Victor Arms V-22 Conversion

Guns Magazine, Oct, 2001 by Charlie Cutshaw

Turn your AR into a .22 for practice, training and fun with this rimfire conversion unit which boasts a unique design that'' as rugged and reliable as the battle rifle it fits.

Rimfire conversion units for the ubiquitous AR series of Rimfire are notorious for unreliable performance. Most of these units replace the rifle's bolt carrier with a blow-back-operated .22 LR insert that uses the existing upper receiver and barrel, which is the downfall of the concept.

The problem with all such conversion units is that they simply replace the AR-15's bolt carrier, which can ruin a perfectly good barrel. This is because the twist rate of the AR-15 barrel is designed for a 55 gr. to 62 gr. jacketed bullet traveling at a velocity of 3,000 fps, not a 40 gr. lead bullet traveling at a much lower velocity. Twist rates in AR-15 rifles range from 1:12 in older rifles to 1:7, 1:8, or 1:9, with the latter being the most common in commercial rifles. Current military rifles are virtually all rifled at a 1:7 twist rate. Almost all .22 LR firearms are rifled at a twist rate of 1:16, which is optimal for the relatively light, slow-moving .22 bullet.

The effect of firing a .22 LR bullet through a rifle with one of the twist rates used in an AR-15 is to literally swage the bullet down the barrel. The lead bullet never really engages the rifling, but rather is pushed over the lands, which shave lead off the bullet and deposit it into the barrel grooves. Molten lead from the bullet surface, which is heated by friction almost to the melting point, invariably finds its way into the AR-15's gas system.

The net result of using a bolt-replacement .22 conversion unit in any AR-IS type rifle is severe leading that is almost impossible to completely remove, with the added drawback of eventually affecting the rifle's operation with .223 ammunition because of partial blockage of the gas system.

In addition, such systems are grossly inaccurate. Needless to say, knowledgeable AR-15 shooters long ago discovered these facts, but bolt-carrier .22 LR conversions continue to be offered and purchased by unsuspecting AR owners.

Why A .22?

Rimfire conversion units have a purpose for military, law enforcement and civilian shooters. For military and law enforcement, the .22 conversion offers training opportunities that do not exist when using full-power .223 ammunition. Firing can be accomplished at shorter distances with targets reduced in size to simulate longer ranges.

With the .22 LR, firing can even be accomplished on indoor pistol ranges, which is not the case with full-power .223. The variety of training that can be accomplished using a rim-fire conversion is limited only by the imagination of the training officer. For civilians, a .22 conversion unit offers inexpensive recreational plinking, as well as the potential for using an AR for small-game hunting.

Enter Steve Sarich of Houston, Texas-based Victor Arms. Sarich is a long-time Class III (full automatic) enthusiast who wanted to use .22 LR ammunition in his M16 rifles, but knew what would happen if he used one of the existing bolt carrier conversions. His idea was to create a conversion unit that replaced not just the bolt carrier, but the entire upper receiver of the AR-15 or M16. Sarich is also an entrepreneur and decided to form his own company to build the conversion unit dubbed the V-22.

The V-22 is made by CZ in the Czech Republic and is a very high-quality item. Production of the V-22 is scheduled to be undertaken in America shortly. The fit and finish of all components was flawless. There were no tooling marks to be found anywhere and the knurling was sharp and even throughout.

We installed the V-22 on three different lower receivers, an Armalite, a Bushmaster and a Colt. The fit on each lower was uniorm and tight, without having to be forced to fit. Once on the lower receiver, there was no play between the two components in any of the rifles. In short, the V-22 fit each lower receiver as if it was a factory item.

The lower receiver fit should come as no surprise since Victor Arms used original AR-15 factory drawings to develop the conversion unit. The V-22 is claimed to be adaptable to any mil-spec lower receiver, and after inspecting the unit, that claim seems to be reasonable. Some AR-15 clones are not manufactured to military specification tolerances, however, and the V-22 may not be an exact fit on these lower receivers.

The V-22 receiver is made of T6 aluminum while the barrel is 4130 steel with a twist rate of 1:16, optimal for .22 LR cartridges. To save costs, the AR-style charging handle was eliminated, along with the forward assist. The V-22 uses a conventional reciprocating charging handle mounted to the bolt. Operation is straight blowback.

The bolt does not contact the inside of the upper receiver, but rides on two guide rods that also hold the recoil springs captive. A pin runs through the receiver plug and impinges against the rifle's existing buffer, attenuating the bolt travel.

There is no bolt hold-open after the last cartridge is fired. This is an inconvenience, albeit a minor one in a gun that will be used primarily for training purposes; in fact we are not aware of any AR-15 .22 conversion unit that incorporates a device to engage the AR-15 bolt stop.