How to Build an AR-15

[ghengis86]

This thread came into existence from a previous thread (http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=170996). I was debating on if I should buy an AR on credit b/c i didn't have the cash on hand. Someone suggested I build/assemble my own for about half the price, so I thought, why not. I picked up a stipped lower at a local gun show and ordered a lower parts kit (which i finally got this week). I haven't decided on the upper yet (5.56 or 5.45) but i thought I'd get going posting some pics and tips.

First, I used these to sites exclusively when putting together my lower:
http://www.ar15.com/content/guides/assembly/lower/
http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=4&t=226782

Second, you really don't need any special tools. I used a cheap screwdriver set, a hammer and some locking pliers and maybe some needle nose pliers. You'll also need some electricians tape and masking tape to protect your receiver from scratching during assembly. Here's what I used:


Here's the parts kit list and my layout of parts.


And here's my stipped lower ready to go

[ghengis86]

I started with the magazine catch. Just drop it in:


Flip the receiver over and insert the spring over the catch:


Push the mag release button on and thread it till its flush with the receiver. be careful not to tighten too hard, which will scratch the receiver. I didn't do the final tightening of the button until i had more put together, but now is as good a time as any. push the mag release button into the receiver with a cheap screw dirver and on the other side of the receiver, spin the latch a few times and reseat it. its all personal preference as to how far you want the button sticking out, but you at least need to have the base of the button seated inside the cut out on the receiver. here's how mine looked when i was satisfied:

[ghengis86]

Next up: Bolt catch.


I used the locking pliers method so i put some painters masking tape on the receiver (its all i had laying around). Also, i did use some lube to help slide the roll pin in. first, frop the spring into place.


next put the detent in;


i then placed the roll pin into the right side hole. you can get the first mm or so into the hole by hand (that's what she said), since the roll pin is tapered ever so slightly on either end. be careful not to bump the receiver too hard or it will fall out.


next, place the bolt catch into the grove and align the bolt catch hole with the roll pin. I actually pressed the roll pin in using the locking pliers until it just about came through the first hole. then i installed the bolt catch and pressed it the rest of the way in:

[ghengis86]

Next up; front pivot pin. This was a bitch until I figured out that i needed to make sure the hole for the spring was thoroughly cleaned out. As you can see from this pic, this is how far it went in to begin with:


I took one of my small screwdrivers and rammed it down a couple times. I could hear and feel the small pits of aluminum left over from the milling/drilling process. this is how far the spring went in after i cleaned the hole.


now this is the only tricky part of the assembly to be careful not launch the spring across the room. have a small flat head screwdriver close at hand as well as the actual pivot pin. use the detent to compress the spring into the hole. I just used my finger. Then, carefully slide your screwdriver in between your finger and the detent, holding the detent/spring in place now with the screwdriver. Next, grab the pivot pin and start it into the hole. as you slide the pivot pin in, pull your screwdriver out and the detent will snap into place on the pivot pin.


That's the hardest part! Grab yourself one of these and get ready to finish up;

[ghengis86]

trigger gaurd; very easy/simple, but you have to be careful not to break the ears off when you're pressing the roll pin into position. I used the vise grip method here too and i only pressed when the trigger guard was in between the ears. snap the trigger gaurd into pisition (it only goes in one way with a spring loaded detent).


again, i was able to get the roll pin in with hand presssure to start it (handle it carefully or it will fall out) and begin pressing the pin into the holes. you will have to align the trigger guard with the pin.


press it into place a little at a time and you're done.

[ghengis86]

place the trigger spring on the trigger and insert the selector spring into the cutout.


place the trigger into the receiver and place the selector on the trigger with the cut out on the selector set above the selector spring.


take a sip of your drink b/c this step takes patience and wiggling; not difficult but frustrating because of the two springs involved with compressing everything just enough, but not too much. align all the holes of the selector and trigger with one hand and wiggle the trigger pin through with the other. I started on the left side and inserted the longer, unmarked side of the pin in first. sorry, forgot to take a pic of this, but it requires two hands and my wife was ticked i was playing with my gun and not her.

[ghengis86]

next put the hammer spring on the hammer:


place the hammer into the receiver as shown. be careful to make sure the long ends of the hammer spring rest on the trigger pin.


again, take another sip of your drink, compress the hammer spring until the holes are aligned and press the hammer pin into position; it will take some wiggling while compressing the spring. again, i went from the left side, with the long unmarked end of the pin first. this is also the only step where I needed my hammer. the pin went almost all the way in, but wouldn't got the last few mm. one gentle tap with the hammer and that was that.

[ghengis86]

you can check to make sure your trigger works properly, but be careful not to let the hammer hit the bolt catch; it can damage the hammer and holt catch. I just checked for proper operation by keeping my thumb in contact with the hammer each time i pulled the trigger.


cock the hammer back and slide in the safety/fire selector.


then insert the detent into the hole on the other side.

the left side of the safety/fire selector had to be held off the receiver by a mm or so for the detent to hit correctly. it did not sit flush for me.


I actually placed the selector spring into the handle grip and then made sure to insert it into the detent hole on the receiver.



put the lock washer on the grip screw, screw the grip into the receiver and that's it!

[ghengis86]

you should have about half of your drink left. pick up the glass and marvel at your handiwork!



this took me approximately 45 minutes, mainly because my computer was in another room and i kept running back and forth to make sure i had things correct. this was very easy. I'll add pics for the stock when i get it. same with the upper. any suggestions, comments, tricks, tips and techniques are welcomed. i can go back and edit if i need be on my steps.

[Madcat455]

What do you figure total cost will be, for the completed rifle?? I've been considering this option.. but if the savings isn't that much... I'd just buy one pre-assembled.


Did you go with any "special" parts?? Or did you just stick with basic "production" parts?

Thanks.. looking good!!-

[ghengis86]

so far, the receiver was $180 and the LRPK was $55. So i'm in it for a total of $235. Before this shortage, stripped lowers were ~$120 i guess. I can get a 6 position collapsible stock at my gun store for about $45, but I'm checking on gunbroker.com for something cheaper. I can get a new in 5.45 for ~$500 so that would put the total cost at $780. if i go with 5.56, I can pick one up for $400 for a total of ~$680. The money saved will pay for at least a case of 1,000rds of ammo, so I figure if I put it together myself, i get a free case of bullets as opposed to being able to afford the gun and no bullets!

[ghengis86]

oh, and not special parts yet. i may get a match trigger in the future, but for now i just want something that works.

[amy31416]

I vote for you as RPF'er of the day, and even of the month.

[Doktor_Jeep]

Out Farking Standing!

The most expensive part, I think, would be the upper receiver. They used to cost around $450, but it appears that prices are doubling.

Now, if you can turn your own barrels and post that I will take you home and let you date my sister.

[Kalifornia]

I have a 5.56 multi lower waiting for parts, but was hoping to buy from the same mfg as the lower (dpms) for consistency. DPMS is backlogged 4-6 months, so I may have to piece this thing together patchwork.

whered you get the lower kit from?

also, anyone know where I can find an Armalite or DPMS AR-10 stripped lower near seattle for under 300 bucks?

[ghengis86]

I have a 5.56 multi lower waiting for parts, but was hoping to buy from the same mfg as the lower (dpms) for consistency. DPMS is backlogged 4-6 months, so I may have to piece this thing together patchwork.

whered you get the lower kit from?

also, anyone know where I can find an Armalite or DPMS AR-10 stripped lower near seattle for under 300 bucks?

I got my lower parts kit from rguns.net for $55 each from DPMS. I ordered them 12/8/08 and just received them monday. i bought three and sold one on gunbroker.com already for $110.

[Kalifornia]

I got my lower parts kit from rguns.net for $55 each from DPMS. I ordered them 12/8/08 and just received them monday. i bought three and sold one on gunbroker.com already for $110.

craziness. I guess Ill be waiting a while. I refuse to pay gouge pricing, particularly since the only thing that wont be manufactured if they reinstate the ban is the stripped lowers. Which of course, is why Im looking for an affordble .308 lower

[bg1654]

I'd be interested on information about a reasonably priced DPMS .308 lower as well, but in the SW ohio/indiana/kentucky area.

[ghengis86]

craziness. I guess Ill be waiting a while. I refuse to pay gouge pricing, particularly since the only thing that wont be manufactured if they reinstate the ban is the stripped lowers. Which of course, is why Im looking for an affordble .308 lower

good idea. but remember, there's no such thing as price gouging. we live in a world of scarcity. high prices indicate a low supply and high demand and signal producers to add supply to the market. it also signals consumers to re-evaluate their needs verus consumption. gas stations weren't allowed to raise their prices in the south this summer and they ran out of gas. there wasn't enough profit margin available for companies in other states to ship gas into the short states, so everybody suffered. there was no incentive to produce more gas or at least ship available supplies to where it was needed.

likewise, if prices weren't allowed to rise on stripped lower receivers, there would be no incentive for any producer to increase their output of stripped lowers. but, since lowers are going for a premium and profit margin on them has increased significantly, why wouldn't a producer churn out as many as possible to take advantage of the high price? as the supply gets caught up with demand, prices will return to a more normal level as consumers can be more descriminating in what they pay for an item that has returned to abundance (as you are doing).

the only moneky wrench in this is that if the AWB makes it difficult for one to obtain the rest of the gun. having 10 stirpped lowers means nothing if you can't have anything to pin to the top! then the prices for uppers will really skyrocket.

[ghengis86]

I vote for you as RPF'er of the day, and even of the month.

Out Farking Standing!

The most expensive part, I think, would be the upper receiver. They used to cost around $450, but it appears that prices are doubling.

Now, if you can turn your own barrels and post that I will take you home and let you date my sister.

thanks gents. depends on what your sister looks like...

prices are getting ridiculous though

[Kalifornia]

good idea. but remember, there's no such thing as price gouging. we live in a world of scarcity. high prices indicate a low supply and high demand and signal producers to add supply to the market. it also signals consumers to re-evaluate their needs verus consumption. gas stations weren't allowed to raise their prices in the south this summer and they ran out of gas. there wasn't enough profit margin available for companies in other states to ship gas into the short states, so everybody suffered. there was no incentive to produce more gas or at least ship available supplies to where it was needed.

likewise, if prices weren't allowed to rise on stripped lower receivers, there would be no incentive for any producer to increase their output of stripped lowers. but, since lowers are going for a premium and profit margin on them has increased significantly, why wouldn't a producer churn out as many as possible to take advantage of the high price? as the supply gets caught up with demand, prices will return to a more normal level as consumers can be more descriminating in what they pay for an item that has returned to abundance (as you are doing).

the only moneky wrench in this is that if the AWB makes it difficult for one to obtain the rest of the gun. having 10 stirpped lowers means nothing if you can't have anything to pin to the top! then the prices for uppers will really skyrocket.

unless they change the law significantly, the stripped lower IS the rifle. the rest is just parts.

I agree that scarcity and demand drives pricing, but the smart demander doesnt fall prey. My money is scarce as well.

[Dieseler]

Congrats on the rifle man.

[ghengis86]

unless they change the law significantly, the stripped lower IS the rifle. the rest is just parts.

I agree that scarcity and demand drives pricing, but the smart demander doesnt fall prey. My money is scarce as well.

good points!

but couldn't they expand the import ban on rifle parts for rifles that are illegal to domestic rifles as well? that might be something to look for in the next AWB.

[eOs]

Good fraggin' job Ghengis, this thread is going to become very useful for me in the near future. Keep us posted.

[danberkeley]

Awsomeness.

[Madcat455]

Some1 should sticky this thread..... Hate to see it get buried after a week.

[Pericles]

I vote for you as RPF'er of the day, and even of the month.

+1

Let this be an encouragement to everyone. Additionally, you know how to replace a part should that be required.

[ghengis86]

+1

Let this be an encouragement to everyone. Additionally, you know how to replace a part should that be required.

that's it right there; if I can do this, anyone can. all the small parts laying out in front of you can look daunting, but it is seriously easy.

I have a 6 position stock I picked up from cableas ($65) and i put it on last night. but I just bought a 4 position stock on gunbroker.com for $35 last night, so I'm going to return the other one. complete uppers are extremely hard to find right now (12-16 week backorders) and they're moving up in price too ~$600. I'll get pics of the stock as soon as I can.

[Chosen]

Ghengis, thanks for the thread.

I would like to recommend something for you before you get an upper receiver. If you are to stay with 5.56 make sure you get a barrel which has a 1:7 twist. The reason for this is that it will allow you to use bigger grained ammo like 77grain MK262 and variants. Otherwise if you obtain the very common 1:9 twist rate on your barrel you will be relegated to 55 grain and maybe 60grain. But I think you will like the lethality of the larger grain. The 1:9 twists rate makes the larger grain bullets inaccurate and unstable.

16" barrel of course.

If you go with a 6.8spc upper, consider the 1:11 twist rate or definitely look for:

Minimum configuration: Spec II Chamber, 1x10 twist, 6-groove barrel.

Best configuration: Spec II Chamber, 1x11 twist, 4-groove barrel (or slower twist rate)

...with your upper. This will allow you to shoot combat load 110 grain ammo.

Congratulations. Please post more pics, nothing beats gun pr0n in my opinion.

AR15 As a Right Of Passage

[Chosen]

I think to honor Ghengis other RP supporters should build AR's.