NEED ADVICE ON SELECTING A GOOD QUALITY COMPLETE AR LOWER

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  • T-Rigger

    T-Rigger
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    Apr 25, 2019
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    Metairie, LA
    A friend of mine who is an auxilliary LEO asked me for a recommendation on buying a good quality complete/assembled AR lower with an adjustable stock. I confessed that I am not well versed on the comparative quality/value in the currently-available, crowded AR market, but would do some research and ask for advice from BS - a group with many who do know . All of my AR's are unmodified old stock plus 2 Colt flat-top uppers for my H-BAR Match Target.

    He has a Rock River Arms carbine, his duty rifle, and an AR Stoner .300 AAC Blackout upper that he mounts on that lower for hunting deer & hogs. He says nothing special on the trigger, anything similar to the RRA is satisfactory. I mentioned having one built by a known, quality LA based gunsmith, & he's open to that.

    Also, several months ago, someone posted a chart ranking the various manufacturers' levels of quality AR's from something like " professional" down through "borderline/low budget". Does anyone have a copy?

    Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading... and hopefully some input.
     

    Magdump

    Don’t troll me bro!
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    Dec 31, 2013
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    Hammond, Louisiana


    $129 shipped or $159 for one with Magpul furniture and a nice polished nickel trigger. I’ve had 100% reliability from PSA lowers over about 20 years of purchasing. If you do your research you will find the same uppers and lowers are forged in a few factories and finished by a multitude of different manufacturers. I will use PSA brand internals in any AR with confidence.
     

    Jstudz220

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    The magic is all in the upper. It doesn’t matter what lower you buy as long as it’s in spec and filled with quality parts. Building a lower is EXTREMELY easy. My recommendation would be to buy a striped lower from Aero or PSA and put a quality lower parts kit in it like from BCM, SOLGW, or LMT.

    The upper isn’t really hard to build but it does require more tooling and can be screwed up easily if not paying attention.

    If you just want a fully assembled lower and don’t want to fool with putting the LPK and buffer tube on it look at Aero or PSA. My only gripe with the two is they use MIM parts and they are not true mil spec. I can’t say if that’s really a bad thing or not as I changed out the LPK in both of mine pretty early on. What I do know is MIM parts are frowned upon and the top tier companies don’t typically use them. I swapped out the LPK in the aero almost immediately but the PSA did have a few thousand rounds through it before I swapped it out. Everything was still functioning 100%.

    As far as the trigger goes I’m not sure exactly what he’s planning on using it for but he has tons of options. I like the NIB polished trigger that come with SOLGW parts kits. It’s a mil spec trigger that’s super smooth and has no creep. I have three in three different lowers and all break at around 4.5lbs and are extremely consistent. It’s not comparable to a Giessle or Larue but it’s light years better than a standard mil spec trigger. Especially if you ever experienced one that breaks around 8lbs and has a bunch of creep.
     
    Last edited:

    Magdump

    Don’t troll me bro!
    Rating - 100%
    163   0   0
    Dec 31, 2013
    9,396
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    Hammond, Louisiana
    The magic is all in the upper. It doesn’t matter what lower you buy as long as it’s in spec and filled with quality parts. Building a lower is EXTREMELY easy. My recommendation would be to buy a striped lower from Aero or PSA and put a quality lower parts kit in it like from BCM, SOLGW, or LMT.

    The upper isn’t really hard to build but it does require more tooling and can be screwed up easily if not paying attention.

    If you just want a fully assembled lower and don’t want to fool with putting the LPK and buffer tube on it look at Aero or PSA. My only gripe with the two is they use MIM parts and they are not true mil spec. I can’t say if that’s really a bad thing or not as I changed out the LPK in both of mine pretty early on. What I do know is MIM parts are frowned upon and the top tier companies don’t typically use them. I swapped out the LPK in the aero almost immediately but the PSA did have a few thousand rounds through it before I swapped it out. Everything was still functioning 100%.

    As far as the trigger goes I’m not sure exactly what he’s planning on using it for but he has tons of options. I like the NIB polished trigger that come with SOLGW parts kits. It’s a mil spec trigger that’s super smooth and has no creep. I have three in three different lowers and all break at around 4.5lbs and are extremely consistent. It’s not comparable to a Giessle or Larue but it’s light years better than a standard mil spec trigger. Especially if you ever experienced one that breaks around 8lbs and has a bunch of creep.
    Do you have any info to support what you said about PSA not using mil spec parts in their lowers? That’s the first I ever heard of that. Honest question, not trying to provoke anyone.

    Also, many of the built PSA lowers offer the nickel coated polished trigger (EPT, see the link I posted for the $159 Magpul built lower) which will give you the best mil spec breaking trigger when matched with a $10 JP springs set. They’ve been dropping those in for a few years now.
    How many PSA lowers have you bought? What you’re saying doesn’t add up for me.
     

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    Jstudz220

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    Oct 14, 2020
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    Do you have any info to support what you said about PSA not using mil spec parts in their lowers? That’s the first I ever heard of that. Honest question, not trying to provoke anyone.

    Also, many of the built PSA lowers offer the nickel coated polished trigger (EPT, see the link I posted for the $159 Magpul built lower) which will give you the best mil spec breaking trigger when matched with a $10 JP springs set. They’ve been dropping those in for a few years now.
    How many PSA lowers have you bought? What you’re saying doesn’t add up for me.
    I first stumbled upon it in reviews someone saying the parts they use are MIM. I sent PSA and e mail and didn’t receive a response granted this was around early 2021. After still being curious I used their online chat feature and asked them if their LPK contain MIM parts. I got a response almost immediately confirming they do use MIM parts in their LPK.

    I’m not sure if anything else they sell is MIM as I was specifically inquiring about their LPK’s

    Never said I had any issues with the PSA lower as it was when I received it from PSA. It ran fine for a few thousand rounds until the day I changed them out. Never had the first issue with them I just wanted to change the parts that were not true mil spec for true mil spec parts
     
    Last edited:

    Jstudz220

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    The parts I changed looked fine to me with the exception of the magazine release button. It looks like it’s either made of plastic or a cheaper aluminum.

    MIM parts being bad is also debatable. Personally I just felt like going with true mil spec for my lowers.

    Also forgot to add the polished trigger cane with mine. Many companies sell these and from what I can tell they are all made by Schmidt Tool. They are roughly the same price regardless which manufacturer you get them from. The only difference I’ve ever found is some are NIB coated and some are Nickel Teflon coated.
     
    Last edited:

    Magdump

    Don’t troll me bro!
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    Dec 31, 2013
    9,396
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    Hammond, Louisiana
    The parts I changed looked fine to me with the exception of the magazine release button. It looks like it’s either made of plastic or a cheaper aluminum.

    MIM parts being bad is also debatable. Personally I just felt like going with true mil spec for my lowers.

    Also forgot to add the polished trigger cane with mine. Many companies sell these and from what I can tell they are all made by Schmidt Tool. They are roughly the same price regardless which manufacturer you get them from. The only difference I’ve ever found is some are NIB coated and some are Nickel Teflon coated.
    Hmm, I’ve never run across anything but steel mag release buttons on their lowers.
    The EPT triggers are exactky the same as another $60 set that was widely sold a few years ago, I’ll try to find the brand name.
    EDIT: Found one in the package, they were ALG Defense triggers. The mil spec single stage nickel boron with polished sear. They came with slightly lighter springs but swapping in some JP yellow springs gave you an awesome trigger compared to the standard. I’ve polished standard sets over the years and used JP springs for identical results.
    I’m wondering if the MIM parts thing is something recent. Admittedly, I haven’t bought a lower in over a year and I’m sure it’s possible, but I’ve always read the description well and made sure I buy mil spec parts (although people will tell you mil spec can mean anything) and even when buying singular small parts from PSA the white label on the zip lock bag says mil spec. If I find time to dig some out I’ll post pics.
     
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    Jstudz220

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    26   0   0
    Oct 14, 2020
    1,922
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    Hmm, I’ve never run across anything but steel mag release buttons on their lowers.
    The EPT triggers are exactky the same as another $60 set that was widely sold a few years ago, I’ll try to find the brand name.
    I’m wondering if the MIM parts thing is something recent. Admittedly, I haven’t bought a lower in over a year and I’m sure it’s possible, but I’ve always read the description well and made sure I buy mil spec parts (although people will tell you mil spec can mean anything) and even when buying singular small parts from PSA the white label on the zip lock bag says mil spec. If I find time to dig some out I’ll post pics.
    Yes all of the triggers are made by Schmidt tool. I have 3 from SOLGW, one from PSA, and one from BCM. All of them literally have the same exact markings. Theirs a handful of other companies not listed that sell the same trigger.

    The thing with mil spec is so many people claim mil spec when in reality the part is not truly mil spec. When you look at the manual it goes into detail on everything from the coating, heat treatment, materials used, and so on. That’s why mil spec sometimes gets a bad rep because literally almost everyone claims mil spec when in reality 80% of the gun doesn’t meet mil spec requirements. A lot of companies call their bare bones mil spec. True mil spec is great but you really have to know what you’re looking for and read between the lines. Most of the time vital information is left out with stuff that’s not truly mil spec so the only way to find out is to reach out to the company and ask.

    I’m a fan of PSA and out of all of the budget companies I think they are one of the better ones. I’m not sure how long it’s been a thing but considering PSA’s price point I’d venture to say it’s always been that way. True Mil Spec is pretty pricey like colt or SOLGW. Again I don’t even know that using MIM parts is necessarily a bad thing. When you look for information online theirs two sides of the fence. Looking at it logically it seems like MIM isn’t a bad thing as long as it’s done correctly.

    I only have 5 lowers and wanted to stuff them with the best parts possible. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another PSA lower and leave that one as is. I think they are a good value and love what they stand for. The couple of issues I did have with them one being a poorly machined bcg made by toolcraft and the other being a mix up on an order they were quick to make things right. In my experience it’s not easy getting through to them via e mail but if you call or use their chat feature online they are really responsive.
     
    Last edited:

    Jstudz220

    Well-Known Member
    Rating - 100%
    26   0   0
    Oct 14, 2020
    1,922
    113
    Harvey Louisiana
    A friend of mine who is an auxilliary LEO asked me for a recommendation on buying a good quality complete/assembled AR lower with an adjustable stock. I confessed that I am not well versed on the comparative quality/value in the currently-available, crowded AR market, but would do some research and ask for advice from BS - a group with many who do know . All of my AR's are unmodified old stock plus 2 Colt flat-top uppers for my H-BAR Match Target.

    He has a Rock River Arms carbine, his duty rifle, and an AR Stoner .300 AAC Blackout upper that he mounts on that lower for hunting deer & hogs. He says nothing special on the trigger, anything similar to the RRA is satisfactory. I mentioned having one built by a known, quality LA based gunsmith, & he's open to that.

    Also, several months ago, someone posted a chart ranking the various manufacturers' levels of quality AR's from something like " professional" down through "borderline/low budget". Does anyone have a copy?

    Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading... and hopefully some input.
    This one slipped my mind earlier but white label armory. For whatever reason they aren’t as well known as other budget friendly or mid tier options but they are a great value. Around the same price point as Aero. I would recommend looking into them. You can buy directly from them or from big Tex ordnance.
     

    T-Rigger

    T-Rigger
    Premium Member
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    6   0   0
    Apr 25, 2019
    321
    43
    Metairie, LA
    Many, many thanks to all of you who provided advice, tips and discussions back and forth. Lot's of experience & knowledge shared to keep us under-informed from stepping in something soft.

    Again, THANK YOU!
     

    twinin

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    23   0   0
    May 5, 2017
    952
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    Houma
    I agree with the others and also say

    BCM
    SOLGW
    Spike's
    Aero Precision

    All focus or have a reputation for AR platform and regularly sell just complete lowers
     
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