{"id":50403,"date":"2016-01-17T13:30:23","date_gmt":"2016-01-17T18:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/?p=50403"},"modified":"2016-01-17T13:30:23","modified_gmt":"2023-08-19T07:02:06","slug":"century-c308-1000-round-torture-test-shot-show-2016","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/century-c308-1000-round-torture-test-shot-show-2016\/","title":{"rendered":"Century C308 1,000-Round Torture Test–SHOT Show 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Here she is, all dressed up and ready for the party\u2014a 1,000-round torture test.<\/p><\/div>\n

Read more at Century:<\/strong> https:\/\/centuryarms.biz\/proddetail.asp?prod=RI2253-X<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy a C308\u00a0on GunsAmerica.com:<\/strong> https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/Search.aspx?T=c308<\/a><\/p>\n

The Backstory<\/h2>\n

Like a pretty gal from the wrong side of the tracks, Century Arms has a reputation\u2014one that is grossly-overstated by internet armchair generals and shooters who\u2019ve never actually fired a Century product. Still, these issues weren\u2019t imagined or fabricated, and, in the past, Century suffered from some serious quality control issues.<\/p>\n

While their old WASR AKM carbines were the most notorious for their canted sights and magazine wobble, one product they used to build in particular was a total crap-shoot in terms of fit, finish and quality control\u2014the CETME.<\/p>\n

This battle rifle rose from the ashes of the StG 44\/MP 44 German development program of World War II. During the final desperate months preceding Germany\u2019s collapse, Nazi engineers sought a way to give their infantry an edge over the seemingly-endless hordes of Soviet partisans.<\/p>\n

To make things worse, the Germans weren\u2019t just outnumbered, outgunned and encircled, they also had a failing\u00a0economy and infrastructure due to the relentless Allied bombing campaign. Even though the air war was irrefutably lost at this point, Hitler still held hope his so-called “Ubermensch” Wehrmacht could turn the tide on the ground\u2014this, despite its ranks being filled by ill-trained old men and boys from the Volkssturm.<\/p>\n

With the incredible reports of the StG 44\/MP 44\u2019s combat effectiveness, German engineers refined the idea into a more cost-effective assault rifle\u2014the StG 45, a select-fire rifle chambered for the intermediate 7.92x33mm Kurz cartridge. This new rifle did away with the tilting bolt and gas-operating system in favor of a roller-delayed one. The Germans held that system in high regard, after its successful implementation in the infamous MG 42 machine gun.<\/p>\n

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The rollers stick out when the bolt is in battery, forced open by the bolt carrier extension.<\/p><\/div>\n

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When the locking piece\u00a0is pushed back, the rollers recede into the bolt and the rifle can cycle.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The resulting Mauser-developed prototype, the StG 45(M) was the first select-fire rifle to rely solely on roller-delayed blowback action. While the new rifle didn\u2019t affect the war\u2019s outcome, it did heavily influence weapon design for more than six decades to follow.<\/p>\n

The design first traveled with Mauser\u2019s weapon R&D program to France as part of their CEAM program and later to Spain for the CETME weapon program. The CETME group used Mauser Werke\u2019s past experiences to produce the CETME Modelo 58, a rifle with more than a passing resemblance to the Heckler & Koch G3.<\/p>\n

With good reason, the CETME design was later purchased by the German military, albeit in a slightly modified design that would later become the G3 battle rifle.<\/p>\n

The CETME, like all roller-delayed firearms, is a very tricky weapon to work with. Where the AR-15 uses a series of lugs on a rotating bolt to lock the action, roller-delayed actions utilize two small spring-loaded wheels that fit inside small alcoves in the receiver. They\u2019re secured by the friction and pressure spike of the bolt pushing back after firing a round.<\/p>\n

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As the rollers wear their diameter shrinks, adding to the bolt gap.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The condition of the locking piece also affects bolt gap. As the bolt gap increases, so does the recoil.<\/p><\/div>\n

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From a practical standpoint, this means the rollers themselves determine the headspace and timing of the action. As such, they must be maintained and replaced when necessary. Failure to do so is normally not catastrophic but will cause no shortage of frustrating malfunctions.<\/p>\n

The issue with the original Century CETME carbines was a combination of bad quality control and rough surplus parts. Since the rollers wear themselves out, guns that saw heavy use previously could unlock either too early or too late. This either makes the rifle not cycle correctly or so violently that the shooter feels a tremendous increase in recoil impulse\u2014doubly true if the mainspring itself is also heavily worn.<\/p>\n

Other factors contributed to the rifle\u2019s failure but the original Century CETMEs ran the gambit from reliable workhorse to useless paperweight. When the company announced the C308, a hybrid of the CETME and a G3 battle rifle, claiming they solved all the old issues, I wanted to confirm this for myself.<\/p>\n

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The straightforward safety selector.<\/p><\/div>\n

Specifications<\/h2>\n