Question about Wilson Combat +1

[jdinny]

Hey Synchronizor, or anyone else with experience with a Wilson Combat +1
I just got my Magpul MS4 QD sling and it works awesome plugged into my Mesa LEO as a single point sling.
My question is, do you think there's enough thickness in the end cap to drill and tap for a threaded female QD socket, something like Grovetec offers so I don't have to clamp anything on the barrel/mag tube ? I really don't like the idea of clamping something on and screwing up the Cerakote finish.
Any help, or suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks,
jd

[Synchronizor]

That's a good idea! The overly thick end caps on the Wilson Combat extensions should be great for this. Plus, when you're not using a sling, the QD socket will still allow the magazine to vent as it was designed to.

Here are my notes on Wilson Combat extension end caps:

Hopefully you can make sense of this

WC End Cap.JPG (86.47 KiB) Viewed 3588 times

Now, my Wilson Combat +1 extension has a partially hollowed-out end cap, as shown by the dotted line in the image above. However, this is an older +1 that I purchased used awhile back, so I don't know if they're still being made this way. The Wilson Combat +2 I have was more recently purchased new for a review, and it has a solid end cap.

Either way though, you should have more than enough meat for one of those thread-in QD sockets to hold onto. Even if you have a hollowed-out end cap and the rear of the socket sticks out into the extension, the spring should simply fit over it. Worst case, you'll have to trim your follower's tail a little to maximize your capacity (in the event that you want or need that extra bit of space).

Installation should be pretty straightforward. Drill, tap, and screw the socket in with a little epoxy or red loctite. I'd go with the threadlocker personally, so I could get the socket out in the future if I needed to. If you can, take some pictures of the process; I'm sure Vitaly would love to show this off over on the blog.

[jdinny]

in your drawing, it appears the cap is over 1/2" thick, that should work fine.
is the cap epoxied to the tube ?

[Synchronizor]

It appears to be brazed or soldered. You shouldn't have any issues with it breaking loose during drilling & tapping.

[jdinny]

Edited
I am impressed with the WC extension. I've put about 100 rounds through since the install, and I swear it got tighter on the tube!

Well, after checking it out further, the Magpul sling swivel won't clear the muzzle break fully so I guess it's back to the clamp mount.
Thanks for you valuable info.

[Synchronizor]

I am impressed with the WC extension. I've put agout 100 rounds through since the install, and I swear it got tighter on the tube!

As the barrel heats up, it will expand, moving the barrel guide ring slightly farther forward on the magazine tube. This effectively tightens down the magazine cap or extension (as long as the cap or extension isn't backing off a little with each shot due to recoil).