Ar Reciever: Which and Why?

[MountainBear]

I recently sold my first forray into the world of AR building and have recently had an overwhelming desire to build another one or two or ???
The last I built on a DPMS lower reciever after having horrific luck on a Mega Machine Shop lower (crooked drilled holes). I liked the DPMS well enough, everything fell together nicely (especially after the aforementioned Mega debaucle), and I was very happy.
I would like peoples opinions on which lower reciever to use for my next project. This does not need to be a match grade reciever, but something of enough quality to build a varminter on and put a plinker upper on as well.
Money is always a thought, not a concern, but a thought as I do not need to invest in a 500$ lower right now...

Any advise is always welcome and I will post pictures when I build the beast...

 

[el44vaquero]

The last 4 builds I've done have been on Stag lowers. I've never had any fitting problems with any of them.

 

[KC&97TA]

I've build 2 on CMMG inc lowers, with Rock River Arms everything else, both of them were build with out any problems. I paid $256 for 2 lowers, the finish matches RRA perfectly.

 

[dmftoy1]

I've had really good luck with Stag (2) and RRA (1). The Stag's used to be much cheaper than they are now. For my money I'd pick up the cheapest of the two (say $125 with the transfer fees) then add the RRA 2 Stage Lower Parts kit from Eaglefirearms.net for $140 and the buttstock of your choice. You'd be a little over $300 into a pretty nice lower.

Just my .02

Regards,
Dave

 

[Outlaws]

Are the LAR Grizzly recievers any good? I saw some for sale locally for $125 for the lower. I wasn't sure if they are any good though.

 

[Thin Black Line]

I've used RRA and Bushie. The B's haven't gone much below $180. I liked
the RRA because they were cheap, but good.

An FFL at a show this weekend was selling RRA "seconds" at the same
price I paid for a factory first just a few months ago. I noticed the
finish was a bit off and asked. It was then that he noted to me they
were "seconds." Other than the finish, and without actually trying to
build with it, I couldn't say what else might have been wrong.

There's always a certain amount of fitting involved with your lower parts
set and the receiver you get. Normally, it's the lower part and not the
lower that is out of spec such as a pin or spring being too long. However,
I did have to hit one of the pin holes with a drill on the RRA. The bolt
release lever is one that you'll want to make sure pivots freely on its
pin and fits easily into the side of the lower BEFORE you actually pin it
in place. Tight pins there and at the trigger guard requiring a hard
knock-out is not good on the aluminum --good way to break off the ears.

Some of the parts just have a little too much finish on them and a quick
hit with a file, etc will make it slide right in. It's common to snip a detent
spring for the tiny pins that hold in the bigger take down springs so both will
fit into the tiny holes (not the take down holes) in the lower. Snip the
spring rather than drill the hole deeper

The new Armalite lowers looked nice, but I haven't built with one yet.

 

[Roadkill]

I picked up a MEGA lower complete for $250 a while back. Excellent quality. I put a Colt SP2 Government upper with a 40X Springfield 1st Generation combat scope on it. I'm embarassed to shoot coyotes with it. Its like looking into a high definition 50" TV. The trigger is very good.

rk

 

[MAUSER88]

I recently built up a Superior Arms lower using Bushmaster parts. Everything went nice and smooth.

 

[Beren]

http://www.eaglefirearms.net/stag_arms.htm#Lower%20Receivers

 

[Bullet]

I used a Superior Arms receiver, on my 50 Beowulf upper. Very nice lower, fit and finish is great.

 

[lycanthrope]

Stag.

 

[BillL223]

Bushmaster works

I've used a variety of uppers, some factory, some my creation, but always on Bushmaster lowers. I've never had any problem with a BM lower and my total shooting has to be at least 15,000 rounds over the two lowers I used.

 

[mrmeval]

I want a silicon bronze lower and I want one of the ones that a fellow will custom engrave with my graphics and text.

 

[Nhsport]

I did a build on a stag and it is a great piece of work.
Something to consider other than price alone is resale value. If you buy a Stag,Bushy or RR you will have no problemns. If you buy some oddball brand just to save $20 or $25 it might go together fine but it isn't ever going to be worth what the top brands are.

 

[MountainBear]

I noticed when I sold the first AR I built, most people did not recognize DPMS as a manufacturer. The fact remains that this one will probably get sold when I find the next thing I "need" to add to the ever changing gun collection, so the RRA lower appealed to me as something people would recognize. I could at least tell them that they have contracts to supply to various gov't agencies. Maybe that would kill the deal though...

 

[rono]

I was think about building one using this..
http://www.ar15web.com/proddetail.php?prod=DPMSLR1

DPMS with 6 position stock. Priced at $220 doesn't look bad either.


Ron

 

[..]

Everybody can turn out a lemon, any lower currently sold over at arfcom will be fine. You'd be hard pressed to find one nicer than Mega, I have two and they are perfect. Not to mention the best log in the biz. Also have a CMMG which is flawless, and an Ameetec on the way.