One lower...many uppers?

[harmonn@att.net]

Okay, so I want to get into AR frames. Shot a DPMS and a S&W MP 223's last week, and thought the S&W shot a lot smoother. A guy told me that was due to having all bells and whistles though, but I really liked it. Here is my thought though and wanted to see if anyone else does this as well. I am thinking about having only one lower, say an MP, then buy an upper 223, and 458 socom. Both uppers would have their scopes so they would not have to sighted in everty time. I could even find a MP15 to play around with later. These would not come all at once obviously, but thought it would be a good way to save money by taking advantage of the same lower. Good idea, bad idea? Any drawbacks I may be overlooking?

Thanks in advance.

 

[lucky4034]

You can do that....

However, what will happen is you will start with one complete rifle... then when you buy your second upper... you will figure out that for just another $200-$300 you can add a 2nd lower and then have 2 AR-15's of different caliber.

Black rifles have a way of multiplying like rabbits....

BTW.. the 458 socom looks SOOOOO awesome... but if you are trying to save money on lowers, my guess is you won't like paying $300 each time you pull the trigger with the 458.... (unless you are solely buying a 458 for hunting)

 

[indyjoe]

You can save money, and it will depend on how much you like swapping them. You may want a very light trigger for a varmint lower, but wouldn't want that same setup for a battle rifle. Also stocks are not as easily swapped. Other than that, I don't see a problem.

But lowers are generally the cheapest portion.

 

[Mgderf]

Black rifles have a way of multiplying like rabbits....

^^^This right here!

Whatever you do, DON'T start building them!
That could be the last vestige of sanity flying out the window.

 

[42769vette]

You can do that....

However, what will happen is you will start with one complete rifle... then when you buy your second upper... you will figure out that for just another $200-$300 you can add a 2nd lower and then have 2 AR-15's of different caliber.

Black rifles have a way of multiplying like rabbits....

BTW.. the 458 socom looks SOOOOO awesome... but if you are trying to save money on lowers, my guess is you won't like paying $300 each time you pull the trigger with the 458.... (unless you are solely buying a 458 for hunting)

i guess im not the only one who's lowers grow uppers and uppers grow lowers

 

[wilianknow]

Here is my take. Buy the complete uppers you like. Buy a good stripped lower $80 to 200 buy the spike high end lower kit with single stage trigger and a 3.5 lb pull. Save money and I think you might like it better.

 

[Gunaria]

You'll save a lot of dough if you roll your own.

 

[jblomenberg16]

They will grow into others...be warned!

The only way I can see it working is if you have the dedicated 458 for deer hunting.

 

[davedolli]

Do not buy any stripped lowers if you have a few uppers, I know from experience. lol


Dave

 

[JTinIN]

With just one lower, you need to have back up parts, then once you have a lower parts kit and stock for back up, need some place to put the parts ... a stripped lower works well ;-)

Then one needs pistol lowers for the short uppers ... it never ends ;-)

 

[indyjoe]

It is kind of like mixing flour and water. Crap. Too much water. Add more flour. Crap. Too thick. Add more water. Repeat.

flour = AR-15 upper
water = AR-15 lower

 

[ar1973]

I agree it will work if you have self controll wich I lack there for I have an ar garden in my safe .

 

[10ring1]

The .458 socom looks awesome. So does the beowulf

 

[ghuns]

Bought 2 uppers, a Stag .223 and a RRA .458. Bought two stripped lowers, but only one lower parts kit. Figured I would build the first lower to get a feel for what I did and didn't like, then finish the second lower accordingly. I have been swapping uppers for a few months now and have a good idea of the direction I'm going with #2.

And yea, .458 rocks! But keep in mind, the stock that comes on a S&W might come crashing down on you when shooting the .458. It kicks a little.

 

[dom1104]

I have 3 lowers.

Full caliber guns get their own lower, 22lr uppers can float without a lower.

 

[nick89302]

Spare LPK here, another stripped lower there, a stock that I really don't need but can get for a good price...It just keeps going and going. Eventually, you'll look in your safe and at your spare parts and realize you can assemble another black rifle. It will be at that time that your diagnosis of having Black Rifle Disease will be confirmed.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

I'm getting into a whole other can of worms (I'm gonna do it, I swear!) I got the fixture and some 80% lowers, so with some parts kits I'll have a whole litter of ARs that don't really exist. How cool is that?

 

[Mech45]

I started out just building one rifle, and bought a second upper in 458. The 458 needed a little better recoil pad and it takes a heavier spring so it grew into a complete rifle. Then I thought a heavy barrel 223 would be nice..... Once you start it is hard to stop, but you get a great deal of satisfaction shooting something that you put together yourself. You also get to know exactly how your rifle or rifles work. And yes 458 SOCOM is a very cool caliber...

Chris

 

[indygunguy]

Man, I feel better after reading this. Now I know it's not just me.

"Hey, look at this, I have an extra random AR part. Better build an entire rifle around it!"

 

[42769vette]

Man, I feel better after reading this. Now I know it's not just me.

"Hey, look at this, I have an extra random AR part. Better build an entire rifle around it!"

its not horible when the part your building the rifle around is a lower/upper/barrel etc. the bad part is when you say "ive got a extra detent spring, i better build a gun to house it in so i dont lose it"