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BCA bolt action upper for $350? (Page 11 of 21)
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After I took this upper to the range in its first configuration (7.5 barrel 300blkout) it just felt inconvenient. Like why have a sub compact with less grip purchase be so manual to operate. That being said this current setup feels right at home. Going to hit the range today without the flash hider and see how it goes. |
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Took it to the range and have to say it felt just right. I was only able to sight in my 4x scope at 50 yards today but it shot in at a 1” group. Without thinking I crumpled up my target then remembered to take a picture of it so it’s a bit of a mess. The top hole is my first shot at 50yards then after I dialed it down it was on the money for the next 4 shots. The bottom hole… A horse fly landed on the target and I took a shot at it. It survived, I missed but no Flys were harmed today. 
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It looks like it'll shoot. I dont know what the expected accuracy of those straight walled cartridges are but 1.5moa with a 9mm bullet seems exceptional. I bet in that configuration it handles well and feels good to shoot. Finished assembly on the 18" lightweight bolt last night. Put a jmac folder on it. It feels down right handy and light with a nice balance. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Next week I’ll head out with some splatter targets and try to get it dialed in at 100 yards. I wish BCA would watch this thread, we need a bolt handle that’s treaded so I can ditch that tear drop. Just curious, what would you change about the bolt handle? Angle? Knob type? |
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Originally Posted By Moondog: Just curious, what would you change about the bolt handle? Angle? Knob type? Ideally interchangeable knobs would be nice. If the end of the handle base were female threaded with a non-round outer geometry, a knob could slide over it, not rotate, and a screw through the knob to secure the knob to the handle base would be ideal. This setup would allow multiple bases (different angles/lengths), and using the same heads on either. Aluminum heads on a steel base would be a lot lighter. There's no need for the knob to be steel, nor as heavy as it is. But, really, I'd just like a charging handle that doesn't have a weight similar to the carrier. The huge steel head on it makes it unnecessarily heavy. Even if the head were just drilled out to lose some weight, I'd appreciate it. Or fluted to add texture and lose weight. It's a basic functional handle. IMO, there's multiple approaches they could take to refining the design and have it be an improvement. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Ergo feels great, by no means does it feel like a traditional rifle like my rem 700. For that reason I ruled out wood plus I’m not a huge fan of the new trend of putting wood on a modern rifles. Scope hight is perfect, with a quick shoulder your looking down the scope right of the rip. I did go FDE for the color scheme to nod to the tactical side but also to just not have another black rifle. Think it makes you look at it more and see it’s truly a unique build. Just waiting on my flash hider to show and I’m off to the range to sling lead… expensive lead, I did not know 350 legend was so pricey I just wanted another caliber to the collection. Originally Posted By AL1EN: Originally Posted By PreacherOfGadget: I want to say I really like it ... but my wood-stocked soul chills ever so slightly as I start to. The furniture/frame two-tone aesthetic brings more of the modern sporting rifle feel to the build, despite it using the 870 stock. The ergonomics are a nice feel, right? I've shot 870s since I was able to bird hunt, and I like the feel of the bolt upper + ranch lower. Besides, this upper just screams bufferless lower. Do you like the scope at that height using that stock? I ended up using lower rings as I reflexively treat it like a Remington 870 and my head/eye wants to drop to the receiver top, as with a shotgun. I found the lower I got the scope mounted, the more comfortable I was. Ergo feels great, by no means does it feel like a traditional rifle like my rem 700. For that reason I ruled out wood plus I’m not a huge fan of the new trend of putting wood on a modern rifles. Scope hight is perfect, with a quick shoulder your looking down the scope right of the rip. I did go FDE for the color scheme to nod to the tactical side but also to just not have another black rifle. Think it makes you look at it more and see it’s truly a unique build. Just waiting on my flash hider to show and I’m off to the range to sling lead… expensive lead, I did not know 350 legend was so pricey I just wanted another caliber to the collection. @AL1EN I *really like the looks of your rifle. I respect not wanting wood, but I wonder what it would look like painted brown, or even simply use Coyote Brown furniture. |
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Originally Posted By PreacherOfGadget: Something go wrong with the final product? I went back to find your post to respond to it, and, poof! He'd probably be happy to do modifications as well if desired. I'm not sure metal on metal contact is a big deal long term but one could have it made without the lower part that attaches to the bolt and use a plastic spacer instead. For me.....I'll stick to metal. I'll figure out how it wears over the summer I guess. |
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Originally Posted By PreacherOfGadget: Ideally interchangeable knobs would be nice. If the end of the handle base were female threaded with a non-round outer geometry, a knob could slide over it, not rotate, and a screw through the knob to secure the knob to the handle base would be ideal. This setup would allow multiple bases (different angles/lengths), and using the same heads on either. Aluminum heads on a steel base would be a lot lighter. There's no need for the knob to be steel, nor as heavy as it is. But, really, I'd just like a charging handle that doesn't have a weight similar to the carrier. The huge steel head on it makes it unnecessarily heavy. Even if the head were just drilled out to lose some weight, I'd appreciate it. Or fluted to add texture and lose weight. It's a basic functional handle. IMO, there's multiple approaches they could take to refining the design and have it be an improvement. I like that idea. I swapped the bolt handle on my Savage from the small ball knob to the larger BA model, and there's a night and day difference in it's throw. I see the utility of swappable bolt handles. |
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Originally Posted By VTD: Nope. I love it. Anyone who wants one can give paladin an email. He'd probably be happy to do modifications as well if desired. I'm not sure metal on metal contact is a big deal long term but one could have it made without the lower part that attaches to the bolt and use a plastic spacer instead. For me.....I'll stick to metal. I'll figure out how it wears over the summer I guess. Glad to hear it went well. The metal on metal -- in that position -- is only a big deal if you're trying to go quieter, or you pocket the rear of the charging handle cut-out to increase the unlocking force necessary, creating steel-on-bare-aluminum contact where the steel is pushing into the aluminum (although at a low angle), not just sliding past it. As long as your steel base is smooth, I don't think you'll have many issues with wear. When I get around to another build with one of these uppers, I may want to try one of those extensions. On an alternate charging handle: I tried playing around with using a straight-pull bolt handle in place of this big steel one. I'm not opting to go this route, but if you want a much shorter and lighter handle, you could try the below. Put a straight-pull side-charging 10-24 threaded handle (like BCA's first gen side charging handles, before the trigger-shaped handle) with a nylon spacer around it on the rear screw hole, and a short screw with nylon spacer on the front screw hole. The standard side charging handles are short enough that the lower outside of the receiver's charging handle pocket needs to be modified for the handle to rotate fully down. The charging handle's base may need to be ground to re-shape it to remove sharp edges but otherwise it's good to go. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Been running my 3D printed spacers and have to say best upgraded to prevent damage to your receiver, zero metal to metal contact. https://i.imgur.com/v9Hz9Vl.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/oht97L0.jpeg That looks really slick. Nice job. What are the dimensions on your spacer (just length x width)? I'm just curious just how close it is to the handle base dimensions. |
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The 7.62x39 uppers at $219 was too good to pass up. Initial impressions are good, it's smoother than I thought it would be. I'm turning it into a night time quiet varmint gun, it'll probably mostly shoot subs, and I'm planning to do an integrally suppressed setup using an old school free float handguard as a can, so it ought to end up crazy quiet. I hate the godawful 'heavy' BCA barrels, but I guess that's what makes them so cheap, they just chamber a blank and stick an extension on it. I chopped the barrel right behind the gas block step, so like 7-3/4, turned it down a bunch, rethreaded and crowned. I'll likely port it as well. I haven't chopped the BCG wings but I have spare buffer tubes, so I chopped one and printed a picatinny adapter that uses the castle nut to hold itself in place, which seems promising. The PSG1 grip may or may not stay but I was cracking up at the "pocket sniper" posts earlier so I felt obliged to print it and try it out. Here's how it's currently set up, it won't stay this way long though. 
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Originally Posted By Millennial: I don't really see the advantage You can just put a gassless AR barrel on any side-charging AR15 and turn it into a straight-pull action. 0 bolt throw just pull and release. Go to post #1 of page 9 for a good explanation from preacherofgadget |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Been running my 3D printed spacers and have to say best upgraded to prevent damage to your receiver, zero metal to metal contact. https://i.imgur.com/v9Hz9Vl.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/oht97L0.jpeg |
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Originally Posted By VTD: Asked and answered several times in the thread. Go to post #1 of page 9 for a good explanation from preacherofgadget Originally Posted By VTD: Originally Posted By Millennial: I don't really see the advantage You can just put a gassless AR barrel on any side-charging AR15 and turn it into a straight-pull action. 0 bolt throw just pull and release. Go to post #1 of page 9 for a good explanation from preacherofgadget There's additional reasons in the last post of page 2. And add on it's a perfect platform for accuracy testing a barrel, as you remove the entire cycling system from the equation. And AL1EN, I just realized you gave the dimensions 2 pages ago. My bad, lol. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Just seen that skunkcreekarms.com sells BCA side charging handles and they look great, so I sent them an email asking if they would consider make a bolt action upper Handel as well. Fingers crossed! Got an email back from these guys and they’re working on a prototype right now! So I sent them the link to this thread so they can see what we have been doing over here. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Got an email back from these guys and they’re working on a prototype right now! So I sent them the link to this thread so they can see what we have been doing over here. Originally Posted By AL1EN: Originally Posted By AL1EN: Just seen that skunkcreekarms.com sells BCA side charging handles and they look great, so I sent them an email asking if they would consider make a bolt action upper Handel as well. Fingers crossed! Got an email back from these guys and they’re working on a prototype right now! So I sent them the link to this thread so they can see what we have been doing over here. Nice! 
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Originally Posted By ar-jedi:
SO MUCH WIN IN ONE POST IT COULD CRASH ARFCOM !!!
SO MUCH WIN IN ONE POST IT COULD CRASH ARFCOM !!!
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| I just saw a post by Marty over on .458 SOCOM forums and it made me wonder... who's gonna build the first bullpup with this thing, using something like Reap's Scy or A3 Tactical Triad? A bullpup bolt action rifle. |
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Quick range report on the two bca bolts The bc15 with the lightweight 18" handles amazing. Light and balanced with suppressor. Current scope on it sucks and has way too much eye relief for the folder stock. So most of the shooting was without the stock against my shoulder. Also I cleaned the barrel down to clean steel for the first time before this range trip. Seemed to take it a bit to come around but did well considering the conditions. Attached File The bc10 did well. Not as smooth as the bc15 yet. Still takes quite a slap to get the extractor over the rim. This one desperately needs the bolt handle relocated. It's quite a reach to cycle it around the prs stock. Rifle shot very well all things considered. Really likes the 175 handloads. Liked 168 and 150s ok. Attached File Attached File |
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Quick update. I assembled the PSA PA-10 lower for the BC-10 upper. Upper and lower fit together but the rear pin just wouldn't quite start. Putting a light behind the receivers so you can see the where there's a gap and where there's contact you can see where to start sanding. I found that the rear curve on the upper receiver was contacting early at the apex. After 8 or 10 times of petting it with a dremel and sanding drum and checking fitment the rear pin finally seated all the way. It was a pain but the upside is that the receivers are perfectly fit and tight with zero wiggle. I did shave a bit off the bottom of the take down pin lug incase it was bottoming out. I think it was because at points I had a receiver gap with the holes not lining up until I took it down and the receivers started hitting again. Also you can cut the bolt carrier down on these just like the bc-15's and use a picatinny adapter to add a folding stock. |
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I built a bullpup bolt action last year using the A3 Tactical triad and the Uintah precision 16" 6.5 Grendel, a BCM hand guard, and a modified pistol buffer tube. The over all length is 26 1/4". Once I figure out how to past photos I can upload a few pictures  |
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Originally Posted By Tersoth: I built a bullpup bolt action last year using the A3 Tactical triad and the Uintah precision 16" 6.5 Grendel, a BCM hand guard, and a modified pistol buffer tube. The over all length is 26 1/4". Once I figure out how to past photos I can upload a few pictures https://i.imgur.com/mruZuXS.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/j0KHy2X.jpeg Welcome, welcome! First post I see! Which of the A3 Industries Triad adapter packages (FM, Brownells, Mat9, etc.) did you use? |
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Thank you for the welcome Preacher. I went with the PSA Jackal kit, as i like the forward side charging compared to the BRN-180. This led me to having to buy an additional front take down lug, as that piece is integrated with the PSA replacement handguard. In the photo you will notice i went with the extended butt stock adapter. I needed to do this for two reasons. The first one, being that with a 16" barrel and the short adapter the over all length would be less than 26". Secondly due to the way the Uintah Precision bolt is designed. Just like the BCA, the bolt will travel and extend beyond the lower. I then replace the buffer tube adapter that would be needed to run a Jackel/Brn-180, with a cut down pistol brace, that has the integrated castle nut. This allowed me to lock the butt stock extension in place and still have clearance to allow the bolt to have full travel to the rear. In order to install the cut down pistol buffer tube, i just drilled a hole near the back end, broke the drill bit, and used that as a a rod going through the tube. I just took a pair of linesman and using the drill bit I was able to torque it in place. |
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At the time I was building this, the Reap Weaponries XPS TS-1 did not exist, and looking at the prints that where online for the Triad i knew i could make it work, as I already had the pistol buffer tube. At the time the BCA bolt action didn't exist either. I also looked at the Solo 300, however as others already pointed out they do not function well with other cases like the Grendel. There were some other straight pull systems i looked at but again the same case issues. I have a love for bullpups and I couldn't afford a Desert Tech SRS. So for less than $2,500 i was able to build "The one we have at home". It is easy to run the bolt even while the rifle is shouldered. I also now have two of the BCA bolt actions, one in a complete upper with a 24" 6 ARC barrel. For the second one I am contemplating on building either a 338 Arc or the OG 338 Spectre. This build was great for hunting in a small deer blind I was sharing with my brother. After seeing and shooting mine, my uncle wants to build one himself. Using the Reap Weaponries chassis, a polymer lower, and a light barrel, it is feasible to have a naked rifle around the 5 pound mark. |
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If you were thinking of building one yourself, there are some things to consider from a functionality standpoint. First would be the chassis, the Reap Weaponries, chassis is considerably lighter by around 2 pounds. However both the A3 Tactical and the SRU SARB-15 chassis, have more surface area for shouldering and even for resting the rear on a sand bag. As for which upper, the Uintah Precision vs the BCA. The Uintah works more like a traditional bolt, as far a the bolt throw. It does have a detent system to help lock the bolt in place. Uintah also has a Sub-MOA guarantee. However, they strongly recommend using Amend 2 6.5 Grendel magazine due to feeding issues. I did have some initial feeding issues with my standard capacity E-landers. The 5 round magazines I used for hunting had no issues. Another thing is because of the bolt design of the Uintah it will only work with specific triggers, and mine came with one. The Triad also came with a trigger that was compatible with the Uintah, so I ended up with a spare trigger. As for the BCA, it was way cheaper then the Uintah, but doesnt come with a Sub-MOA guarantee, if that is worth it is up to you. You have the ability to swap barrels and calibers easily and cheaper. The biggest benefit is the handle location on the bolt carrier. On the Uintah the bolt sits behind the ejection port, while the BCA sits at the front of the ejection port, which allows for a more ergonomic placement when it comes to a bullpup. |
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Originally Posted By Tersoth: If you were thinking of building one yourself, there are some things to consider from a functionality standpoint. First would be the chassis, the Reap Weaponries, chassis is considerably lighter by around 2 pounds. However both the A3 Tactical and the SRU SARB-15 chassis, have more surface area for shouldering and even for resting the rear on a sand bag. As for which upper, the Uintah Precision vs the BCA. The Uintah works more like a traditional bolt, as far a the bolt throw. It does have a detent system to help lock the bolt in place. Uintah also has a Sub-MOA guarantee. However, they strongly recommend using Amend 2 6.5 Grendel magazine due to feeding issues. I did have some initial feeding issues with my standard capacity E-landers. The 5 round magazines I used for hunting had no issues. Another thing is because of the bolt design of the Uintah it will only work with specific triggers, and mine came with one. The Triad also came with a trigger that was compatible with the Uintah, so I ended up with a spare trigger. As for the BCA, it was way cheaper then the Uintah, but doesnt come with a Sub-MOA guarantee, if that is worth it is up to you. You have the ability to swap barrels and calibers easily and cheaper. The biggest benefit is the handle location on the bolt carrier. On the Uintah the bolt sits behind the ejection port, while the BCA sits at the front of the ejection port, which allows for a more ergonomic placement when it comes to a bullpup. Take into consideration the price difference between a stripped BCA upper vs a complete upper. The price difference is $100, and that's including the hand guard. The barrel BCA is supplying isn't a high grade barrel, which is why they wouldn't offer a sub-moa guarantee. A builder can source a higher end barrel if they want to make a tack driver. |
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First, thanks for sharing. Originally Posted By Tersoth: If you were thinking of building one yourself, there are some things to consider from a functionality standpoint. First would be the chassis, the Reap Weaponries, chassis is considerably lighter by around 2 pounds. However both the A3 Tactical and the SRU SARB-15 chassis, have more surface area for shouldering and even for resting the rear on a sand bag. Second, I find the first sentence confusing, partly because of the second. What are you comparing the Reap Weaponries chassis weight to? Aluminum Triad chassis? Polymer Triad chassis? SARB-15? |
| What I don't get is how people are expecting a premium upper when it's this cheap. Of course it's going to be rough, especially as it's a new platform. Like has been said, it's an EXCELLENT platform to test a barrel. With this said I've had no issues. |
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Sorry, here is what I found today. My previous statement was based off of memory over a year ago. Reap Weaponries - according to what I found the chassis is 12oz and the XPS TS-1 stock that allows the clearance of the bolt is 4oz, for a total of 16oz A3 Tactical Polymer chassis - i weighed mine assembled was 2 pounds 15oz. This includes a standard lower receiver, standard bolt catch, and the trigger. I believe a standard lower is around 8oz, and I am not sure how much the other parts weigh. A3 Tactical Aluminum chassis - I cannot find any specs on it, but it is full aluminum. SRU SARB-15 - according the website the chassis with out a hand guard 980 grams, 2lb and 2.5oz. With the handguard listed on the web site 1,320 grams, 2lb 14.5oz. |
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Originally Posted By TNRonin: What I don't get is how people are expecting a premium upper when it's this cheap. Of course it's going to be rough, especially as it's a new platform. Like has been said, it's an EXCELLENT platform to test a barrel. With this said I've had no issues. The price difference between a stripped upper and completed upper is roughly $100. That $100 is for a barrel and hand guard combined. My expectations would be the same as any other upper with a $50 barrel - low |
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Originally Posted By Tersoth: I built a bullpup bolt action last year using the A3 Tactical triad and the Uintah precision 16" 6.5 Grendel, a BCM hand guard, and a modified pistol buffer tube. The over all length is 26 1/4". Once I figure out how to past photos I can upload a few pictures https://i.imgur.com/mruZuXS.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/j0KHy2X.jpeg Out of curiosity how does that thing handle? having the bolt handle be so far back seems like it might be a little difficult to use. |
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| I personally like it and do not really find it unnatural. As I was running the bolt on mine, i thought of a way for you to see what it would be like. Reach up with your right hand and scratch the right side of your face. On the BCA action the bolt handle is actually an inch and half to two inches further to the front. |
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Originally Posted By Tersoth: I personally like it and do not really find it unnatural. As I was running the bolt on mine, i thought of a way for you to see what it would be like. Reach up with your right hand and scratch the right side of your face. On the BCA action the bolt handle is actually an inch and half to two inches further to the front. I'm seriously getting tempted to put one of those 22 inch 6ARC Uintah uppers or building another BCA in the same caliber on a SARB-15, the only thing that worries me is having to mount a higher magnification scope like a 2-15 on the handguard. I was thinking that using something like the Daniel Defense quadrails might help. |
Scrunk Creek Arms made a new bolt handle for this and they shared an image with me stating it will be available in a few days. It look awesome and I’ll be purchasing one as soon as I see it hits their web site. I been refreshing there site daily, don’t know the price yet but it looks so much better than stock. |
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Originally Posted By AL1EN: Scrunk Creek Arms made a new bolt handle for this and they shared an image with me stating it will be available in a few days. It look awesome and I’ll be purchasing one as soon as I see it hits their web site. I been refreshing there site daily, don’t know the price yet but it looks so much better than stock. https://i.imgur.com/o9sy8pq.jpeg looks like theyre up, and they cost half as much as the upper! https://skunkcreekarms.com/product/bca-35-bolt-handle-with-knob-cold-blued-steel/ |
BCA bolt action upper for $350? (Page 11 of 21)
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