I went to the gun show to buy one of these for my AR pistol. I do have a regular pistol buffer tube, but the vendor told me I needed to buy a whole kit, with the "official" KAK buffer tube which has small indents spaced 1/4" apart. He said this is so the set screw in the brace can get a better grip on the tube so the brace will not slide. He said if I used my tube, the set screw could not firmly hold the brace in place, & it would "move around". Had I known this before I bought my buffer assy, I would have bought the whole kit. But I don't feel like throwing away a perfectly good pistol tube/buffer assy. So is this guy just blowing smoke? Will the blade work with my regular pistol tube?  GARY

I'm interested to hear answers on this as well.


From what I've read, it works best with the dimpled buffer tube but can fit over any standard pistol tube. I'm planning on dimpling my tube myself with a drill or adding some grip tape before I set the brace. Or both

Drill a hole in yours to use as a set spot. Problem solved.

Mine (standard mil-spec tube) is a tight press fit.


I don't even need the set screw.


 

Easy enough to drill your own dimple and it will hold just fine.  My KAK super tube allowed for a bit of slop, One wrap of friction tape and a quick dimpling job and it's not going anywhere.

No need to drill. The set screw is pointed and makes its own dimple and will work perfectly well on any tube it fits on. I have a PSA pistol tube that has a shockwave brace and it works just as well as the KAK tubes I have.

That dealer is full of shit, I would not buy from him purely out of principle for trying to cheat you.

I'm skeptical that you either have a milspec pistol tube (since the military doesn't use AR pistols, there isn't a spec for them) or are fitting a shockwave onto an actual milspec carbine buffer tube without doing SERIOUS modifications to the brace.

 

Ive used the Shockwave on both. Both work, the KAK tube for Shockwave just works a little bit better with the indents. Sounds like the guy was trying to "Salesman" you a bit there. When I used a Shockwave on a non-KAK tube it worked just fine, but did make its own small indent in the basic pistol buffer tube. So the bottom line is that it up to you (but the KAK tube is not a "need" for the brace). On a side note I found a place online that has the Shockwave Brace with KAK tube (no buffer spring, buffer, castle nut or end plate) for 52$ (like 59$ shipped).

The holes are more less a guide. I have. Several blades and all are on regular tubes. I think the blade actually would lock on better with a regular tube because you punch your own hole into thicker material.

 
Huh?




I have a lower that was transferred to me as 'Other.'  I put a Mil-spec buffer tube on it.  (Here's a link to a Brownell's page with dozens of them for sale.)




It has a short barrel.




Thus, it's an AR-15 pistol with a Mil-Spec buffer (retaining) tube - with a Shockwave pushed on to it (and the foam tube that covers it.)  Sorry if not mentioning the foam tube made it confusing.

But still, your comment that there are no Mil-Spec tubes for AR-15 pistols is incorrect.

Please explain how you got the round hole of the Shockwave



onto this (mil spec buffer tube from your page link), and also with a foam tube over it too!



There is some major disconnect in what you are claiming, seems.

Daggertt is absolutely correct. The only AR buffer tubes for which there is a military specification are for carbine and rifle. The fact that you can legally use them on a pistol config does not change what they are designed for, nor their correct nomenclature.

There is no mil spec for the round receiver extensions commonly known as "pistol tubes", that's why the actual OD lengths and diameters vary so much between manufacturers. There is not even an "industry spec" as there is with the commercial carbine tube variation.

- OS

Maybe he used a rifle length buffer tube? I dunno honestly.

What he said ^

Or did you grind down a car tube, in which case, you can control the friction fit.

 
Maybe I'm totally wrong about this.  Maybe it is a pistol tube.  Sorry for the confusion.

When dimpling the standard pistol tube with the Blade screw (without drilling a dimple), will it deform the inside of the tube?

You can fit it over a milspec (non pistol) buffer tube?

I've been down this road myself.  I put a KAK Shockwave on a standard tube.  I tightened it down to the point where I thought it would hold without damaging the tube.  I was wrong on both counts.  It wasn't tight enough to hold firm while shooting and it still dimpled then gouged the tube.  Not to mention putting quite a damper on the range session.  I've since purchased the KAK buffer tube that has the extra structure to hold the brace properly.  
I probably could have tightened the screw further, but I was trying to minimize the inner-diameter deformation.  Creating a bunch of imprecise bubba-holes on the bottom of my buffer tube doesn't seem like the right answer for sturdiness, longevity, or adjustability.  YMMV.  Any new builds will include the KAK tube from the beginning.  If they cost $250 each, I might try to do without, but at under $50 it's a no-brainer to me.