AR Sponsor
Posted: 4/28/2005 6:50:36 PM EDT
|
I just put together my first lower using all Bushmaster parts, but left off the plastic trigger guard. Does anyone make a metal one? |
And there are also people who've discovered a pressing need to tighten a screw, and they carry a Leatherman on them, but not a set of hex keys. |
Damn right, plus 1. |
|
Plastic trigger guards and plastic magazine release buttons are standard ONLY to Bushmasters. Colt, LMT and the like use Aluminum (as they should) for these parts. When a manufacturer skimps on small parts such as this in order to increase profits it kinda makes you wonder what other cost saving measures are being implemented with the other parts of the rifle that you CAN NOT see with the naked eye! |
|
Plastic trigger guard - Big Friggin Deal!!! I have both and have never been able to damage either. Slotted screw - the hex screw is easier to install. If you tightened it right the first time it won't come loose.  JMHO....  Bushmaster components are as good as or better than any other. If the plastic bothers you, beg Colt to sell you some of their magical parts. Or buy DPMS. Neither is measurably better. |
|
Well I have a DPMS LPK with the slotted screw and it was a royal pain to get it into place when I installed it. I ended up holding it with a needle-nose and sticking it down into the hole at the base of the grip. doing this without the washer falling off only increased my fun. If it had been a hex head I could have simply stuck the wrench into it and stuck it up inside the grip. On the other hand though, I did have to tighten it a few days after I started shooting the rifle, and the straight blade slot made it a lot easier to find a tool. I don't think it had anything to do with tightening it "right" either. I think it just worked itself in after a little use. I had plenty of torque on it when I installed it. Pretty much as much as I could put on it with bare hands on a craftsman screwdriver. So I see pros and cons to both sides of this. To each his own... As to the plastic trigger guard, it seems kinda cheesy and cheap, but what kinda plastic is it? I think any AR guy should appreciate the qualities of good polymers or delrin... Remember when we used to get ripped on for our plastic "mattel" rifles? I suppose there is also a tiny weight savings too, but I don't really get it. Mil-spec metal trigger guards are common and cheap... If it is good strong polymer though I could really care less that it's not aluminum. I had my military rifle in the USMC and my first AR was a clone of it. I personally do not care what the military is using anymore, but I remember how cool it used to be to have all the genuine military gear! Obviously that is still a huge factor in this market, given the numbers of M4 barrels that are sold to guys who will probably never own a flare launcher, let alone a grenade launcher! Hell I'm such a heretic I have been pondering buying wood furniture for my AR just so I can hold it under the noses of some of my more assholish friends who hate military style semi-autos. I want to invite them to explain what makes it different from their Ranch Rifles or Rem 7400's! |
|
If you put the grip screw and star washer in place in the pistol grip before you stick it on the lower, it makes it really easy. You can start threading the screw before you put the pistol grip all the way on. I traded some green furniture to a friend of mine, and when we went to put it on his Bushy we found it had the stupid hex screw in it. Not fun. |
Yeah, but you see, I hate to pay for the "privilege" of being the final inspector on the production line. Bought a complete DPMS lower assy once, and made the mistake of not doing a thorough inspection before I took it home. Assumed that, since it was in the wrap, it was OK. 1) Buttstock was gouged on the side 2)Bolt holdopen was so out of spec that it had to be replaced before it gouged the side of the upper. 3) Finish of the lower receiver was mottled. 4)Cutout in the font lugs was off center, so the upper receiver tilted to the left when mounted. 5)Trigger guard was a crappy looking shiny black that matched no known AR color. Now for all you DPMS fans out there, it does seem that they take some pains w/their complete rifles, but parts and sub assemblies tend to be a whole different ball game. 
|
Not as of abotu a month ago. My DPMS lpk was all aluminum. no plastic. |
|
i have never seen a plastic mag release.  i have handle quite a few lpk's and complete rifles from bushmaster too
|
my leatherman sure as hell wont. but then again i like the hex screws. |
| my bushy has the plastic trigger guard too. it rattles around but it's on a target rifle so it doesn't matter much. just the idea of it though. for my custom rifle which will be in .300 whisper i ordered one of the Magpul Gen II from denny at GTS and that is one sweet trigger guard. |
|
false statement had everyone rattled.  did i mention all my bushmaster's have plastic trigger guards and i heard them say the other night that they could kick any one of yalls ar a$$  j/k |
Where did you buy it from, directly from DPMS, or at a dealer? Sounds like someone was in there before you got it to me. |
|
|
For those that have not been around long enough, there used to be a lot of junk parts kits. These were made from reparkerized parts stripped from old worn out M16's. Also, many came with plastic trigger guards, mag release buttons, delta rings, and crappy black plastic buffers filled with BB's instead of the usual sliding weights. Yes, if your rifle has these cheap parts, you have to wonder where else they cut corners. As far as hex screw vs slotted on the grip... getting the right size hex key is no problem. Getting a long one that will reach into the grip to the screw is the problem. |
AR Sponsor