Finally got around to "building" my first AR -

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Janitor

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"Building" is really the wrong term, but I didn't purchase it in one piece. :)

A few weeks ago I picked up a DPMS Dissipator upper from a user on AR15.com - The barrel had been turned down to help balance the piece. It already had a Bushnell Holosight on it, but no BUIS.

At the last MN Collectors show, I got a new in the box DPMS lower.

So far, it's shooting pretty sweet. I'm getting about 1.5" at 50 yards, but I'm fairly sure that's me, not the rifle. To me, at that distance, the target's a vague black dot. I'd really need something more like a 4X optic to see how accurate this is. Reality is, that it's accurate enough for a CQB rig.

The upper supposedly had something like 400 rounds through it when I bought it. Since then, I"ve put 300 rounds through it w/o a burp of any sort. Well ... not true. On day one, first round, first magazine the bolt didn't go completely into battery and I had to tap the assist. I'm fairly sure I rode the charge handle back and it hasn't happened since.

I want to get some side sling mounts and a good sling, and of course I still need a rear BUIS.

I put some photos here: http://www.olegvolk.net/gallery/album20
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BTW - When at the range (in Burnsville, MN) this morning, I met a THR user. Unfortunately the evil dude with the .357 in lane 17 kept me from hearing his name correctly. :) It was nice meeting you - sorry I forgot your username. I like the Armalite you built.
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EBAR_13.sized.jpg


That is a very nice carbine! :)


I almost built a Dissy when the AWB expired. I put together an upper with a Bushmaster M4 profile barrel, but for some reason that I can't remember, I sold it before I even fired it. :banghead:

Now I wish I finished it.
 
On day one, first round, first magazine the bolt didn't go completely into battery and I had to tap the assist. I'm fairly sure I rode the charge handle back and it hasn't happened since.
The best way to avoid that is to never charge the gun with the charging handle. Pull the charging handle back while pressing the bottom of the bolt release to lock the bolt back. Push the charging handle forward to lock it, then thumb the bolt release to let it fly forward unhindered. It took me a while to get used to doing it that way, but it really does work much more reliably.
 
OK. There's just something about a Dissy that is cool. I may have to build one of those these days.
 
DMK said:
That is a very nice carbine! :)


I almost built a Dissy when the AWB expired. I put together an upper with a Bushmaster M4 profile barrel, but for some reason that I can't remember, I sold it before I even fired it. :banghead:

Now I wish I finished it.
Thanks! Maybe next time you have the chance to, you'll build one up.

As far as me 'riding' the charging handle back - I've been avoiding it just as you suggest. Well - jumping through more hoops to get the bolt latched open - thank's much for the clue. Not at all hard to get use to really. I got used to doing it that way on my pistols for the same reason. Just a more reliable feed on the first round.

I've been toying with the idea of putting an M4 profile handguard on it. I want to raise the Holosight a 1/4" or so and I'm thinking one way would be with the M4 hanguard, and a rail on that. Should end up about right.

Sides - with that 3"-4" or so of muzzle sticking out, it'd look cool. :D
 
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Janitor said:
I've been toying with the idea of putting an M4 profile handguard on it. I want to raise the Holosight a 1/4" or so and I'm thinking one way would be with the M4 hanguard, and a rail on that. Should end up about right.
If you want to get a backup rear iron sight, you may want to try it before you raise your Holosight.

I have a Holosight mounted right to my flattop midlength and it co-witneses perfectly with a rear ARMS #40. The little dot sits right at the tip of the front post and centered in the rear arperture. Perfect for me. Although some guys prefer the iron sights to sit down in the lower quarter of their electronic sight.
 
Janitor said:
BTW - When at the range (in Burnsville, MN) this morning, I met a THR user. Unfortunately the evil dude with the .357 in lane 17 kept me from hearing his name correctly. :) It was nice meeting you - sorry I forgot your username. I like the Armalite you built.
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Hi, Janitor!

It was a pleasure to meet you at the BPR; it's always nice to bump into fellow Highroaders here in MN!

I like the AR you were shooting; for it's size, I can't believe how light it was!

This is what I was shooting at the time:

M4_Tacpoint_01.jpg

M4_Tacpoint_02.jpg

After looking at your rifle, I'm taking a closer look at the Bushnell HoloSight!


DL
 
Yea! That's the rifle I was talking about. Nice.

If you want to look at a Holosight, you should take a looke at the EOtech 512 rather than a Bushnell like mine. The guts are similar, warrantee coverage is probably better, there's a "roll bar" on the mount to protect it, and it uses 'AA' batteries rather than 'N'. 'Cheaper Than Dirt' has them for about $350 - fairly average cost.

As far as how light my carbine is, about all I have to attribute that to is the turned down barrel. Other than that, it's a fairly normal rig. I want to find an accurate way to weigh it. I suspect they'd be a bit put off if I went to the produce section of the market and whipped out my EBR. :)

I added a profile photo of the Dissy to the gallery yesterday:

EBAR_53.jpg
 
DMK said:
If you want to get a backup rear iron sight, you may want to try it before you raise your Holosight.
I had originally thought that, but the reticle for the Holosight shows up on the top of the front post, not just above it. I suppose I could mess with the elevation adjustment on the post to modify that before I try raising the Holosight.

First things first. I need to get a rear BUIS and see what I've got going on.
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I love to build AR's
if I had the money I would build one every Month of the year
 
That RRA Dominator mount looks interesting. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much information on it out there. At least none that my searches are turning up. Anyone know how high it raises the Holosight?
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Janitor said:
I had originally thought that, but the reticle for the Holosight shows up on the top of the front post, not just above it. I suppose I could mess with the elevation adjustment on the post to modify that before I try raising the Holosight.
Yes, that's what mine does. If I center the tip of front sight in the rear arperture, the little dot sits right there at the center of the top edge of the front sight post (just like I put a spot of red paint at the center of the top edge of the sight). That's right where I'm focusing if I'm shooting with the irons.

If you are worried about the front sight getting in the way of your sight picture when shooting with the optic, don't. Keep both eyes open and focus on the target. Put the red "pipper" where you want the holes to be. You won't even notice the front sight unless you are looking for it or are closing your other eye.
 
Well there is always the railed gas block and maybe folding front sights....

I'm visually sensitive so I like a clean sight picture.

Model1small.JPG
 
DMK said:
If you are worried about the front sight getting in the way of your sight picture when shooting with the optic, don't. Keep both eyes open and focus on the target. Put the red "pipper" where you want the holes to be. You won't even notice the front sight unless you are looking for it or are closing your other eye.
Well ... since I don't yet have a solution in my hands, I'll be continuing to try and get used to it the way it is. I _do_ shoot both eyes open - always have - but still see that d##n front sight post when I shoot. Arrgh.

I wonder if this is partly due to vision problems that have been creeping in over the last few years. Maybe there's an issue with disparity of vision between the two eyes. Hmmmm.

No matter - I'll be shooting this the way it is for a while anyway. Maybe I'll get used to it.

If not, I found this Yankee Hill mount: http://www.botac.com/yhmeotechriser.html that looks to be exactly what I "need".
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DMK said:
Yes, that's what mine does. If I center the tip of front sight in the rear arperture, the little dot sits right there at the center of the top edge of the front sight post (just like I put a spot of red paint at the center of the top edge of the sight). That's right where I'm focusing if I'm shooting with the irons.
Yup, that's exactly the way the TacPoint on my AR is set up. The riser elevates the TacPoint so that the iron sights show up relatively unobtrusively in the bottom third of the field of view. With both sights correctly zeroed, the rod dot shows up precisely on the tip of the front sight post if I use the iron sights with the TacPoint enabled.


DL
 
Janitor said:
Well ... since I don't yet have a solution in my hands, I'll be continuing to try and get used to it the way it is. I _do_ shoot both eyes open - always have - but still see that d##n front sight post when I shoot. Arrgh.
Well, yea. I'm sorry, what I said implied that you won't see the front sight post. That's incorrect. I just meant that it shouldn't interfere with seeing your target and getting a shot. With practice you can put it out of your focus and out of your your mind. I just focus on the target, the front sight becomes a blur and I ignore it.

Of course, that is my preference. A lot of folks put their irons in the lower 1/4 of their optic's window and just shift down to use the irons.

Janitor said:
I wonder if this is partly due to vision problems that have been creeping in over the last few years. Maybe there's an issue with disparity of vision between the two eyes. Hmmmm.
Hmm, that's a thought. You are viewing the target with your left eye and your sight with the right. Your brain combines the two images in your head. I have some disparity between the two eyes (with the left being weaker), but it's not that far apart.
 
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