Hello,

I bought two Rock River Arms Lowers.  I bought a Model 1 Sales 6.8 kit to assemble one lower with.

The first lower would not accept the front takedown pin.  The pin could not be completley seated into the receiver.  It appeared the area for the detent and spring was not properly machined and caught on the edge of the pin.  I had a small colt screw style take down pin and that would not work as well.  I used the tool which assists in placing the detent and spring into the receiver, it would not line up allowing my to push the detent into the hole.  With the detents supplied I had to cut the spring down in order to allow them to seat inside the hole.  In this same lower I could not get the bolt catch lever to move smoothly.

I switched the lowers in hopes one was machined improperly.  The only problem I experienced on the second one was the depth of the hole for the front take down pin detent.  Otherwise the front detent pin assembled with no effort.  

Has anbody else experienced problems with Rock River Arms lowers.  I plan to call them Monday with my problem.  I was thinking about ordering a couple more, but now I am having my doubts.

Let me know about your interactions with Rover River Arms and their lowers.

Thanks

Mike

VTK9JerryLeeataol.com (change at to @)

Mike...I can't help you out with the assembly issues but I am thinking about a Model 1 6.8 upper myself. Could you post a range report when you fire it for the first time?

Thanks

I don't think that report will be for awhile.  Atleast not until I get some brass and dies.  I will post range results though.

Thanks

Mike

I have two RRA complete A2 lowers that I've never had problems with.  One has a RRA A2 upper and the other has a J&T A2 upper.

The shop that I deal with does a lot of business with RRA, and I have never heard of the kinds of problems that you are talking about.

I used a Mode1 16" 5.56mm upper on a RRA lower, and only had one problem.  The fire selector switch pin hole was too small. I drilled it out, don't remember what size bit, and everything was fine.

1st, the detent hole probably has debris in it, which is common with many manufacturers..  Take a drill bit that fits and using your fingers, insert the bit and twist it to loosen up and remove any debris.

As for the bolt catch lever, it is probably the parts. Take a file/sandpaper and smooth out the edges of the plunger, including the inside lip. Sometimes flashings on the corners cause it to catch in the plunger hole or on the spring. Also, smooth out the edges of the bolt catch which fit into the lower recess. Flashing on the edges and corners also will cause it to hang up.  Wouldn't hurt to run a drill bit into the plunger hole and remove any debris that may have accumulated in there. Finally, if you happened to have tested the trigger and dropped the hammer, it may have struck the lower wall between the FCG area and the bolt catch slot. This will bend the aluminum wall and cause the bolt catch to hang. You can insert a flat blade screw driver and gently bend the wall back into shape. Don't 'gorilla' it, or you'll break the wall completely.

Here's another trick. First, take your punches and just scrape off the remains from machining on all the holes in your receiver. Drill bits work too, but a small punch will do the trick just as well. Next, get some Tetra-gun grease (Wal-Mart has it for like $4 per tube) and cover all your pins and your holes. RRA receivers are known for being a bit on the "tight" side. They're machined to very exact specs for all the parts to fit securely. Also, their receivers tend to be a bit thicker than standard ones. This makes for a very accurate and durable rifle but makes construction a bit harder. Finally, for all your pins, do not use a standard hammer because you might damage your finish. Instead, get a 16 oz rubber mallet and tap in all your pins. You won't damage anything using that light of a mallet, the rubber makes sure you don't scratch up your receiver, and it allows you to generate much more force than using your fingers or palm. Hopefully that helps. If not, RRA's got a lifetime warrenty.

I will try the drill bit suggestions.  I have not dropped the hammer.  I started with one reciever and when it looked like the front take down pin would not work I switched to the second receiver.

It appears the hole for the front take down pivot detent is not centered on the take down pin.  I do not want to try removing material to make the front take down pin seat (it looks like the pin's shoulder hits the area of the detent) completely.  This should be a good fit from the factory.  I talked with a friend who bought a lower at the same time.  He advised his selector detent hole was small, but he used a different detent as I did.  

I have had two Essential Arms lowers that were assembled and I had not problem replacing parts in them.  I also had a Colt LEO lower that I received stripped and I put a Colt parts kit in it with no problems.  

I'll post later today with the results.

Thank you,

Mike

Only problem I've ever had w/RR lowers was the hole for the front pin spring wasn't quite deep enough. Rather than screw around w/deepening the hole, just clipped a few coils off the spring.

Mine was pretty much fine.  The passage for the selector detent had a slight bur, but nothing major.  Quick pass with a hand turned drill bit and all was well.  Very happy with my RRA stuff!

-Hershey

Quoted: Hello, I bought two Rock River Arms Lowers.  I bought a Model 1 Sales 6.8 kit to assemble one lower with. The first lower would not accept the front takedown pin.  The pin could not be completley seated into the receiver.  It appeared the area for the detent and spring was not properly machined and caught on the edge of the pin...

I had the same problem with my RR lower and a J&T build kit. I wound up filing the flat part of the takedown pin just a bit to make it work.