changing an ar-15 upper

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Mooseman

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My friend called me with a question and I'm not sure how to answer him so I thought I'd gather some opinions.

He bought a used colt ar-15 with the carry handle attached to the upper which I suppose makes it an a1 or a2

He wants a flat top so he can put some gizmos on it.

would he be better off getting a stripped colt a3 upper and swapping parts or should he sell the existing upper intact and buy a used colt upper in the configuration he wants?

personally I think he should take it to the range and put a few hundred rounds through it before he changes anything but that's not what he wants to hear.
 
Even though its a Colt, he is going to have a limited market in selling that complete upper because everyone else wants gizmos on their rifles too. I would say buy a stripped upper and swap everything and keep the original upper in case he ever wants to go back.
 
Shoot it, keep it as is and get a flat top later. Otherwise, switch out parts.
 
I'd swap it out and sell the Colt upper on gunbroker or the like.

People pay crazy money for Colt parts.

BSW
 
First, he needs to be aware the front pin hole is likely a different size, and he'll need an adapter to use a non-Colt Upper on it. Colt used a larger pin size on Commercial models until about 2000(?) to prevent swapping easily to full auto configurations.

He's much better off keeping it complete for value. If it's not his cup of tea, sell it and buy or build what he wants. But first he should recognize the value of what he has, especially if it's a lighter carbine model.

personally I think he should take it to the range and put a few hundred rounds through it before he changes anything but that's not what he wants to hear."]personally I think he should take it to the range and put a few hundred rounds through it before he changes anything but that's not what he wants to hear.

Sometimes you just gotta tell them the truth. ;) he should see how he honestly feels about it instead of changing it off the top.

One of my ARs is a pre-ban A2-sight Colt 6530 Lightweight sporter - fixed A2 upper, 16" A1 profile (lightweight, aka "pencil") barrel. By far my favorite gun to hold, handle, carry, and shoot.
 
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