New AR15A4 has a polished blued end cap.

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - New AR15A4 has a polished blued end cap.

Posted: 12/2/2016 10:19:40 PM EDT

I picked up a new AR15A4 today and the end cap is polished blued. Looks gross on an otherwise nice rifle.

Posted: 12/3/2016 12:59:56 AM EDT

[#1]

What's your barrel marked?

Posted: 12/3/2016 1:52:10 AM EDT

[#2]

End cap?

Posted: 12/3/2016 9:17:24 AM EDT

[#3]

You mean the hand guard cap is polished blue? Is this like finding the gold Bud Light can? Maybe you win something...

Posted: 12/3/2016 12:13:21 PM EDT

[#4]

Yes, the hand guard end cap is high polished blued. Barrel marked C MP 5.56 NATO 1/7

Posted: 12/6/2016 3:10:42 PM EDT

[#5]

Quote History

Quoted:
Yes, the hand guard end cap is high polished blued. Barrel marked C MP 5.56 NATO 1/7

View Quote

You're not alone. I wouldn't call it highly polished but it's not a matte finish. Same barrel stampings.

Posted: 12/7/2016 12:23:18 AM EDT

[#6]

What!?

Today I received my AR15A4 from GT Distributors (was #8 on waiting list) and it is the best Colt AR15 out of three that I own. Everything on it is the normal Colt black finish and not one machining mark to be seen, upper/lower fit is tight and the barrel is marked C MP 5.56 NATO 1/7.

Can you post a picture? I've never heard/seen blue color on any Colt AR. Sorry, to hear this has happened to you.

Posted: 12/7/2016 8:56:04 PM EDT

[#7]

Won't speak for the OP but my handguard cap is actually black and not blue. But the finish is glossy and not the matte finish that my other Colt 20" rifles have.

Posted: 12/7/2016 11:01:58 PM EDT

[#8]

After going back and comparing the new AR15A4's handguard cap to my 6920 and other AR15s I do see how it is polished and not the normal matte finish. I guess it was the "Blue" color that threw me off, the cap not being matte is not a biggie though and I wonder if and why this is the new normal cap finish. I would still like to see a picture of his blue cap as it is definitely a curiosity, and probably one of a kind.

Posted: 12/8/2016 11:21:35 AM EDT

[#9]

Just picked mine up from the FFL last night.

The triangular end cap does have a blued finish.

It looked really shiny at first but once I wiped off the preservative grease it has more of a semi-gloss finish. If I hadn't stumbled across this point I don't think I would have ever noticed. Looks fine to me.

Posted: 12/8/2016 7:07:13 PM EDT

[#10]

Oops, now I get it... slaps forehead. When th OP said; "polished blued" he meant a blued finish, not the color blue

. So, he doesn't have a one of a kind after all.

Posted: 2/20/2017 2:34:18 PM EDT

[#11]

Can we get any pics of this blued handguard end cap?

I would like to see how big of a deal this is.

Posted: 2/20/2017 2:40:45 PM EDT

[#12]

Quote History

Quoted:
Can we get any pics of this blued handguard end cap?

I would like to see how big of a deal this is.

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Yes pics are very helpful especially for the color blind like me.

That's not blue it's black.

Posted: 2/20/2017 3:29:15 PM EDT

[#13]

Quote History

Quoted:

Yes pics are very helpful especially for the color blind like me.

That's not blue it's black.

View Quote

Well, blued could very well look black... I'm mostly concerned that it won't look like the phosphate finish on the barrel and FSB.

It could also possibly be a black oxide finish.

Posted: 2/20/2017 6:48:49 PM EDT

[#14]

Posted: 2/20/2017 6:58:06 PM EDT

[#15]

Did you get this one from Tombstone Tactical?

That actually doesn't look as bad as I was imagining and it certainly wouldn't stop me from buying one.

It actually looks like it was phosphate finished to me.

Thank you for the picture!

Posted: 2/20/2017 7:04:04 PM EDT

[#16]

No I got mine from Hinterland outfitters. Biggest complaint I have is it was really oiled up. It was soaked and running out of everywhere. Still haven't cleaned it.
Mine is one of the guns that got out with the wrong roll mark on the barrel. Colt will do a barrel swap under warranty but I decided to keep it that way

Posted: 2/20/2017 7:12:26 PM EDT

[#17]

I would keep it for the messed up 1/9 HBAR roll mark as well but if that end cap was actually blue I would have had a fit.

Posted: 2/26/2017 10:35:16 AM EDT

[#18]

I called Colt customer service and the nice lady had not heard of this issue before so she actually went and talked to the "tech" who does this. He said they often get "batches" like this and it IS the same finishing process as the others and within MILSPEC standards, so they are used and are as durable as the more subdued/non-gloss finish. She said he actually had some on-hand and showed them to her.

Mine looks just like the picture posted earlier. I don't like it, but have decided it is not a big deal and don't notice it unless I'm looking for it. Everything else on the rifle is perfect - no scratches or machining marks, tight fit between upper/lower receivers, decent trigger pull, proper markings. e.g. C, MPC, 1/7, white T numbers on the upper receiver, etc.

Posted: 2/26/2017 11:21:10 AM EDT

[#19]

Quote History

Quoted:
I called Colt customer service and the nice lady had not heard of this issue before so she actually went and talked to the "tech" who does this. He said they often get "batches" like this and it IS the same finishing process as the others and within MILSPEC standards, so they are used and are as durable as the more subdued/non-gloss finish. She said he actually had some on-hand and showed them to her.

Mine looks just like the picture posted earlier. I don't like it, but have decided it is not a big deal and don't notice it unless I'm looking for it. Everything else on the rifle is perfect - no scratches or machining marks, tight fit between upper/lower receivers, decent trigger pull, proper markings. e.g. C, MPC, 1/7, white T numbers on the upper receiver, etc.

View Quote

Thanks for taking the time to call them about this.

So, it sounds like it does indeed have a phosphate finish and that it's just on the shinier side of the spectrum.

Posted: 4/13/2017 9:33:25 AM EDT

[#20]

Picked mine up yesterday the rifle was made in 3/2017 and it has a blued triangular end cap.

Posted: 10/23/2017 4:59:06 AM EDT

[#21]

figured resurrecting an older thread is better than starting a new one...

Mines from December or January, and I don't think I noticed the "polished blue" end cap until i was reading a post on another forum. Looking closely at it I have a hard time calling it polished blue...but I also don't have another 20" rifle to compare it to, only 16" rifles and while it's not as dull looking as those it's far from what I'd call polished blue.

Other things that were pointed out in that thread:

Carbine feedramps-whats the significant of this ?
Non F marked FSB-doesn't seem to affect mine, and in any case I thought i read somewhere that Colt is making all sight bases the same size? anyone know if this is true?
Incorrect barrel markings
CAR prefix serial number-LE or CAR, really makes no difference to me.
Lightweight LE marked lowers

It's funny the things people nitpick on. The incorrect barrel markings and LWLE rollstamp I can see, but I remember when FN released their 20" rifle and people were complaining about similar things, specially incorrect markings on the FCG.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - New AR15A4 has a polished blued end cap.

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