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Posted: 11/24/2008 7:52:02 PM EDT
| with all these people going crazy and buying everything off the shelves, how hard is it to build a upper? I saw the post on how to build a lower but there isnt one for the upper. I wouldnt mind waiting 4-6 weeks but 2-4 months is just plain crazy and obserd. I have see parts on gunbroker and on some of the vendors sites and thought about building one. Is it really hard? All I need is a stock and a upper to complete my gun and I would like to build another one. |
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It's really not very difficult with the appropriate tools, those being a vise, a receiver vise block and an armorers wrench or a barrel wrench. If you're only going to do it once you might check your Hometown Forum to see if you can borrow the tools.
ETA - Go here and scroll down to the section on changing a barrel. |
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Aside from the forward assist spring and the rear sight assembly, it is simple.
With standard A2, getting the elevation wheel indexed is easy once you know the trick, that being there is a setscrew on the number wheel which can be accessed through the hole in the top of the upper. Just assemble and forget until all done. The spring needs to be compressed with a tube and then the roll pin drifted in. I made a tool from small diameter PVC pipe and cut a slot in it for the pin to go through. Be careful with the windage roll pin. You can bend the windage screw. A modified automatic center punch is better than a plain punch and hammer. Modify it so it won't wedge in the roll pin. The rest is a snap. Don't sweat the torque on the barrel. |
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It is easier to assemble an upper than a lower, though it takes more special tools.
Just like MMCfpd says, you NEED a vise and an upper receiver vise block (the Panther Claw is great IMO). You also need a wrench to work the barrel nut. I like the DPMS wrench because it engages so many of the nut's teeth and it's easy to use. The barrel is the hardest part to install, but if you take a little bit of time, and read the directions (as in the TM, found here), you'll be fine. The rest of the upper is almost trivial. You either install/assemble a rear sight on an A2 style upper or not on a flat top. The ejection port door is really simple, especially if you put it on BEFORE you install the barrel. |
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Quoted:
It is easier to assemble an upper than a lower, though it takes more special tools. Just like MMCfpd says, you NEED a vise and an upper receiver vise block (the Panther Claw is great IMO). You also need a wrench to work the barrel nut. I like the DPMS wrench because it engages so many of the nut's teeth and it's easy to use. The barrel is the hardest part to install, but if you take a little bit of time, and read the directions (as in the TM, found here), you'll be fine. The rest of the upper is almost trivial. You either install/assemble a rear sight on an A2 style upper or not on a flat top. The ejection port door is really simple, especially if you put it on BEFORE you install the barrel. You dont NEED a vise and upper vise block. They will make the build a lot easier though (i'm guessing). I built my upper with tools I had in my garage and I did not use a vice or vice block. So it can be done without a vice. 
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