Update:
PSA took the upper back and finish reamed it. I had it back within 2 weeks (holiday weekend included). I'm pretty pleased with that.
Rounds that would previously not chamber now chamber like silk. That was a good start.
Same as my PTAC review, I strapped on the the 4x16 BSA that my ten year old typically has on a NERF rifle. The bell is dinged, but I continue to borrow it because it still holds zero. I have a weird sense of humor.
Ignore the cheap green laser. Cheaper than a boresight and a nice option when switching optics at the range. The rest of the gun is on a Stag lower with a 2lb Jard trigger and Magpul ACS-L stock. Miculek brake with a port drilled on the second baffle. Almost no muzzle rise with all recoil pushing straight back. Very controllable. Not like a Triangle Rolling Thunder that's been tuned,. but very hard to beat on a budget. This is my short range (50 yard) 3-gun rifle build. I wanted something that was light, narrow and easy to point fast with 1 moa or better accuracy. I have the opinion that visual clutter can slow you down and hurt the transition from point shooting to precision shooting. Discussing the different types of focus, however, is fodder for another thread........... This gun will never see BUIS for that reason.
Basically, the gun got about 150 rounds over the past two days that ranged from Wolf to match ammo. Steel and brass casings. Reloads and factory ammo. Zero issues. XM855 grouped about 1.25 inches. Most 55gr factory offerings did the same. My go to load for all my 1:9 guns is the 69gr Sierra Match King. Most people consider this "heavy" for a 1:9, but in my experience it produces the best results. Shot several groups and they were all under an inch. I'd consider it a 3/4 moa rifle or better. I didn't use handloads with this one, but it obviously likes the 69gr SMK. No real surprise. Most AR's can shoot 1 MOA or better. A lot of shooters don't level the receiver and also level their targets (grid targets are best). It's really easy to cant an AR or torque the gun with a bad grip on the pistol grip. How do you know you're torquing? Get set up on sand bags and just before you're ready to shoot relax both hands....if the gun moves, you're torquing her.
So...I know she can shoot. A bit better than the PTAC I built with the M4 barrel profile, but this is still pretty typical for most free floated AR's. The real value in this is the stainless barrel and MI handguard.
This setup is perfect for a forward focus rifle. I shoot a lot of combat pistol (USPSA and IDPA) so positioning the optic at a distance equal to my typical front sight focus works really well for me. I find I can process more with the optic out farther and make faster target transitions. With the optic farther back it's find target.....swing gun...and find target in the tube. A forward red dot feels more like shooting a good set or irons. Under 50 yards a notch and post tends to be faster for me than a large tube optic. Just like an EOtech with the large ring and the smaller dot, you can use the housing as your large ring and the dot for precision. YMMV, but I think you should try it. I'm a Master USPSA shooter so I'm not a new shooter, but I won't tell you what works best for you....... The nice thing about the Aluminum C-more and MI rail is that I put the optic in a place where I can index my thumb at the front of the sight and use it as a handstop.
I had three different shooters sub this gun in for their rifles in a shoot house today and all had positive results.
Overall, I'm very happy with PSA and their build/response to this upper. I'd not hesitate to build a competition rifle off of their offerings in the future. Thank you for the outstanding customer service and response time here on Arfcom.