We have been seeing a trend from firearms manufacturers lately that I like a lot. Several companies that had a really awesome, always patented, unique feature to their guns have started selling… Just that unique piece. This is simply amazing for us consumers, at least those not scared to take a hammer and Dremel tool to our weapons. Look, I like new guns as much as any of us. But I also realize the limitations in dollar terms for buying a new complete rifle or pistol all the time. This trend has been a huge benefit not only to us home builders but to anyone that wants to upgrade a factory rifle over time. Of whatever brand that might be.
The latest in the chute is CMMG. That little shop from Missouri Territory (pronounced MissouR-Ah to you nonresidents of the Ozarks) has created some incredibly unique features over the last decade. Earlier this year, they finally let one go in the form of the RipBrace kit. And it is a doozie.
The RipBrace and its rifle/SBR sister the RipStock have always been one of the coolest features of CMMG factory rifles and pistols. The concept is pretty simple. Why do we have a collapsible stock on our weapon to start with? Usually, the answer is to make it more concealable or easier to transport. Especially if we are going to bag it or stick it in a vehicle storage compartment. But how do most of us use it? Unless we are wearing armor, we tend to want to use it fully extended.
This is where the genius of the CMMG brace comes in. Smart engine-nerds that they are, they apparently had a thought. Why would we require a button on the stock in order to extend it? Do we really want the stock locked in the shortest overall position? So they created the RipBrace, which you simply pull to extend. It does lock open, but it doesn’t lock closed. So to deploy the stock, you merely grab it with one hand and pull. When it hits your desired length, snap it to your shoulder and go to work. Or, Velcro the strap on. You know what I mean.
How, exactly did they pull this off? Oval-shaped positions with a ramp in the back, where usual 5 position stocks only have a drilled round hole. With the CMMG you still have a 5 position stock, and it will not collapse forward without pressing the release button. But it will snap back to any position without any retention. Brilliant.
The kit, which we bought to finish out our Primary Arms pistol build, has everything you need. It has a brace that is on par with the SB Tactical SBA-3, to include a QD hole. It has a buffer tube, buffer, spring, and CMMG rear plate with sling attachments. And a castle nut, so you don’t have to go looking for one of those.
With the quality we have come to expect from CMMG, this brace kit is an absolute winner. The Rip tech is awesome once you get accustomed to it, and is lightning fast to deploy. You can look for this in a review soon, now that our Primary Arms random parts lower is complete. Just in time for a very special Craddock Precision upper to test on it.
is a former Marine and Green Beret, retiring out of 3rd Special Forces Group. He is a multi-decade and -service sniper, as well as 3-Gun competitor and Master ranked shooter in USPSA Production. In addition to writing about guns, he is the author of “Last Son of The War God,” a novel about shooting people that deserve it. You can also follow him on twitter, @offthe_res or his website, Off-The-Reservation.com
