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Posted: 5/10/2019 5:03:36 PM EDT
The short and sweet of it is I am very happy with it, it looks to be 1 MOA capable (it was 1.5-2 MOA with bulk fmj), light recoil, light weight, massive hard on.
Through sighting it in and playing around with it today it went through 120rds flawlessly. Fit and finish is great as I expect from PWS. It’s not all sunshine and daisies however, there’s a steel insert where the cam pin rests in the receiver. This itself isn’t an issue but they’ve used a screw to hold it in place and covered the head in a rubber knob. Looks funny and bothers me a bit, I am going to ask Brownells if the rubber bit can be removed. The whole reciprocating handle is a bummer but doesn’t seem to get in the way and there’s no adjustable gas block but they did include a suppressed piston sleeve that has some additional venting drilled in. I removed the funky flash hider and replaced it with an FSC556 brake/hider. I plan on having a recoil test against two other rifles, my PWS MK116 and a borrowed basic bitch mid length DI. I was thinking I’d run 10rds into a target at around 25yds as quickly as possible on a timer. I’d then compare group size and speed, if anyone has some suggestions on bettering this test lmk. So far it has a reciprocating weight advantage of 5.1oz against the DI and 7.2oz against the PWS, of course this doesn’t tell the whole story. |
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Originally Posted By faawrenchbndr: Which stock? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Originally Posted By faawrenchbndr: Originally Posted By doubleajaybrock: Has anyone with the new BRN-180 folding stock figured way to use a qd sling? I’m half tempted to install some form of a qd socket to the stock. Which stock? Brownells BRN-180 folding stock |
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Originally Posted By faawrenchbndr: Which stock? View Quote View Quote Remove the buttplate and install a Noveske QD socket https://noveske.com/products/flush-qd-sling-mount/ |
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@BigRix
Sir, I'm guessing that it's you that runs "BRN-180 Parts". Is there any way to mount front sling hardware on your BRN-180S handguard? I have a 10,5" upper on the way and I'm interested in getting one of your handguards, but wanting to mount a swivel or a loop on it. Thanks for your time. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By AZ5326X2: @BigRix Sir, I'm guessing that it's you that runs "BRN-180 Parts". Is there any way to mount front sling hardware on your BRN-180S handguard? I have a 10,5" upper on the way and I'm interested in getting one of your handguards, but wanting to mount a swivel or a loop on it. Thanks for your time. View Quote this should work. |
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Outstanding! Thanks.
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By BigRix: Its AR180Parts.com but that's close enough, LoL. I made a shorter version so that enough rail is left for sling mounting. https://ar180parts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CBA4023C-97F1-4025-8DDB-5B67A1A4F8EF-scaled.jpeg View Quote Too late. Lol! You'll probably be getting my check today for the full-length handguard. I ended up finding a top rail mounted swivel mount that should work. N.A. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Attached File
Got the new BRN-180 out for the first time today and put over 300 rounds through it. First 100 rounds or so I had five failures to fire, then it was good to go. Seemed like light strikes. Ammo was M193. Any issues similar to this? |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By --FLEET--: https://i.imgur.com/He5Qbre.jpg View Quote |
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Got the BRN-180S back out again this morning. Couple hundred more rounds through it with zero problems. I'm guessing the few failures to fire in the first hundred rounds last week was some sort of "break-in".
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By AZ5326X2: Got the BRN-180S back out again this morning. Couple hundred more rounds through it with zero problems. I'm guessing the few failures to fire in the first hundred rounds last week was some sort of "break-in". View Quote Probably had some stuff in the firing pin channel. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Only thing keeping me away from picking one of these is the massive hole when the dust cover is open.
Anything aftermarket to narrow that chasm? |
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Originally Posted By ksingh1469: Only thing keeping me away from picking one of these is the massive hole when the dust cover is open. Anything aftermarket to narrow that chasm? View Quote This crossed my mind too, but I've always been almost compulsive with keeping dust covers closed. I still wouldn't consider it a "drag it through the mud" rifle though. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Too bad somebody doesn't develop a rubber seal like the Sig 5XX rifles use.
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Deal alet: ODG and FDE uppers are $749.99 add a penny and use code Nov95 for $95 off on top of it. I'm agonizing super hard right now.
https://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/receiver-parts/receivers/upper-receivers/brn-180-16-upper-receiver-cerakote-odg-sku430101341-137282-297671.aspx 0.85 firing pin retaining pin to round it up https://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/bolt-parts/firing-pin-parts/firing-pin-retainers/m16-firing-pin-retainer-sku100036090-127353-234055.aspx |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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What brace do you have in there?
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.40 S&W the greatest fighting pistol caliber devised!
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CNC Warrior.
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By AZ5326X2: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/499876/20221108_132856__1__jpg-2592657.JPG BRN-180 in its final form. @BigRix decided to go with your short handguard after all. View Quote Looks fantastic! Tag me if you happen to post pics on Instagram. |
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That has a great retro look to it.
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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The Retro lowers look great with all the versions of the BRN uppers, but other than looks is there an advantage of any sort?
Seems pricy for what you get. You could get a full AR lower with fire control and buffertube stock and if you add a KNS or other Picatinny adaptor you could always go back and forth from buffer tube stock to folding stock like a Manticore Arms stock or Brownells stock. With NoDak now part of Palmetto it seems uncertain whether there will be any AR 180 Retro lowers other than what Brownells is producing at this time and for $170 and limited use case I would think throwing in a fire control group would be nice. |
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For me it was to have an integral rail in the back for mounting the brace. One less part to vibrate loose.
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By AZ5326X2: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/499876/20221005_130321_jpg-2551815.JPG Got the new BRN-180 out for the first time today and put over 300 rounds through it. First 100 rounds or so I had five failures to fire, then it was good to go. Seemed like light strikes. Ammo was M193. Any issues similar to this? View Quote I'm more concerned with the bolt locking back before the mag is empty, which happened 4-5 times. I think it might be the mag though, as it happened all with the last mag of the session. Love your BRN, Are you in PHX area? |
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Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: My 300 blk had 2 light strikes in the first 60 rounds with Barnaul ammo. I'm more concerned with the bolt locking back before the mag is empty, which happened 4-5 times. I think it might be the mag though, as it happened all with the last mag of the session. Love your BRN, which brace is that, CNC? Are you in PHX area? View Quote Which mags were you using. |
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BikerNut:
Normal people like motorcycles. Real people like motorcycles. People who don't like motorcycles are just... weird. |
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Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: My 300 blk had 2 light strikes in the first 60 rounds with Barnaul ammo. I'm more concerned with the bolt locking back before the mag is empty, which happened 4-5 times. I think it might be the mag though, as it happened all with the last mag of the session. Love your BRN, Are you in PHX area? View Quote Sure am. In the Northeast part of the Valley. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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I apologize if it's already been answered, but how's the ejection pattern for those of us who shoot lefty?
Thanks |
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Originally Posted By Lokjell: I apologize if it's already been answered, but how's the ejection pattern for those of us who shoot lefty? Thanks View Quote My wrong-handed friends don't like it - brass tends to go straight onto the right arm, and the charging handle annoyed one of them too Might take a look at the PSA JAKL or FoxtrotMike FM15 which have at least got a more traditional brass deflector and also a non-reciprocating charging handle that can be swapped between sides |
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Thanks for the info. I actually really like right hand charging. Grew up hunting with browning BAR, remington 1100, and cut my teeth on a Crossman 760. 😜
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I'm a lefty and it's fine, no different from ar15
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Hmmm. Did it extract ok before you changed out the charging handle? On the model that Brownells sells with a straight charging handle, it comes without a dust cover if I recall correctly. What handguard do you have there?
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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Originally Posted By AZ5326X2: Hmmm. Did it extract ok before you changed out the charging handle? On the model that Brownells sells with a straight charging handle, it comes without a dust cover if I recall correctly. What handguard do you have there? View Quote That's a Manta heat shield. It's silicone like a hot mitt. Pretty cool! |
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Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: Took out to the desert and it ran great with 20 and 30rd mags. I swapped lowers, so that must've been where the premature BHO stemmed from. Also added a straight charging handle from BRN180parts.com. Nice upgrade and fast shipping! I did notice that with the dust cover closed, the gun wouldn't extract the spent casing, likely from the bolt being slowed down by the dust cover. Any solution to this? https://i.ibb.co/17t6hdG/20221120-154503.jpg View Quote This is the biggest issue in trying to come up with a different style charging handle--not having it interfere with the dust cover. We haven't found one that works reliably enough. However, we are still working on it! |
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Your posts may be used for quality and training purposes...
How do I get the job at brownells who gets to just browse arf and look for threads to post in? --Proto3 Spoiler Alert: This is a volunteer position. |
Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: Can't remember if I tried with the oem charging handle and dust cover closed, but the bolt carrier is what open the dust cover isn't it? That's a Manta heat shield. It's silicone like a hot mitt. Pretty cool! View Quote Yes, the carrier opens the dust cover, but it could be that the shape of the replacement charging handle doesn't let the cover "get out of the way" and strikes it. Just a thought. Thanks Brownells for chiming in. |
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One foot in the grave and one foot on the pedal
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I’m pretty sure that if you’re using the straight BRN-180 charging handle, the dust cover needs to be modified to work correctly. I don’t know if that used to be posted on AR180parts website or if I read it here or someplace else. If you look at the pics on their site, you can see that the corner of the dust cover is trimmed off.
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It’s easy to see who will be a loot drop within the first 15 minutes of the SHTF.
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Originally Posted By Brownells_ar15: This is the biggest issue in trying to come up with a different style charging handle--not having it interfere with the dust cover. We haven't found one that works reliably enough. However, we are still working on it! View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Originally Posted By Brownells_ar15: Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: Took out to the desert and it ran great with 20 and 30rd mags. I swapped lowers, so that must've been where the premature BHO stemmed from. Also added a straight charging handle from BRN180parts.com. Nice upgrade and fast shipping! I did notice that with the dust cover closed, the gun wouldn't extract the spent casing, likely from the bolt being slowed down by the dust cover. Any solution to this? https://i.ibb.co/17t6hdG/20221120-154503.jpg This is the biggest issue in trying to come up with a different style charging handle--not having it interfere with the dust cover. We haven't found one that works reliably enough. However, we are still working on it! A sig 55X style split rubber gasket dust cover would be cool |
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Originally Posted By yamahawarrior89: https://ar180parts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/321E2326-1D46-467F-AA2F-D90A744C65C2-scaled.jpeg View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Originally Posted By yamahawarrior89: Originally Posted By Claytonhoneyberry: I’m pretty sure that if you’re using the straight BRN-180 charging handle, the dust cover needs to be modified to work correctly. I don’t know if that used to be posted on AR180parts website or if I read it here or someplace else. If you look at the pics on their site, you can see that the corner of the dust cover is trimmed off. https://ar180parts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/321E2326-1D46-467F-AA2F-D90A744C65C2-scaled.jpeg Thanks! I was trying to post that pic but my iPad wasn’t cooperating. |
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It’s easy to see who will be a loot drop within the first 15 minutes of the SHTF.
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Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: @Brownells_ar15 A sig 55X style split rubber gasket dust cover would be cool View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: Originally Posted By Brownells_ar15: Originally Posted By azoutdoorsman: Took out to the desert and it ran great with 20 and 30rd mags. I swapped lowers, so that must've been where the premature BHO stemmed from. Also added a straight charging handle from BRN180parts.com. Nice upgrade and fast shipping! I did notice that with the dust cover closed, the gun wouldn't extract the spent casing, likely from the bolt being slowed down by the dust cover. Any solution to this? https://i.ibb.co/17t6hdG/20221120-154503.jpg This is the biggest issue in trying to come up with a different style charging handle--not having it interfere with the dust cover. We haven't found one that works reliably enough. However, we are still working on it! A sig 55X style split rubber gasket dust cover would be cool Or perhaps an FNC style dust cover. I know, more parts and more cost, but this too would be a sufficient change I believe. |
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Has any cut, threaded, and pinned a 16" barrel version down to 14.5". Any issues with the gas system?
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