boricua9mm
Member
I finally decided that I wanted to have an AR as a "truck gun." If you'd wish to debate the issues surrounding a "truck gun" then please feel free to do it on a new thread.
I wound up getting a "Premium" Palmetto State Armory upper with the FN manufactured 16" Cold Hammer Forged M4A1 SOCOM profile barrel (carbine length gas, no flats milled for the M203 - which is kinda weird). The upper also came with the 12" long Midwest Industries Gen 2. SS float free rail. Now, I've been a customer of PSA for several years and I watched them get into the AR game. I saw them have some teething problems, and I'm sorry to report that some such problems still exist. My upper was no exception.
With PSA, it's not only what the listed specs say, but also what they DON'T say. My "Premium" upper came with a semi-auto carrier and a bolt that is marked MPI, but not HP/HPT. One should question why bothering with MPI without performing the proof load testing. My own opinion is that it is done to save a few bucks, and the buyer who knows "just enough to be dangerous" won't question the actual testing therein; they're happy that it's marked at all. No worries, the BCG got tossed in my spare parts basket and replaced with a Spike's Tactical BCG. I've always had good luck with Spike's and I like the idea of supporting a local manufacturer of quality goods, Obama Panic Price Increases and silly M4Carbine.net drama be damned.
Against my better judgement, I test fired the upper for 200 rounds without going through the upper to verify it was assembled properly. Later that night, I was somewhat shocked at my findings. My brother used to joke "Don't trust anyone but your mother...and even then, check twice!"
Removing the handguard, I immediately noticed that PSA used two globs of what appears to be Red Loctite (it's possibly Vibratite or Rocksett) on the barrel nut knurling that provides a friction fit for the Midwest Industries handguard. Now, according to Midwest Industries, thread-locker is required for properly installing this handguard. The real head-scratcher is why PSA made no attempt to apply it to the whole knurled surface. Considering that the handguard is held in place by clamping pressure and the friction between the knurled barrel nut and the free float tube, you'd think that maximum surface area would be the smart way to go.
Moving up to the gas block was the real shocker. The gas block set screws were installed *just barely* finger tight! Considering we're talking about 26,000 PSI at the gas port, doesn't some torque seem prudent? Removing the screws revealed no thread locker whatsoever, and the barrel was not dimpled to give those screws a bite into the barrel steel. I degreased everything, used a center punch to dimple the barrel (not the best way, but it works), added red Loctite on the screws and installed them nice and tight.
Lately I've been more of a fan of lightweight profile barrels, but the CHF SOCOM barrel seems to shoot on par with my gov't profile (non-pencil) barrels. Since the tube weighs next to nothing, any weight issues associated with the barrel profile is cancelled out.
As a truck gun, black wasn't gonna work. I decided to go for a color scheme that splits the difference between urban camo and something more woodsy. Rustoleum green was laid down as the base coat and some primer gray was striped in some spots and misted all around to lighten it up. I gave it 3 coats of Rustoleum's Matte Clear coat. The end result is somewhere between green and the currently popular "disruptive grey." It wears the Midwest Industries panel kit with handstop, as well as the HK416 style sights from RobertRTG. I was worried that these sights would be too low, but they work great for me, and the sight picture is an almost seamless transition from my MP5.
Would I still buy that upper? For my project I would have done it again, however, for someone who is new to AR15s, I shudder at the thought of them getting an improperly built upper with the potential of shooting itself apart. Would a newbie strip off the free float tube and check the gas block installation? I doubt it. In my case, the only assembly step that was done right was torquing the barrel nut. I am thankful that I didn't choose to blindly trust this upper without going through it with a fine toothed comb. My upper was basically a parts kit that was sorta put together.
Just some food for thought for those of you who are out on the market looking to build a cheap rifle, but may not know what to look for when it comes to assembly methods. Kinda scary if you ask me!
I wound up getting a "Premium" Palmetto State Armory upper with the FN manufactured 16" Cold Hammer Forged M4A1 SOCOM profile barrel (carbine length gas, no flats milled for the M203 - which is kinda weird). The upper also came with the 12" long Midwest Industries Gen 2. SS float free rail. Now, I've been a customer of PSA for several years and I watched them get into the AR game. I saw them have some teething problems, and I'm sorry to report that some such problems still exist. My upper was no exception.
With PSA, it's not only what the listed specs say, but also what they DON'T say. My "Premium" upper came with a semi-auto carrier and a bolt that is marked MPI, but not HP/HPT. One should question why bothering with MPI without performing the proof load testing. My own opinion is that it is done to save a few bucks, and the buyer who knows "just enough to be dangerous" won't question the actual testing therein; they're happy that it's marked at all. No worries, the BCG got tossed in my spare parts basket and replaced with a Spike's Tactical BCG. I've always had good luck with Spike's and I like the idea of supporting a local manufacturer of quality goods, Obama Panic Price Increases and silly M4Carbine.net drama be damned.
Against my better judgement, I test fired the upper for 200 rounds without going through the upper to verify it was assembled properly. Later that night, I was somewhat shocked at my findings. My brother used to joke "Don't trust anyone but your mother...and even then, check twice!"
Removing the handguard, I immediately noticed that PSA used two globs of what appears to be Red Loctite (it's possibly Vibratite or Rocksett) on the barrel nut knurling that provides a friction fit for the Midwest Industries handguard. Now, according to Midwest Industries, thread-locker is required for properly installing this handguard. The real head-scratcher is why PSA made no attempt to apply it to the whole knurled surface. Considering that the handguard is held in place by clamping pressure and the friction between the knurled barrel nut and the free float tube, you'd think that maximum surface area would be the smart way to go.
Moving up to the gas block was the real shocker. The gas block set screws were installed *just barely* finger tight! Considering we're talking about 26,000 PSI at the gas port, doesn't some torque seem prudent? Removing the screws revealed no thread locker whatsoever, and the barrel was not dimpled to give those screws a bite into the barrel steel. I degreased everything, used a center punch to dimple the barrel (not the best way, but it works), added red Loctite on the screws and installed them nice and tight.
Lately I've been more of a fan of lightweight profile barrels, but the CHF SOCOM barrel seems to shoot on par with my gov't profile (non-pencil) barrels. Since the tube weighs next to nothing, any weight issues associated with the barrel profile is cancelled out.
As a truck gun, black wasn't gonna work. I decided to go for a color scheme that splits the difference between urban camo and something more woodsy. Rustoleum green was laid down as the base coat and some primer gray was striped in some spots and misted all around to lighten it up. I gave it 3 coats of Rustoleum's Matte Clear coat. The end result is somewhere between green and the currently popular "disruptive grey." It wears the Midwest Industries panel kit with handstop, as well as the HK416 style sights from RobertRTG. I was worried that these sights would be too low, but they work great for me, and the sight picture is an almost seamless transition from my MP5.
Would I still buy that upper? For my project I would have done it again, however, for someone who is new to AR15s, I shudder at the thought of them getting an improperly built upper with the potential of shooting itself apart. Would a newbie strip off the free float tube and check the gas block installation? I doubt it. In my case, the only assembly step that was done right was torquing the barrel nut. I am thankful that I didn't choose to blindly trust this upper without going through it with a fine toothed comb. My upper was basically a parts kit that was sorta put together.
Just some food for thought for those of you who are out on the market looking to build a cheap rifle, but may not know what to look for when it comes to assembly methods. Kinda scary if you ask me!
). I currently have a BCM upper nestled on a PSA lower with a Ranier Arms BCG. I cannot tell a practical difference between the two. Sad to say, considering the BCM upper alone cost almost as much as the entire PSA rifle:banghead:. I'd bet my life on either one, but then again, I'd bet my life on my great grandfathers S&W .32long Hand Ejector too.
