PDW stocks are pretty cool.
And it's pretty easy to spend $200-$400 on one.

You know what's cool about commercial stocks? The diameter is actually big enough to cut new threads into. So I'm going to start off with a UTG Pro 4-Position Retro Style CAR stock kit... they can be had for ~$40 online. UTG has been on the upswing recently and I'm pretty impressed with the quality of this stock kit. Plus it's one of the few commercial spec receiver extensions with a FLAT back end. I'd say it has less wobble than my milspec Magpul MOE stock on a BCM tube, so it looks and feels really good. I'm going to start by single point cutting new threads in the tube, shortening it 1.665" on a mill, and then hit it with some Birtchwood Casey Aluminum black. You could easily run a tap up onto the tube to extend the factory threads and then dremel/hacksaw it if you don't have access to a lathe... but large dies cost like $30 so I'll pass.

Next, I'm going to hack off 1.665" (the same distance) from the stock using a bandsaw and then clean up the cut with the mill. I could use any commercial stock, but I'm planning on pairing it with a Colt-Anchor A1 upper so the retro stock it going to be GREAT.

Finally, it's going to need a shorter buffer. I turned my own buffer from a bar of 303 stainless just big enough to hold 1 tungsten weight that I salvaged from the parts bin and I topped it off with the UTG buffer bumper that I shaved thinner. So the total buffer cost is pretty much FREE. All in all, it weighs 2.65oz total with 1.55oz of reciprocating weight and compared to the length of a standard carbine buffer it's (you guessed it) 1.665" shorter. Yeah, it's about 1/2oz lighter than a plain carbine buffer, but  if I need more weight I can make my own stainless BCG weighted insert for free.
If you’ve got no access to a lathe, Slash sells a PDW buffer, but I think it’s like $100. I’m too poor for that.

...

I know what you're saying, ”you still need a PDW compatible spring and you said the project was $50." Well fear not. You can get a KAC PDW flatwire spring direct from LMT for... drumroll... $10 each. You're welcome. Hopefully my mailman brings mine soon.

Attached File


Attached File


Attached File


Attached File


Attached File

Upper is a Colt-Anchor-Harvey forge A1 upper with a 7.5” .300BLK Anderson poverty pony barrel, pinned FSB, Tony’s Custom DOE pistol handguard, and Toolcraft bolt.

Lower is just one of my Form1 SBRed 80% builds.

For comparison, it’s pictured next to my CMP/NM Gun.

Man this thing is tiny, light (<5LB unloaded), retro, and KISS all at the same time. The Birtchwood Casey Aluminum Black turned out pretty decent. If I wasn’t a cheapskate, cerakote probably would have been superior though.

Attached File


Attached File


Attached File


Attached File


Attached File


Attached File

Yes yes. Go on...

My inspiration for the build was first inspired by the meme below and then Recoilweb’s N-23 Retro Build made me FO... except since I was going so short I went with .300BLK so the gun would still have decent ballistics.

http://www.recoilweb.com/the-pdw-that-never-was-car-15-model-n-23-131167.html


Attached File

Very nice. I left my machine shop somewhere.. when will you start cranking these out?

Very cool. But does she shoot?

Clearances and bolt travel look good and the buffer weights seem reasonable so I’m confident. But I won’t know until my LMT PDW Spring’s show up.

Not bad.

Personally I just pick up the LWRC UCIW's and call it good. But I don't have a machine shop.

Well, it took about 5hrs cause I was doing it on the fly and measuring/creating on the go. Now that I made one I’m guessing I could cut the turnaround time down to about 1.5-2.0 hours... so in the end if I had to charge low shop rates it’d still be about $150-$200 for the finished stock.

Fun for an after work project, probably not profitable as a business venture.

Its a bit wobbly, fully extended, but perfectly fine for a 300blk/5.56mm. I think I’ll put some moleskin tape in the stock and it should feel normal again.

Closed position is super short with almost no wobble like originally and the cheekweld has your nose about an inch past the charging handle! The 3rd position is actually the original collapsed CAR stock length. I’d guess 4th position (longest) is about 13” LOP... I haven’t measured yet.

Doesn't look like it required a full machine shop.  It looks like all the machining you'd have to do could be done on a Harbor freight lathe.
Make all your marks on the tube and chuck it up in a lathe in the store and you'd be done cutting the threads before an employee had time to tell you that you couldn't be doing that there.

You could actually do all this work with just a 1-3/16x16tpi die ($20), a hacksaw, hand files, some sandpaper and then chop an aluminum buffer down shorter. I think the buffer would only weigh 2oz though if the body were aluminum with 1 tungsten weight.

I really like threads like this.  Actual making of something.

The buffer tube is aluminum.  The castle nut is steel.  Can you cut the threads w/ a castle nut?

Attached File

Short REs and chopped up stocks is fun.

Nice work, great idea.

I had this same idea but lack the machining talent so I used the LWRC UCIW kit and cut down a CAR stock

Attached File

That's rad.

Any pics with the suppressor attached?

Nice. Commercial or milspec RE? After doing this and feeling how snug it fit the receiver, I'm sure I could rethread a Milspec stock.

I actually had a Aero M4 Gen 2 upper receiver and MFT minimalist stock I was going to use, but the Old School A1 look was too tempting.
I'm a sucker for A1s and had this A1 receiver with M4 cuts () laying around.

unlikely.
You'd have to be able to cut chip reliefs and cutting edges down the length of the castle nut threads and then the steel would have to be some sort of hardenable grade. Even then, the female nut threads aren't tapered to progressively cut threads like a proper die is. You'd probably ruin more than $20 in castle nuts than just going out and buying an actual 1.188"-16tpi die.

It’s actually short receiver extension from an LWRC UCIW stock kit. I did have to put it in my mill’s vise and extend the slot on the underside further forward (there’s meat on the UWIC RE too allow for it) and then sink a flat bottomed hole in the front of the slot so that the cut down minimalist stock would collapse all the way and lock. At its most forward position, it locks tightly just as the end of the RE bottoms out inside the stock. I like what you did better, but at the time that I did mine I did not own a lathe. I’ve got three 10” lathes now (don’t ask) so if I were doing it today I’d take your approach with the RE. As far as the guts of mine, I used a short JP SCS out of Maxim Defense PDW stock.
And you’re correct about using the CAR stock. It looks more “right” on your gun than the cut down MFT would.

Here it is with just a SDN-6 on it. With the full-size 762-SD it starts to look and feel a bit absurd. With a KSG, for size comparison. KSGs are like 26.5”

So 20-30 rounds of .300blk semiauto or 15 shells of 00B pump? hmmm...

Attached File


Attached File

That is absolutely beautiful
Unfortunately I way overpaid for Sherluk's DOE handguards
Didn't know Tony's carried them
I might have to try this
Great work OP

The sherluk ones look to be bit more DOE authentic polymer handgaurds. I probably would have tried to get one of those if I knew about them a month ago.

The Tony Custom and Model1 Sales “DOE” guards are actually 1 piece aluminum that fit against the bare barrel nut (no wave spring or delta ring used). Without the delta assembly, if you don’t want any wobble you’ve got to shim it inside at the journal shoulder up against the gas block. They look good in pics, but up close it’s super obvious they are modern pieces and not any sort of accurate reproduction. Good quality and brick shithouse tough, but definitely different than a true DOE. I would recommend it though. In the end I do think the Tonys custom one looks and feels good and I don’t plan on changing it out, but this thing is going to get HOT after a few mags. Then again, let’s be honest... this isn’t really a SHTF gun I’m going to run hard.

Think this could work for 9mm?
IM'd you

Had the barrel sitting around and your post motivated me to build this - thanks.

Attached File

There must be something going around because without knowing about this thread I spent my Saturday making a pdw sized AR too.



I used one of the $30 thread dies OP mentioned to retread my buffer tube and it worked out pretty well.

I think I'll have to pick up the KAC flat wire spring because right now I'm using a spring that I cut a few coils off of until the rifle would lock open on an empty mag.

For the buffer I just cut down a carbine buffer and drilled a new hole for the pin. I wanted it to be light weight because I'm running a light weight carrier with a SLR adjustable gas block.



I threw everything on my first 80% lower and I'm happy with how it turned out.

Also, if you want one of the commercial spec buffer tubes the OP posted about I found them here for $23 with free shipping.

I bought the mil spec tube I used from them for like $17 with free shipping.

Use code BEST15 and get 15% off your order too.

Shit, now i want to do this for a g2 in someting like 375 or 45 raptor.  Anyone seen a pdw stock on a g2??

Great looking gun, OP.  Now stop inspiring me to spend $.

You can buy the LWRC UCIW Spring/Tube/Buffer separately, and then put an SBA3 on it

Duplicate

Please allow these couple of questions.
I am planning on copying this almost identically.
I may even ask if you want to rework 10 of the UTG receiver extensions for me.

Receiver extension is UTG Commercial size that you recut the threads with your lathe.

The stock is what I am hung up on.
Looks like a vintage Colt N1 type.
Aren't these MilSpec diameter?
Have you been able to test with the flat wire spring?

Hmm... wanted to do something similar with CAR handguard. What did you do to the front to make it fit the cap?

@razor22

The UTG kit comes with the receiver extension AND the stock. Although you'll have to replace the spring and buffer with a PDW compatible spring and buffer. I used an LMT PDW Spring and buffer of my own making (stainless body, shortened bumper, 1 tungsten weight)

Didn't have to do anything, worked as is.

Used a razor saw to cut the front off, just behind the meatiest part.
After sanding it was .43" long.
Cut the back portion to 3.14" long.
Used JB Weld (not the kwik version) to glue for a final length of 3.5".

Have made 2 and found the molding at the front where I would cut was different between the two.
Can send you some pics of the process I took while doing it.

I reused the buffer tube from that was on a folding knuckle from an MCX Hybrid Pistol to build up an AR pistol.  However, I got overly aggressive with the belt sander to ensure proper indexing with a sling plate without a castle nut and when I was done the tube was just barely too short to lock open with stock buffer.  LOP was about 12.5"

Anyway, I used a .308 buffer which I think is about the same as an H1.  Anyway, thought I would share if it helps anyone with their project.

these are pretty cool, OPs rifle with a railed upper would have been The PDW 2000, future weapon...   if displayed at any military show in late 90s...