Pin & Weld and Finishing on AR-15

[Daedalus]

I just picked up a Colt LE-6920 (http://www.colt.com/ColtLawEnforceme...ntCarbine.aspx) and now need to get it AWB compliant per our wonderful NJ firearms laws. That means a new stock, replace the flash hider and delete the bayonet lug. The stock is easy so I did that. The rest of the changes are why I am here.

The flash hider is an evil gun prohibited item, as is a threaded barrel unless the hider is permanently replaced with a compensator or muzzle brake. I like the linear compensator from Kies and have just ordered this in burnished stainless steel: (http://www.joeboboutfitters.com/Prod...-Blst%20Mstr22). The original flash hider should unscrew and this will screw on in its place.

The compensator needs to be pinned and welded - not something I can do with my two left thumbs. Also, the bayonet lug needs to be ground or milled off.

Here's the rub..... assuming I can get someone to pin & weld the compensator and get rid of the bayo lug... how do I get the finish of the new bits to match the barrel? Spray paint, Cerakote, bluing??? I really don't want to refinish the whole upper assembly if I can avoid it.

Are there any Cotepians or others that are in the biz that can do this? Any recommended shops?

Meanwhile, I am an evil terrorist because I have a flash hider

[DaFadda]

Daed... its done all the time here in CT, where we also have similar "evil gun" postban laws. By all means, the easiest way is to take it to your local gunsmith (full service of course).

Bayo Lug: He'll take it apart, pull off the front sight / gas block and either grind the lug off, or if you want him to, will put on a single, bi or quad gas block without the A2 front sight for you. So much for the bayonet lug. (btw... I'm not a big fan of the A2 front sight anyway) Can it be done by leaving it on the barrel? I'm sure it can, but you better have a good solid vice to hold it. Much cleaner to remove and replace. I would be leery of having a hand held grinder that close to my barrel. Just me tho.... lol....

Flash Hider: If it is just screwed on, it should just screw off (if you live in a perfect world). If it's been pinned and "welded" the process is a bit more involved. In some cases, you have to cut away the flash hider, and may, depending on your cutting / chisel / prying skills... have to rethread the barrel to allow for a comp to be installed. The "pin and weld" is usually not a "real weld" as we think, but rather a filling of the pin hole with high temp solder or even a spot weld. I'm sure people here have seen full welds as well as spot welds...

Recoating: With the barrel off the reciever, a full service smith should have easy access to parkerizing. He'll simply repark the barrel. No need to repark the upper receiver. Cost around here to repark is about $50 or so, especially if he's doing other work at the same time. If the finish is Melonite, Tennifer, or one of the other new coatings.... its another story. I'm assuming the Colts are parkerized. In any case.... on a Colt? I wouldn't settle for over the counter bluing. I'd have it done. You COULD send the upper to Colt to have the work done for you if you don't have a Smith you trust.... I would imagine the lead time would be long, but the work would be done right. Have no idea on their pricing. Give them a call.

Now... I MAY have a detail or two misrepresented here, but I've only seen it done once, and have friends who have described their experiences to me. Your experiences may vary.

hope this helps you to understand what's involved.

Da

[Roverron]

Any welding to our firearms should be only done in TIG. I would not use a mig welder to put on a muzzle brake, compensator, etc.
Instead of shipping and waiting a week or so and paying 45 bucks, local welder could do it in 5 minutes for min. charge.
I'm 99% sure it is 100% legal if you brought the entire upper receiver assembly to him and did the work. The lower receiver is what counts as far as becoming a firearm, if I recall.
This is what mine looks like

I'm building my own upper in a 14.5 barrel with a 2.0 comp. making it legal and not a SBR

[DaFadda]

You would be correct Ron. The upper is not the firearm. The lower is, which is why you can buy uppers and have them delivered to your home. I didn't think about TIG welding, but I would think you are correct there too (as far as welding). That said, I BELIEVE (but certainly can be corrected) that there is a special hi temp silver solder that is approved to fill in the pin after it has been set. Doing it that way alleviates a whole bunch of sanding /smoothing. Hi strength glues are definitely NOT allowed.

Was I right in the rest of my estimations?

Da

[Daedalus]

Thanks, guys. I know my limitations when it comes to being a skilled gunsmith. In fact, my highest level of skill in that arena is to make a phone call and write a check Mr. S. Colt would be clawing his way out of the grave should he get word that I was attempting any sort of work on one of his namesake products. Nope, I am definitely not about to tackle this one on my own.

We have a couple of reportedly experienced 'smiths here in NJ that can do the job right, at least according to what I have read and heard. Neither are very close so I would need to ship the upper to them (I'm sure I can do that as it was mailed to me at home), ask them to do their magic and then return mail to me. Like anything else, it is comforting to know that the guy working on your (fill in the blank) is recommended or at least a member of a group like COTEP where trusted advice is offered. I figured that as long as I must ship it out I can ship it anywhere, not necessarily in NJ. It does not much matter to me so long as I end up with a quality job at a fair (not cheap) price. I did consider a return to Colt but backed off for two reasons: the lead time and my preference for a linear compensator ( a non-Colt piece they may not want to deal with).

I'll be calling one of the in-state 'smiths today to see what I can arrange.

Thanks again for the meaningful responses.

Jack

[Roverron]

You are correct, Padre. I used a local welder that does TIG welding, it cost me a 12 pack, and took him about 30 min. total. Much cheaper than taking to a GS who'll charge about 45-50 bucks for the same thing. If I had found this, a Battle Comp 2.0

which is a muzzle brake/compensator, and I think looks cool I'd have had it welded on instead. http://battlecomp.com
If you've already got a 16" then you could get the 1.0 and be just fine as a screw-on device. However, with the 14.5 I needed the 2.0 to make it in the caliber I needed (6.8 SPC).

[Daedalus]

Following your expert advice - I contacted a local 'smith who will do all the metal bending and then Cerakote the barrel for me.

Glad you all talked me down from the ledge!

[Roverron]

Oh I'm not an expert but we do have lots of those on the forum. Glad it worked out for you. I had a great instructor, my older bro.