 inches wide, but about 1/2-minute tall a few inches over the center white. In perfectly calm conditions the group probably would have been 2-1/2 inches or less.

Our final impressions on the BCM RECCE KeyMod 18? It’s a flawlessly executed amalgam of the high quality parts Bravo Company USA supplies to individual consumers and other high-end AR makers. The Meopta scope very effectively exploits the capabilities of the rifle, as well as the accuracy and downrange potential of the.223/5.56 cartridge.

RECCE KeyMod 18
Maker: Bravo Company USA, Inc.

Type: Direct-gas impingement semi-auto
Caliber: 5.56/.223
Capacity: 30
Barrel length: 18 inches
Overall length: 34.24 to 37 inches
Weight: 7 pounds, 7 ounces
Sights: BCM folding battle sights
Trigger: BCM Combat (5.5 pounds)
Stock: BCM Gunfighter adjustable
Handguard: 15-inch BCM KeyMod

ZD 4-16×44
Maker: Meopta USA, Inc.

Magnification: 4X-16X
Field of view (100m): 8.5 meters (4X), 2.4 meters (16X)
Eye relief: 3.15 inches
Objective diameter: 44mm (parallax adjustable)
Body diameter: 30mm, Weight: 26.4 ounces
Length: 15.16 inches
Adjustments: 1/4 MOA, Reticle: Crosshair with mil-dots graduated from 200-500 yards, illuminated

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