I just wanted to say Thank You to everyone on this forum for all of your help! The knowledge and experience of the members here is incredible and the advice given is many levels above what any local gun shop owner could have provided me with.

I call this a "Project" as I purchased my M16 over a year ago, so this is a long time in the making. This is my first MG and is the first time I've built a firearm from the ground up with just parts, including building the MK18 upper.

This is how I received my Frankford Arsenal M16 Conversion Rifle from the dealer...not exactly the belle of the ball.


Like most Non-Colt Conversion Rifles it was out of spec.
The upper deck was too high, preventing mil-spec uppers from closing without excessive force.
The front take down pin could only be moved with a brass hammer and punch.
There was excess material on the front of the mag well and around the triggers.
Most of the internal parts were trashed due to excessive wear.
The finish was worn, which is to be expected for a rifle that is 35+ years old.




Per recommendation I contacted Victor at US Anodizing and arranged for them to do the necessary gunsmith work and re-anodize the lower when finished.
It came back looking great!





Final MK18 Configuration.




Once the weather gets warmer outside I am planning to Cerakote the suppressor and a few other parts to match the Magpul OD Green furniture.

Looks fantastic, great job!

Looks great what did it set you back?

Nice! I love running a 10.5" upper on my M-16.

I dunno, whats a kidney sell for these days?

How do you like the Geissele trigger?  Did you get to compare it to a standard mil-spec before you did the swap?

Its night and day when shooting in semi-auto, mil-spec being a single stage and geissele being a two stage. In auto its still a single stage but it has a crisp break and appears to be a few pounds lighter than mil-spec triggers. IMO its a nice improvement and when you consider the total cost of a RR the trigger is pretty insignificant cost wise.

I have the same RR, mine could use a little help.  Mind PMing me what you had done, colors, cost?  Looks good.  My sear pin is slightly loose and it bothers me, I also noticed mine shoots slow in FA...compared to a buddies issued M4.

Glad you rescued that M16 from the origional owner, no rifle much less a RR should have to go through life looking like that

 

Thanks for the reply....

I have the SSA; SD3G, and a few Hi Speed Match triggers from G.  I like them all, but I just can't seem to justify the SSF......I'll keep pondering.

RE: Slow in FA

What is your gas system (carbine, mid, rifle)?  What buffer?  Buffer spring?