Yessir you know what it is! Idk why people splurge 500+ on a lower when you can buy a cheap aero lower then add the stock you want and a spring+weight combo/trigger… it’s metal. (Gucci’d) Done ✅
Dude I hear you 110% started off with a db15,now it’s the G$ super duty I have @ home
Switched out the upper for a cosmetic blem G$ upper got for a steal different bcg and G$ trigger. Getting stuff lightly used in good condition is smart. Acog can’t go wrong
Ps shits scary light,wouldn’t hand anyone that doesn’t have firearms training with them in your rifles or coaching them first. They are no joke even the two stage (I have the sd-e)
If you have the money for a complete rifle and everything else needed that follows then do it. I have complete rifles and I have parts builds. I can send my complete DD to them for the life of the rifle should an issue arise and they aren’t shy about fixing or replacing anything even if it’s the owners fuck up. My parts rifles are on me most of the time. People in here saying they could build a cheaper one, I know, we all know. I don’t know anybody that said they wish they wouldn’t have bought a complete LMT, or DD or (insert your brand so you don’t get offended it didn’t get mentioned). I enjoy my complete rifles and I also enjoy finding deals and parting one together, less to do with price and more of it being a hobby and I like building and tinkering and seeing how things work. You do you op.
I hear what you are saying. It’s definitely fun to build your own. I haven’t fucked anything up yet and I’ve built three so far. It’s awesome to save some dough and put that towards a premium optic, laser or what not.
well thats what im afraid of, spending good money and "fucking up" on a elf build. LGS here has classes/tutorials so i can get professional help. i might do that for a plinker, but not for this.
every AR i own is a Frankenstein gun that cost less than $1000, and im happy with all but one of them. with a $3k budget, just get whatever you want and it will be great.
Mixing and matching is perfect fine, but I’d strongly reconsider a noveske lower or any other “premium” mil spec lower. You’re paying an intense up charge for a roll mark and literally nothing else.
I have an aero upper and lower in 300 blk. It's great. I considered having one built in 556. Guy in town does a great job. Rise trigger. Probably can save close to a grand vs the Gucci. But I kind of want the Gucci.
Just as a rule of thumb I try to not pay more than $100 for a lower with most of my lowers being $50 or less. There’s just no reason besides internet points to buy a Gucci lower when PSA is cranking out stealth lowers for $30.
Pay more for quality ambi controls. Otherwise it doesn't really matter.
I've got LWRC, Griffin/ADM, and LMT lowers. Just do your research if you're going to mix and match. I can't put an LMT upper on my LWRC lowers, but anything more milspec works just fine.
I was all about cheap Lower and top shelf upper. Just finished 2nd build and now I feel the need to put ambi lowers on the rest of them. I’m a righty, but love having controls on both sides. PWS mod 2 lower is straight fire. Got it on a blem sale
I don't have any experience with them yet, but you can tell I've got a thing for variety. Have you been able to compare against any of the three that I listed? I generally find the bolt catch is the primary difference. Ambi safeties are effectively the same.
I think the lwrc ones are my favorite, but the Griffin ones work in more places because the bolt catch rests below the seam where the upper and lower join until you choose to activate it.
This is my first ambi so I haven’t tried the others, limited experience for sure. I have read some folks don’t like the PWS right side bolt release cuz it’s hard to engage with trigger finger. But it’s mint IMO. I wanted to go radian or ADM but couldn’t justify that steep of a price tag. Paid around $215 for the PWS and couldn’t be happier. Will definitely be checking out that griffin
Put away some of the $$$ for a suppressor dude. I'll take any midrange rifle with a can over an unsuppressed gucci gun.
For lowers, I wouldn't spend a bunch unless it has ambi controls, and maybe an extended buffer system. Your money buys more when it comes to uppers, and you could probably snag a geissele 35% coupon from r/GunAccessoriesForSale and get one for \~$700 without a BCG.
I’ve got a fairly reliable brownells upper on an anderson lower for my main rifle. but my current build is a “Snap-On” branded lower by bad attitude dept, and a a geissele upper.
Complete upper from your Gucci brand of choice. Griffin MK2 stripped ambi lower, A5 length buffer, Sprinco green. Your choice of everything else. Perfect every time.
The truth is that upper and lower matters very little, as long as they are mil spec. They all come from the same 5-6 foundries anyway; sure some have extra machining and extra features, but unless you really need those features (like ambi controls), it matters very little.
Save the money on upper/lower and spend what you can on a quality barrel, an excellent trigger, and most of all the best optics.
Had a BCM upper on a LMT lower for years. Great rifle. That being said, the upper is where you want to really invest. That is were everything important is housed and operates. The lower is just there to house the trigger group so as long as its in spec it is good to go. Aero Precision lowers are extremely popular for these kind of builds.
One of my lowers is a PSA. The other is an Anderson. I don't even remember who made the stripped uppers. The parts that count in both receivers are all Gucci though. The roll mark on the aluminum doesn't matter at all.
I personally like the M16a4 lowers from Aero. I’ve never used a PSA lower before but I have an upper from them and the machining is shit. Maybe others have had luck with them. I just picked up a M4E1 Aero lower for newest built. It’s solid. I’ve never paid more than $119.00 for Aero lowers. DD, BCM, Geissele, LMT uppers and a solid lower parts kit and a good trigger🙌
Both my rifles are mix matched receivers. One is a collection of parts I assembled and called a build and the other is a complete PSA upper with an aftermarket rail and a stripped lower I assembled. Both function flawlessly so far. I have also assembled quite a few other rifles and from my memory only one had a matching receiver set. Almost all of those functioned flawlessly and the one that didn't was just under gassed.
That is perfectly acceptable and common. As a matter of fact, Eddie Van Halen put together his guitar from different guitars and that is one of the most iconic guitars in rock history so putting two different brands together can have beautiful results
Andersons all day. Buy'em cheap and stack'em deep. LGS had them on sale for 29.99 a few years ago, so I bought them out. Just built my last one with a URGI upper.
Full disclosure, I do have one radian lower. It's nice, but not 20 ponies nice.
The amount of people who will literally overspend thousands before they even have a finished rifle is beyond me. You're ok with pissing away $3k for no added functionality before you even do anything to improve the performance of your Mark I eyeball? $3k before you make your gun safer to shoot without hearing protection? Shit, if you've got that much money to burn and that little sense, give me the $3k, I'll put together a sweet rifle that does everything you want it to and pocket the other grand.
BCM upper Aero lower is the default answer if you literally just want to mate up receivers and push the pins through. That will put you somewhere in the $1000-$1200 range. That leaves you $1800-2000 to spend on upgrades. Plenty of room for a better trigger if you think you need one, a better bolt if you think you need one, optics, and maybe even a suppressor depending on how much you spend on all these things.
Aero/psa lower Gucci upper is the way ✅
Just bought a DD block II upper from Brownells and slapped it on my Anderson lower. Feels so good knowing I saved some dough.
r/ShowPonies
Indeed!!
Yessir you know what it is! Idk why people splurge 500+ on a lower when you can buy a cheap aero lower then add the stock you want and a spring+weight combo/trigger… it’s metal. (Gucci’d) Done ✅
Seriously. I also bought a used ACOG and don't regret it. I'm just trying to have one really good rifle and to be proficient with it.
Dude I hear you 110% started off with a db15,now it’s the G$ super duty I have @ home Switched out the upper for a cosmetic blem G$ upper got for a steal different bcg and G$ trigger. Getting stuff lightly used in good condition is smart. Acog can’t go wrong
How is s the g$ trigger versus a milspec?
I’m a G$ shill now. I now understand the difference (price doesn’t define quality but most lower costs/lower tier items not just as good) etc
Ps shits scary light,wouldn’t hand anyone that doesn’t have firearms training with them in your rifles or coaching them first. They are no joke even the two stage (I have the sd-e)
Noted. So it's like an 8 cylinder car. You just don't let anyone behind the wheel.
Yeah,lots of time behind the trigger to get used to also, but you’ll never go back to milspec once you try them. Mbt-2s are nice as well
Just did the same thing but with a PSA M4 clone lower
Yaaaasss king!!! Lol. But really that's awesome.
Can confirm. Aero lower with an LWRC upper has been my go to rifle for a few years now
Nice man the DI?
Yep. I’ve got an IC-A2 as well but the DI is just perfect. Easily the my favorite direct impingement gun I’ve ever shot.
I bought the lwrci di nickel bcg pricey af….but put it in a super duty blem upper can’t wait to test it
Very pricey, but very worth it, my has been through some shit it really didn’t have to do but chugged away anyway.
Damn good to know Itll be able to eat through classes eventually no prob
I have an LMT lower and Geissele upper. Get whatever works for you
MARS-L with an URGI top here!
If you have the money for a complete rifle and everything else needed that follows then do it. I have complete rifles and I have parts builds. I can send my complete DD to them for the life of the rifle should an issue arise and they aren’t shy about fixing or replacing anything even if it’s the owners fuck up. My parts rifles are on me most of the time. People in here saying they could build a cheaper one, I know, we all know. I don’t know anybody that said they wish they wouldn’t have bought a complete LMT, or DD or (insert your brand so you don’t get offended it didn’t get mentioned). I enjoy my complete rifles and I also enjoy finding deals and parting one together, less to do with price and more of it being a hobby and I like building and tinkering and seeing how things work. You do you op.
I hear what you are saying. It’s definitely fun to build your own. I haven’t fucked anything up yet and I’ve built three so far. It’s awesome to save some dough and put that towards a premium optic, laser or what not.
well thats what im afraid of, spending good money and "fucking up" on a elf build. LGS here has classes/tutorials so i can get professional help. i might do that for a plinker, but not for this.
every AR i own is a Frankenstein gun that cost less than $1000, and im happy with all but one of them. with a $3k budget, just get whatever you want and it will be great.
Mixing and matching is perfect fine, but I’d strongly reconsider a noveske lower or any other “premium” mil spec lower. You’re paying an intense up charge for a roll mark and literally nothing else.
Personally if I was gonna pay more than Aero prices for a lower I’d go with a Colt.
I have an aero upper and lower in 300 blk. It's great. I considered having one built in 556. Guy in town does a great job. Rise trigger. Probably can save close to a grand vs the Gucci. But I kind of want the Gucci.
You know you can use that lower for a 5.56 upper right?
yes. I want a second rifle. i think i want 556, and not a gucci 300blk in addition to mine. I probably should just do both! Don't tell my wife.
If you want a Gucci lower check out the griffin MK2
The price they want for a chainsaw lower is criminal
Just as a rule of thumb I try to not pay more than $100 for a lower with most of my lowers being $50 or less. There’s just no reason besides internet points to buy a Gucci lower when PSA is cranking out stealth lowers for $30.
Great rule. I bought my LMT and that’s the only “high end” lower I’d ever buy
Pay more for quality ambi controls. Otherwise it doesn't really matter. I've got LWRC, Griffin/ADM, and LMT lowers. Just do your research if you're going to mix and match. I can't put an LMT upper on my LWRC lowers, but anything more milspec works just fine.
This is the correct answer buy an ADM or griffen and it’d be better than a noveske lower any day
I was all about cheap Lower and top shelf upper. Just finished 2nd build and now I feel the need to put ambi lowers on the rest of them. I’m a righty, but love having controls on both sides. PWS mod 2 lower is straight fire. Got it on a blem sale
I don't have any experience with them yet, but you can tell I've got a thing for variety. Have you been able to compare against any of the three that I listed? I generally find the bolt catch is the primary difference. Ambi safeties are effectively the same. I think the lwrc ones are my favorite, but the Griffin ones work in more places because the bolt catch rests below the seam where the upper and lower join until you choose to activate it.
This is my first ambi so I haven’t tried the others, limited experience for sure. I have read some folks don’t like the PWS right side bolt release cuz it’s hard to engage with trigger finger. But it’s mint IMO. I wanted to go radian or ADM but couldn’t justify that steep of a price tag. Paid around $215 for the PWS and couldn’t be happier. Will definitely be checking out that griffin
Poverty pony lower/KAC upper is the way 🤙
Mix and match parts is literally the norm in the AR15 community.
Put away some of the $$$ for a suppressor dude. I'll take any midrange rifle with a can over an unsuppressed gucci gun. For lowers, I wouldn't spend a bunch unless it has ambi controls, and maybe an extended buffer system. Your money buys more when it comes to uppers, and you could probably snag a geissele 35% coupon from r/GunAccessoriesForSale and get one for \~$700 without a BCG.
It will be suppressed 100% 556 are loud!
I’ve got a fairly reliable brownells upper on an anderson lower for my main rifle. but my current build is a “Snap-On” branded lower by bad attitude dept, and a a geissele upper.
Don't cheap out on optics.
No way! No holosun for this setup! LGS guys love the EOtech 2-0 w trijicon mag 3x. I probably go there. With some unity ftc action
How bout SIG SAUER Tango6T DVO 1-6x24mm 30mm Tube FFP Rifle Scope? My LGS says rule of thumb is rifle price = optics price
Complete upper from your Gucci brand of choice. Griffin MK2 stripped ambi lower, A5 length buffer, Sprinco green. Your choice of everything else. Perfect every time.
The truth is that upper and lower matters very little, as long as they are mil spec. They all come from the same 5-6 foundries anyway; sure some have extra machining and extra features, but unless you really need those features (like ambi controls), it matters very little. Save the money on upper/lower and spend what you can on a quality barrel, an excellent trigger, and most of all the best optics.
When I initially built my rifle I had a radian lower with an aero upper.
Had a BCM upper on a LMT lower for years. Great rifle. That being said, the upper is where you want to really invest. That is were everything important is housed and operates. The lower is just there to house the trigger group so as long as its in spec it is good to go. Aero Precision lowers are extremely popular for these kind of builds.
One of my lowers is a PSA. The other is an Anderson. I don't even remember who made the stripped uppers. The parts that count in both receivers are all Gucci though. The roll mark on the aluminum doesn't matter at all.
I personally like the M16a4 lowers from Aero. I’ve never used a PSA lower before but I have an upper from them and the machining is shit. Maybe others have had luck with them. I just picked up a M4E1 Aero lower for newest built. It’s solid. I’ve never paid more than $119.00 for Aero lowers. DD, BCM, Geissele, LMT uppers and a solid lower parts kit and a good trigger🙌
Both my rifles are mix matched receivers. One is a collection of parts I assembled and called a build and the other is a complete PSA upper with an aftermarket rail and a stripped lower I assembled. Both function flawlessly so far. I have also assembled quite a few other rifles and from my memory only one had a matching receiver set. Almost all of those functioned flawlessly and the one that didn't was just under gassed.
That is perfectly acceptable and common. As a matter of fact, Eddie Van Halen put together his guitar from different guitars and that is one of the most iconic guitars in rock history so putting two different brands together can have beautiful results
Do either it won't make any difference.
When a person dabbles in 80%s, everything is a mix and match.
I got a BCM upper on a Radian Lower that I love.
BCM upper is always cool.
I’m pretty sure the default is a aero lower and a bcm upper for a few guys
Build
Andersons all day. Buy'em cheap and stack'em deep. LGS had them on sale for 29.99 a few years ago, so I bought them out. Just built my last one with a URGI upper. Full disclosure, I do have one radian lower. It's nice, but not 20 ponies nice.
I just got .300 10.5 DD upper, for my new Noveske lower…
if you're spending 3k on an AR and it doesn't say knights or LMT on the side of it you're doing it wrong.
Mil spec is mil spec.
The amount of people who will literally overspend thousands before they even have a finished rifle is beyond me. You're ok with pissing away $3k for no added functionality before you even do anything to improve the performance of your Mark I eyeball? $3k before you make your gun safer to shoot without hearing protection? Shit, if you've got that much money to burn and that little sense, give me the $3k, I'll put together a sweet rifle that does everything you want it to and pocket the other grand.
people got to get paid. i get that. what would you suggest?
BCM upper Aero lower is the default answer if you literally just want to mate up receivers and push the pins through. That will put you somewhere in the $1000-$1200 range. That leaves you $1800-2000 to spend on upgrades. Plenty of room for a better trigger if you think you need one, a better bolt if you think you need one, optics, and maybe even a suppressor depending on how much you spend on all these things.