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Posted: 5/1/2026 11:56:57 PM EDT
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Pretty sure the answer is I'm in a bad place, but I'm looking for other opinions. I'm rebuilding a ZM Weapons LR-300, and the barrel nut was stuck. Had it in a vice, midwest industries upper receiver rod, wrench, heat, penetrating lubricant, the works. So I take it to a gun shop where I usually do transfers because I happened to be there anyway, they say they have a guy who does AR gunsmithing, me being an idiot I think this is an easy job and he said he could do it no problem. I said I had a spare barrel nut so if that got damaged it was okay. But I figured it was common sense to call if it was really stuck or it was out of their league. So this is how it gets returned to me. The bottom threads are destroyed as is part of my barrel. The (new) barrel nut threads and seats. I am unsure but it now seems unsafe to fire this thing because the metal looks to be worn thin there. I'm kind of newer to all this and I wasn't sure if this seems like unacceptable damage initially, now I know that to be true, I just need to know if this now renders this as nonfunctional. I'm just looking for some other opinions before I decide how to go forward with this. Real sad. Thanks for your help.        " /> |
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holy crud - dude didn't bring flowers OR lube to your fucking The Receiver Ring is not a pressure containment part, so the bottom being thinned out is not a big problem. The barrel extension flange being chopped off is a more interesting problem, but I'm guessing you are not wanting a half-moa target gun, so likely another 'annoying but not show stopping' issue. Now, did dude have the balls to charge you for this, and did he go in for a kiss when he was done? |
Disclaimer - OP is bad at knowing things, and might catch on fire.
Vet - Op MMAMA
Every other species kills off their stupid......we cater to them. -- spin-drift
Nobody ever called 911&said I just did something smart. -- TheFlynDutchman
Vet - Op MMAMA
Every other species kills off their stupid......we cater to them. -- spin-drift
Nobody ever called 911&said I just did something smart. -- TheFlynDutchman
| While incredibly ugly and ridiculous that he did this, it will be fine if you wanted to put it back together. For the love of Pete. Use some antiseize. I would ask for a refund and to have the upper and barrel replaced at his cost honestly. There’s no excuse for this. |
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No kiss unfortunately. Yeah not looking for this to be some insanely accurate anything. Just don't want it to explode when I shoot it. I'm unfortunately fairly new to all this and got taken advantage of/made a real dumb decision but I thought anybody working on guns or gunsmithing in any capacity would have the common sense to say something is outside of their ability. The whole reason I did this was to replace the barrel with an 11.5" so at least the only damage after that will be on the receiver. |
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Unfortunately just replacing the upper isn't really possible - these uppers are extremely hard to find and unique. So even if I wanted to make them pay for that or the barrel, there isn't anywhere to just buy a replacement. Evidently these barrel nuts on this model are "notoriously hard to get off" per another member of this forum that has one of them. But this was crazy. |
| Yeah. Either way that guy should compensate you in some way. That is clown world right there. Sorry about this happening man. Swap the barrel. The gun will more than likely not know the difference. I’d limit your barrel nut torque however. And use plenty of antiseize. |
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IMHO the guy who did this to cause this damage should have to replace and/or repair it. The ZM upper is going to be hard to find. I'm not sure if I personally would trust it. I'm not a welder, but you may consider consulting with someone who is a master welder who can do repairs on aluminum, most likely with a TIG welder, then having it remachined, as those threads could be redone. As for the barrel nut, you can find these at Gun Parts Corp CY6 Greg Sullivan "Sully" WeaponsArmorer SLR15 Rifles Defensive Edge Training (763) 712-0123 |
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Originally Posted By sully: IMHO the guy who did this to cause this damage should have to replace and/or repair it. The ZM upper is going to be hard to find. I'm not sure if I personally would trust it. I'm not a welder, but you may consider consulting with someone who is a master welder who can do repairs on aluminum, most likely with a TIG welder, then having it remachined, as those threads could be redone. As far as functionality, if you reassemble with a new barrel and nut I think it’ll work fine. Doesn’t look like what's left of the threads needs to be chased. |
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Thanks for your input everyone. I was thinking this was going to be an irrecoverable disaster. I've got some leads to chase down here, and I've got a good machinist that I trust so I'm going to see if he's got a welder he works with. Finding a new barrel was the goal anyway which has been a huge pain to find an 11.5" that'll work. But hopefully I can get this all sorted out. |
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