Backup Tactical, custom thread protectors.

I am not sure if using the term “accessorizing” is correct when talking about firearms but for the sake of my limited vocabulary let’s go with it. Many like to customize and accessorize our firearms, and making your gun a little different makes it more yours. Changing stocks, sights, and finishes are some of the most common ways to personalize a firearm. With many guns now coming from the factory with threaded barrels, it just makes sense to ditch the standard thread protector and look for something a bit more utilitarian or flashy, depending on what you are going for.

I received an email from Backup Tactical about their thread protectors. I reached out for some test samples and within a week I had five samples in the mail that represented a good cross section of what they produced. I used these on former test guns, the CZ P01 reviewed here and the CZ P09 reviewed here, and the Lonewolf threaded barrel for the Glock 17 reviewed here. The custom thread protectors were well made, machined from aluminum, threaded easily onto the barrels, and had no deflection.

They have nineteen different patterns in four colors, currently all are threaded 1/2×28 but five more options in thread pitch are coming August 2016.

So, it is a simple little accessory that can add a bit of personality to your threaded barrel. Even if you have dedicated silencers for all of your firearms with threaded barrels it is a good idea to have a thread protector on hand. And if you are like me and like to carry some of your pistols with threaded barrels you’re not going to conceal that pistol so well with a can threaded onto it. It is worth a few minutes to stop by Back Up Tactical and see what is what.

photo courtesy of Backup Tactical

Update

Backup Tactical has added several new thread pitches and sizes to their line up.

13.5×1 LH (9mm & 22lr Metric) • .578×28 (45ACP US) • 16×1 LH (45ACP Metric) • 1/2×28 (For .223 AR/Rifle .75″ Diameter)

• 5/8×24 (For .308/300BLK AR/Rifle .75″ Diameter)

The thread protectors for rifles are longer and larger diameter because rifle barrels usually have more threaded area, so these new thread protectors work much better for rifles and carbines. You may ask why have a thread protector on an AR-15 or AR-10 when they already have flash hiders installed, and that is a good question. Silencers have become much more popular but many of the 5.56 and .308″ caliber silencers are direct thread, meaning you have to remove the muzzle device to install the silencer. If you would want to shoot your rifle without the silencer, removing it would leave the threads exposed. Now you could keep your muzzle device handy but with the size of the Backup Tactical thread protectors they are much easier to keep on hand. If you are running a Magpul pistol grip on your rifle, the thread protector fits nicely in that. Having extra thread protectors around is an excellent idea, and now Backup Tactical has you covered for most any handgun or rifle you would have with a threaded barrel.