If you open my safe, you’ll think you have opened a bag of M&Ms. You’ll see red, green, and blue rifles crammed in a small space. My eyes have become numb to all black or FDE firearms, so I paint them. With my latest AR build, I was looking for something interesting that would make it pop. When I came across WOOX’s Vigilante AR furniture, the chocolate-like American walnut pulled me in.
The Build
The cornerstone of my AR build is a NEMO Arms Small Frame AR Full-Ambi Billet Receiver Set. Their Battle-Light rifles are built upon these receivers, which are CNC machined from billet 7075-T6 aluminum. I was inspired to do this build after shooting a Battle-Light on a hog and coyote hunt. The advantage of a CNC machined receiver over a forged receiver is the freedom to sculpt the exterior. In this case, the high and low lightening cuts create a hard-edged topography that complement the soft edges of the WOOX furniture.
I utilized a variety of Magpul accessories to complete the build. I like ambidextrous controls, so I added the AR ESK ambidextrous safety selector and B.A.D. Lever. The B.A.D. Lever to allows me to release the bolt with my trigger finger. I installed an M-Lok Hand Stop Kit on the forend to have an indexing point for my support hand. For back up sights, I mounted the MBUS Pro Offset sights. To mirror my bolt-action precision rifle, I chose Timney Triggers’ Calvin Elite trigger for the AR. A Trijicon MRO SD would serve as my optic.
Vigilante
For the build, I ordered the Vigilante kit with stock, grip, and 11-inch handguard, it retails for $669, with 9- and 14.5-inch handguards also available. Pulling the parts out of the box had me brimming with anticipation. The black anodized finish of the metal components and warmth of the American walnut are as classy of a combo as black and gold. Furniture is a suitable descriptor for WOOX AR components, and a WOOX-adorned AR will look natural next to a handcrafted wooden table or leather smoking chair. Wood has depth and character that paint can’t match, at least on a rifle.
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The sexiest piece of the kit is the Vigilante stock. No matter what angle you look at, the lines and contours flow from one side to the next. It’s like it was initially carved out of clay, the way automakers design car bodies. The swooping ridge of the walnut trails from the low end of the stock across the aluminum upper. Even the rubber butt pad looks special. The corners are rounded and the internal compression lattice is exposed. Weighing 1 pound 6 ounces, the stock is a little hefty but worth the visuals.
However nice the exterior, I was curious how the wood was attached to the upper stock. Removing the butt pad’s two Torx screws revealed a dovetail joint interlocking the wood to the metal. This structural integration is as secure of a connection as you can get. A large screw next to the retention pin knob serves a reinforcement. Other quality touches include the brass threaded inserts that the butt pad screws screw into. Brass inserts minimize splitting or cracking and offer a more stable lockup than a wood screw.
Two M-Lok slots are found on the sides of the stock along with QD cups. Another nice touch includes two leaf springs on the inside of the upper stock where the buffer tube rides. They remove any play there may be between the stock and buffer tube. Installing the stock is as simple as pulling the large metal knob holding the retention pin.
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There’s nothing fancy about the pistol grip, but it is still elegant. The grip angle is more vertical than a standard A2 AR grip, which is common for most aftermarket grips. The backstrap is slightly contoured to fill the hand and the bottom of the front strap has a flared edge to cradle the pinky. On each side of the grip, you’ll find textured panels.
Like the stock, the 11-inch handguard feels sculpted. The contours rise at the receiver end and the flow toward the muzzle. The top is internally channeled for the gas tube. At the end of the muzzle, its profile looks a shark’s mouth about to chomp down on a tuna.
The handguard not only looks sweet, it’s structurally solid. The walls are .325 inches; there’s no flex to it. Inside the handguard is a steel barrel nut that attaches to the handguard via 6 screws. The handguard with the nut weighs 14 ounces.
M-Lok rails are flush fit at the 3, 6, and 9 o’clock positions. Like the butt pad, the rails are screwed into brass threaded inserts. The gold-hued brass enforces the kit’s elegance. Sitting atop the forend is a short length of Picatinny rail. Like the stock, the metal and wood are partnered via a dovetail. Two screws lock the rail into the dovetail. Everything is precisely fit with, with little to no gaps where metal meets wood. The wood has a consistent grain with a satin finish.
Installation
With only a single retention pin to retract, installing the buttstock should be as easy as pie. It wasn’t. The pin wouldn’t retract no matter how hard I pulled the knob. The issue was that the hole that the knob sits in was slightly small. Most likely the wood swelled a little, which trapped the knob. A tap from a rubber mallet jostled it free from the hole. Once the stock was installed, the knob went back into the hole and continued to be difficult to pull. Luckily this ended up being a minor hiccup,as the solution was to simply widen the hole a little with sand paper.
Although pistol grips should also be easy, some have a narrow channel and need prying to slide on. Not so with the WOOX, as it slid on perfectly like it was custom cut for the receiver.
I’ve had my fair share of wrestling matches with handguards to get them to fit on the first try. It’s typical with barrel nuts that have a pass-through gas tube. You not only have to locate the right hole to center align the gas tube, but you also must clock it in the right rotation so that the handguard screws align. It turns into trial-and-error process where you remove and replace the gas tube and handguard until you all are timed well. Fortunately, the Vigilante barrel nut is dotted with closely spaced holes, and the gas tube is not a pass-through type. I torqued the barrel to 50-foot pounds, and the handguard holes were perfectly aligned.
When it came to attaching an M-Lok compatible Picatinny rail for a QD sling attachment and the hand stop, it also went effortlessly. The gap between the M-Lok rail and the wood below was large enough to allow the nut to turn freely in the space. Years ago, when instealled a WOOX 10-22 stock, the gap was smaller, making it more difficuly to get the nut to lock up. There were no issues like that one to be found here.
I initially installed a black port cover, but decieded that a wooden one would look sweet. I grabbed Magpul’s Enhanced Port Cover in FDE and colored it a reddish brown to match the American Walnut. At a glance, it looks real, but more importantly, it ties all the wood together.
Handling
Once assembled, the AR looked beautiful and classy. Good looks are not enough though; I was curious how it felt and handled. One of the most notable things about the build is how solid its construction felt from butt pad to muzzle brake. The stock doesn’t rattle thanks to the leaf springs contacting the buffer tube. There was no perceptible flex in the handguard when I squeezed it and the barrel together. When I grabbed only the barrel and rocked it back and forth, the gap between the gas block and handguard stayed the same.
One of the advantages of wood is that it is warm to the touch when compared to aluminum. This was noticeable in 50-degree temperature where the butt stock upper felt chilly in comparison to the handguard. If you live in a cold climate, look at getting the Vigilante Leather Cheek Rest ($24) to buffer the cold metal of the upper stock.
The ergonomics of the grip and handguard are just right. However much I prefer beefier grips, the Vigilante grip is contoured nicely and the pinky shelf is an excellent indexing point. The outside circumference of the handguard was comfortable for my medium-sized hands. The textured panels on both components provide plenty of traction.
I expected the Vigilante furniture to make for a heavy rifle. It came in at 8 pounds, which is as light as a skeletonized AR I have.
Summary
Choosing the WOOX Vigilante furniture gave me chocolate M&M to add to my colorful collection of firearms. However nice the outcome, I’m not sacrificing beauty for functionality. The NEMO-WOOX build handles as nicely as my other premium ARs, it just looks more elegant. More importantly, quality permeates throughout the details, and it doesn’t sacrifice functionality for looks.
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