LOL... I typically buy a few of those kits, when I catch them on sale. So, at least I have a few spare parts, incase something launches into another dimension.
@@gabriellindig I too, have thought a sand blasting cabinet, or similar sealed box, (&/or a sterile white room?) would make a good place to assemble an AR lower and upper. I do use magnetic parts trays to corral my small parts, and catch loose ones. And it works nicely.
@@chrissewell1608 I think some people do it in large ziplock bags, that way the bag catches it. unless its perfectly facing you, in which case you know where it went anyways.
I already commented this on a different video, but could you guys do a Smith Busters on cleaning rods? Because there is a lot of contradictory information out there.
@@zanderw1199 I respectfully disagree. Try this experiment. Use your bore snake and then use a cleaning rod with a brush and some patches and you will see the boresnake did not get it as clean as the old school brush and Patch. I've tried this many many times.
@@zanderw1199 A fool and their money are soon parted. A bore snake is really only good for a final wipe down in my opinion. I will never give up my J Dewey cleaning supplies.
I bought the Brownells cleaning kit when I first got my AR. It was complete garbage. I don't know if it was made in china, but it might as well have been. Their opinion on things like this probably can't be trusted since they only seem to promote their own products or products they sell. J Dewey is the best product that I am aware of and they get rave reviews from everyone, but I don't think Brownells sells them. I currently only use J Dewey cleaning tools and if I buy a new rifle or pistol of a different caliber, I would buy J Dewey tools for those guns too. These are top notch products.
I just finished a build using a Brownell's Mil-Spec LPK (minus FCG & grip). Everything looked good, and fit right. I'm counting on you, so here's hoping it shoots and lasts!
Although I agree that small parts are not created equal, there is one "fix in a pinch" that I have done, and that works. If you lose the buffer detent spring, the spring from a click style ink pen is nearly identical and works well in a pinch.
Word of mouth and reputation are so important. I can't look at a spring or firing pin or extractor and tell the quality of the steel that went into it. Price isn't always an indicator of quality.
@@joshpittman8473 AO on budget, Colt, FN, on standard builds, and SOLGW for everything else. C158, mpi, hpt, No NiB or coatings, no KAC deviation from what has worked for decades. Always have a spare bolt, two sets of rings, FP, cam pin, FP retainer, ejector, extractor, and all the springs. Basically everything minus the carrier though it's cheaper just to buy another group and ditch the carrier. All of it fits in my grip and is g2g.
@@HeartsOfDarkness Remember that BRCC supports one eyed Dan, who voted for Red Flag laws, which means you guns can be taken away for ANY reason without due process. BRCC is a rules for thee, but not for me type of cucked company. they have been virtually silent while our government is being taken over by communists.
First off, Sons of Liberty Gunworks makes FANTASTIC weapons, I am NOT debating that AT ALL. And yes, he is absolutely right, parts kits are not the same. However, I think its disingenuous to have this topic where you have a parts maker say "well yes, parts do matter" while having his product out on the table. At that point, it becomes advertising and takes a whack at the credibility of this series. Sorry, just an observation.
I like the big box in the background for additional advertising. I don't see a problem he knows his products are good and he doesn't mention the bad company that makes carp so sure he is pushing his brand but what if it works well go for it.
I think you're looking too much into it if it was an advertisement he wouldn't have mentioned another company BY NAME that's just as good as his... how many advertisements have you seen that mentioned other companies products doing just as well
A few years ago I purchased one of those Colt expanse rifles. Then preceded to replace everything in the rifle. Now I believe everything is BCM with the exception of the lower receiver, bolt catch and mag release. Cool thing since I was an early adopter I got one of the few Colt manufactured LE6920 lowers. (at least that's what the Colt rep said.)
Guns are like cars, if you use a cheap Chinese knock off structs or springs for your car, you can run into huge issues later down the line, while if you stick to the true known brands that cost more, they will lost you a lot longer.
This is the first Brownells video that I thought didn't go far enough. I wish you guys had given a list of parts kits that are good to go and ones that are not the best quality. Speaking in generalities really doesn't cut it here.
Like another reply said things can change so a hard list is probably best left off. From what I've found looking around the most good to go recommendations are SOLGW, Sionics, Forward Controls. Bigger names that I've heard recommended without issue are Colt, BCM, Geissele, ALG, DD, probably most you know that are trusted manufacturers. Aero and CMMG are generally highly regarded and I've not heard reports of any issues.
That is because they sell crap lpks themselves and don't want to lose the profit from marking them up to dam near what a real lpk costs. Colt, FN, and LMT are the best and would say that SOLGW is the closest Non-Military contract manufacturer available on the market for small parts and bolt carriers, which is why brownells chose to have him speak on this matter to boost consumer confidence.
This is a great topic, but unfortunately, in ineffective video, saying, spend more money, is not the answer it’s not actionable, newbies and mid-level people cannot make any decision from that information which you gotta do is either talk, specs, or brand names, or models or parts comparisons I know it’s a lot more work, but it just raises your brand level and your respect immensely
THIS. I run this on every rifle with a Radian Talon safety & a Giesellie trigger (use to run the LaRue triggers, but they've had a lot of delays / backorders recently so I switched to Giesellie on al my newer builds).
Nick - I’m becoming an all around AP fan. Their enhanced 308 AR receivers and handguard combine for a rock solid system. However, I *really* like the SOLGW BCG.
@@sofloflow If you're in need of a new trigger I would check out Wilson Combat's TTU triggers. I used to run only Geissele SSA-E triggers in all my rifles. I bought the WC TTU two stage and man I haven't looked back. Better feel, cleaner break, and cheaper. WC uses a EDM machine, Geissele is still casting their triggers. I've never seen a trigger Geissele trigger break but I'd trust the EDM process far more than casting in this case. Either way, you can't go wrong with Geissele or WC.
Bought a cheap lower parts kit for AR the safety grove wasn't machined in the correct place wouldn't detent into the safe position ended up buying a quality parts kit and doing it all over
I have to say from examining a PSA AR-10, that they would be more truthful to change their brand to POS. I removed about a third of a safety detent spring from underneath the extractor claw as the extractor was not moving correctly when I was tearing it down. They also have a chamber tight enough that apparently on cold days the gun needs to be mortared to clear a round, and I think it might be having some issues with the hammer not being held correctly as it has had a few failures to fire which left no mark on the primer of the round. Oh, and the upper is malformed enough that it can't take an aftermarket dustcover, the dustcover it came with came bent to hell, and they took over a month to respond to the warranty claim with the proposed solution of "send us the whole rifle, we'll ship it back to you eventually"
Holy smokes - I called SOLGW last week with a simple question and Mike answered the phone. I recognize his voice! FYI they test fire every BCG they sell. I am impressed.
I bought a CMMG ,and it was real nice.Nice trigger,all good.I bought a no name parts kit from a local shop and the pins were harder to get in and the trigger was terrible.Im going to replace all the cheap parts .
CMMG OEM's a ton of parts for other manufacturers. They are one of the main manufactures of small parts kits all together if I'm not mistaken. I would choose them or another reputable companies parts kit rather than save 8 bucks like Mike said.
I’ve used two CMMG LPKs in builds. Being a manufacture of rifles as well as supplier of parts, I figure if it’s good enough for their rifles it’s good enough for my builds. No issues so far. Hope this helped.
I've had issues with CMMG takedown pins being a slightly smaller diameter than parts from Spikes Tactical and Daniel Defense, resulting in some play between the upper and lower receivers. Not a big issue, but something I've experienced.
How are Windham Weaponry as far as quality small parts kits? It's my first AR - 15 (haven't fired it yet) but I was thinking about getting backup parts for it.. Thanks in advance! 👍
I have a Windham AR also, I would say that their springs and parts are of good quality. And if anything, if you replace parts on your Windham with Windham spares you'll know its all still factory for your rifle.
@@zachs652 Thank you, I hope to go to the range soon (indoor) I didn't get a chance during good weather (Michigan) I definitely will next year. In the meantime I'll get a small parts kit and ammo a couple of boxes at a time! Oh I got the "MPC" What do you have, if I may ask?
@@paraglidingnut26 Hey brother’ use whats better for you. I built 3 anderson lowers with anderson uppers. They fit together sloppy as hell and the anodizing was so thick I had to dremel out the mag release cavity on the button side on 2 and 1 needed to be clearenced for the bolt catch to fit. Thats the only 3 I ever built and the last I will ever use. A much better cheap alternative is the ATI milspec lowers’ they are threaded to use a set screw to tension the upper and lower plus the rear pin spring detent is threaded for a 4-40 grub screw so you can retain the detent spring to make back plate and buffer tube installation easier. One more thing’ the ATI milspec is cheaper than a Anderson and the anodizing doesn’t look purple. Try one.
@@TacticalBuffoonary Thanks Tactical! I've only used Aero uppers on those Anderson lowers. Surprisingly the uppers/lowers seem to fit fine together. No issues. I will definitely look at the ATI lowers. LIke you, I'm passing on any more Anderson lowers or uppers. My Anderson lowers/Aero uppers were built for family/friends with no good rifle weapons for self protection.
Semi fuddlore in that it really isn't a 'never do this' but more of a 'this might be a good general rule if you're not sure'. As someone previously mentioned, old wwii cleaning rods that came with many of those guns were often steel and that's an easy way to scrape up your crown from the inside, which is obviously terrible, I mean real bad, but having a nice high quality brass rod will reduce that concern. The other main reason why they used to tell people not to do that is that it shoves all the crud out of the barrel into the chamber which makes it more likely for stuff to get stuck on the edge deep in there and potentially give headspacing issues, this is also really bad. So the crown issue is less of a problem with high quality gear and the crud buildup is less of an issue if you clean from the chamber side after you brush and swab your barrel but even that can result in the crud getting shoved back into the barrel. The other theory is that pushing from the chamber side has the bristles engaging with more pressure on the same side the bullets are as they're being pushed in from the same direction but a full clean should scrub both sides of the grooves. The tldr is that with good modern gear and proper practices, most of the issues people might run up against from barrel side cleaning can probably be made irrelevant, but cleaning from the chamber side will avoid the issues entirely and probably is a good idea if it isn't too much trouble.
I bought a low cost parts kit for "Emergency" use .. If something breaks on my guns I get quality parts to replace those.. The parts kit is only to fix something for a temporary fix..
Non oem parts may help you out in a pinch, but just remember to replace those parts with OEM parts. When you accumulate quite a few guns, I've forgotten without writing info down, you tend to forget to do such tasks.
Cheapest isn’t always good enough & please buy from reputable & reliable companies who have great return policies. When I buy parts, I do my research. Please don’t skimp on your weapons you use for self defense, your life matters.
I'm a Gunsmith an you guys have good info for anyone listening.. thank you! To Spec is good!! Man this world has gone mad, been struggling through this attack on our freedoms an supplies.. keep the faith and keep pushing for our freedoms 🇺🇸🇺🇸
as he words it, how do you know the "Real Stuff" from the (Not Real Stuff) the reason I ask is because my bolt stop/catch has a little back and forth play, and doesn't always work when I try to manually lock my bolt back, because of that slight wobble. it locks back on it's own fine on last round, it is just hard to manually lock it back. Do you have any advice on what I should do about it?
QC can raise the price of a part or product dramatically. The more complex something is the more it costs to double check every piece and how it functions. This reduces the chances of a defective part getting shipped. But every part a manufacturer throws away (or even recycles or repairs) is money lost so the price of what they do ship must go up. One of the ways some brands get cheap is they cut quality control so they can advertise "mil-spec" but they don't check enough to be sure everything they make really is. The brands most worried about reputation inspect every piece and you as the buyer are paying for that labor. Sometimes you are just paying for the name, but usually you are paying more because they are spending more labor on it before it leaves. Whether that cost is worth it to you is up to you.
After watching this video the first time it really sparked my interest. After doing some extensive research I changed out the lower parts kits in all of my rifles with SOLGW lower parts kits some including the trigger. It cost me about $200 to do 3 guns and I can say they just seem to be of much better quality now. It’s a warm and fuzzy knowing I don’t have to worry about some MIM bolt catch snapping on me while I’m at the range. I also realized you can build an extremely high quality rifle on a budget. Get a standard PSA or Anderson lower for about $60 and fill it with quality parts.
The last build I did was on a KP-15 I ordered through Brownells. Everything went together well, except I used an ALG ACT trigger I had on another rifle I was cannibalizing for parts which had the lighter hammer spring on it. When I took it out the first round fired, but then click. Everything cycled, but out of about 10 rounds only one or two rounds fired. I knew the ammo should be fine and it was dimpling the primer, but looked kind of weak, so I packed up for the day and picked up a stouter spring from one of my local shops since I lost the original and next time out, worked like a champ.
Don’t skimp on the lower parts kit. $5-$10 more is with the difference. A bad vs good safety detent or pivot pin detent makes all the difference. I’ve had cheap safety detents that basically made the safety impossible to engage. Those little parts matter!
I have had trouble with one particular part that really should be no problem at all...Numerous kits will include the wrong size Roll Pins, to look at them they of course look to be correct but when measured they are too large and are not going to install at all, I believe that these are foreign made Roll Pins that have no Quality Control to them what so ever, this has happened to me quite a few times.
I only use handful of small parts because I've never had an issue with using those parts . Colt , FCD , Centurion & BCM are my go too small parts . I've been using Colts for 15 years . Sucks they are getting harder to find . That's why I started using Centurion , BCM and FCD parts.. I've never really had an issue with small parts . If I did have an issue it was more than likely my fault and not the part .
LPK’s from Thunder Guns, missing parts but they were quick to send them. Have a trigger that won’t fire more than once without cycling the safety each time… emailed the complaint, no reply. Also, pistol buffer tubes had to be “milled” further to allow them to function properly as the upper impacted the buffer tube and wouldn’t allow the TD pins to engage. Don’t recommend Thunder… thoughts??
I bought a complete .300blk parts kit minus lower receiver from PSA a while back, and will never make a mistake like that again... I had to take a file and sandpaper to the upper reciever to get it to fit inside my lower.
EVERY company that sells parts kits needs to offer a "design your own" otherwise it is impossible to buy one with parts that you actually need. **WE DO NOT WANT YOUR TRIGGERS!! No real sh00ter buys a lower parts kit to get their trigger (or safety for that matter) We want/need detents, takedown pins, mag releases, etc. Save your trigger guards, triggers, etc for an a la carte item. BTW SOLGW is one of the WORST offenders in this area. I think Rise has the best parts kit. They do not try to sell you the whole kitchen sink
Best trigger group I've found is the Rock River Arms 2-Stage National Match. It drops in, has a powerful hammer spring to take on hard Russian primers with a faster lock time than mil-spec. It's beautifully crisp at 3 to 3.5 pound, that only gets smoother better the more it's used. All Mil-spec triggers there after will feel like your dragging a dead cow across a 4-lane highway (long, rough and heavy as hell). For all other internals and springs I use genuine Colt. Buy the best, forget the rest... As to the hammer/trigger pivot pins I use KNS Precision, Inc. Non-Rotating pins with keepers (NRTHP Mod.2 - 1555 kit). This way the receiver never suffers any hole wear... ^~^ edit: my spelling is utter rubbish at the best of times... 0~o
Learned this lesson the hard way. I bought cheap parts kit and Had a really hard time with the pin that holds the bolt catch in place. I Beat the hell out of it And jacked up my lower in the process, and the pin still isn’t all the way through. I tend to be what some people might call a “just-as-gooder” I always consider the cost and the value of a product but when it comes to parts kits, just spend the extra few bucks for a good one, it’s not particularly expensive to begin with.
I like to build with ambi parts kits and the only one's I've found on the market are CMMG. Still though, I prefer to toss out the hammer and trigger pins and go with KNS anti-walk, anti-rotational pins. I also dislike the standard A2 grips and swap them out with an Ergo Grip rubber grip. I like to throw in an XMR extended mag release, the Odin Works Gen1 works well and just clears the KNS bar between the pins. It would be nice if someone made LPKs that came standard for ambi use and gave the option of picking out a different grip.
Per spec the trigger pins are supposed to rotate. The trigger springs should keep them from walking if everything is done correctly. Anti rotational pins are a gimmick that cause undue stress on the pins
@@abolishtheatfandrepealthen6014 You are correct that spec pins are supposed to rotate and the trigger spring is supposed to keep the pins from walking. Saying that anti-rotational pins are a gimmick is an opinion though. From time to time you may encounter out of spec pins or even triggers that have out of spec holes in them that will not allow the spring to fully entrap the pin and you will get walking out pins. I've personally seen this even on factory built guns that were new in the box and on some very old pre-94 gun ban guns that were well used and about wore out, a particular Olympic Arms comes to mind. Additionally drop in trigger packs often require the anti-walk trigger pins. Then there is the aesthetics, what you might call the gimmick of their use in builds. Some people prefer their look, with the trigger bar, as it gives a more dressed up appearance to the build, which is the primary reason that AR's come in so many different configurations, colors, and accessory attachments. There is value in aesthetics, as much as in function. I prefer the KNS pins, as they have a solid hammer pin which can withstand the torquing pressure of the hammer as it falls. Hollow hammer pins like those made by Guntec and others are more apt to fail under that torquing pressure.
@@ETSARMS I understand the "aesthetics" and all that as I almost fell for it but instead went with function over form. I want my guns to run no matter what and I won't give them any reason to give me trouble if it's avoidable. I get it that the chances of the pins being the problem are slim but why take the chance for "aesthetics"? There are anti walk pins that aren't anti rotational. They are the type that should be used on receivers with out of spec or egged out pin holes, the anti rotation is absolutely a gimmick and anyone who goes down the rabbit hole of AR specs and the reasons for them would agree. Anti walk and anti rotation are two very different things. I have anti walk in my first build, I have anti rotation on none.
Funny how it's the little things that act up. I had problems with my trigger spring working out, and it turns out I was using the pins that came from one of my other rifles. Found the original pins and no more issues.
As a career long auto mechanic it never ceased to amaze me how many high end auto owners chose to go with the cheapest possible parts found . But many once big brand names anymore are just that . A name . With firearms I choose O E from the maker .
Yeah I wish it were the same case with cars. It amazes me that cars that cost twice the amount of a Toyota is often less reliable. Can’t say the same with firearms overall.
Firearms are a bit different, most people don't buy from Armalite (also that's kind of dated going design going mil-spec). Then you have to remember mil-spec just means made by the lowest bidder. I know, technically it actually means that it meets the color specification, the pre-painted dimension unless otherwise stated, the material spec, and typically a substandard dimensional tolerance that particularly on the Armalite can still not function properly due to improper tolerance stacking (it also doesn't mean it functions well or properly, see a lot of military magazines). OEM also does not indicate good quality control (some people will mention Kel-Tec here, I haven't shot one, but its probably accurate), then compare that to nice competition grade Glock parts, you get better quality. Just like car parts, you can get much tighter tolerance parts, with superior materials, with superior finishes if you're willing to spend more than OEM (usually, sometimes its still cheaper).
Lots of comments piling on PSA. I thought I'd leave a positive comment regarding their parts kits. Thousands of rounds in, not a single problem. If you are off to war and taking your own gun, look for a better kit. But if you are the other 99.999% building a range toy, it fits the bill just fine.
Is there really anything you can skimp on if you're trusting the platform with your life? Serious question.. I have bought parts from businesses I thought were supposed to be good sellers and found the parts wore out insanely fast, and felt bad after a few range days. Never again.
I had issues with several PSA lower parts kits. Not the whole kit, but the safety was mush. I initially thought maybe the detent was bad so switched it out with a different one. Nope turned out to be the machining on the safety selector was what was causing it
Alot of mil-spec parts I use and keep on hand for the ooops factor, breakage or lost at range clean/ repair are Brownells, Luth or the newer Strike Industries so let's hope their brands are of quality.
I think I just went with a CMMG lower parts kit with no trigger group. My trigger is a ALG QMS trigger, which I like a lot, because it's done so well that you aren't even thinking about the trigger one way or another as you pull it. What I mean is when something is done right, people don't even notice anything was done at all. That trigger just does what it's supposed to, and you can keep your attention on your target, not distracted by the trigger. Also, for anyone who doesn't know, ALG is just Geissele Automatics' sister company that's effectively their economy brand. In fact, ALG stands for "Amy Lynn Geissele." I actually learned about the QMS (Quality Mil Spec) from a product showcase presented by Bill Geissele himself. I highly recommend the ALG QMS if you want a mil spec trigger with the polished functionality and reliability of a Geissele trigger, but at an affordable price. I paid $50 for mine in 2019, but it looks like the price is up quite a bit (what isn't these days? FJB). My rifle has run superbly, and as far as I can tell, the parts I bought are holding up great, and running smooth as butter.
FWIW, the ALG trigger is made by Schmid Tool & Engineering. You can find that same nickel teflon trigger and hammer right at Brownells. I've bought and installed several. I've used that hammer & trigger combo on conjunction with the JP Enterprises enhanced reliability spring set. It's a great combo
@@escapedfromnewyork oh yeah theyre awesome, ive got a QMS in two guns and the nickel-whatever combat one in my oldest daughters pistol. M&A Parts, Stag, Colt and a handful of others use/sell Schmid LPK's..M&A has the better deal on just the kit with the same trigger minus the extra attention. Just funny cuz i literally posted yesterday about how I used to order BKings, Anderson BYO and PSA lower parts kits all the time because i didnt really think anything of it. Whats there to think about? Turns out a lot more than i initially thought..just took me a long time to learn what this video very quickly explains ;'-D
huge difference!! for example, I just learned last night the small part that come with your extra items..use those.. detent pins springs etc. I learned last night, my Geissle bolt maritime will not work or fit with my LaRue Lower.. So now I am searching for a good bolt catch for my LaRue 556. my take down pins came with thier own springs and detents... so, i use those. I also notice the Geissle small parts - roll pins are very different than Aero pins.. huge.. you guys were right to make this video..now if i can only find a good recommend for my bolt catch...
The Phase 5 EBRv3 is nice. Strike Industries aren’t bad. Have both the regular and the extended. The EBRv3 replaced the SI extended catch because the bolt was slipping extremely easy. The regular SI catch is still on my other rig. My lowers are a Ruger-556 and a CMMG.
Glad someone finally speaks up to the mass about this lol. That’s why I only use cmmg LPK’s for the most part because everything from their mag catches to their springs are great in fit and finish. I’ve used SOLGW and CMC LPK’s and they’re good (better than most) but some of the parts have finishes that are a bit too thick for my liking.
I've heard alot of good things about cmmg. I'm gonna have to try them out. I'm in the process of finishing a Retro A2 style rifle. I'm gonna use this lower parts, see how they run. I usually use BCM stuff for my builds. But I'm willing to try other options
@@Usmc0341 you can’t go wrong with cmmg. I haven’t seen or used bcm lpk’s but I hear they’re good, too. I believe they source theirs out from an OEM mfr but don’t quote me on that!
Idk, I had a pair of cmmg parts kits that had overly tight takedown pins, the bolt catches felt like pot metal, and the roll pins felt unnecessarily hard to drive in. Made me decide to steer clear of them, I had no failures, but I replaced everything except the trigger guard before putting a significant amount of rounds through it. Good to hear you have had good results, and I might put those parts into a beater ar, but I'd definitely ante up to the 100ish buck lpks, sionics is about as good of a deal as I've ever seen, everything but a trigger guard and grip for right at 100, includes ambi safety and a "mil spec+" ptfe trigger. Joeboboutfitters lpk is a surprisingly good one from my sample size of 1 (meaning I may have gotten the best one they made, and the worst cmmg made) PSA lpk have also been good, again requires you to test and watch the parts for undue wear, I bought a few of those anderson oops kits, they're ok for a backup. Best route I"d say is still a mfg like solgw, bcm, or aero (probably cheapest for the quality), any of the well known established brands with solid qc, and qa
@@civilian0005 yeah, bcm and solgw are pretty open about the fact they source a majority of the parts, the qc/qa checks they go through are what separates them. Most ar manufacturers source out parts, to varying levels obviously, the only people I can think of that absolutely are 100% in house are Daniel Defense.
I've had tons of problems with PSA kits. Missing parts, wrong parts included, parts that don't fit or don't work etc. If you ask for them to fix the problem, they'll void your warranty too.
