Making a believer

[Rapier]

Down a few threads you will see the $340 AR story.

Everyone including me had a question in the back of their mind about the New Frontier polymer lower for an AR. Well on Saturday morning I got my answer. I was mowing grass on the farm, using the throttle lever, which I normally do not use. I hat two holes which threw the AR out of the rack on the right rear fender. The rear wheel missed the rifle as it hit the ground but the 6 ft Bush Hog did not miss.

Starting at the top, the scope tube was bent, upper receiver was fractured, forend shattered, gas tube wrapped around barrel, gas block spun up, barrel bent in 3 directions, quick connect for suppressor destroyed, butt stock ripped out of the lower, stock key bent, rear take down pin sheared, buffer plunger and spring gone, pin plunger and spring gone, mag ripped from lower.

The bolt and carrier survived.

On Sunday after flushing and washing everything with mineral spirits, I went to the gun show we were having in town. I bought a pin, two plungers and two springs. Plus a new upper. I straightened out the stock key installed the rear pin, springs and plungers, screwed the stock back on the lower and locked it up with the wrench and ring nut. Put the new upper on the lower with old buffer, spring, carrier and bolt, stuck the old magazine in and the gun functioned like nothing had happened. The new upper is tight and the lower does not even have a change to the trigger pull. That is one tough lower.

Here is what it looked like Saturday and looks like today. The pictures tell the story.

In three years as an armorer in the 101st I never saw an M-16 this beat up, not even close. That lower was not hurt!
Ed

[Jack]

Wow! That's amazing

[Rapier]

It gets more amazing, I sent the pictures to New frontier in Vegas where I bought it and they said their lowers have a lifetime warranty and where did I want the new lower sent to! I told them no need as the lower was in great shape but I would like a new polymer rear pin if they would do that for me and that polymer replacement for the steel pin is now on its way.

By the way, New Frontier is just outside the main gate at Nellis AFB and is owned by a USAF Chief Master Sgt in Red Horse, near retirement. Good folks to deal with, in several directions.
Ed

[Rapier]

The follow-up:

On Saturday last, I took the AR Phoenix (risen from the ashes) to my range at the farm. This was a smoke test for the entire system and to give the Chicom circle dot cheapo scope another test. I had removed this scope before as it was not conducive to shooting MOA and left me without confidence in the result of tested loads, much less the scope itself. In this test I used squares half the size of prior tests.

I wanted to see if the old mag would run OK. To do this up right, I removed the first round from the original magazine the round that was bent and dinged, it took a blade strike down its length without touching the mag lips. The magazine itself was still loaded with the original ammo, dirt and all. Turned the mag upside down and did what amounted to an old time steel pot mag strike, three pops, to align the rounds at the rear. This should have dropped any loose sand and simulate real use in a dusty, sandy environment. Remember this mag was out of the gun, under mower blades in sand, weeds and grass.

I used Sweet Shooter to clean the new barrel of preservative and shot the barrel wet, round after round, (normal Sweet Shooter break in) after 6 rounds to get the AR on paper (old paper w to many holes), it took one more to get the impact inside a 1 inch square. The next three rounds went into .673 group leaving me with two rounds in the mag. Now I will clean the mag!

So we end up with a lower and a magazine that function and shoots after the Bush Hog ordeal. Beauty is as beauty does.
Ed

PS: The previous upper was a 1-9 twist mil spec, the new upper is a 1-9 mil spec so I just used the same loads.