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Posted: 12/11/2012 5:02:32 PM EDT
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So I ordered a Colt 9mm buffer, 5.2oz, from one of the sponsored vendors, and it came today, extremely fast shipping. But th buffer is a 2 piece design, pinned together. The plastic cap is pinned on, and the front part that sits at the front is pinned onto the main body. The picture on the website showed a normal, once piece buffer.
Is that what they are? And they just have the wrong picture online? Or did I receive the wrong part? Or something not from Colt authentic? If you guys need, I can post a picture. Is this going to be any less reliable, or consistent cycling than a normal one piece solid buffer? |
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Quoted:
So I ordered a Colt 9mm buffer, 5.2oz, from one of the sponsored vendors, and it came today, extremely fast shipping. But th buffer is a 2 piece design, pinned together. The plastic cap is pinned on, and the front part that sits at the front is pinned onto the main body. The picture on the website showed a normal, once piece buffer. Is that what they are? And they just have the wrong picture online? Or did I receive the wrong part? Or something not from Colt authentic? If you guys need, I can post a picture. Is this going to be any less reliable, or consistent cycling than a normal one piece solid buffer? That sounds like a normal 9mm buffer. The 9mm buffer is all steel and the rear portion slides instead of having tungsten or steel weights inside an aluminum body. See the second one up from the bottom. 
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I've never seen an actual Colt 9mm buffer, but someone from Colt's customer service dept. told me that their buffer has internal sliding weights...implying that the outer body is one piece.
Also, Brownells supposedly sells original Colt parts, and they have some pictures of it here. If the pictures at Brownells are accurate (i.e., showing a one-piece outer body) then you apparently did not get an original Colt buffer. (Maybe Moon or someone with an original Colt 9mm can chime in here and confirm or refute this). From your description, it sounds like you received a RRA buffer. I bought a RRA buffer that I was going to use in my build, but I sent it back, because I didn't like the design. The only reason I can think of for the two piece design is to prevent bolt bounce, but in my experience the pieces were the same diameter and they fit so tightly inside the buffer spring that there would be no relative motion between them. So I returned the RRA buffer and instead just got an H3 buffer. As far as reliability is concerned - with regard to buffer design - I cannot yet speak from personal experience, but based on everything I've read about it - including anecdotal accounts of other peoples' experiences, here is my present viewpoint: I believe that when you have one solid piece of metal (the bolt) slamming into another solid piece of metal (the barrel) at high speed, you can have "bounce" under certain conditions. If this "bolt bounce" happens during rapid fire, i.e., full auto or bump-fire, it can lead to an "out of battery" fire or possibly a failure to fire. Apparently many people that use solid buffers say they've never had a problem, and that's good, but maybe they've never bump-fired it, either. Or maybe they have, but given the particular combination of the ammo they're using, buffer spring tension, buffer weight, gun cleanliness (or dirtiness), fitment of parts, friction, etc., they just happen to be operating in a "sweet spot". I say, why risk it? Who knows, someday I might bump-fire mine. If I can buy an H3 buffer for approximately the same price as the solid YHM buffer or the might-as-well-be-solid RRA buffer, why not go with it? Quoted:
So I ordered a Colt 9mm buffer, 5.2oz, from one of the sponsored vendors, and it came today, extremely fast shipping. But th buffer is a 2 piece design, pinned together. The plastic cap is pinned on, and the front part that sits at the front is pinned onto the main body. The picture on the website showed a normal, once piece buffer. Is that what they are? And they just have the wrong picture online? Or did I receive the wrong part? Or something not from Colt authentic? If you guys need, I can post a picture. Is this going to be any less reliable, or consistent cycling than a normal one piece solid buffer? |
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I think that's a Rock River Arms buffer. (BTW how was it advertised? Did they call it a Colt "style" buffer, or something like that?)
How does your buffer spring fit over it? With the one I had, both pieces were the same diameter and the spring was so tight that it might as well have been a single piece. Anyway, issues involving buffers (and to a certain extent buffer springs) seems to be a highly subjective topic. If it were me, I would send it back and get either an actual Colt 9mm buffer, or a regular H3 buffer. |
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Yes, normal for RRA anyway. I recommend the Spikes buffer with powdered tungsten. Too bad you already spend money on it. If you have leverage to get a refund, do so and get teh Spikes. You will thank the arfcom later. (Amazon sells it) http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=spikes+tungsten+buffer The buffer solved most of my running issues and the Metalform mags completed the circle. I would say, don't debate this, just do it. A Sprinco heavy buffer spring is a good thing to have too. |
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I'd send it back as a matter of principle...the part they sent to you is not the part they advertised...notwithstanding the fact that it's also significantly functionally different than what you thought were buying.
I'll tell ya, the most annoying thing so far about my own 9mm build project has been dealing with vendors who inadequately, incorrectly or dishonestly describe their parts. It's not cheap to have to ship things back and forth accross the country because of someone else's carelessness, laziness, ignorance, dishonesty etc. So far I've had good luck dealing with 9mmAR, JSE, Del-Ton, Cheaper Than Dirt, Midway, and Brownells. I was originally going to order a Colt 9mm buffer from Brownells, but they've been out of stock for a while, so I ended up ordering an H3 buffer from Del-Ton. I haven't tested the gun yet as I'm still waiting for my lower receiver. Hopefully I'll have it by early next week. ################################### Edit: @Wildearp, the thing is, technically speaking, the buffer he received is NOT even "Colt style". |
Welcome to my world  .
I think you can summarize it this way: It will probably "work", but it is probably a sub-optimal situation. IOW, for 90% of the guns using it, for 90% of the time, there'll be no obvious problems with it. It's just an incremental loss of "quality" which may someday manifest itself in some way; e.g., if you decide to install a slide-fire stock and do some bump-firing. My philosophy is to try to deal with potential problems now, rather than later, pain-in-the-ass though they may be, and to go the extra mile to prevent any grief down the road, accordingly. Thus I'm installing a ramped bolt, a rounded hammer, KNS pins, and any and all other available parts, e.g., a Sprinco buffer spring, that would theoretically enhance the reliability and longevity of the gun. (And btw who knows, the way things are going, the day may be not far away when our criminal entrprise on the Potomac, masquerading as "government", may decide to make semi-auto guns AND PARTS THEREOF illegal...just like the present situation in other lawless banana Republics, where the "government" is bound neither by law nor reason nor moral compunction of any kind). |
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http://www.specializedarmament.com/catalog/AR_15_9mm_SMG-296-0.html
There are 2 evolutions of Colt 9mm buffers. Original and current. Original is the 2 piece and current is 1 piece. |
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Unfortunately I don't see a picture of it there anywhere.
Anyway, IIRC, early AR15/M16 rifle buffers also had a two piece design, but unlike the subject RRA 9mm buffers, the early Colt rifle buffers would have been much more functional, IMO, as the front part of the buffer did not contact the spring and was thus able to move relative to the rear portion. Quoted:
http://www.specializedarmament.com/catalog/AR_15_9mm_SMG-296-0.html There are 2 evolutions of Colt 9mm buffers. Original and current. Original is the 2 piece and current is 1 piece. ######################################################## Edit: @ kcrangle: Is he sending you a buffer with internal sliding weights? |
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They're just letting you keep the first buffer?
Anyway, if he's sending you an actual Colt 9mm buffer, then I suppose when it's refered to as "one piece", that means the outer body is one piece (presumably with internal sliding weights - since that's the present Colt design). And that's the one you should use, IMHO. |
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Quoted:
They're just letting you keep the first buffer? Anyway, if he's sending you an actual Colt 9mm buffer, then I suppose when it's refered to as "one piece", that means the outer body is one piece (presumably with internal sliding weights - since that's the present Colt design). And that's the one you should use, IMHO. He said he didn't care what I did with the first buffer, he just wanted me to get the right one. But I'm going to send it back to him on my dime. A guy with that kind of dedication to keeping customers happy deserves the same respect back. |
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