There's an old saying, "Part is parts." So all AR-15 small parts kits are pretty much the same, right? That's the notion going around on the Internet. But is it true? Let's get some truth today from Brownells Gun Tech™ Steve Ostrem and Mike Mihalski, founder and owner of Sons of Liberty Gun Works (SOLGW), a guy who knows a LOT about AR-15 parts. AR-15s rarely break down because a major component fails. Stoppages are usually the result of a little $2 spring breaking and bringing the whole rifle to a halt. Mike says the difference between a highly reliable AR-15 and one that's iffy IS those small parts. Even a "mil-spec" AR-15 trigger is capable of delivering a consistent pull with a clean break, heavy hammer strike, and a positive reset - all hallmarks of a "good" trigger - IF it's manufactured to strict tolerances. The most problematic part from the generic small parts kit is the bolt stop, which has to take the stress of stopping the bolt with all the mass and energy of the action spring behind it. Put a substandard bolt stop in your AR, and you're headed for trouble. Inspect parts before you install them in your rifle. If a part doesn't fit well, it's probably out of spec. So the myth is BUSTED. Small parts kits are NOT all the same! Do yourself and your rifle a favor: get a high-quality AR-15 small parts kit, such as one from Sons of Liberty Gun Works.
VIDEO HERE (5:15 minutes)
i've put together hundreds of these things, never had any issues with the bolt stop or any of the other lower parts for that matter. i serviced and repaired thousands of them for the army and others, the failures were mainly bolt related. a lot of the problems were operator induced ie: snuffy reassembling it incorrectly or losing parts. i did run into a batch of carbine buffer springs that were too long to allow full extraction. no, they weren't rifle length, just a few millimeters too long. the important parts not to scrimp on are the bolt and barrel. all that said, i still keep a spare set of everything. and you need an actual cleaning rod. good luck knocking a stuck case out with a string. all the small parts and a spare bolt can go in the cleaning kit pouch with the rod.
ReplyDeleteSmall parts kits are cheap. I've got enough parts in my spare parts box to build at least a couple ARs even though I've never had any issues at all.
DeleteI have had a bolt stop break right in half. Paddle portion hit the bench I was shooting off of. It looked like a metal-injected-mold (MIM) part. I replaced it with a bolt catch made from billet steel and that solved the problem.
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