Building my own AR

[rich]

I would like to know if I buy a stripped upper receiver and barrel to build an AR and both are new do I need to pay strict attention to head space or can I forgo head space gauges? Am I better off with receiver and barrel from same manufacture?

[deth502]

the receiver has nothing to do with headspace. its a comb of barrel, barrel extention, and bolt head.

for the record--"always check your headspace before you fire for saftey"

off the record-- i havent headspaced a build yet and havent had any probs.

[SharpShooter88]

I honestly dont know the meaning of this headspacing. I would like to build an Ar but I have NO CLUE what headspace is and I dont feel like Googleing it.

[deth502]

well, all cartridges are made to a certain specification (SAAMI, usualy) and as such are all within a certain tolerance in size of the cartridge itself. headspace in a rifle, or any gun for that matter, is the measurement of the actual chamber cut into the barrel in relation to the size of the ammunition itself. obviously, if the headspace is short, you run the risk of having ammo not fit in the chamber, it might be SOME ammo that is sized to the upper limit of the specs, in the case of a chamber thats a little short, up to ALL ammo an a VERY short chamber.

EXCESSIVE head space can be VERY dangerous as well.

i could go on, and on , and on, but i beleive you get the jist of it now, no???

there is a lot more too it than this, but thats it in a nutshell.

[Lycanthrope]

I would like to know if I buy a stripped upper receiver and barrel to build an AR and both are new do I need to pay strict attention to head space or can I forgo head space gauges? Am I better off with receiver and barrel from same manufacture?

If everything is new.....upper receiver barrel/barrel extension and bolt carrier group. You shouldn't have to check headpsace.

It's a good idea, but you don't have to.

Lycanidon'tthrope

[Wasz]

Alright what should I read to learn some stuff about ARs. Keep in mind if its a mechanical manual I wont read it because without having the parts to play with it means nothing to me. I need something that tells me what things are and what they do not just an exploded diagram that says Part a2 is this.

[SharpShooter88]

Alright thanks for clearing that up. Wasz. Go to one of the manufacturer sites and check out the parts and read descriptions of them. One of my fav's is Del-ton.com
They have a nice sight layout that I thik is ideal for graphical representations and descriptions. Go through all the parts you would like to see and look at the images and read the description. Then if you need added assistance try to look it up on wikkipedia.org and see if it will offer you any better of an explanation. That is how I learned the jist of the parts that go into an AR.

Good luck!

[Lycanthrope]

www.ar15.com

Go to......"AR15"....then "Build it yourself".....


That should keep you busy for like......a year.


Lycanorjustlistentolycanthropethrope

[Xringshooter]

For info, get any of the AR books. The GunDigest Book of the AR is a good one. Guns and Ammo had a smaller one also, lots of info.

You you do go the AR15.com, be aware, the people there seem to be verrry opinionated. Use the site to gleen info about building and maintenance. They have a lot of "stickeys" that you can copy and download. Also, M4Carbine.com is another good AR site and the info is mainly for the M4 but it also pertains to AR's.

[deth502]

the receiver has nothing to do with headspace. its a comb of barrel, barrel extention, and bolt head.

for the record--"always check your headspace before you fire for saftey"

off the record-- i havent headspaced a build yet and havent had any probs.

ok- here's an ak from another board that goes under the "for the record" heading.

the general concensus so far is that this happened from excessive headspace.

http://www.akfiles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26893