Ar 15 Lower. good better best?
what is the best lower and why? they all seam like the same to me.
0
-
As a very general rule, you get what you pay for. Those who make lowers for gov/mil contracts comply with mil-specs in the contract. AR15.com has more information. 0 -
You get what you pay for sometimes. I see no feartures that divide one lower from another. I.E. Wal-Marts "Great Value" Butter is made on the same line as " I Cant Belive Its Not Butter" and " Country Crock" but prices will vary. Is it the same with lowers? 0 -
thanks 0 -
Just to add to nwcid link. My most recent RRA lower is not made by CMT. I don't know who made it. CMT rough mills the magazine pocket, then broaches the pocket the rest of the way. The new receiver has the magazine pocket EDMed. There are other slight differences in the machining, that is the major difference though. Along with the name, serial, fire, and safe are milled in and not roll marked.
I am sure if someone post about it on AR15 the flame war would break out.0 -
Well, actually, you get what you pay for, sometimes less.
There ARE differences. If you want to buy a Hesse/Vulcan/Blackthorne, that will quickly become clear to you. Especially if you find that the holes aren't drilled where they are supposed to be.
Most of the rest are serviceable. Some are made by more expensive methods, some are finished better, but finding which are really "milspec" may be difficult.
Shoff14 makes a good point; the specialty manufacturer who produced the receivers for a company last month may have been replaced by the time you get your part, so there's some element of chance. The lower receiver in an AR is not a stressed part, so it doesn't have to be strong; it just needs to hold everything together, in the correct place. Stick to a name brand, & you can't go wrong.
Neal0 -
Good: DPMS, olympic arms
Better: Bushmaster, rock river arms, Colt, CMMG, Armilite
Best: If you want best, you have to fit the upper and lower together, Which is what makes a gun tight.
Or you can just go the easy route and get one of those little orange plugs, Accu-wedges there called, and it make all but the worst made uppers and lowers tight.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Nwcid
http://northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=45914&highlight=AR-15+makes
wow! thats all new(s) to me....so bushy and dpms should be the same? I read one of the replies that said "no" that each co. had thier own specs....aren't they all basically mil spec.?0 -
As Neal(nmyers) stated, STAY AWAY from Hesse, Blackthorne, and Vulcan.
Good is Colt, Bushmaster, DPMS, RRA, Stag, S&W, Double Star, Olympic, and a few others, if you are buying New.
If you are buying used, loow for a PWA or Colt pre-ban lower.
Best0 -
To complicate this a *little* bit, they aren't all exactly the same.
Some have different external cosmetic features.
Is it worth another $X to you to have a death-skull inscribed on your AR-15 receiver or some other graphic? Not to me, but to some people it is. So there are COSMETIC differences.
There is at least one manufacturer that has an indentation for applying grip tape to the front of the mag well for people that like to put their support hand there. If you do, its a nice touch.
Some receivers are forged, some cast. Forged is better (though how much better and whether or not its worth the extra price is debatable). This will give you more info on that:
http://www.olyarms.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=30&Itemid=42
Some of them have different internal cuts that make it easier/harder to drop in auto sears. Most users will never try or care, though.
Some receivers have bevels on the inside front of the magwell for easier mag insertion, and supposedly there is some small variation in magwell size between the different manufacturers *possibly* affecting the fit of various magazines.
Also there is some variation in tooling between the different makers, with some makers leaving more "flash" or milling marks in different parts of the receivers.
But the bottom line is that they're mostly the same and the vast majority of shooters will never notice any difference between them.0 -
quote:Originally posted by jag
quote:Originally posted by Nwcid
http://northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=45914&highlight=AR-15+makes
wow! thats all new(s) to me....so bushy and dpms should be the same? I read one of the replies that said "no" that each co. had thier own specs....aren't they all basically mil spec.?
Jag, The only true Mil Spec lowers out there are made by Sabre Defense and Colt. Of course any original Armalite and Stoner m16 lower would be mil-spec. Some are closer to mil spec then others. You get into the High/low shelf lowers. Some have different finishes, although similar will have some variation. Some lowers are known to have tighter fits then others. One example would be RRA have tight fits, others have loser fits. They all work the same and do the same job. Some may not work with Pmags very well, others will work just fine.
Choose the roll mark you like and go with it and I am sure any lower will fit the bill and work just fine. Right now, its just a matter of getting one at pre obama prices, which it can be done.
The upper is where the money needs to be spent to get what you want depending on what you want. If you want a battle rifle, pay the extra to get a LMT, Sabre, Noveske, BCM, or Colt. If you want a plinker, buy middle of the road. If you want nail driver, buy one that will fit the bill.0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
11 comments