New upper from Palmetto State Arms

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alphalimafoxtrot
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by alphalimafoxtrot »

Archer wrote:I've been buying a few AR receivers and some spare parts from time to time for a decade or more.
I think you might have underestimated the concept of "a few parts", dude! +guns
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by Archer »

Well, sometimes things are 'relative'.

So I was hanging around the friendly neighborhood gunshop every once in a while over the course of a couple years. One of the shop guys happened to be one of those guys who'd built many of the guns that were banned from direct import by GHWB over the years. I learned a lot about building ARs, a little about FN/FALs and some about HKs from him. When the shop started to close as the owner retired and her husband figured out it wasn't as easy to run as he'd assumed he convinced someone else to buy the place. He'd taught that guy how to build ARs and I taught that guy at least a little about lever actions, 1911s and CZs.

I'd picked up two or three receivers over the years at good prices but hadn't gotten around to actually completing a build. I'd picked up a Bushmaster complete from a coworker with all the do-dahs he could think of in military grade parts of the time before the Kaliban and didn't feel the need to build one with the idiot restrictions CA had put in place.

When the bullet button made it through the courts on the letter of the law I got more interested in the ARs and decided to go ahead and build up another.

The new shop owner and I built one from parts. That was a wish list gun with nothing on it that wasn't good stuff. I got some of the parts at cost. Got the barrel as a pre-production special order. It was forged mil-spec receivers, White Oak fluted barrel, Midwest Industries handguard, Fail Zero coated blackened BCG, Timney trigger, Battle Arms selector, Warne QD rings, Leupold scope, Bravo Company gas block, charging handle and texture panels, Vltor extension tube, LaRue increased power buffer spring, Magpul Pro back up sights, Magpul stock, single point receiver end plate, trigger guard, sling and pistol grip while the bullet button was legal but converted to a fin grip setup to keep it legal.

I ended up helping out at the shop on the weekends or after my main job from time to time, so I had access to the shop tools and I started looking at what worked and what worked better. When you are getting the shop discount you find yourself picking 'a few things' up from time to time.

Once you've built an AR or two from the bit parts up and helped friends built a couple or so for two or three friends you end up with a pretty complete AR tool kit. I don't have the bolt assembly tools or receiver lapping tools but you can take the bolt apart and put it back together without specific tools and I haven't been convinced that it is a good idea to use an abrasive compound on aluminum as there's not much chance that it won't get embedded in the base metal. I've ended up with most other tools you might want to work on both small and large frame ARs.

I assembled the next couple 5.56s from a Delton parts kit and a PSA parts kit as inexpensive builds that should still hold up.

One of the 6.5 Grendel builds is a near wish list build with Odin Works Barrel, bolt and gas block. The other has an economy barrel that has a decent reputation but everything else on the gun is pretty nice.

The 12.7x42 complete build is a nice build.
The 12.7 upper that's not been put on a lower yet was purchased complete as a bargain buy. I might have to tinker with it a little but then again it might be great out of the box.

The first .308 AR is pretty much a wish list build. AeroPrecision receivers, nickel boron BCG, lwr parts kit, heavy buffers buffer and spring, Rainier Select 20" blackened SS barrel, Midwest Industries handguard, Warne QD rings, Leupold scope, BCM charging handle, Magpul Pro BUS, sling, UBR stock. Because I didn't want to ditch the stock or pin it this is my only type two bullet button gun currently.

The PSA PA-10 was a low cost parts acquisition last year. It went together like butter.

The MEGA MATEN is proving to be a tiny bit of a hassle. The .243 upper went together easy. Monolithic Mega handguard was cake. The .308 Rainier Ultra barrel with Mega Upper and Midwest handguard is going to need to be shimmed or lapped in order to stay inside of the torque specs. Since I don't exactly trust the lapping idea I need to get some shims.

The older shop guy recommended the parts to build my AK and helped me assemble it. Helped a friend of mine with his parts and assembly as well as another two or three of the shop guys.
Ended up selling me a FN/FAL with an Imbel receiver.
Got me interested in the roller lock possibilities so now I'm about halfway into building a 91 and a 93 clone.

The rest of the AR parts I've got on hand are mostly good quality with good reputations, couple nice barrels and two or three extra nice fire control groups and BCGs. I do have a couple inexpensive barrels and an inexpensive BCG or two that should work fine whether for a build or as spares.

The shop has since closed so I've slowed down on getting new stuff but I've got enough parts to keep me busy for a while.
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by alphalimafoxtrot »

Archer,

your AR hobby collecting and tinkering sounds an awful lot like how I've rolled with my plastic model kit hobby. I've been fooling around with mostly 1:35 scale military models for over 40 years.

I'm a "kit-basher" and that means building something I like out of a variety of kits and spare parts. Example being - Tiger II tanks in 1:35 scale I've put together with Tamiya, Dragon, and old outdated ERTL parts.

It also means I am an unapologetic hoarder of model kits and half-finished plastic creations. Just how in the world I am able to live in a one-bedroom condo with my wife, her piano/drum kit/guitars/etc. and two dogs and make everything fit without being divorced is beyond me.
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by GasGuzzler »

Make a new topic for the models and I'll try and find pics of my cars. I still have the cars but it would be easier to find old pics than to re-photo them all. And I have SEVERAL partially done kits I quit on when I got my driver license in 1990.
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

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GasGuzzler wrote:Make a new topic for the models and I'll try and find pics of my cars.
GG, I can do that for sure! I'd be interested in that for sure. Let me rev up my brain, and get right into that.... +of

Once I get some time keep an eye out for such a non-Rossi thread.

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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by Archer »

So, models...

Before college mine was mostly model aircraft in 1/72 scale...
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by Archer »

Back to firearms:

I've been collecting for a while but the past 10-15 years I've picked up a few more than I probably should have.
The past 5 to 10 years like every other 2nd amendment supporter in CA I've been buying ammo along with the firearms.

I'm debating getting out of CA and if I do I'm not certain that I'll be able to take the firearms and bullets in one truck load. I know commercial movers pretty much won't move anything that looks like it might be ammo and I don't want them touching my firearms even packed in a home defense safe.
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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by alphalimafoxtrot »

Archer wrote:Back to firearms:

I've been collecting for a while but the past 10-15 years I've picked up a few more than I probably should have.
The past 5 to 10 years like every other 2nd amendment supporter in CA I've been buying ammo along with the firearms.

I'm debating getting out of CA and if I do I'm not certain that I'll be able to take the firearms and bullets in one truck load. I know commercial movers pretty much won't move anything that looks like it might be ammo and I don't want them touching my firearms even packed in a home defense safe.
Hey Archer,

I feel your pain re: California's socialist government and every American's right to firearms. However, I did not even have a clue that FightLite Industries even existed - and after reading about their unique uppers and lowers, I think I could live with their SCR lower as designed. In fact, they look sort of cool - with the buffer assembly re-engineered to angle downward, allowing a "traditional" butt stock profile. Anyway, that's just a thought.

Plus their modular uppers are the bee's knees!

Be well, Archer.

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Re: New upper from Palmetto State Arms

Post by Archer »

Looks like a system I've seen variations on for a while.
I'm not certain if any of them have taken off and been available in any quantity or for any length of time.

There was supposed to be a ruling about the legality of the state's restrictions on the form factor of semi-automatics today but apparently it has been postponed until February the 6th.
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