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Many of you guys have seen various bits about the build I'm working up around my NWFA lower, so I figured it's time to put the whole spec sheet together--and to share another option I just got an email about on the off-chance you guys might want to check it out.
Right now I have everything but castle-nut and stock to complete my lower in-hand, so I'm pretty much down to the top half.
Part selection philosophy:
--I'm looking for short OAL as much as possible, the house I'm moving into I'd swear was built by dwarves and I completely fill its doorways. At the same time I like long handguards, both for safety of having extra barrier between hot barrel group and everything else and for longer sight-radius on BUIS.
--Light sensitive eyes make both optics and flash suppression sensitive and important considerations--we need to assume I may be firing in no-light conditions, and I have to wear polarized lenses just in normal room-light.
--While whiz-bang optics and ambi controls are nice, it's important to me to learn the basics first--iron sights and regular right-hand controls, because in an SHTF scenario I may not have the luxury of sticking with what's been specially optimized for me rather than using what happens to be available, or batteries may die or any of the zillion other ways to futz up electronics.
The current plan...
--Upper assembly: Anderson build by Wise Arms, 16" 416SS barrel with .223 Wylde chamber, midlength gas and 1-7 twist, 15" 7-side Keymod plus top-rail handguard - $280 shipped
--Lower assembly: Palmetto LPK already in hand, buffer assembly PIF'ed from fellow NWFA member and in-hand
--BCG: AIM Surplus nickel-boron, $101 shipped
--Castle nut, stock, CH: DSArms, $72 shipped (CH is nickel-teflon; order includes a $7 stock wrench)
--Starter Optic: UTG SCP-RD40RGW-A 1x30 Red/Green Dot, $25 add-on with upper
--BUIS: Diamondhead ISS with Nite-Glow, $89
--Starting Tools: Wheeler roll-pin punch set and AR pivot-pin install tool, $30 combined
--Future upgrades: Bushnell TRS25 red-dot, $57 shipped; 17" version of same handguard (MSRP $190, CTD wants $5 OVER that... looking for better); more low-light-indoor friendly flash-hider/blast deflector, details unknown and part not yet selected
--In short, the only thing that would need to change for this build to be my ideal is the barrel material--I plan to fit ambi controls later, but want to learn to run a "normal" AR left-handed first
The alternate is a complete kit less sights that comes from CBC Industries for $400 shipped as parts or $450 with assembled upper.
AR-15 Upper Assembly - 16" / 5.56 x 45 / 15" CBC Arms Keymod GEN 2 AR-15 Handguard / Rail
Problems for me with this option:
--No .223 Wylde option, pure 5.56 only (in fairness, there aren't a lot of barrelmakers that do Wylde even though it's just a NATO chamber cut with a .223Rem freebore, and very few of those use anything but stainless)
--Carbine-length gas system - what is CBC's obsession with overgassing everything?
--Whole lot of expensive upgrades: $120 for BCG and CH, plus barrel and gas system replacement
if I were starting from absolute zero.
Anything that you guys would suggest I rethink to address stated goals, or how might you address them differently if you were a five-by-five who needed both corrective and polarized optics building a CQB AR for Home D? Bear in mind, for this exercise NFA is not an option, so no sound-suppressors and no SBR...
Right now I have everything but castle-nut and stock to complete my lower in-hand, so I'm pretty much down to the top half.
Part selection philosophy:
--I'm looking for short OAL as much as possible, the house I'm moving into I'd swear was built by dwarves and I completely fill its doorways. At the same time I like long handguards, both for safety of having extra barrier between hot barrel group and everything else and for longer sight-radius on BUIS.
--Light sensitive eyes make both optics and flash suppression sensitive and important considerations--we need to assume I may be firing in no-light conditions, and I have to wear polarized lenses just in normal room-light.
--While whiz-bang optics and ambi controls are nice, it's important to me to learn the basics first--iron sights and regular right-hand controls, because in an SHTF scenario I may not have the luxury of sticking with what's been specially optimized for me rather than using what happens to be available, or batteries may die or any of the zillion other ways to futz up electronics.
The current plan...
--Upper assembly: Anderson build by Wise Arms, 16" 416SS barrel with .223 Wylde chamber, midlength gas and 1-7 twist, 15" 7-side Keymod plus top-rail handguard - $280 shipped
--Lower assembly: Palmetto LPK already in hand, buffer assembly PIF'ed from fellow NWFA member and in-hand
--BCG: AIM Surplus nickel-boron, $101 shipped
--Castle nut, stock, CH: DSArms, $72 shipped (CH is nickel-teflon; order includes a $7 stock wrench)
--Starter Optic: UTG SCP-RD40RGW-A 1x30 Red/Green Dot, $25 add-on with upper
--BUIS: Diamondhead ISS with Nite-Glow, $89
--Starting Tools: Wheeler roll-pin punch set and AR pivot-pin install tool, $30 combined
--Future upgrades: Bushnell TRS25 red-dot, $57 shipped; 17" version of same handguard (MSRP $190, CTD wants $5 OVER that... looking for better); more low-light-indoor friendly flash-hider/blast deflector, details unknown and part not yet selected
--In short, the only thing that would need to change for this build to be my ideal is the barrel material--I plan to fit ambi controls later, but want to learn to run a "normal" AR left-handed first
The alternate is a complete kit less sights that comes from CBC Industries for $400 shipped as parts or $450 with assembled upper.
AR-15 Upper Assembly - 16" / 5.56 x 45 / 15" CBC Arms Keymod GEN 2 AR-15 Handguard / Rail
Problems for me with this option:
--No .223 Wylde option, pure 5.56 only (in fairness, there aren't a lot of barrelmakers that do Wylde even though it's just a NATO chamber cut with a .223Rem freebore, and very few of those use anything but stainless)
--Carbine-length gas system - what is CBC's obsession with overgassing everything?
--Whole lot of expensive upgrades: $120 for BCG and CH, plus barrel and gas system replacement
if I were starting from absolute zero.
Anything that you guys would suggest I rethink to address stated goals, or how might you address them differently if you were a five-by-five who needed both corrective and polarized optics building a CQB AR for Home D? Bear in mind, for this exercise NFA is not an option, so no sound-suppressors and no SBR...