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Posted: 9/12/2007 10:11:33 PM EDT
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Hi! I'm putting my lower together but it appears the selector detent is stuck. It didn't go in very easily, I got the spring behind it and put the grip on. The fire selector is in the fire position (arrow straight up). I can't move it to safe. If I take the grip off the spring comes out but the detent doesn't. I think it may be alittle to big or the hole needs to be cleared. Any ideas how to get it out? I was thinking of putting it in the freezer to get it to shrink. Thanks! |
Try taking off the grip and spring and jiggling the selector lever back and forth while tapping on the top (requires 4 hands  ).The detent will eventually fall out. Lube it and put it back in with the spring and grip, don't tighten the grip screw. Try to work the selector a few times, relieving some of the pressure on the spring if needed. Just work it in a few times. Then tighten down the grip screw and test it. What LPK are you using? I've seen this on RRA LPKs, which are my favorite, but seem to have a just slightly deeper detent in the selector for more positive action. Good luck. |
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Is the hammer cocked back? You can only put the AR15 on Safe if it is cocked, just in case you weren't aware of that. I'm not trying to insult you in any way with the above question - I didn't know much when I first started, and I don't know what your AR skill level is.  The detent usually doesn't fall out in any of mine either unless I whack the rifle on the side a few times with my hand with the grip and spring out of the way. Jiggling the selector like Desert_AIP said helps too. Friction is usually enough to hold it in the hole, so that doesn't necessarily mean it's stuck. |
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I'm using the RB LPK. The detent didn't go in very easily so I'm pretty sure it's stuck. This is my first AR so I didn't know it should have gone in fiarly easily. I tried banging it on my work bench for awhile and it hasn't moved. I can't move the fire selector anymore than a little bit. The hammer has been cocked back the whole time (that was just by coincidence, I didn't know it needed to be but thanks for the info). I put the whole lower in the freezer for an hour to get it cold to see if that might help shrink the metal a little bit (it works with some things) but it didn't help. I sprayed some gun oil in there but I don't know that any really got around it. At this point the only thing I know to do is to get a real small drill tap and drill into the detent and pull it out that way. I'd rather not do that but I don't know of any other way. Any other ideas? Probably after I get it out I may need to run a drill bit in the hole since it seems like either the hole is to small or the detent was to big. |
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Try a few raps with a mallet on a block of wood placed on the top of the receiver. I would think that would loosen it. Driving out the selector sounds like an OK idea too with the grip and spring removed. Use a wooden dowel or brass punch fromt eh right side of the receiver. If you get the selector out and the detent is still in the hole, you should be able to blow it out or fish it out with a piece of wire from the selector hole. Good Luck! |
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I got it out. I wasn't able to punch the selector out. So I had to drill into the detent from the bottom (where the grip goes when its attached). I drilled through a lot of it, and then I was able to turn the selector using pliers (needed the leverage). I think the drilling weakened it. I was then able to punch the selector out, and then used the punch from the bottom to push the rest of the detent out. I'll have to get another one. but lucky for me, there is a gun show here tomorrow so I shouldn't have a problem finding one. I may need to run a drill bit through the hole again. I think it was to small for the original detent (that's why it got stuck). Does anyone know the side of that hole? Or is there any other different configuration I can use that doesn't involve the detent for the safe selector? |
Well, holes machined too small are rare but not unheard of. It's just as likely that the detent was too big, though, so getting another one may fix the problem. I'm not sure how big the hole is, and I don't have the right tools here at home to measure any of mine.  I don't think any selector will let you get away without a detent, since that's what keeps it in "fire" or "safe" position. Trying to fire the rifle without one would be unsafe, IMO, since it could come off of safe at any time (or more likely would not stay on fire). If you don't find one at the funshow, Del-Ton is the place to go. They sell individual small parts and let you choose USPS 1st class shipping on small orders, so the shipping won't eat you up. www.del-ton.com They're great for big orders too, but nowhere else I know of lets you pay less than $5 shipping on any orders. I just checked, and I could get a selector detent from Del-Ton to my house for ~$1.30 total. |
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