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Posted: 5/15/2008 8:27:31 AM EDT
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Is there really any difference in lower receivers? Are all the lowers out there built to the same specs? Do they have the same finish? Is there a difference in the welds, material etc? There are tons of choices out there and prices all over the place so what is the best? |
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not much difference as they should be all done to spec. material is usually 7075-t6 forged Al and there are no welds. this doesn't mean that some companies are better than others in not creating mistakes. if you get a decent brand you should be gtg as quite a few of them are made at the 5 major manf of the lowers, just w/ different roll marks |
| This has been gone over several times. Most forged receivers come from a handfull of foundries that a company buys from & has finished to their own specs. Most are of excellent quality & some are known to have out of spec issues whether it be tight magwells or a whole not quite where it should be or of the wrong diameter for a part that was designed to fit into it. Some are Teflon coated. Some are made to same specs as the mil requires & some are not. For the most part you will get a receiver that works as designed & will prolly out last you but not all are made to the same specs & some are not finished the same. For many it boils down to a preferred roll mark or the name on the side. Cast receivers are rare these days but I'd stay away from them with all the quality & readily available forged receivers out there. |
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If you are going to purchase a new lower receiver I have some suggestions to avoid ending up with a bum receiever. 1) Its probably a good idea to get a mated pair of receivers, (upper and lower) so you know they have a good fit and the takedown pins are in the correct spot. 2) Bring a few different mags and see if they bind in the magwell or not. 3) As far as the finish goes, can you leave scratch marks with your fingernail? Is it GRAY or BLACK? Some mfg's have better finishes than others. My mega lower seems impervious to scratches, while the finish on my RRA and Bushmaster receivers are a little lighter in color and softer in hardness. 4) Further points of aesthetic to consider are whether the forging marks were cleaned up or if the receiver still has seams around it. Noticable place for this seam is in the front-center of the magwell. Again, this is just aesthetic and doesn't affect function. The biggest thing though imo is the magwell. A tight magwell may wear in with time, but until then it sucks dremeling magazines or trying to rip a one out of the gun when it should drop free. |
I'm wondering the same thing. I have a Colt 6920 upper and have no idea which lower to get for it. Armalite, RRA, Stag, DPMS, LMT, Bushmaster... Is there really any difference between them, or is one just as good as another? Do I need to study and research each one, or should I just pick one out of a hat and be done with it because it really isn't going to matter? |
Already answered sir. |
So which brand is which? Which brands have out of spec issues, which ones don't? Which ones have known problems, which ones are generally problem free? Which brands are considered risks, which ones are safe bets? |
This thread has some good intel I can only speak of what I've owned & currently own. Like I said, most major brands put out some well finished lowers & uppers for that matter. A lemon will slip out from time to time but it's fair to say that you really can't go wrong with most. By average you will either get a Teflon coated receiver from CMMG, DPMS & some others that come from LAR(?) or the flat dark greyish color from the ones that use CMT receivers which is what I believe has the mil contract for the Colt receivers. Not sure if FN forges their own or buys on contract. I have one myself with no issues at all but I've been reading complaints about Mega putting out lowers with tight magwells or ones that won't accept Pmags. Otherwise, the genenral consensus is that Mega has the best fit & finish & my example is dead on. Another example is that Olympic Arms releases some out of spec lowers & this is true but my Oly is dead on fit, finish & is in spec. They are hit & miss on their QC. Most here whether they own one or not will tell you to steer clear but I'm not afraid to admit that my lower is g2g. Other than those two lowers & I only currently own CMMG rifles & they are rather nice with receivers from LAR I believe. However, I have owned Bushy, DPMS & RRA. They were all of good quality & dead in spec but I chose to cull the heard to keep most of gear CMMG in addition to the Mega & Oly lower I kept. You won't know the quality of what you're buying until you get an item in your hands & inspect it/range test for yourself. In any case you can buy with confidence pretty much any forged lower from a good vendor-which is just about every one of the sponsors that sells receivers. Do your own research & listen to what most folks are saying here. There will be varying opinions & some outright BS but you should be able to figger out which receivers will serve you & your mission well. Good luck. |
Thank you for the link! I found that a long time ago and couldn't find it this time which is why I posted this topic. Thanks Again for taking the time! |
A lower receiver is simply a shell, and its in spec, or its not. You shouldn't have any problems with any of the more common receivers. |
| Just took delivery of a Double Star stripped lower receiver. It is much better quality (color and printing quality) than some higher named lower receivers I have built on. I would highly recommend same. Now if your going to build to eventually sell I would ponder a better name lower just for the better name recognition. |
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