<span style="font-weight: bold">Tango 51</span>
In my 42 years, I have had the good fortune to wield a number of custom and armorer-build weapons, from only-slightly to very-highly customized, both semi-auto and bolt rifles. To date, all of the bolt guns I have owned have been Remington 700 variants. It was because of this I was considering a more ‘updated’ platform like Surgeon Rifle’s 591 short action BDL style receiver for my latest rifle.
I was looking for a lighter, dual-use rifle and was considering a number of builders and styles. For no particular reason I never considered the Tango 51. I was planning on looking into Tactical Operations, Inc. for a more ‘customized’ build, when a Sierra model came up the For Sale. I made an inquiry, but the seller seemed only interested in reselling the rifle for a profit based on the company’s reputation. (I don’t have a problem with this, but for his asking price, I could wait for exactly what I wanted…)
It didn’t take but an hour or so before I was contacted directly via Private Message by Mike Rescigno of Tactical Operations, Inc. (Tac Ops). I had never spoken with him prior to this, and was curious as to why he would be messaging me to call him. Of course, I called him immediately.
He asked all the right questions – the purpose/use of the rifle, my level of experience with this class of rifle and shooting in general, my budget and timeframe, Etc. I have to admit, I was flattered. We spoke for almost an hour and I was sold. After a fairly lengthy back and forth, we determined the best fit for my needs & wants would be the Tango-51; Tac Ops flagship model.
I had never had the opportunity to handle or even see a Tac Ops rifle, so I was worried about two things. One was the stock. I am a fan of the HTG & A5 stocks, but was not familiar with McMillan’s Sako Varminter stock and the unfamiliarity concerned me. After snapping in and handling the rifle for some time now, I have to admit, it's perfect!
My vanity also had me slightly concerned about the color scheme of the Tac Ops rifles. Every picture I had ever seen seems to reflect bright green (almost neon) surfaces pitted against deep black. Fortunately, the actual is nothing like what is seen in pictures. The Green-T is much darker and deeper than what is represented in these images, and not only matches the stock, but all but disappears in low-light conditions. The green is a true olive and very, very flat.
<span style="font-weight: bold">The Rifle</span>
The core of the Tac Ops rifles is the Remington 700 action. Yes, the same tried and true Remington that has been used as the base of so many tactical rifles out there. Every aspect of the action is trued or "blueprinted" to precise Tac Ops standards, which is considerably more than the typical squaring of all the surfaces. From the recoil lug and action face, threads, bolt face, locking lugs, even the bolt body, everything is lined up precisely, and then faced for squareness, parallelism and concentricity. At all times they try to hold their tolerances to .0001” to .0002”.
Tac Ops barrels come from Krieger but they are made to a specific proprietary spec provided by Tac Ops and with chambers cut at Tac Ops to a headspace of .001" or better. They also use their own precision ground recoil lugs and their own crown design with thread protector. The crown is the last thing a bullet touches before it leaves the barrel. It is very important that the bullet makes a clean break when leaving the barrel. The recess in this crown is the deepest I’ve ever seen giving protecting it from damage should the rifle ever get dropped on the muzzle end. The crown is lightly lapped at the muzzle end to eliminate any possible burrs which could cause the bullet to deflect at the last moment before leaving the bore.
The barreled action is bedded into the stock using a traditional aluminum pillar glass bedding procedure with a free floated barrel channel. The barrel channel is fairly wide with plenty of gap to allow for more easily keeping the barrel channel clear and the barrel free floated while in the field.
The stock on the Tango series of rifles is the McMillan Sako Varminter stock which, unbeknownst to me has been a best seller at McMillan since its introduction. Again, paying extreme attention to fit and finish, Tac Ops takes the standard McMillan stock and refinishes it with their own application of a rough texture for all weather gripping and then a durable epoxy paint.
The stock is very comfortable with the vertical pistol grip and then the wider and not as tall forend than what is found on the HTG stock. The stock is not too bulky or heavy and provides a very nice balance of usability in the field. The heavy texture applied by Tac Ops does provide a very nice gripping surface for use in all weather conditions and combined with the extreme corrosion protection provided by the Birdsong finishes.
Mike prefers to use the old style factory Remington instead of one of the many available after market triggers. This one was set to break right at 2.5 lbs. crisply, cleanly and without any creep.
The rifle is incredible well-balanced. With the Tac Ops mounted Schmidt & Bender 4-16x50mm scope I headed to the range to see what kind of performance we could get out the rifle. For those in Houston and surrounding areas well know, at the time of receipt of my rifle and this review, the weather has not been very cooperative.
I got to the 100 yard line at ASC to verify the scopes zero after shipping, but with 6” to 10” of standing water on the range, I only took shots at shot-up targets already hanging. I never went out to hang new targets or retrieve the ones I was shooting on – I didn’t have waders at the time. From my spotter, I could easily see that shooting groups under the .25 MOA barrier was not a problem. The day was overcast with 15+MPH swirling winds, and a light drizzle during the end of my shoot. The weapon produced very small shamrock 5-shot groupings. I will get back out as soon as weather permits along with my camera. The certification target provided with this rifle measured 0.099" at 110 yards.
Someone once called Mike Rescigno of Tactical Operations, Inc. the <span style="font-weight: bold">“Hattori Hanzo of rifle builders”</span>. With this extreme attention to detail, I would have to agree!
If you want an extremely accurate rifle with a very high level of attention to the details, then any Tac Ops should be considered. Words alone cannot adequately describe the quality of these rifles. They must be handled and shot to truly appreciate their capabilities.
This <span style="font-weight: bold">Tango 51</span> was well worth the wait!
<span style="font-weight: bold">Specs:</span>
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Caliber:</span> .308 FGM
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Action: </span> Remington M700, Accurized and blue-printed to Tac Ops specs
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Weight: </span> 10.8 lbs without scope & 12.4 lbs with S&B PMII 4-16x50mm
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Overall Length:</span> 44.3” (112.5cm)
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Barrel:</span> Tac Ops Match Grade proprietary stainless steel Krieger, threaded with a Class 3A thread for sound suppressor & Cryogenically treated @ 20” (508mm)
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Chamber:</span> Match spec reamed with .001 head space
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Stock:</span> McMillan Fiberglass (Sako Varminter), Aluminum pillar bedded
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Base:</span> Tac Ops 2-piece base in Green-T to match rifle
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Trigger & Pull:</span> Remington factory trigger with 2.5 lb pull
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Metal Finish:</span> Birdsong proprietary Green-T and Black-T
The rifle was ordered as a package and included the following, all purchased from tactical operations except the optic:
• Tango-51 with 20" Heavy Tac Ops barrel, threaded (detailed above)
• Schmidt & Bender PMII 4-16x50mm MRAD, CCW, Single Turn
• Leupold Mk4 steel rings
• Tac Ops Cheek Pad
• Tac Ops Drag Bag
• Storm Hard Case
My Photobucket account is back up - hasty pics are up...
rasheed
In my 42 years, I have had the good fortune to wield a number of custom and armorer-build weapons, from only-slightly to very-highly customized, both semi-auto and bolt rifles. To date, all of the bolt guns I have owned have been Remington 700 variants. It was because of this I was considering a more ‘updated’ platform like Surgeon Rifle’s 591 short action BDL style receiver for my latest rifle.
I was looking for a lighter, dual-use rifle and was considering a number of builders and styles. For no particular reason I never considered the Tango 51. I was planning on looking into Tactical Operations, Inc. for a more ‘customized’ build, when a Sierra model came up the For Sale. I made an inquiry, but the seller seemed only interested in reselling the rifle for a profit based on the company’s reputation. (I don’t have a problem with this, but for his asking price, I could wait for exactly what I wanted…)
It didn’t take but an hour or so before I was contacted directly via Private Message by Mike Rescigno of Tactical Operations, Inc. (Tac Ops). I had never spoken with him prior to this, and was curious as to why he would be messaging me to call him. Of course, I called him immediately.
He asked all the right questions – the purpose/use of the rifle, my level of experience with this class of rifle and shooting in general, my budget and timeframe, Etc. I have to admit, I was flattered. We spoke for almost an hour and I was sold. After a fairly lengthy back and forth, we determined the best fit for my needs & wants would be the Tango-51; Tac Ops flagship model.
I had never had the opportunity to handle or even see a Tac Ops rifle, so I was worried about two things. One was the stock. I am a fan of the HTG & A5 stocks, but was not familiar with McMillan’s Sako Varminter stock and the unfamiliarity concerned me. After snapping in and handling the rifle for some time now, I have to admit, it's perfect!
My vanity also had me slightly concerned about the color scheme of the Tac Ops rifles. Every picture I had ever seen seems to reflect bright green (almost neon) surfaces pitted against deep black. Fortunately, the actual is nothing like what is seen in pictures. The Green-T is much darker and deeper than what is represented in these images, and not only matches the stock, but all but disappears in low-light conditions. The green is a true olive and very, very flat.
<span style="font-weight: bold">The Rifle</span>
The core of the Tac Ops rifles is the Remington 700 action. Yes, the same tried and true Remington that has been used as the base of so many tactical rifles out there. Every aspect of the action is trued or "blueprinted" to precise Tac Ops standards, which is considerably more than the typical squaring of all the surfaces. From the recoil lug and action face, threads, bolt face, locking lugs, even the bolt body, everything is lined up precisely, and then faced for squareness, parallelism and concentricity. At all times they try to hold their tolerances to .0001” to .0002”.
Tac Ops barrels come from Krieger but they are made to a specific proprietary spec provided by Tac Ops and with chambers cut at Tac Ops to a headspace of .001" or better. They also use their own precision ground recoil lugs and their own crown design with thread protector. The crown is the last thing a bullet touches before it leaves the barrel. It is very important that the bullet makes a clean break when leaving the barrel. The recess in this crown is the deepest I’ve ever seen giving protecting it from damage should the rifle ever get dropped on the muzzle end. The crown is lightly lapped at the muzzle end to eliminate any possible burrs which could cause the bullet to deflect at the last moment before leaving the bore.
The barreled action is bedded into the stock using a traditional aluminum pillar glass bedding procedure with a free floated barrel channel. The barrel channel is fairly wide with plenty of gap to allow for more easily keeping the barrel channel clear and the barrel free floated while in the field.
The stock on the Tango series of rifles is the McMillan Sako Varminter stock which, unbeknownst to me has been a best seller at McMillan since its introduction. Again, paying extreme attention to fit and finish, Tac Ops takes the standard McMillan stock and refinishes it with their own application of a rough texture for all weather gripping and then a durable epoxy paint.
The stock is very comfortable with the vertical pistol grip and then the wider and not as tall forend than what is found on the HTG stock. The stock is not too bulky or heavy and provides a very nice balance of usability in the field. The heavy texture applied by Tac Ops does provide a very nice gripping surface for use in all weather conditions and combined with the extreme corrosion protection provided by the Birdsong finishes.
Mike prefers to use the old style factory Remington instead of one of the many available after market triggers. This one was set to break right at 2.5 lbs. crisply, cleanly and without any creep.
The rifle is incredible well-balanced. With the Tac Ops mounted Schmidt & Bender 4-16x50mm scope I headed to the range to see what kind of performance we could get out the rifle. For those in Houston and surrounding areas well know, at the time of receipt of my rifle and this review, the weather has not been very cooperative.
I got to the 100 yard line at ASC to verify the scopes zero after shipping, but with 6” to 10” of standing water on the range, I only took shots at shot-up targets already hanging. I never went out to hang new targets or retrieve the ones I was shooting on – I didn’t have waders at the time. From my spotter, I could easily see that shooting groups under the .25 MOA barrier was not a problem. The day was overcast with 15+MPH swirling winds, and a light drizzle during the end of my shoot. The weapon produced very small shamrock 5-shot groupings. I will get back out as soon as weather permits along with my camera. The certification target provided with this rifle measured 0.099" at 110 yards.
Someone once called Mike Rescigno of Tactical Operations, Inc. the <span style="font-weight: bold">“Hattori Hanzo of rifle builders”</span>. With this extreme attention to detail, I would have to agree!
If you want an extremely accurate rifle with a very high level of attention to the details, then any Tac Ops should be considered. Words alone cannot adequately describe the quality of these rifles. They must be handled and shot to truly appreciate their capabilities.
This <span style="font-weight: bold">Tango 51</span> was well worth the wait!
<span style="font-weight: bold">Specs:</span>
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Caliber:</span> .308 FGM
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Action: </span> Remington M700, Accurized and blue-printed to Tac Ops specs
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Weight: </span> 10.8 lbs without scope & 12.4 lbs with S&B PMII 4-16x50mm
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Overall Length:</span> 44.3” (112.5cm)
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Barrel:</span> Tac Ops Match Grade proprietary stainless steel Krieger, threaded with a Class 3A thread for sound suppressor & Cryogenically treated @ 20” (508mm)
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Chamber:</span> Match spec reamed with .001 head space
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Stock:</span> McMillan Fiberglass (Sako Varminter), Aluminum pillar bedded
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Base:</span> Tac Ops 2-piece base in Green-T to match rifle
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Trigger & Pull:</span> Remington factory trigger with 2.5 lb pull
<span style="text-decoration: underline">Metal Finish:</span> Birdsong proprietary Green-T and Black-T
The rifle was ordered as a package and included the following, all purchased from tactical operations except the optic:
• Tango-51 with 20" Heavy Tac Ops barrel, threaded (detailed above)
• Schmidt & Bender PMII 4-16x50mm MRAD, CCW, Single Turn
• Leupold Mk4 steel rings
• Tac Ops Cheek Pad
• Tac Ops Drag Bag
• Storm Hard Case
My Photobucket account is back up - hasty pics are up...
rasheed
