I have a 6 position commercial buffer tube on my rifle.I want to know if i buy a milspec tube will i need to buy a new spring and buffer, or will the one from my commercial tube fit the milspec tube?

Whether mil spec or commercial your buffer, spring, castle nut, etc... are the same.

So, can someone show pics of the difference between a commercial and mil-spec buffer tube, or provide a link to a page that does?  I hear all this talk about one or the other, but how do you tell the difference?

For the record, the proper term is "receiver extension-"

The the mil spec has rolled threads, the commercial version has the threads cut into it.  With cut threads, diameter of the outside of the threads is the same as the body, that is why the commercial extension is larger in diameter.  The mil version is supposed to be stronger, but another advantage is that there seem to be more options with mil spec.  For example, Magpul ALWAYS releases mil spec stocks first.  During the election rush, they could be hard to find, but now there is no problem, I just saw mil spec extensions (only) for $20 from Aim surplus.

Aim Surplus is selling the DSA mil-spec receiver extensions ($20)



In all this "mil-spec" madness, many shooters with commercial spec receiver extensions have been made to feel that their comm-spec receiver extensions are sub par and many folks have upgraded to this DSA mil-spec tube because it is available at a low price point. Now, however, I have read claims that the DSA mil-spec tube is not forged or manufactured from the mil-spec alloy, even though it meets the mil-spec diameter.



I have a couple of the DSA receiver extensions and I have no complaints. But there are still some unanswered questions about the difference between a $20 mil-spec tube and a $50 mil-spec tube.



I have not done any destructive testing, only stating what I've gathered here and on other sites.