Century C15A1 was tested with numerous ammunition types, including Century imported Hot Shot 5.56 ammunition along with Wolf, Hornady and Black Hills varieties.
Todd Burgreen
may not be high priority or worth it for others. KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid, or Keep It Stupid Simple if you pre- fer) methodology can pay dividends in terms of budget and allow for con- centration on other priorities, such as training, for example. A case in point for this argument is the Century International Arms C15A1 Sporter AR-style rifle. In a nutshell, a C15A1 owner should take heart in knowing that the C15A1 rifle is closer to the original Stoner design intent than the later versions with heavy barrels and Picatinny laced fore-ends. Naysayers can offer opinions all they want about Stoner’s direct gas-impingement de- sign, but the fact is the M16 rifle is the longest serving rifle in US history. The C15 Sporter is patterned off the
Vietnam-era M16A1 with triangular handguards and A1 length buttstock. The M16A1 was adopted in 1967. The Century’s C15 is not retro replica nor is it intended to be, so collectors and other purists shouldn’t make an issue with the incorrect pistol grip or non- chromed barrel with different twist rate than the original M16A1. The M16A1 was a result of various mili- tary improvement requests related to the original M16. This consisted of re- placing the original 3-prong flash hid- er, that was prone to collect leaves and other debris, with a birdcage flash sup- pressor combined with a forward-as-
WWW.AMERICANHANDGUNNER.COM
sist plunger and chrome-lined barrel/ chamber. A buttstock with a hinged trap door butt for inclusion of a clean- ing kit is another notable A1 feature. What Century is trying to do is offer a reasonably priced AR variant that benefits from lighter weight and slim- down handling characteristics. The C15 weighs in slightly over 6
lbs. and measures 39" long. The A1 stock is 5/8" shorter than the A2 style currently used on post-M16A1-style rifles. The A1 stock fits most of us better with its shorter length of pull, especially if wearing any kind of gear or thicker clothing. Crawling up the stock on a .22-caliber rifle is not an is-
sue compared to a 30-caliber weapon and is the norm using the AR/M16 aperture sight. Frankly, most of the “improvements” found on the A1’s successors result from target shoot- ing influences, rather than battlefield necessity. The A2 sights with full ad- justability for windage and range at the rear, combined with longer stock, topped off by heavy barrel with 1:7" twist to stabilize heavier weight bul- lets, can be traced to competition feedback. The A1 stock and barrel de- sign did fine on the battlefield. On the Century C15A1 a Vietnam-era Colt upper receiver is mated to a new pro- duction slim-profile barrel complete
The C15A1 handled great and proved worthy of producing repeated hits on a variety of reactive and paper targets located at Echo Valley Training Center.
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