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Posted: 10/31/2013 8:52:52 PM EDT
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Cant afford 223 for plinking anymore , have no 22 rifles so was debating on a conversion kit or a dedicated 22 rifle.
I was looking at the mossberg 715t, 10/22, and a romanian m10-22lrak training rifle.... but not having alot of funds Iim thinking a conversion kit might be the ticket and allow trigger time on the ar without having to take a loan out. My concerns are chamber/bore wear and gas tube fouling. Are these viable concerns or should I not worry? (Would shoot plated 22lr rounds to avoid lead fouling) If the conversion kit is my ticket to joy I have some questions :D Cmmg seems to be the most suggested kit but there is so many variants I cant make out the differences.... basic finnish, stainless, stainless gen 2, stainless ace, alpha, bravo, echo, evolution.... it goes on and on and even on there website it gives little info on the differences between the models. I see some have a brass bushing some dont , cant figure out if that bhoa plate thingy is needed on the newer kits for bolt hold open during mag changes. Etc etc.... Makes me just want to go the cheap route and get a ciener kit or tactical industries kit (both $140 at cheaperthandirt) The ciener kit has a ton of good reviews and is cheap to boot, I can live without bolt open mag change exercises while plinking. So........ Should I go dedicated 22 rifle.... Or Conversion kit.... If conversion kit.... cmmg or a cheaper kit? Money is tight and would really like to spend as little as possible but still have a reliable shooter. Oh ..... and if theres any cheaper conversion kits I missed , please share...thanks :D |
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Many people report issues with .22 conversion kits and recommend a complete .22 caliber AR rifles instead.
Up until the last time I was at the range I'd had pretty good luck with my conversion kits. Had some failures to eject last trip. Never found out why. I've never had an issue with gas tube fouling. One rifle my son has leaded the barrel very badly a couple years ago. Took a lot of cleaning to get it right again. No clue why that one chrome lined 20" barrel leaded up like that and the other two did not. I don't know about the differences between kits. Mine are standard Ciener and CMMG kits. The bolt hold open magazines only hold the bolt open while the magazine is in the rifle. When you remove the magazine to insert another full one, the bolt goes forward. None of mine have the brass insert you mentioned. I polished the rails/slots on the bolt on mine with lapping compound prior to use (on the last two kits I bought) as a way of accelerating the break in period. I cleaned off all the oil/lube, put the lapping compound on the rails, worked the bolt back and forth a hundred times, putting some more lapping compound on part way through the process, and then cleaned all the lapping compound off of it before lubing it up for the next range session. I like the idea of the conversion kit since it gives me the same sight picture, same trigger, same weight/balance as my AR15. Good luck with your choice. |
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Nothing wrong with the conversion kits. Everyone and their mamas started making them as soon as Ciener's patent expired, and even then, his weren't the only game in town.
In any case, I have a CMMG, a Spikes and a Ciener. The Ciener was my first and likes to be run wet. I use that in my Colt SP1 since the barrel is a 1/12. Got the Spikes about two years ago for 80, still have not shot it. The CMMG, got it for 80 today and it's practically new in the box. Leading, gas tube,....blow a couple of rounds of 223/556 down the barrel after every couple hundred rounds of 22. |
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Thanks for the info guys. A dedicated upper would be great but just cant afford it right now. It seems like there isnt much difference between all the cmmg kits, I just dont understand why they got a dozen kits with different names and no real explenation as to the differences
$80 for a like new kit..... wish I could find a deal like that! Will lead fouling of the barrel be avoided by using plated rounds instead of bare lead bullets? Thanks again |
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This question comes up so often and the replies all go the same way. Each of us has our own thoughts on this and truth be told there is not a one size fits all answer.
I used conversions for some time. I had one from each of the "big three". The Spikes gave me fits however....the CMMG worked flawlessly and it was their "low end" Parkerized one. Don't be confused by all the variations, the basic CMMG will function just fine. A rifle with a conversion will likely never shoot as well as a dedicated .22 rifle. If I look at spending around $200 for a conversion versus buying a complete .22 rifle for about the same money (Like a Ruger 10/22) I have to think really hard about what I am looking for and the long term aspects of this. While AR fans here think the .22 AR is just the best there are other great choices out there. As for "training" on an AR platform...well....I am not in the military nor am I am LEO or mercenary where my skills on an AR are critical to my profession or protecting my life. I do enjoy the shooting sports and its been a hobby for five decades. I have a wide variety of firearms, some of which have been with me since before the AR was even invented. Owning other rifles do not down grade my proficiency with the AR. Fact is, I enjoy diversity and appreciate each firearm for its strengths. So, think about what you really want from the firearm. Think about how long you may want to own this thing. I have the single shot rifle I learned to shoot on in the 1950's still in my safe and still shoot it just for fun. I have my first 10/22 bought in 1976 and still enjoy shooting it. I see shooting as a long term activity. If I only had a couple of hundred bucks to spend and it came between a conversion and say a 10/22 that I might pass on to a child or grandchild later...I would spend the money on a dedicated firearm that I knew would be around in thirty years (like a 10/22). If I just wanted to play at the range for now...my decision might be different. A .22 conversion will not shoot as well as a dedicated rifle. Even the worse of my 10/22's will out shoot my best AR with a conversion in it. So, if I wanted to go practice targets or pop off a varmint the .22 AR would not do it, a little Ruger or Savage or Marlin would. Lots of choices...just thing it through. You will have fun with either. |
| If you buy a conversion now you can swap the chamber insert for a barrel collar and use the bolt in a dedicated 22 LR upper in the future. More than a few 22 conversions have morphed into dedicated uppers. I have two parkerized CMMG bolts and a Ciener currently riding in dedicated uppers. Each bolt was bought as a 22 conversion kit first. |
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Quoted:
If you buy a conversion now you can swap the chamber insert for a barrel collar and use the bolt in a dedicated 22 LR upper in the future. More than a few 22 conversions have morphed into dedicated uppers. I have two parkerized CMMG bolts and a Ciener currently riding in dedicated uppers. Each bolt was bought as a 22 conversion kit first. So later on if I wanted a dedicated 22 upper I would just need the upper, 22 brl, and the conv bolt? What about the part of the conversion bolt that fits into the barrel and mimics the 223/5.56 casing? Can it be removed? |
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I'd recommend looking at TACCOM uppers first, then CMMG.
Both are top notch. I've owned a Ciener conversion, a Spikes upper, a CMMG conversion, a CMMG upper, and a TACCOM (in that order). I loved my TACCOM so much I bought a New Frontier lower for it. Those two companies are the best IMO, but CS goes to Tim at TACCOM by far...not that CMMG is bad--he's just that good. |
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Quoted:
So later on if I wanted a dedicated 22 upper I would just need the upper, 22 brl, and the conv bolt? What about the part of the conversion bolt that fits into the barrel and mimics the 223/5.56 casing? Can it be removed? Quoted:
Quoted:
If you buy a conversion now you can swap the chamber insert for a barrel collar and use the bolt in a dedicated 22 LR upper in the future. More than a few 22 conversions have morphed into dedicated uppers. I have two parkerized CMMG bolts and a Ciener currently riding in dedicated uppers. Each bolt was bought as a 22 conversion kit first. So later on if I wanted a dedicated 22 upper I would just need the upper, 22 brl, and the conv bolt? What about the part of the conversion bolt that fits into the barrel and mimics the 223/5.56 casing? Can it be removed? Taccom and CMMG barrels come with a collar that replaces the chamber adapter. You snap the chamber adapter off and snap the collar on. Tim at Taccom actually fits the collar to the barrel. Taccom is what I recommend. Dave N |
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