Yeah, I'm going to kick down Model 1 Sales' doors and ransack their invoices to give you proof.
My sources are my fingers, my eye balls and my brain in observing parts with less than 200 rounds completely failing. Some with less. Bolts aren't suppose to snap in half after 500 rounds. Bolt catch face isn't suppose to be GOUGED out by the bolt face from dropping the bolt less than 20 times (yes, less than twenty). Nor should they be bent. How about properly made take down pins that do not have detent holes so poorly made that the detent pin becomes permanently captive? Time for a drill press!
Wrong length springs. Springs are questionable quality. Forgings with nasty amounts of flashing. Shoddy finish that comes off after 100 rounds on many critical parts. Many M1S and other kit makers bolts look like 3,500+ round count bolts you'd find in a Colt/Bushmaster except they've had 100 rounds. Out of spec carriers/bolts that leak gas. Roll pins out of spec that you need a 20 ton press to seat. Charging handles that are somehow thinner. Yes, I put my Colt CH next to my M1S charging handle and using calipers, the Colt was thicker and thus stronger. Amazing.
I will say this. A family member's M1S bought more recently has a bolt carrier that is impossible to distinguish from a Bushmaster or a RRA. Same color finish, smooth machining. Looks well made. Measures the same. Did not prematurely wear. As you can see, they source different parts at different times. It's your luck what you get. I guess they were buying from the same OEM that RRA/Bushy and others were at the time of that kit. Unfortunately, the loose gas key screws (ok ok, it's a kit gun, maybe that's part of the assembly) needed tightening. Barely any torque snapped one in half. Didn't bother doing the other one out of fear of sticking another one. Horrible. Upon inspection, the screw head looks just like the older crap pot-metal bolts they were including in their kits. Rough machining, cruddy finish. These had poor threads. I ordered some DPMS and Colt screws from Brownells. Now, this may sound like nitpicking to some, but even the GAS KEY screws for crying out loud show a difference in quality that is blatantly obvious. You'd have to be blind not to see. After having to remove the broken screw by drilling it out, the DPMS screwed in with the proper torque level without breaking. Colt was kept as a spare. Barrels? These are probably the most stable quality wise. But a recent kit has me thinking. A stainless varmint barrel that cannot shoot under 4moa despite using an entire plethora of known quality handloads and match ammo. Took off the flash hider, crown (or lack thereof) looked like it had been cut by a torch. This is no kidding. Gunsmith was shocked to see it. He resurfaced the entire muzzle and recrowned. Accuracy went from 4moa to 3moa. I won't make the claim, but I wonder if these guys source and buy the reject barrels (the ones that don't mic as uniformly down the bore) and sell them? Was that just a lemon? The one I had was an HBAR and shot better, but not as well as Colt, BCM or Bushmaster. Makes me wonder...I mean a company that skimps on the quality of 2-cent springs, pins and screws surely isn't above buying the accuracy rejects of some other brand if it saves them money.
Some people just have to say some foolish things like in another thread currently running with a similar subject. I'm the first person that detests paying 30% more for something that has 0% more quality. I don't like paying premium for a name. And in life, there's those situations where you can get something good for less and laugh at the suckers who paid more for nothing. But, that's a lot more rare than people think in the AR world. You do get what you pay for. That $600 kit is $600 for a reason. You get unknown parts of unknown quality. Some have great success, others have bolts snap in 500 rounds. Luck of the draw I guess. Luck of whenever that kit provider was sourcing good parts. (like when their supplier of pot-metal junk was running low). You can minimize that randomness by buying a good brand that works to keep a standard of quality. Sure, you can buy a top-notch AR that breaks on day one. S-happens. But, it will happen a lot less with a good rifle of a good make made of quality steel, cut/grinded/stamped/forged/cast properly, heat treated, finished right, and even tested by QC procedures. These guys were selling kits for $400 not long ago and they still have to make a profit, yet to buy the equivalent parts from a known source of quality is 50% more. What? Is Bushmaster/Colt and others rip off artists? I also refrain from regurgitating other people's information or misinformation. I report what I've personally experienced or have seen in person (friends gun at range).
One of these days, I'm going to compile a list with examples and even some photos of how many ways the kit guys cut corners. They've found a way to do it in nearly every single aspect of the rifle. Gotta make profit even when selling for $500.
Well, that's all for now. That's my overdone $0.02. It's your money folks. You know what it's worth.
