AR Stripped Lowers, Which One Do I Buy?

[littlered75]

What stripped lower do I need to buy? There are so many different brands out there. How is Essential Arms in Louisiana? It is forged and can be bought cheaper than any I have seen. I know cheaper is not always better, but is it any worse?

 

[rra_casper]

Never heard of Essential...I would advise against buying one unless you've seen one in person. I handled one at a gun show (wish I could remember the brand) that looked like someone had carved it out of dog poop with a pocket knife. They were asking I think $95.

My friend is VERY happy with his MEGA lower, people generally have nice things to say about Stag, and, well, for the price of a couple burgers and fries, you could bump up to Rock River or Bushmaster.

 

[taliv]

i've got a pre-ban essential arms (complete rifle) and two of my friends recently purchased essential arms stripped lowers and built rifles out of them. we're all quite pleased. the fit between the EA lower and a colt 20" A3 upper was very tight.

 

[Caimlas]

I'm a fan of Rock River Arms, which is essentially the same as a Stag lower. Benefit with Stag is that you can get a lefty lower if you want, though, and they're a bit cheaper.

RRA/Stag seems to be the preferred choice over at ar15.com.

 

[browningguy]

I've had a DMPS for a while, just picked up a Rock River today, both seem well made and nicely finished.

 

[Alex45ACP]

+1 for Stag.

 

[cabinetman]

EA lowers are great

I, too, have a preban underneath an SP1 upper and it's a wonderful shooter. EA actually stopped making them around the time of the AWB adoption but is now back in full swing. You can buy one of theirs for about $77. Here's their link: http://www.essentialarms.com/

Rome

 

[rbernie]

Armalite, Bushy, DPMS, RRA, CMT/Stag, LCW, Superior, Mega - all are known good and will do just fine. I've seen a few QA issues with Olympia (not quite drilled/milled to spec), but there are also those that swear by them rather than at them, so who am I to say? There are a few guys I know that have Doublestar, Ameetec, and LAR/Grizzly lowers and they are happy with them as well. I'm partial to LCW (Lauer Custom Weaponry) lowers at the moment, since I've been doing a bunch of different caliber builds and the LCWs are not explicitly caliber marked....

If you think that you'll get rid of the rifle someday, I'd suggest using a lower from a rifle manufacturer (Armalite, Bushy, DPMS, RRA) rather than a parts manufacturer. You'll likely have an easier time selling the rifle if you do than if you used a lower from, say, Doublestar or Mega. It's not as if a lower from a parts-only kinda outfit isn't as good as one made by a well-known AR manufactuer; it's just that parts-only manufacturers such as Mega or LCW or DS have brand names that are only really known within the AR community and not within the broader spectrum of gun buyers at large.

 

[GlenJ]

Friend of mine just did a build with a Doublestar lower and it came out great.

 

[donkee]

I built 2 ARs so far, with 2 more on the way. I'm using Stag lowers. I got them for 89.00 each. They are good and tight and I recommend them highly...

 

[porkysan]

I just recently bought 2 consecutive serial numbered lowers from essential arms.
I've built up the 1st one....and had no issues with it.

I wouldn't hesitate to use their lowers again.

 

[gezzer]

I recommened the EA recievers. I have used them for years by the way so did Bushmaster.

 

[trickyasafox]

built off essential arms lower this past summer and just ordered one for myself and 3 of my friends got them as well. Great manufacturer. I would not hesitate to refer business to them or continue to give them mine in the future.

 

[DougW]

2 DPMS, 2 Stag, and 1 Rock River later, I can' t tell the difference. I am getting 2 more Stag's this week, mainly because of price (it's nice to have friends with a 01FFL!). Don't know yet what will be built on the 2 Stag's, but something will be.

 

[SingleStack]

Buy the RRA lower. You will not regret it.

 

[lycanthrope]

Stag is as good an anything out there......and costs less.

 

[El Tejon]

Another rec for Rock River, just bought 3 .223 and 3 9mm lowers Saturday from Rock River.

Buy them now because in a couple of months the fun begins.

 

[JTW Jr.]

one of my AR's has a RRA National Match lower and then other has a Fulton Armory lower , no problems with either.

 

[lycanthrope]

Lowers are the least of your worries......really.

 

[10-Ring]

I went RRA and have been very pleased. I know guys that have bought AMEETEC, STAG, Doublestar, Hi-Standard, CMMG, and Vulcan and all seem pleased w/ their final builds too...

 

[Essex County]

Have built three all Stags. Been very happy with them....Essex

 

[Correia]

$125 is my regular price on Stag. We use them for all of our custom builds now also.

 

[MAUSER88]

Just built three using Superior Arms lowers. Went together simply.

 

[Lambo119]

I have had good luck in the past with Olympic lowers. My rule is no matter what always use forged not cast. I have built about twelve over the years and not one problem.

 

[ocabj]

Lowers are the least of your worries......really.

Thank you for saying this because that's what I was going to say. Spend the $100 for the Stag and worry about the important stuff. Your barrel and trigger are far more important.

The only thing you need to worry about when it comes to a lower is if it's a Colt with a sear block. Those you don't want. Trust me. Pain to remove.