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Posted: 6/18/2009 6:22:53 PM EDT
| Anyone ever wear out a lower on a AR15 just shooting semi-auto? I guess the only part that would probably wear would be the pin that the hammer is on. The pin moves slightly with every pull of the trigger. I guess the steel pin could wear into the aluminum lower over tens of thousands of rounds being shot. |
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Longer then this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqzFItaJ1uc&feature=related |
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Quoted:
But, damn't I'll sure try! And OP I wouldn't worry about it, there isn't much to wear. Also the U.S. military still uses some of the original A1 lowers. but you will notice the wear and tear.. 
i have read somewhere else, imagine a 4140 metal scratching a T6 aluminum.. |
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The TypeIII Hard Coat Anodizing on AR/M16/M4 lowers has the same "surface" hardness as steel. The bushing surfaces of all the holes for hammer/trigger/auto sear pins, safety/selectors are coated with this also. So it is like the steel pins are riding against steel (ALMOST). Hard Coat Anodizing is a still a thin coat over softer aluminum, if something happens to scratch/break through to the softer aluminum, greater wear could result.
The TM and people talk about eggshelling of the hammer/trigger pin holes, (the hole wears larger in an egg shape) sometimes bad enough it effects the function of the lower. That seams a bit unlikely to me, even with a lot of wear, I'm guessing its a rare case where something was wrong with the hard coat anodizing OR someone got something abrasive in between the pin and pin hole (and never cleaned it out) OR corrosion of the aluminum started in that area (which would probably require one of the two former before the latter happened). Oh, and everyone is assuming you're talking about the stripped lower, the aluminum block everything is assembled within. If you're talking about the entire lower, YES, the parts within do wear out and/or break, BUT can be replaced easily to keep that lower in good working condition. A lower can be assembled from the ground up, or individual parts replaced, by a total novice if he has the slightest mechanical inclination. Springs loose their force over time/use, trigger/hammer/disconnector interfaces wear from the metal to metal contact, the mag catch and bolt catch can see stress's that can crack and eventually break them, etc. Yes, you could probably shoot 10k rounds or more before any of the parts fail, but people have done that and have experienced parts failing and needing replaced before that. |
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