I am going to order a 14.5 inch preban upper from Bushmaster this week. Should I have them permanantly attach a Phantom, or should I wait to have this done by someone else? Also, is there a better alternative to the phantom, and if I ever wanted to put something different on the barrel after it was attached is that possible?

If you do get the Phantom, it can be removed, but it is not an easy task and needs to be done by a proffessional you knows what they are doing.

Phantom is among the best flash suppressors you can get, Vortex is the other. Vortex eliminates slightly more flash, but very slightly. If I were getting one direct from Bushmaster, I would probably just go with the Phantom. Then again, I already have a Vortex on my favorite rifle.

When I got my first preban, and I had to choose which it would be, I went with the Vortex. But that was back when Bushmaster sold the Vortex. Seriously, you will be well served with either.

Thanks new-arguy. I am wondering one more thing. I have a 20 inch preban upper right now and I like the fact that I can easily clean the carbon build-up off the muzzle. Any tips on doing this with the welded FS?  Furthermore, does cleaning the muzzle even matter, or is it more damaging than good?