Just reporting back that I received this order in record time! I ordered it on a Tues, and it was delivered to my local UPS by Fri! Unfortunately... my UPS sat on it for 3 days, but I received it today and it looks fantastic. The melonite barrel is a nice dark black with clean bore, the receiver was clean with no blemishes or scratches, and it appears VERY well put together (proper gas tube alignment, VERY straight fsb, tight tapered handguards, etc). Multiple bcg's/CH's functioned perfectly and smoothly in it. The only "con" I can find with my sample upper is that it is the loosest fitting upper I have (5 now). It has quite a bit of slop/chatter, but I'm not anal about that and not really bothered by it for my intended use. Other than that one "con", it's a beautiful upper and seems VERY well made.
I haven't test fired it yet, but I have NO doubt it will function just fine. $179 VERY well spent. Thanks PSA! Happy customer here!