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Posted: 5/9/2016 9:52:43 AM EDT
| So I know about lightweight uppers and obviously one way to get less weight is too get rid of the bolt assist, I'm wondering if there is a light weight upper from a reputable manufacturer that has a bolt assist, I know in this day and age bolt assists aren't as needed but I've run into to times where I'm glad I had one especially with building my own rifles and trouble shooting, any ideas guys |
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I used the V7 Weapon Systems for my lightweight build for that reason alone; I wanted to have a forward assist. I could have saved some weight by skipping that but my voodoo lightweight BCG had FA serrations so I wanted a FA.
The V7 Upper is essentially a Forged upper with some extra machining to save a *little* (definitely not much) extra weight over a standard upper. I really really like it, the fit and finish of it is really nice and definitely was on par with uppers that I have used from Rainier Arms, Noveske and Mega. 
(this was just an excuse to whore out my picture  )
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So I know about lightweight uppers and obviously one way to get less weight is too get rid of the bolt assist, I'm wondering if there is a light weight upper from a reputable manufacturer that has a bolt assist, I know in this day and age bolt assists aren't as needed but I've run into to times where I'm glad I had one especially with building my own rifles and trouble shooting, any ideas guys Build your own. Faxon 14.5 Pencil, pin/weld Vg6 Epsilon Titanium, V7 Titanium KMR Clamp Blocks/Barrel Nut, BCM KMR 13", DSA Enhanced Upper, V7 gas tube, V7 Forward Assist (Minimal), Next Intent Tactical Titanium .625 adjustable gas block, LMT Enhanced bolt, and V7 a titanium Carrier/firing pin. While you're at it throw a Hydra-Fire rolling cam pin or even POF rolling cam pin on it. The DSA Enhanced Upper and V7 Minimal Forward Assist are the lightest FA upper/forward assist available. Got a 4 lbs 5 oz AR without sacrificing functionality or putting in crappy plastic parts. 4 lbs oz with an Aimpoint micro. |
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What was your final cost on that build?
I'm trying to figure out how to get my wife to shoot ARs and have decided that she just won't shoot anything over 6lbs loaded, so with a 16oz 30rd mag that leaves me with a 5lbs goal. Trying to figure out how expensive this project is going to be. 
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As mentioned the DS Arms A3 Enhanced Upper is the lightest upper with forward assist I could find anywhere (Lighter than V7 Upper) and at $80 its less expensive also.
On that note one thing to keep in mind is the optic mount you will be using. The DS Arms has the groove cut all the way down the middle to the valley depth of the picatinny lugs. If your optic mount uses only small centered recoil lugs (Larue Mounts as an example, however I do not know if they have an issue with this upper vs full width lugs such as on Bobro or Aero Precision) this may cause an issue as there is no material where they would contact. The V7 Upper is more expensive and heavier however the groove down the middle is concave and does not go all the way down to the valley height so there is material for any recoil lug to grab on to. That said, if you are going for lightweight and dont need QD I would suggest Aero Precision anyhow as its the lightest quality 30mm mount out there and has full length lugs anyhow. Just like you I am starting a lightweight budget build (under $1500 not including optic) and am buying the DS Arms Enhanced Upper because of the math. DS Arms 6.4oz and $80 V7 LW Upper 6.8oz and $147 I have no doubt the finish and machining on the V7 will be nicer but for a non-precision, lightweight, budget build I would rather save the $67 and .4oz for other parts to save even more weight or to put in my savings account
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As mentioned the DS Arms A3 Enhanced Upper is the lightest upper with forward assist I could find anywhere (Lighter than V7 Upper) and at $80 its less expensive also. On that note one thing to keep in mind is the optic mount you will be using. The DS Arms has the groove cut all the way down the middle to the valley depth of the picatinny lugs. If your optic mount uses only small centered recoil lugs (Larue Mounts as an example, however I do not know if they have an issue with this upper vs full width lugs such as on Bobro or Aero Precision) this may cause an issue as there is no material where they would contact. The V7 Upper is more expensive and heavier however the groove down the middle is concave and does not go all the way down to the valley height so there is material for any recoil lug to grab on to. That said, if you are going for lightweight and dont need QD I would suggest Aero Precision anyhow as its the lightest quality 30mm mount out there and has full length lugs anyhow. Just like you I am starting a lightweight budget build (under $1500 not including optic) and am buying the DS Arms Enhanced Upper because of the math. DS Arms 6.4oz and $80 V7 LW Upper 6.8oz and $147 I have no doubt the finish and machining on the V7 will be nicer but for a non-precision, lightweight, budget build I would rather save the $67 and .4oz for other parts to save even more weight or to put in my savings account Aimpoint T2 with Scalarworks LDM works perfectly for me. |
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What was your final cost on that build? I'm trying to figure out how to get my wife to shoot ARs and have decided that she just won't shoot anything over 6lbs loaded, so with a 16oz 30rd mag that leaves me with a 5lbs goal. Trying to figure out how expensive this project is going to be. I have two builds. One was a PISTON and weighed 5 lbs, 4 oz w/ Aimpoint t2. Other was the exact same build, but with V7 ti carrier/gas tube and Next Intent Ti gas block. It weighed 4 lbs 9 oz with Aimpoint t2. Both were about 2,500-3000 complete. Didn't go stingy on the trigger or any other part (elftmann 3gun) If money isn't an issue, and you want it as light as possible then I'd go the route I mentioned above. Best thing about building from scratch is you can get a part here or there without breaking bank all in one day. |
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I am Building my own, I have everything so far I am actually going to pick up the lower today and I just ordered the DSA enhanced upper but what I have for it is :
V7 titanium A2 comp faxon 16" pencil barrel BAD titanium gas block .625 KMR Alpha hand guard, didn't go for the titanium barrel nut DSA enhanced upper titanium FA AXTS Strike Ind. ARCH-EL V7 light weight ejection port door Aim Surplus NiB BCG 2A armament Balios lite lower receiver Plain Jane bolt catch with magpul bolt assist lever cmc flat trigger KNS anti rotation trigger pins V7 light weight ambi safety V7 titanium enhanced easy pull take down pins V7 light weight mil-spec buffer tube JP centerless ground buffer spring Spikes T2 buffer V7 Titanium castle nut and endplate magpul moe + pistol grip probably just stick with my magpul polymer BUIs they've never done me wrong so its not going to be the lightest build ever , I didn't want to make it crazy light because lets be honest I want it to look sexy not just skinny but it will definitely lighter to current rifle if I can figure out how to post pictures I will post some when I get it together just waiting on the upper now |
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I am Building my own, I have everything so far I am actually going to pick up the lower today and I just ordered the DSA enhanced upper but what I have for it is : V7 titanium A2 comp faxon 16" pencil barrel BAD titanium gas block .625 KMR Alpha hand guard, didn't go for the titanium barrel nut DSA enhanced upper titanium FA AXTS Strike Ind. ARCH-EL V7 light weight ejection port door Aim Surplus NiB BCG 2A armament Balios lite lower receiver Plain Jane bolt catch with magpul bolt assist lever cmc flat trigger KNS anti rotation trigger pins V7 light weight ambi safety V7 titanium enhanced easy pull take down pins V7 light weight mil-spec buffer tube JP centerless ground buffer spring Spikes T2 buffer V7 Titanium castle nut and endplate magpul moe + pistol grip probably just stick with my magpul polymer BUIs they've never done me wrong so its not going to be the lightest build ever , I didn't want to make it crazy light because lets be honest I want it to look sexy not just skinny but it will definitely lighter to current rifle if I can figure out how to post pictures I will post some when I get it together just waiting on the upper now Photos when it is built, please! |
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I used the V7 Weapon Systems for my lightweight build for that reason alone; I wanted to have a forward assist. I could have saved some weight by skipping that but my voodoo lightweight BCG had FA serrations so I wanted a FA. The V7 Upper is essentially a Forged upper with some extra machining to save a *little* (definitely not much) extra weight over a standard upper. I really really like it, the fit and finish of it is really nice and definitely was on par with uppers that I have used from Rainier Arms, Noveske and Mega. https://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e390/hottievladie/AR15%20Forum/IMG_2089-01.jpeg (this was just an excuse to whore out my picture )Wow, really nice, so what did your weight come to |
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Wow, really nice, so what did your weight come to Thanks! I recently lightened my buffer and got it down to 4lbs 14oz without optic and 5lbs 3oz with optic. I have a Daniel Defense CHF Lightweight barrel and although it is light, it is definitely not as light as some of the pencil profiles now available. I'm debating weather or not to try to swap a few more parts to get it down to 5lbs or less with the optics, but I don't really want to change my stock as I prefer the SL stock over the MFT or even the SL-K so that kind of limits my options. I think I have figured out what parts I would have to change to save those extra 3 oz and it would end up running me about $250. I could shave all 3 of those ounces and then some if I switch to a MFT Minimalist stock and that would only cost me ~$50 but I'm not really fond of it. |
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What was your final cost on that build? I'm trying to figure out how to get my wife to shoot ARs and have decided that she just won't shoot anything over 6lbs loaded, so with a 16oz 30rd mag that leaves me with a 5lbs goal. Trying to figure out how expensive this project is going to be. I am currently building a light weight build (16" barrel), minus my optic it will be roughly 5.2 lbs (assuming I have done all of my weight calculations correctly). It will be costing me roughly $2k. If you want a parts list or anything let me know, I would be happy to help out. Could also easily make it lighter with a shorter barrel/rail and swap out some of the heavier parts (as well as potentially cheaper) |
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You can get it on eBay. It's exactly the same from a reputable seller. Great quality. I have two ti ones that I blackened and then cerakoted Quoted:
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Show me where a titanium vg6 is sold. I want that component bad but thought it was sold in only steel. You can get it on eBay. It's exactly the same from a reputable seller. Great quality. I have two ti ones that I blackened and then cerakoted I would not say they are EXACTLY the same but very close. Some of the inside surface machining is a little rougher and the Outside Diameter of the device is a few 1000ths larger than the Authentic VG6 Steel Epsilon I already have. The Chi Ti version will not fit into my VG6 Cage Device ( I am in the process of trying to take a little material off to make it fit as we speak). Otherwise for all functional difference it appears to be very close to the same thing. |
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