Today’s article brought to you in part by GEMTECH and their World Class Silencers.

IR Improvement – the LEAF

Cowan!

Good morning, boys and girls. In this morning’s period of instruction we will be discussing the LEAF. LEAF stands for Laser Emitting Aiming Fixture. It was developed by Railscales in conjunction with Sage Instruments (SI, a sister company to Sage Dynamics) to provide a fixed front sight post for use with various laser devices. Partnering an IR device with the LEAF maximized the use of available rifle real estate.

Let us clarify that for you, because a few folks have expressed a little confusion — the LEAF is a fixed front sight post (we’re pretty sure you’ve used one of these before) that attaches to an IR laser device (which a few more of you have used) so you don’t have to crowd your rails with one of each. So it’s not actually an improvement to your IR, it’s an improvement to your IR device.

It’s like furniture for your furniture.

Here’s how it was developed. Rail space and mounting priority can become an issue, especially on shorter rail or overall length rifles. So, Railscales and SI’s Aaron Cowan (yes, COWAN!, who writes for us on occasion) looked for a solution that would allow the user to keep their forward BUIS while reducing used rail space on the rifle.

Here’s what it looks like from the more entertaining end.

LEAF development centered around a common 50/200-meter zero distance, which is both effective and popular. The proof of concept had the development team zero multiple rifles on multiple rail lengths, using several different popular weights of ammunition. These test guns front sights were then measured; the resulting deviation was .035 in., allowing a common front sight height to be used for the LEAF across a wide range of end user rifles.

Look at the big brain on COWAN!.

While the LEAF is non-adjustable, the shooter has the option of using adjustable rear sights like those offered by KAC or Magpul for elevation adjustment options. Since the majority of NVG-specific rifles already possess three methods of aiming (optic, IR and visible laser), BUIS generally fall into a fourth category of aiming. The small variance of .035 in. allows for POA/POI at zero distances without significant enough deviation to make accuracy problematic, even at smaller points of aim, and regardless of common ammo, rail length or barrel length choices.

We’re not entirely sure what’s coming next, but we hear rumors it might be something that ushers in the next generation of handgun.

Click the image to learn more.

The LEAF is currently available for Steiner Optics DBAL I2, A2 and A3, with a PEQ-15/LA-5 version coming late summer 2017.

You can learn more about the Laser Emitting Aiming Fixture on the Railscales website.

From the item description:

Fixed Iron Sight for D-Bal & PEQ15 Lasers. Hard mount to your laser and clean up valuable rail space by eliminating your folding front sight. Co-Developed with Sage Dynamics for the NVG end user. Just mount to your laser, and adjust your rear windage to your Red dot.

•CNC Machined

•6061 T6 Aluminum

•50/200 preset elevation zero

•Featherweight 0.2oz

•Orbital Grey Type 03 Hardcoat

•Includes Mounting Hardware

•Weight savings with LEAF™ installed:

•Troy 1.3oz, Magpul Pro 1.3oz, KAC 1.1oz , MBUS 1oz

•Pic slots regained by folding front sight removal:

•Folded Down – 7 Deployed Up – 4

•Folded Down – 5 Deployed Up – 3

•Folded Down – 6 Deployed Up – 4

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Mad Duo, Breach-Bang& CLEAR!

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