Im a backpacker, i enjoy getting out and exploring new places without being constantly reminded im carrying everything i need to thrive for a weekend in the woods. Ounces is pain, i quickly learned that the lighter my pack was the more enjoyable the experience. I wanted to take my experience with using lightweight backpacking gear and apply it to my first AR-15 build.
The goal was to construct a rifle that was as light as i could possibly get it while retaining the simplicity, modularity, and reliability of your standard "mil-spec" AR. Being my first and only ar15 (so far) i would be trusting my life with this rifle. Yes, i wanted light weight, but not at the cost of dependability. Last but not least i wanted to try and keep it affordable, this rifle will be used as a tool and will not be pretty after a few years.
I started shopping and researching around May 2016. I purchased a palmetto state lower and their EPT lpk. I picked up an MOE stock that i promptly modified and a Magpul K grip. I had my lower. I slowly acquired parts for the upper as i decided on exactly what i wanted or found something that would work well on sale. The one thing i new for sure is i was going with a Faxon 16" pencil barrel as their prices, quality, and customer service are awesome.
TL;DR I started with this:
Upper: 53.00oz or 3lbs 5oz or 3.31lbs
Aero Precision no FA upper receiver. 6.2oz
AIM Lightweight NIB BCG 9.0oz
Anderson Mil spec CH 1.0oz
V7 Port door with v7 rod and a spring 0.4oz
Faxon 16" 4150 Pencil barrel 19.4oz
Spikes Melonite gas tube 0.8oz
2A Titanium gas block 0.8oz
ALG 13" V2 handguard 11.70oz
DSA Titanium A2 Flash Hider 1.2oz
Magpul MBUS G2 2.5oz
Lower: 30.8oz or 1lb 14.8oz or 1.92lbs
PSA lower, PSA LPK, EPT Trigger, lightened hammer, ALG Purple hammer spring 18.6oz
Modified Magpul K grip with V7 TI screw 2.2oz
Modified Magpul MOE Stock 5.3oz
Carbine Buffer 2.9oz
Wolf XP Spring 1.8oz
TOTAL RIFLE WEIGHT: 83.8oz or 5lbs 3.8oz or 5.23lbs
I put about 300 rounds through it configured like that i started to learn what i liked and what i didn't like. The rifle had symptoms of being overgassed due to the lightweight carrier but was still 100% reliable. After one of the range trips i disassembled the rifle to find the BCG was flaking, i contacted aim surplus, they apologized and gave me a full refund. I needed a new BCG and i wanted to be able to adjust the gas system. The most affordable way i decided was to buy the AIM lightweight bcg with nitride finish, instead of flaky NIB, and then attach a rubber city armory adjustable gas key. However i stumbled upon a deal i couldn't pass up and ended up getting a regulated 2A lightweight BCG for $300. It was a hard pill to swallow but i knew it was a quality component that i could trust and would give me the ability to turn down the gas and slow down the action.
The new 2A bcg worked well and i was able to actually remove the weights from the carbine buffer. Having the ability to turn the gas down and keep the bolt locked longer made the rifle run smoother and shoot flatter. I was very happy with this setup, however, it wasn't as light as i had hoped for and i found ways to remove weight and improve/maintain reliability.
V Seven Weapon systems offers a number of high quality lightweight nicks and nacks, and i wanted them all! I found a website that ships a lot of stuff for free and decided i would just start replacing steel parts with V7 goodies once or twice a month. This saved me the pain of realizing how much i would ultimately spend on small parts. As the packages arrived the weight of my rifle kept dropping.
I had broken the 5lb barrier. 4lbs 15.4oz
The election was coming up and i new i wanted to grab another lower just in case. I decided i would ditch the PSA lower and swap it for an Aero Precision lower to match the upper. I assembled the PSA lower with all the sparce PSA lower parts that i had replaced over the months. The PSA Spare still needed a few bits so i bought the v7 versions to put on my lightweight rifle and ended up with a functional spare lower while removing more weight from my lightweight rifle.
I still had some more tricks up my sleeve. I did not need nor really use the full 13 inches of handguard. Having modified the pistol grip and stock i felt it was only fitting to continue the trend up front. I had received a TLR-1 HL from my keeper of a girlfriend for christmas. I picked up a poly 3 slot mlok rail section and went about deciding how and where i wanted to run the light. I ended up deciding to leave a small seciont of rail to keep the light out further and retain some room for my hand on the handguard. ALG sells a cowitness top rail and i ordered one of those as well. I made my cuts, filed into shape and sanded smooth. I then painted only where i cut.
Upper:
Aero Precision no FA upper receiver 06.2oz
Faxon 16" 4150 Pencil barrel 19.4oz
2A Regulated BCG 08.0oz
ALG V2 Modified 9 5/8" 06.6oz
ALG EMR Barrel nut and hardware 02.4pz
DSA Titanium A2 Flash Hider 01.2oz
Anderson Mil spec CH w/ v7 latch 01.0oz
Spikes Melonite gas tube 00.8oz
2A Titanium gas block 00.8oz
ALG Co witness rail 00.8oz
V7 Port door 00.4oz
M-lock 3 slot poly 00.3oz
UPPER TOTAL: 48.0oz 3lbs
Lower:
Aero Precision Lower Gen 2 8.2oz
EPT Trigger, mil spec spring, discon, pin 1.2oz
EPT Hammer, modified, alg purp spring, pin 1.0oz
V7 Take down and pivot pins Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 Safety 3 gun hybrid AL/TI 57* RH 0.3oz
V7 Bolt catch S7 tool steel 0.3oz
V7 Mag catch Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 End plate Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 Castle nut Aluminum 0.3oz
V7 Buffer tube 3.5oz
V7 Ti Buffer retainer 0.1oz
v7 Ti Grip screw 0.2oz
Gutted Carbine buffer 1.0oz
Tubb's SS .308 spring trimmed 2.0oz
Modified Magpul MOE Stock 5.3oz
Modified Magpul K grip 2.0oz
Magpul poly Trigger guard 0.3oz
LOWER TOTAL: 26.3oz 1lbs 10.3oz
LOWER+UPPER TOTAL: 74.3oz 4lbs 10.3oz
Magpul MBUS G2 2.4oz
RIFLE TOTAL:______76.7oz______4lbs 12.7oz______4.8lbs______
This is where im at now. It shoots great, its 6lbs 2oz with sling, light, and a loaded 20rnd pmag. The barrel has had about 800rounds through it. Another great thing about this setup is that it has a standard gas port in the barrel and a fixed gas block so i can just drop a FA bolt carrier and carbine buffer/buffer spring in for ultimate reliability.
Thanks for looking!
The goal was to construct a rifle that was as light as i could possibly get it while retaining the simplicity, modularity, and reliability of your standard "mil-spec" AR. Being my first and only ar15 (so far) i would be trusting my life with this rifle. Yes, i wanted light weight, but not at the cost of dependability. Last but not least i wanted to try and keep it affordable, this rifle will be used as a tool and will not be pretty after a few years.
I started shopping and researching around May 2016. I purchased a palmetto state lower and their EPT lpk. I picked up an MOE stock that i promptly modified and a Magpul K grip. I had my lower. I slowly acquired parts for the upper as i decided on exactly what i wanted or found something that would work well on sale. The one thing i new for sure is i was going with a Faxon 16" pencil barrel as their prices, quality, and customer service are awesome.
TL;DR I started with this:
Upper: 53.00oz or 3lbs 5oz or 3.31lbs
Aero Precision no FA upper receiver. 6.2oz
AIM Lightweight NIB BCG 9.0oz
Anderson Mil spec CH 1.0oz
V7 Port door with v7 rod and a spring 0.4oz
Faxon 16" 4150 Pencil barrel 19.4oz
Spikes Melonite gas tube 0.8oz
2A Titanium gas block 0.8oz
ALG 13" V2 handguard 11.70oz
DSA Titanium A2 Flash Hider 1.2oz
Magpul MBUS G2 2.5oz
Lower: 30.8oz or 1lb 14.8oz or 1.92lbs
PSA lower, PSA LPK, EPT Trigger, lightened hammer, ALG Purple hammer spring 18.6oz
Modified Magpul K grip with V7 TI screw 2.2oz
Modified Magpul MOE Stock 5.3oz
Carbine Buffer 2.9oz
Wolf XP Spring 1.8oz
TOTAL RIFLE WEIGHT: 83.8oz or 5lbs 3.8oz or 5.23lbs
I put about 300 rounds through it configured like that i started to learn what i liked and what i didn't like. The rifle had symptoms of being overgassed due to the lightweight carrier but was still 100% reliable. After one of the range trips i disassembled the rifle to find the BCG was flaking, i contacted aim surplus, they apologized and gave me a full refund. I needed a new BCG and i wanted to be able to adjust the gas system. The most affordable way i decided was to buy the AIM lightweight bcg with nitride finish, instead of flaky NIB, and then attach a rubber city armory adjustable gas key. However i stumbled upon a deal i couldn't pass up and ended up getting a regulated 2A lightweight BCG for $300. It was a hard pill to swallow but i knew it was a quality component that i could trust and would give me the ability to turn down the gas and slow down the action.
The new 2A bcg worked well and i was able to actually remove the weights from the carbine buffer. Having the ability to turn the gas down and keep the bolt locked longer made the rifle run smoother and shoot flatter. I was very happy with this setup, however, it wasn't as light as i had hoped for and i found ways to remove weight and improve/maintain reliability.
V Seven Weapon systems offers a number of high quality lightweight nicks and nacks, and i wanted them all! I found a website that ships a lot of stuff for free and decided i would just start replacing steel parts with V7 goodies once or twice a month. This saved me the pain of realizing how much i would ultimately spend on small parts. As the packages arrived the weight of my rifle kept dropping.
I had broken the 5lb barrier. 4lbs 15.4oz
The election was coming up and i new i wanted to grab another lower just in case. I decided i would ditch the PSA lower and swap it for an Aero Precision lower to match the upper. I assembled the PSA lower with all the sparce PSA lower parts that i had replaced over the months. The PSA Spare still needed a few bits so i bought the v7 versions to put on my lightweight rifle and ended up with a functional spare lower while removing more weight from my lightweight rifle.
I still had some more tricks up my sleeve. I did not need nor really use the full 13 inches of handguard. Having modified the pistol grip and stock i felt it was only fitting to continue the trend up front. I had received a TLR-1 HL from my keeper of a girlfriend for christmas. I picked up a poly 3 slot mlok rail section and went about deciding how and where i wanted to run the light. I ended up deciding to leave a small seciont of rail to keep the light out further and retain some room for my hand on the handguard. ALG sells a cowitness top rail and i ordered one of those as well. I made my cuts, filed into shape and sanded smooth. I then painted only where i cut.
Upper:
Aero Precision no FA upper receiver 06.2oz
Faxon 16" 4150 Pencil barrel 19.4oz
2A Regulated BCG 08.0oz
ALG V2 Modified 9 5/8" 06.6oz
ALG EMR Barrel nut and hardware 02.4pz
DSA Titanium A2 Flash Hider 01.2oz
Anderson Mil spec CH w/ v7 latch 01.0oz
Spikes Melonite gas tube 00.8oz
2A Titanium gas block 00.8oz
ALG Co witness rail 00.8oz
V7 Port door 00.4oz
M-lock 3 slot poly 00.3oz
UPPER TOTAL: 48.0oz 3lbs
Lower:
Aero Precision Lower Gen 2 8.2oz
EPT Trigger, mil spec spring, discon, pin 1.2oz
EPT Hammer, modified, alg purp spring, pin 1.0oz
V7 Take down and pivot pins Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 Safety 3 gun hybrid AL/TI 57* RH 0.3oz
V7 Bolt catch S7 tool steel 0.3oz
V7 Mag catch Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 End plate Aluminum 0.2oz
V7 Castle nut Aluminum 0.3oz
V7 Buffer tube 3.5oz
V7 Ti Buffer retainer 0.1oz
v7 Ti Grip screw 0.2oz
Gutted Carbine buffer 1.0oz
Tubb's SS .308 spring trimmed 2.0oz
Modified Magpul MOE Stock 5.3oz
Modified Magpul K grip 2.0oz
Magpul poly Trigger guard 0.3oz
LOWER TOTAL: 26.3oz 1lbs 10.3oz
LOWER+UPPER TOTAL: 74.3oz 4lbs 10.3oz
Magpul MBUS G2 2.4oz
RIFLE TOTAL:______76.7oz______4lbs 12.7oz______4.8lbs______
This is where im at now. It shoots great, its 6lbs 2oz with sling, light, and a loaded 20rnd pmag. The barrel has had about 800rounds through it. Another great thing about this setup is that it has a standard gas port in the barrel and a fixed gas block so i can just drop a FA bolt carrier and carbine buffer/buffer spring in for ultimate reliability.
Thanks for looking!
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