Is it easier, harder or about the same level of difficulty building an upper vs a lower? Just starting a build and trying to decide whether to build upper or buy completed asst. Looking at videos and instructions, I believe I can finish a lower.    



Thanks!
Ken

If a lower is a 2/10, an upper is -2/10....    it is dirt simple, just have patience driving your roll pin and winding your dustcover spring.....      clamp properly (super reaction rod, two piece, or clamshell vise block) for the barrel nut torque, and you are good to go! 

I'd say lower is more difficult or tedious after you know your torque spec for upper it's simple.

lower can be tedious. I shot a couple springs out. But it's still super simple.   The upper was also very simple. My only issue was the gas block roll pin. All other roll pins everywhere else were cool.

Thanks for all the inputs. Will have to look at some vids and give it a go when I get the parts decided.

I had more fun building my lower than my upper.  The lower was like assembling a nice Lego kit and then sitting back and going, "I like that!".  There are a lot of good YouTube videos that show clever tricks to keep springs from going across the room, or damaging anything.  My upper, I had issues driving the gas block roll pin in place (it's so freakin tiny) and getting the gas tube in the right place relative to the gas key on the BCG.  I wound up having my gas block at about 1/3 of the way between 12 and 1 o'clock, instead of true 12 o'clock.  It still bugs me, but the gun has been 100% reliable, so I don't mess with it.

Brownells has online videos that break it down into sections of assembly, excellent.

http://www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=cl&pw=55963&ctc=j5crk1pcj400zk8a00y51&mi=10077&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.brownells.com%2FGunTech%2FHow-To-Build-An-Ar%2Findex.htm

My first lower was super easy.  The upper was a nightmare-could not get the barrel torqued in spec.

After talking to my self for a while I convinced me that I wasn't utterly incompetant and went out and bought a new torque wrench.

Darn thing went together first try at 50lbs torque.  Barrel nut lined up perfectly.

The moral of the story is that if it seems way too difficult either you've got the wrong tools or you're doing something wrong.

Even a caveman can do it.

Upper is easier but requires more specialized tools to not mess it up. Lowers are super easy too

I'd say the upper is easier, but requires more specialized tools.

I wouldn't call either particularly difficult. As was said, just take your time with it.

Upper-
Vice
BEV Block
Breaker Bar (For getting barrel nuts off)
Torque Wrench
Barrel Nut Wrench or Proper Crowfoot (Depending on handguard/barrel nut type)
Aeroshell Grease
Brownells Roll Pin Punch/Starter Kit for Gas Blocks

I build my lowers and buy factory completed uppers.  Bent gas tubes can be a PITA.

Agreed. The barrel nut is the biggest obstacle if it requires timing. If you buy a rail where the barrel nut doesn't need to be timed then it's a breeze.

The lower takes longer and is more tedious with the small parts but I built lowers for a while with basic tools before tackling an upper on my own.

Either way, building is the best way to do ARs.

Its a little bit more difficult BUT if you can do a lower you can assembly an upper. I highly recommend doing it if you have never done it before.

Uppers are much more difficult just because you need more tools to assemble them 
.

The upper is easier, in my opinion, but requires more tools.  A lower is easier starting out if you don't want to buy AR tools.

This

Exactly what I do.

Hey all, long time lurker... first post.

Is it hard??   I'm supervising my daughter building our next project AR.  The only thing I have had to do for her was to pull the retaining clip down to get the minimalist stock over the stop and into the indexing groove.  That was actually a little bit of a struggle for me.  I didn't even have to torque the barrel or stock castle nut.  She did just fine by herself.
The rest is just like baking a cake.

Have fun.

some things that can make upper assembly tedious are: lapping the front receiver face for aligned barrel installation; smoothing out the barrel extension feed ramp sharp edges so bullet (accuracy?) or brass (reloading) isn't scored; verify that barrel extension feed ramps are aligned with receiver M4 cuts; checking the headspace (just to be safe); verifying that FF handguard is precisely parallel & aligned with receiver flats so that iron's don't have to be cranked way over this way or that way for zero, and so that the end of the barrel is actually centered in the end of the handguard (it's just cosmetic); measuring the distance from the barrel gas port to the shoulder, and then comparing with the dimension on your gas block.  is gas port drilled cleanly (nothing hanging in the barrel); ensuring the gas block is really upright and centered over the gas port, maybe using a bore cam to verify.  GB also centered in the FF handguard (cosmetic); timing the muzzle device precisely just because you went this far already (also just cosmetic); and function testing to dial in the right buffer weight.

i'm guessing there's a lot more to it, but this is my limited knowledge.  my first-ever upper went together a lot faster than my most recent upper.  i'm sure lowers got their own considerations also, i'm still learning.

Depends IMO on the upper and how some parts are being installed.

Pinning a FSB on or a muzzle device is a bit more challenging than just tightening a barrel nut. It's doable for any normal person who has a GOOD drill press and vice or a mill & or TIG welder (or access to them) if you're smart, take your time and triple check everything before actually doing anything. However if you're not pinning on anything and can't do it, you must be mentally retarded.

I would say the upper is defenietly harder, but not by much. The hardest imo is putting the forward assist in. You have to fight the spring, hold up the rollpin with the punch, and hammer it in. The barrel is probably the easiest part, as you're just turning a wrench.

If you can install a bolt catch, you can build a barrel.

Both are not hard. Now, it depends on your skill level and knowledge to be able to do it without scratching the finish.  I cerakote all of mine so I have to be careful.
I think the lower is much easier to do. I can build a cerakoted lower in about 10 mins with little effort. The upper can be a pain depending on if you get a barrel with or without FSB. Personally the FSB and/or gas block are the worst to assembly. Removing a FSB is a pain and the roll pin on the gas tube is the single worst one to install.

I'm still new, so a lower is about a 2/10 and an A2 upper, with all the sight parts, is about a 4/10.

You need more tools on the upper but not much too it after that.

You need more tools on the upper but not much too it after that

they are both very easy

Built many of each. I find uppers easier. The only hard part is if you buy a cheap rail, those can be a pain.