Building an AR or AK thread

[Danth]

For the original poster:

If you're not familiar with either, odds are you'll like the AR family better than the AK family. Most AR derivatives have good ergonomics and a nice center of mass; for the most part they point and shoot beautifully. It's an easy rifle to like. I particularly like examples done with vietnam-styled grips/etc as I consider them more comfortable, but I've never held a "bad" one. I'd trust a decent AK with my life in a heartbeat, but I've never handled one that felt good to shoot--feels like a lifeless club. The grips feel wrong, the balance and center of mass feel wrong, the sights are wrong. As much as I respect it I don't particularly LIKE the thing. I don't care for the 5.56 cartridge or for the 5.45 cartridge that the AK's I've used were chambered for. The considerations that make military organizations want the smaller round (like weight of ammunition) are not necessarily relevant to private usage. 5.56 is a nice round for killing vermin with. Pretty much no hunter ever would call it his first choice for deer-size targets--which include humans. An ordinary dude isn't a soldier lugging around 40 pounds of gear and maybe 10 or 12 magazines so the regular guy can pick the best round for the specific job instead of a good enough round that meets other criteria too.

I really like .22LR for plinking and shooting paper. For those uses, cheapness of ammunition is by far the most important consideration. Unlike the guy above I would not trust one for personal defense though. The training I received taught that they could be lethal enough but if you didn't kill your target with it outright you were unlikely to incapacitate him before he got to you. Small pistol rounds like .25 and .32 were discouraged for the same reason. If it's what you have it's better than being unarmed but it's not a first choice.

The AR family's action craps in its own house. It is and always will be a source of contention. If you want the same round with a different action the Mini-14 and HK-416 are both very good alternatives. In truth for ordinary use and sport shooting the AR action is not an issue. Conversely the AK's reliability is overblown in western media. It's a tough rifle but not magical. If you fail to maintain yours or enjoy throwing it in mudholes it'll stop working just like any other rifle will stop working.

Try to avoid buying "tactical" anything. That's the firearm equivalent of "gaming" computer accessories: Just advertising glurge used to inflate the price.

Danth

[PieOats]

Originally Posted by Danth [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I really like .22LR for plinking and shooting paper. For those uses, cheapness of ammunition is by far the most important consideration. Unlike the guy above I would not trust one for personal defense though.

It would seem there may be a bit of confusion here. I will see if I can clear it up! A .22lr round is not the same as a NATO 5.56. The bullet diameter is about all that is the same between the two. The 5.56 cartridge is longer and fatter and gets the bullet out of the barrel with a lot more energy than .22lr. You can expect around 10x power at the muzzle from 5.56 and it is designed to tumble upon penetration. It is a staple of US military, though it has been displaced to partially by 300blk in various specialty arenas. Realistically, I would lean on 300blk for self defense given its performance in shorter barrels and at shorter distances. It works great for anything inside 350 yards in an SBR or pistol format. It is an expensive round though and if you already have other hunting rifles I don’t see any utility for it in that arena. I wouldn’t ever use an AR or an AK for hunting.

[Googi]

depends who you are hunting

[Googi]

my buddy bought a brand new ar9 yesterday its like a pistol

pretty cool

[PieOats]

Originally Posted by Googi [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

my buddy bought a brand new ar9 yesterday its like a pistol

pretty cool

Those are pretty cool. I have been thinking about picking up a 9mm upper and some mag conversion kits for one of my AR pistols.

[Spergand]

Defending your life with deadly bullets isnt a pussy thing to do. Nice try hairball

[Patriam1066]

Originally Posted by Spergand [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Defending your life with deadly bullets isnt a pussy thing to do. Nice try hairball

Pick a fight with a gun get ass beat and have to use gun, going with pussy

George Zimmerman and Kyle rittenhouse. Heroes to some, pussies to others

[Fame]

Follow the wisdom of our most dedicated community servants: the child soldier.

AK all the way

[Googi]

dunno kyle was there to put out fires, give emergency medical treatment and defend a business and some loser who went there to start shit charged him

so glad kyle will get off on self defense and even get his AR Back , man you can hang that fucker on your mantle

[BallzDeep]

I can tell you about building AR platform, not much about AK. I'm not that big of a fan of AK. But, I've probably built over 20 AR's in various calibers - 5.56, .300 blackout, 6.5 grendel, 6.5 creedmoor and finally .458 socom.

AR is a better platform in general due to interchangeability. For example, I can use a 5.56 lower for a .300 blackout upper. You can keep the lower and cross caliber fairly easy. 6.5 Creedmoor for .308 platform, etc.

If you were going to build 6 months ago, I'd say go Aero Precision. I've got an MK18 Daniel Defense upper on an aero lower. It's a 10.3 build for CQB. It's all going to depend on your price range. You can build for about $800-$1000 for a decent rifle. I'll recommend some companies to purchase a straight up AR and some for building.

AR's I'd recommend:
Daniel Defense - $1300-$1800 range
BCM - $900-$1400 range
Noveske - Higher end
LaRue - $1500
LWRC - $1500+

If you are going to build:
Aero Precision Upper & Lower or Ballistic Advantage
Criterion Barrels (.223 Wylde)
Geissele Rail or any affordable M-lok
BCM bolt or something along those lines

Hardest parts for building are 1. Bolt Catch release - it's alot easier with a Mag Mount or Vise. The roll pins are a pain in the ass to get in without it. 2. Gas block - make sure you are lining up your gas block correctly, getting the correct sizing. Make sure your gas block, gas tube and barrel have the same diameter.