Posted: 5/4/2014 4:56:48 PM EDT
| I have an AR that I want to re-barrel, have a gas block with gas tube installed, have a handguard (freefloat) installed, and have a flash hider installed. What should I expect to pay a competent gunsmith? |
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Quoted: No capability to do it yourself? ETA: You send the parts to me and Ill do it for free  Today I changed my 16" MOE/railed gas block upper into a 15" free float SLR handguard upper. I enjoyed it very much. Roll pin punches, bench vise, upper vise block, armorers wrench, crescent & open-end wrenches & allen wrenches were a must.
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| I've just heard from different places that replacing a barrel is something you let a gunsmith do. And it's not that there's anything wrong with it (I'm planning on selling it) it's just that I've taked up a new MK12 Mod 1 project. The current barrel on it is a BCM Gvnmt. Prof. 20" |
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I've just heard from different places that replacing a barrel is something you let a gunsmith do. On pretty much anything but an AR this is true. On the AR, all of the hard stuff is done on the barrel itself. So when you buy it, it's pretty much plug and play. |
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Well, I'm not planning on NOT being an AR owner, and in the near future I could see myself buying/building several ARs. Should I invest in the tools now, or just have a smith do all the work? get the tools a GOOD AR armors wrench will cover about 3 of them. Get that and a punch set and you're good to go. a vice block is nice too I used scrap wood for my first build and sandwiched the upper and got it together with no marks. The barrel nut doesn't need too much torque so you're not tweaking on it too hard. |
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Quoted: On pretty much anything but an AR this is true. On the AR, all of the hard stuff is done on the barrel itself. So when you buy it, it's pretty much plug and play. Quoted: Quoted: I've just heard from different places that replacing a barrel is something you let a gunsmith do. On pretty much anything but an AR this is true. On the AR, all of the hard stuff is done on the barrel itself. So when you buy it, it's pretty much plug and play.  |
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That's $35 food labor....plus cost of parts is extra Quoted:
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Thanks for the fast reply. That's really great news to here; I was expecting to pay about 200 for all of it That's $35 food labor....plus cost of parts is extra I think you need to get the auto sear in your mouse checked out, it's slow. OP, what tools do you already have? The AR specific tools aren't all that expensive. If you don't have a workbench and vice already, it's going to be a good bit more. A torque wrench is nice to have as well, but you can rent those or get by without. |
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Well, I'm not planning on NOT being an AR owner, and in the near future I could see myself buying/building several ARs. Should I invest in the tools now, or just have a smith do all the work? If you plan on or have more than a few ARs, I would get the tools. But to each his own. Others posted what you need above. Torque wrench, bench vice, barrel wrench (there are several different types and brands of varying costs), receiver block, pin punches, a hammer, snap ring pliers (can find these at hardware store), and maybe a few other tools. So maybe like $100 - $200 worth of tools at the most. Not everything you need is specific to ARs and can be useful for other things. I find my roll pin punch set and bench vice extremely useful. YMMV. Instructions on assembly are on this website under the build it yourself section. Brownells also has an extremely good video series free online with instructions on how to build and ar15. Google "Brownell's how to build ar15" and you should find them. I tend to reference the videos every time I do any serious maintenance just to make sure I didn't forget anything. |
| I have a vice and workbench, but the vice is kinda old and loose :/ I could probably tighten it up a bit. As for tools I have no AR specific tools and no punch set. I really hate to be so dependent on you guys for info, but for taking off an old barrel, installing a new barrel, installing a gasblock and gastube, and installing a Ops Inc. compensator what would I need? |
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I have a vice and workbench, but the vice is kinda old and loose :/ I could probably tighten it up a bit. As for tools I have no AR specific tools and no punch set. I really hate to be so dependent on you guys for info, but for taking off an old barrel, installing a new barrel, installing a gasblock and gastube, and installing a Ops Inc. compensator what would I need? Not familiar with the Ops Inc. compensator, but most AR muzzle devices can be installed with an AR15 barrel wrench (they have a slot on them for those). Look up the brownells videos I mentioned earlier to see how it is done. You will need a barrel wrench, a torque wrench to attach it to, a hammer, a small roll pin punch (for the roll pin that holds in the gas tube), and a plastic receiver block. Some others have mentioned here that you can use wood blocks in a pinch, but the receiver blocks aren't too expensive. I got one from bushmaster years ago that I think might have been like $40. ETA: I forgot you might get a set of snap ring pliers to get the delta nut off the barrel if you are going to reuse it. It will make it things a lot easier. This is not an AR specific tool and I purchased one at my local ACE hardware store. |
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I think you need to get the auto sear in your mouse checked out, it's slow. OP, what tools do you already have? The AR specific tools aren't all that expensive. If you don't have a workbench and vice already, it's going to be a good bit more. A torque wrench is nice to have as well, but you can rent those or get by without. Quoted:
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Thanks for the fast reply. That's really great news to here; I was expecting to pay about 200 for all of it That's $35 food labor....plus cost of parts is extra I think you need to get the auto sear in your mouse checked out, it's slow. OP, what tools do you already have? The AR specific tools aren't all that expensive. If you don't have a workbench and vice already, it's going to be a good bit more. A torque wrench is nice to have as well, but you can rent those or get by without. Yeah that was weird |
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What about headspace? The info you seek is here: http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_4/315921_Headspace__Torque_values__and_Barrel_Break_in.html |
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What about headspace? Buy a gauge set only if you are going to do a lot of builds...you can take it to a shop for that...but new bolt new barrel and while I advise against it a lot don't get checked on home builds.... If you buy a complete upper it should be Headspace's at the factory. |
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Quoted: Well, I'm not planning on NOT being an AR owner, and in the near future I could see myself buying/building several ARs. Should I invest in the tools now, or just have a smith do all the work?  |
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It's easy, but if he doesn't have tools, it will be cheaper to have a smith do it. He'll need a bench, vice, receiver block, armorers wrench, and a torque wrench. Quoted:
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+1 on super easy. It's easy, but if he doesn't have tools, it will be cheaper to have a smith do it. He'll need a bench, vice, receiver block, armorers wrench, and a torque wrench. I've got 2 stripped uppers coming in this is my problem as well I have none of those tools . |
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Here you go and like said above Brownells.com is your friend.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_4/226782_Assemble_your_own_LOWER__UPPER__FREE_FLOAT__TRIGGER__GAS_BLOCK___Step_by_step_instructions_.html Lots of good reading here. Spend some time reading in the tech forums. Have at it. |
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Quoted: Well the upper has functioned fine with the bolt that's in it. The only thing that's going to be replaced is the barrel. You should have the headspace checked then. Chances are it will be ok, but it's worth the couple minutes it takes to check it. Acceptable headspace tolerance is about +.004" Modern manufacturing should be able to hold tolerances that are way tighter than that, but if the bolt is off a bit, and the barrel/barrel extension is off a bit you could fall into a situation where it won't close the bolt, or excessive headspace, which as we all know is the secret to time travel. The problem is we can tell it when to send you to
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I've just heard from different places that replacing a barrel is something you let a gunsmith do. And it's not that there's anything wrong with it (I'm planning on selling it) it's just that I've taked up a new MK12 Mod 1 project. The current barrel on it is a BCM Gvnmt. Prof. 20" On basically every firearm except for AR's. |