AGreyMan











Group: Members

Posts: 266

Joined: May 2002 Posted: July 24 2005,13:32 Hi Folks:



Here is my entry into the AR Build-off, Ugliest Rifle category. It would have been a lot prettier, but I don't have Fluffy to give me aesthetic advice!



It is a receiver made from .100 4130 sheet formed to shape using homemade dies. It was based loosely on the Bill Holmes version of the AR lower, but I departed from his path pretty quickly.



I used the .100 metal for a few reasons. First, its pretty tough and herky. Second, it made sense dimensionally. If I called a magazine .900 wide, I bent the mag well to that, and then bent the U that makes up the FCG holder portion to .900 OD, it made the ID .700. Worked pretty well, I think.



The bear of the whole thing was the buffer tube tower. I was trying to make this along the lines of my OhmsResearch AK, in that you didnt need a lot of fancy tools to make it. Well, I ended up cheating and using a mill on this proof-of-concept lower, but I am chock full of ideas on how to make it easier on the next one! Anyway: Buffer tower. I found some tubing with an ID (1.180) that just barely allowed the threads of the buffer tube to slip inside. I ended up using a combination of JB weld (Thanks to a guy who posted a thread somewhere called Mujahadeen AR-15) and setscrews to secure the buffer tube to the tower. It is not removable, though of course the buffer and spring are. Without a large (1.5 ?) end mill, I had to pretty much trial and error the curvature of the tower. For me, it was harder than it looked! I managed to get a template made, so I could so it without too much fuss.



Of course, I did not drill it for the detents for the front or rear take-down pin, nor the selector. Instead, I drilled and tapped the ends of these and secured the takedown pins with 8-32 screws and the selector with a 10-32 and a washer. I drilled the underside of the selector, and put a small spring and detent ball in there to make the positive click. I also used low temp (575 degrees F) silver solder to attach stops.



I used the high-temp 38,000 psi silver braze to affix the ears for the bolt hold-open to the side of the receiver.



So far, after ~200 rounds, it functions perfectly.



Well, Ill be anxiously awaiting the judges decision. If anybody has any questions about this thing, let me know. Sorry about the photos. I had just finished Parking it, and it still had a lot of oil on it.



Oh, and if anyone has an extra stock screw, Id like to purchase one: I am using one from another AR. Drop me a line.



Stay Safe,

AGreyMan



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"Its cleverness lies in its contempt for cleverness. It's a tractor of a rifle, a serious piece of work."



-Stephen Hunter on the AK-47 Attached Image-------------- Back to top