??? For all you Black Rifle builders
 

Yeah , i get to be the first to start a long gun thread!!!!

Ok as the title states i got a question for all you ar-15 guru's. Any day now i should be receiving my ar kit, and wondering what brand of lower receiver you would recommend or go with , if you were working off a very very tight budget. I have seen a few out there but dont know about their quality. I'll give a list of the ones i have come across with the price and you guys fill in your thoughts and exp with them.
Thanks in advance'
John


1. Del-ton $120
2. Spikes $100
3. aero percision $75
4. Sharps mil spec $75-$55
5. Double Star

Sorry I don't have an answer.

I bought my AR from Surplus Ammo & Arms out of WA. The lower receiver is their own multi-caliber version. The upper is a DPMS. It works great and was dirt cheap.

Thats where I get my Ammo.
I'm a AK guy so AR questions are for others.
Dave

They have good, cheap ammo.

I may be oddball but I do not put much emphasis on the lower as I do the upper (really the barrel). Really good uppers run 3 to 5 times the cost of a decent lower.

The lower needs to meet basic standards and A GOOD TRIGGER (contributes a lot to consistency of POI). Most 5.56 barrels are fairly decent in accuracy (around 1 MOA) and fine for most shooting unless you are into competition. Type of stock depends on personal preference/function, I am fine with A2 stocks.

Right now I am getting involved with the 6.8 in the AR15 format, getting ready to change from a 16" YHM barrel to an 18" Bison in hopes (?) of more velocity and accuracy for a hunting rifle. The 16" gets about 1 to 1.2 MOA and hope the Bison will be less than 1" (the Bison has a slower twist rate).

Already have 2 in 5.56, 1 in 6.8 and an AR10 in 308.

I need some schooling on the AK as I would like add one to my small collection.

good to see other ar guys in here, this will be my second build, i am using a del_ton mid length kit, its a heavy barrel, flat top upper. Should be a really nice all around shooter. whole gun for under $600. Cant beat that!!!
john

I've built many AR's with the lowers you listed above, except the Sharps.

Pretty much a lower is a lower.

Oh, and if you need any help give me a shout.

I also belong to the club that believes that when building an AR, lowers aren't nearly as important as uppers.

I've heard very positive things on 1,2,3,&5.....and nothing on 4.

Grizz

Thanks HC, and also Grizz. My last build i used all RRA stuff, but that was when i actually was making money. This time i got to be thrifty.
John

Did you accidently think that it said Rock Island instead of Rock River? :)

When i build my next AR, i was thinking either Spike's or Sun Devil, you might want to check out their site.


Ed

I would use Spike's or Essential Arms. It just depends if Spikes having a great sale. My dad live about 30 min from Spikes and he loves them. Essential arms is not far from me. EA lowers run around 115 and I know they are gtg and dont have excessive rollmarks and such. Very clean

I have used Spike's and Aero Precision. Both did what they were supposed to do. The Spikes had a slightly nicer finish. Both lowers fits pretty snug with an aero precision upper and with Del-Ton's uppers (only ones I have tried). It was kind of nice as the rattly sloppiness of my Colt was kind of a turn-off.

I am actually AR - free right now but the last AR purchase I made was a Spikes lower from AIM Surplus for $80. I bought it for my wife and filled the spider in with pink paint. She has bad shoulders so I am going to build her a lightweight. The recoil doesn't bother her but holding up the weight does.

I have a delton, plumb crazy, aero, and surplus ammo. Aero makes surplus ammo.

all 3 are superb pieces of kit for the money you will be happy with each. If you are building a 2000 dollar rifle maybe not. but sub 1200, yeah damn fine equipment.

Thanks for all the input guys, i went with the Delton lower to keep my ar all the same maker, i payed 100.11 out the door...
John

Sorry I am late to the game over here. I build custom AR's for competition and tactical at the LGS I work at, so if you need any help, have questions, or just need a sounding board, feel free to contact me. I also may be able to acquire certain parts at a decent price. Just because I own several, and build even more, doesn't mean I am an AR snob, you can build a good quality gun at a reasonable price. You can also build a top quality, top tier rifle for a higher price, but always build one you can afford, and afford to shoot. Skills are always better than gear...

Bill

Better late then never Bill,
Thanks for the support. I still have a couple of things i need to get on my build list. Castle nut wrench and the butt stock plate between lower receiver and 6 postion stock, so that i can attach a single point sling to it.
Other than that im ready to rock
BTW... i picked up a Mid Length Quad rail (alum) with enough rail covers to cover 2 of the four rail for a staggering $40.95 shipped to my door BNIB...cant beat that any where.

Little updat, last weekend i worked the local gunshow and picked up a couple more pisec for my biuld, castle nut wrench($6), sling plate($9) and and 2 magpul pmags($11 ea).Also just received my Del-ton lower yesterday, and i filled the DTI logo and the word "fire" on both sides in gold inlay. ASince this gun is gonna be desert tan on black , the gold inlay just seemed to fit the theme perfectly...pics to follow.
John
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...d/DTIlower.jpg

the finished product
 

Well, here it is, i just recieved the del ton kit, and had the rest of the parts painted and 4 coats of matte fininsh on them, so all i had left was build the lower, paint the upper,butstock and pistol grip. I used a paint camo pattern ihave bee using for about 4 years for my shotguns. I think it turned ut awesoe, now to put it thr its paces tomorrow.

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2.../arpics004.jpg
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2.../arpics001.jpg

Great work RI!!:)