tomorrow is week 4 waiting for my bb....any ideas...

I picked up an ADS Alpha upper/lower and a Rock River parts kit. It's time to get the tools and get started!

cdaggie, was there a video link for the upper too? The page deatsman linked to doesn't have full upper assembly instructions that i saw. Is it just late and I missed them?

No. There's not a video that I saw of the upper assembly. I was looking as well. However, there are directions of how to install the barrel and a handguard though which helps some. I just got my RRA lower parts kit w/NM 2 stage trigger in the mail. Looking forward to putting in together. And I'm sure anything we run into with putting something together with the upper, there's someone on here that can give answers.

post here if you guys need help or shoot me an email(in profile)

Thanks, cdaggie. Hey anyone who knows where the upper instructions are I would greatly appreciate a link. I promise you that I have looked, but I probably missed it. Hopefully there is a nice video of that one as well.

is your upper stripped? no forward assist or dust cover or do you just need to install the barrel?

www.midwayusa.com/midwayusa/StaticPages/pdf/Instructions/AR-15%20Varmint%20Rifle%20Instructions.pdf

This should cover everything.

[This message has been edited by deatsman (edited 5/3/2008 10:14a).]

Yeah, I have a black (although to me it looks grey) ADS stripped upper/lower. I have a Rock river stripped lower parts kit, and a two-stage trigger kit. I know that I need a barrel and stock, but I'm such a newb that I don't even know what else, much less how to assemble it. Also, is a barrel wrench absolutely necessary? I thought I saw someone mentioning a strap wrench but perhaps I should just go buy the barrel wrench.

Every site I look at seems to be out of stock of most things.

check out the Ohio hometown forum on arfcom....

most guys will share their tools and expertise for a six pack or just to teach a newbie

brother,

i'm having the same trouble. i cannot figure it out! half the sheet at every site is 'out of stock'! how do these people stay in business??

Towns, I have looked at the Bushmaster and RRA and other sites directly and they show as being in stock. Whether or not they're a good price....another story.

What all are yall looking for? If you're looking for parts you can definitly find them on the EE(Equipment Exchange) forum on ar15.com if not anywhere else. As for tools you should be able to find everything you need from either Midway or Brownells. I'm going to be buying my own tools because I'll more than likely continue to build more or change my rifle in the future. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong because my knowledge thus far comes from researching all the forums and sites, but all you really will need is:
-Armorers wrench(for barrel and stock assembly)
-Hammer and punches(for installing the numerous pins and such)
-Pliers/vise grips
-Screw driver
-Action Block and vise(for holding upper during assembly)


There are tons of other tools that can make assembly of certain things much easier but it can be done with that list I believe. A solid vise and an action block is a good thing to have to hold the upper while installing barrel and/or handguard.

I'm still trying to find where to buy a good action block, so deatsman if you know where to look let me know. And thanks for all the info you've already provided thus far, it's helped me tremendously.

Likewise, my email is in my profile if anyone has any questions or needs help.

If you can find someone local that has a C&R FFL that is on file with Brownells or Midway, they can order stuff and get the dealer discount. You can save quite a bit of money on tools a parts this way.

So, if I want to shoot a bit further out, is an 18" barrel worth the accuracy difference over a 16"? Assume they're both stainless.

there is a thread here that says the difference is negligible. it would probably be a huge pain to find it, though.

The main advantage I see to an 18" barrel is you can get the full length rifle gas system. The rifle system is believed by many to be more reliable and have less recoil.

Found a picture on AR15.com that shows the amount of pressure going into the gas port with different length systems marked in blue. Also shows the velocity increase to expect with different length barrels.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=118&t=306487

mods, please add me to the Texags quick response tactical unit.

-Stripped Mega lower and A2 stock assembly ordered and in the mail from Cold War Shooters

-LMT 16" M4, chrome lined upper unit with A2 flash hider, LMT charging handle, and LMT BCG ordered from Bravo Company

-RR LPK and winter trigger guard ordered from some dude on Auction Arms

-LMT BUIS ordered from random weirdo on ar15.com

-Either rails or FF tube to be picked up from Talon Arms later this week.

I expect to be ready for action by next week for sure!

p.s. are pony tails, beer guts, velcro shoes, intimate knowledge of Dungeons and Dragons, tactical vests, and other staples of your typical texags thread-posting nerd necessary for entry to the unit?

congrats Towns. I hope to be completing an SPR soon.

"So, if I want to shoot a bit further out, is an 18" barrel worth the accuracy difference over a 16"?"

There is no accuracy difference due to barrel length, only the quality of the barrel. I have a 10.5" that will out shoot most folks 20".

The longer tube will give you higher velocity and the difference between a rifle length gas system and a carbine is very real in terms of recoil sensation and durability. For a general purpose rifle the 18" is the way to go, IMHO.

PP

quote:

---

The longer tube will give you higher velocity

---

But, doesn't this translate into better accuracy, and with regards to hunting, more damge due to bullet yaw, at longer ranges? I think I am going with the 18" Noveske barrel and I appreciate your response.

Accuracy results from a combination of rifling twist paired with the correct bullet weight, condition/grading of the bore, and how the barrel likes/dislikes certain bullets. If you get the perfect combination and remove all human and environmental factors (i.e. use a machine rest, no wind, etc.) it will land bullets on top of each other time after time. It's when you add in all the other stuff (trigger pull, flinching, wind, not knowing you bullet drop at range [which is where velocity {which itself is a combination of powder charge, bullet weight, and barrel length} comes into play], heartbeat, sight picture, etc.) that accuracy begins to suffer.

Besides velocity, the biggest impact of barrel length is kinetic energy transferred to the target. Much more KE transferred to the target at range from a M855 62 gr. bullet from a 20" barrel than a 14.5" or 10.5", since the muzzle velocity is higher out of the 20" than the other two. KE = 1/2 mv^2

Thanks Log. I think I understand that. It would seem that I would appreciate the 18" barrel a bit more than the 16" barrel assuming the qualities were the same.

What Log said...

Accuracy is the ability to place the projectile in the same place time after time. This is a function of the physical characteristics of the barrel and bullet. Not of velocity or of barrel length.

For the sake of discussion...If you are shooting open sights, which I'm sure you are arent, then a longer barrel with its longer sight radius (the distance between the front and rear sight) would be easier to shoot more accurately. But this would be a function of the longer sight radius...which is a benefit of the longer barrel, not because of the longer barrel...many folk get these two concepts confused.

I think you will be very happy with your Noveske 18". Noveske tends to be very back ordered...sometimes up to 3 months. I will suggest White Oak Armament as a very good alternative.

PP

Anyone have one of these or know a reason why I shouldn't get it?

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=178188



Command Arms Buttstock Assembly 6-Position Collapsible AR-15 Carbine Synthetic Black

Also, are there any really solid longer range type scopes that can be had for cheap?

[This message has been edited by BigBrother (edited 5/9/2008 12:55p).]

Meh. IMO, CAA gear is the suck. Looks like crap and doesn't really provide anything that a basic collapsible stock doesn't. If you are wanting to step up to a better collapsible stock, I would go with a Magpul CTR or VLTOR Modstock. I've got both and love them.

As far as scopes, check out the Super Sniper.

http://www.swfa.com/c-231-super-sniper-rifle-scopes.aspx

[This message has been edited by Log (edited 5/9/2008 7:37p).]

^
^
2nd the CTR; have one and won't use anything else now. The VLTOR is a good unit too, but I love the CTR.

CAA = Commie Arms, not Command Arms
TAPCO = CRAPCO

Aww, I ended the AR thread.

[This message has been edited by BigBrother (edited 5/13/2008 11:12a).]

Online manual

http://www.ep.tc/problems/25/index.html

Well, it still needs refining, but here we are. Thanks for the help all. I'd also really appreciate what I could cheaply do to improve the scope mount here. It probably looks pretty cheesy, but I'm not sure what to use and still have BUIS and decent eye relief. As it is, this is almost too far up.




This is my first use of photobucket...hope I can get it to work properly.



[This message has been edited by BigBrother (edited 5/17/2008 5:45p).]

What brand of upper and lower is that? I'm digging the grey color and have been thinking about doing a build with retro grey.

Also, you need to get that mount off the rail. It should only be attached to the upper receiver, in order to get the best accuracy. These are a bit pricy, but I would suggest the Larue version:

http://stores.homestead.com/Laruetactical/Detail.bok?no=30

Armalite also has a good mount that is less expensive but still good quality:
http://www.armalite.com/ItemForm.aspx?item=EX0027&Category=a14c8168-f1cf-4f11-8859-bafe17a66e1e%20&ret_url=Categories2.aspx?Category=a14c8168-f1cf-4f11-8859-bafe17a66e1e

Just make sure you get the right size for your scope (1"/30mm).

Thanks for the advice Log. I spent quite a bit on this gun so I'm thinking that Armalite link looks better. It's an ADS upper/lower. I got it at a local shop and I haven't seen another one so maybe it was custom made or I don't know. I was really worried how it would look, but it matches the barrel fairly well.

Killed a piggy last nite with TAP at about 30 yards. I love my AR.

i called cmmg today...
my rifle should be shipping tomorrow, they are going to include a little something special for losing my order twice (im hoping its an acog or an eotech)

I wouldn't get my hopes up...a "little" something special. Prolly a hat or something. Keep us posted though, would like to know how it turns out.