Building your own AR?

[smitty21]

I'm tossing around the idea of building my own AR. I want it to be in a pre-ban config. Is this allowed? When I try reading the laws, it just seems like babble to me Can someone put it into English? And whats the deal with AR-15 parts kits and M-16 parts kits? If somebody has done this, where did you get your parts?

 

[swampyMO]

smitty,

Numerous companies sell very good AR15 parts kits, i.e. everything but the lower receiver.

Pick up a copy of Shotgun News or Gun List and look for ads from:

M & A Parts
Model 1 Sales
Bushmaster
J & G Sales

I've built two AR's from kits. Both are very reliable and accurate.

Re preban vs. postban... In order to LEGALLY build an AR in pre-ban configuration, you MUST have a preban receiver. Herein lies the rub... locating a preban receiver that is not already in full preban rifle form is akin to locating a genuine set of George Washington's wooden teeth. It is nigh on to impossible to do.

If you want a preban, you are going to have to purchase a preban rifle.... If you are going to build a rifle from a kit, it will have to be on a post ban receiver and done in postban configuration.

best regards,
Swampy

 

[AR-10]

If you want a pre-ban, just buy it.

Go here and start reading. Lots of good info.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/forum.html?id=4

 

[USMCsilver]

SwampyMO -- In order to LEGALLY build an AR in pre-ban configuration, you MUST have a preban receiver. Herein lies the rub... locating a preban receiver that is not already in full preban rifle form is akin to locating a genuine set of George Washington's wooden teeth. It is nigh on to impossible to do.

This, my friend, is INCORRECT! You can find a pre-ban lower quite often and easily. Go to the boards at http//subguns.bighammer.net . There are always pre-ban lowers for sale there as well as www.ar15.com at the equiptment exchange.

The legal way to do it is to find a lower that was ONCE assembled into a complete rifle before '94. This is not hard to do. A lot of the sellers have a letter from the manufacturer that states this. Or, you can find a lower that you want to purchase, ask the seller the serial number, then call the company. They can quickly and easily tell you the info you need to know.

Then, I am going to say this. Take it for what it is worth. If you find a pre-ban lower and you find out it was never assembled, then, I, personally, would not worry about it. But that is just me. You would have to practically murder someone for them to look that deeply into your rifle. I mean, if you are at a traffic stop and you have your rifle in the trunk, the most they will do is call in a SN check to make sure it is not stolen. They are not going to see if it were assembeled before '94! See what I am saying. But, if you wanna be totaly correct/safe, then keep it legal.

Good luck. I have built two myself and it is a lot of fun. I am going to be starting a 3rd soon. For your money, the best thing you can do is find a lower and then buy all the rest piece by piece off of Ebay! You will get it done the cheapest that way. I would not be surprised if you get everything you need, minus the lower, for around $400. But, be prepared to shell out the clams for that beloved lower. It will probably run you $600 stripped and upwards of $900 complete.

Enjoy!

 

[KPS]

I'm in the final stages of building my post ban AR and I found "Building Your Own AR15" by Duncan Long was very useful.If you don't mind spending the extra $$ you can find preban lowers on www.ar15.com in the exchange section.For post ban lowers you can pay anywhere from $89 for a CIA to $180 for a Bushmaster.Like USMC said, once you have a sripped lower you can find the rest of the parts on Ebay or on the AR15 exchange forum for much less.Good luck and BEWARE...IT IS ADDICTING!!

 

[smitty21]

Thanks for all the info. One more question. I was surfing around looking for lowers and I came across this. http://www.gunbroker.com/auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=2695205
Is this true? Can you actually build the pistol version with this? Its a post ban lower.

 

[Stormbringer]

Sorry for the stupid question...

But if you were to get a Tannery Shop 80% lower and finished it..

How could the Feds know when you did it?

Could you not say it was Preban? How could they prove it was not?

 

[dZ]

Because the first time you cross an agent with an attitude
they will make sure you are painted as someone who makes machine guns in his basement
& they are not sure how many you sold to gang bangers to finance your drug habits

better to take the high road & buy a Colt preban
(Colt did not sell just lowers)

There is some debate that the gun is only preban in its pre Sept 94 configuration

 

[KPS]

smitty

I believe NFA rules apply if you are going to build a pistol version of that.IIRC, you can build a rifle on a pistol lower but you can't build a pistol on a lower that was ever made into a rifle.Since that is a post ban lower it makes it nearly impossible to build.The 1994 assault weapon law declares a pistol to be an assault weapon if it has a detachable magazine with any of the following 2 features:

1) ammunition magazine that isn't contained in the pistol grip.

2) a threaded barrelcapable of accepting a flash suppressor/silencer.

3) manufactured empty weight of 50 oz or more.

4) a semiautomatic version of an automatic firearm.

This is quoted from Duncan Long's book "build your own ar15"

 

[4V50 Gary]

It's fun and it's easy to build an AR upper and lower from parts kit. They're just like LEGO and with a little aptitude and skill, you can have one in a few hours time. Now, regarding the pre-ban upper, sure you can build one. It's when you attach it to a post-ban lower that you get your slapped (heavily).

 

[Redlg155]

But if you were to get a Tannery Shop 80% lower and finished it..
How could the Feds know when you did it?
Could you not say it was Preban? How could they prove it was not?

It wouldn't be hard for a good investigator to check out these things. Especially if he knows his stuff. He might know about Tannery Shop lowers and inquire to see whether you had a order. He could also check with UPS to see what packages came to your house and the origin. There is always a paper trail for one who inclined to follow it.

Good Shooting
RED

 

[smitty21]

KPS, so you are saying it can be done with that lower? Man, I'm about to just give up and build a post ban rifle, that seems to be the easiest.

 

[KPS]

Buy Duncan Long's book.It explains alot about what you can and cannot do to pre/postban AR's.I just finished my first AR a week ago but the people on www.ar15.com were very helpful and knowledgeable.For my first built rifle I found it was easier to just buy all post ban parts. Don't be afraid to ask questions.