Rittmeister
Member
Picked one of these up a few months back. It's my first venture into the AR arena. I'm enjoying it so far; it hasn't jammed, everything appears to fit together very solidly, etc, and it's more accurate than I am for sure.
The one thing I'm dissatisfied with (as are many others according to my searches) is the weight of the rifle. It has a heavy profile barrel and a hybrid, half-quadrail forend. I'm finding that most of the weight is the handguard so I'd like to change it. I may change the barrel to a lighter profile but I'd prefer to only alter one thing at a time and see how things go.
I'm not asking for advice on what handguard to get - I've narrowed it down to Fortis or Troy - but about the barrel nut. From what I can see while examining the gun it appears that the RRA forend and barrel nut are one piece.
1. Any tips on removing the RRA front end? I know the muzzle brake and gas block will have to come off; that looks fairly simple. Many folks recommend a strap wrench but I wondered if anyone else had any tips.
2. Will a mil-spec barrel nut fit the RRA upper? I know the buffer tube is commercial spec and I wonder if the threads for the barrel nut would be different also.
3. Anyone have an opinion on an action block to use? I've seen the DPMS style that sort of replaces the lower, and I've seen the Block Worx type that clamps the whole upper in the vise. I'm not sure if my bench vise is big enough for that one though, if anyone has a measurement it'd be helpful.
I hope my ignorance isn't too telling; I'm looking forward to tinkering with the gun and while I've gotten pretty savvy with handguns this is new to me.
Any advice appreciated!
The one thing I'm dissatisfied with (as are many others according to my searches) is the weight of the rifle. It has a heavy profile barrel and a hybrid, half-quadrail forend. I'm finding that most of the weight is the handguard so I'd like to change it. I may change the barrel to a lighter profile but I'd prefer to only alter one thing at a time and see how things go.
I'm not asking for advice on what handguard to get - I've narrowed it down to Fortis or Troy - but about the barrel nut. From what I can see while examining the gun it appears that the RRA forend and barrel nut are one piece.
1. Any tips on removing the RRA front end? I know the muzzle brake and gas block will have to come off; that looks fairly simple. Many folks recommend a strap wrench but I wondered if anyone else had any tips.
2. Will a mil-spec barrel nut fit the RRA upper? I know the buffer tube is commercial spec and I wonder if the threads for the barrel nut would be different also.
3. Anyone have an opinion on an action block to use? I've seen the DPMS style that sort of replaces the lower, and I've seen the Block Worx type that clamps the whole upper in the vise. I'm not sure if my bench vise is big enough for that one though, if anyone has a measurement it'd be helpful.
I hope my ignorance isn't too telling; I'm looking forward to tinkering with the gun and while I've gotten pretty savvy with handguns this is new to me.
Any advice appreciated!
