Words: Rich Norman

Is any detail too small?

What a stupid question. No, of course not! 🙂

A while back, Jay Taranis published a pic of a full RIS L119A2 which amongst other things helped support a blog I’d done on the GG&G vertical grip.

The pic below, shows the GG&G grip in silhouette:

Jay’s supporting pic wasn’t hi rez, but it provided categorical validation for my find.

In addition, the sling plate at the rear of the receiver was identified as a Magpul ASAP QD:

This is different to the standard Magpul ASAP that’s usually seen on the L119A2.

Jay’s pic caused a paradigm shift in public perceptions of the L119A2 in many ways – not least because it depicts the ‘Alternative IUR’ upper; a full RIS version.

What frustrated me was that I couldn’t work out what sling swivel being used was (no detail too small).

Yesterday I happened upon a better quality version of that same pic. You can even just about make out the etched GG&G logo on the vertical grip:

But look what else I found:


On balance, I think the sling swivel is none other than the Magpul QDM:

Granted, you can never ‘know’ 100% without seeing the thing for real, but I’ve made positive IDs from worse pics. Jay also thinks it’s a likely candidate – which is enough validation for me.

In the L119A2 pic above you can make out the boxy body of the sling swivel, which is quite unlike the usual cylindrical body of traditional models. You can also see the sweep of the ‘canalising’ ring.

From Brownells:

…an optimized bale that rotates freely and canalizes rifle slings to prevent rollover…

So, the QDM is very distinctive – luckily.

The QDM is a Quick Disconnect Sling Swivel and you can read the product description here.

However, this short video shows its cool functionality:

More articles relating to the L119A2:

  • The Comprehensive UKSF (SAS/SBS) L119A2 Parts and Accessories List
  • The original L119A2 primer, here
  • GG&G AR15 vertical fore-grip in use here
  • Magpul QDM and ASAP QD in use here
  • 15.7″ L119A2 upper in use here
  • Surefire FA556SA Suppressor here
  • GG&G Aimpoint T1 mount in use here
  • Magpul MS3 sling in use here
  • Magpul ACS stock in use here
  • Colt Canada parts – as used on the L119A2 – here
  • Manta Very Low Profile Rail Covers as used on the L119A2 here
  • UKSF Newcastle raid pics part 1
  • UKSF Newcastle raid pics part 2
  • UKSF Nairobi Kenya incident L119A2 parts breakdown here
  • UKSF Belize ‘Jungle Set-up’ L119A2 parts breakdown here
  • Confirmation bias (and the HSP Thorntail offset light mount) here
  • UKSF Ecosystem: S&S Precision Sling Clip – Old Gen – here
  • Inforce WML-type lights in use here

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