Gunco Forums banner

Centerfire ar kit

4K views 25 replies 8 participants last post by  frige 
#1 ·
#2 ·
well it all depends on how worn these are.

SMG shipped some really nice ones but as the supply got low the kits got rougher.

you should need only a barrel and a lower as the m16 FCG can be de-milled to AR-15 type pretty easy, -- all you really need would be a ar-15 safety. -

-don't install the m16 sear--LOL thats a no brainer.


grind off the hook on the back of the m-16 hammer, grind off the tail on the disconnector , weld up or JB weld the back of the trigger with the ar-15 safety that should be all thats required.

you can weld up the m16 safety and use it-- i did that once-- lot of hassle for a $9 part--LOL

pre panic you could get 20" barrels from several places for $99, you can use a m4 16" barrel if you have a 750 FSB/gas block and a low profile .750 gas block for a under the handguards install.

on a kit this old -- you might want new gas rings for the bolt and a spring kit --all of which can be had quite reasonably.

this could be a really nice deal-- if the kit ain't too worn out or banged all to hell.

knowing CFS they could be all over the place
 
#3 ·
Well to start with it's not a "early Nam era" Colt, it has the forward assist and closed flash hider. I'm with j427x on these,,how worn???? The military usually,, "DX'ed" them ,,,,,for a reason. And Center fire is pretty well know for,,, less that accurate grading. Notice ,,,no grade,,, listed on those kits,, they could be anything from EX to Poor condition,,,,who knows????

I'd shop around more myself for that $$$. At least look for a kit with a listed grade, so if it's crap when you get it,, you'll at least have a leg to stand on if you should want to send it back cause it's junk.
 
#4 ·
so true i have got all kinds of stuff from CFS in the past that was --well short of described condition.

for your $350 what are you getting? probably a very well worn a1 stock-set a a1 upper that is probably well worn , a m16 bcg , and the remains of a m16 LPK.

this is kind of like the AK kits in a way. sort of like back when you could get a nearly new m16 A1 upper from CDNN for $269?

the best surplus stuff is long gone. i bought a surplus a2 upper from sarco --it has very little of the finish left--looked like boots dragged it around in the gravel for years.

for the $$$ you might be as well off to do a new build if this kit is very well worn. these look to be 1970s a1s --late nam / 70s cold war relics , most of these were sold or give to central america in the mid 80s to imported in the US early 90s. i have seen these that looked like they had sat in an armory for decades without being fired and i have seen these that looked like they had fired a billion rounds of corrosive ammo.

since it is so late in this deal most of the kits look pretty rough -- they sold all the preimo surplus first.

if i was going to order one from CFS i would want to talk to the manager and get a grade in writing--LOL
 
#5 ·
Well I talked to the manager at centerfire and he said all of the kits were shrink wrapped so they could not grade them. I might be getting ripped off but I went ahead and picked one up. I will post some pictures once I get it. If it is that bad I will return it. Never know might get a good one. (crossed fingers)
 
#10 ·
You know sprat,,, I think that's about the same for most distributors nowadays,,, I think there all pretty much scraping the bottom of the barrel now. Even some of the C&R guns I've gotten lately are slipping pretty badly in grade,, whats passing for EX condition stuff now, was yesterdays VG condition. Sad but true I'm afraid. And with yomamma's latest fiasco's,, it's only going to get worse I'm afraid.

Oh to only find,,,, some Mauser's,,, Enfields,,,Springfields,, ect,,, like I used to find in the 70's,,,,,,wish,, wish!!!

Keep an eye out on the private market though,, there's a few slipping out of closets here and there,,,,,some good ones too from what I've found. Just not enough of them,,,,,
 
#11 ·
Here goes what you get
I am pretty impressed the parts look pretty good no excessive wear these must have been in storage somewhere



CH marked upper with no deflector colt proofed J4 what time period does that put this in?


Butt plate is cracked but I can fix that all the teeth on the triangle handguards are there, missing most of the pins and springs but I say this is a winner
 
#12 ·
Must have been Air Force Inventory....Carried some, shot none. Issued once a year to the Civil Engineer Prime Beef Teams, who promptly left them in their bunks while they dug holes in the desert. I kid you not.
 
#14 ·
Man I certainly hope mine is as nice as that. Once I get it I would like to build it as original as possible. What is the chance of getting a period correct lower and barrel? Or at least one that looks the part.
 
#16 ·
J427x

great link, my second pencil barrel is coming got a e-mail yesterday, this on will have the fsb mounted at the factory.

as i said in the other thread these kits look hell of a lot better than the McKay and SG kits

shame the website is now saying they are sold out
 
#17 ·
The tracking # says it is out for delivery. Woohoo I am getting excited. Now yall will have to school me on the proper parts for this one. From reading it seems that I need a 20 in barrel and a slab side lower correct? Nodak Spud has some correct lowers on his site but all are backordered.
 
#18 ·
#20 ·
The barrel came in. Looks really nice. Funny ars seem to be a lot easier to assemble than a ak. I saw on youtube how to check headspace but cant for the life of me figure how to change it if it was wrong. The riffle just slips together.

Lower is probably still a couple of weeks out, they sent me a email saying they will ship in 5-7 days. Bummer I am ready to go shootin.
 
#21 ·
on the ar-15/m16 the headspace in on the barrel extension. the barrel extension threads on the barrel and is set to a standard HS if the barrel is properly set up.

to change the headspace on a barrel/barrel extension you would have to remove the set pin and tighten or loosen the barrel extension to get the correct space, then re insert the barrel pin. the downside is if the gas port is drilled it is now going to be "off".

Hess/Vulcan and SARCO have shipped barrels with the gas port off that was either welded over and re drilled of just left canted. pretty messy job to clean up a furbar. it is usually cheaper to replace than fix it.

a new barrel and a new bolt will work perfectly (mostly) and a new bolt and a used barrel are generally OK , a used barrel and a used bolt from another set up may be out--

generally it pays to check them all. the modular AR/M16 will generally have the HS on the money PROVIDED the makers stuck to the blueprint specs for the barrel/bolt. 99.5% of the time they do on s USGI type build.

on match type builds sometimes the chamber has to be honed cause they will set the HS to standard but leave a overly tight chamber for the smith to finish.

some makers on exotic conversions like 6.5G and 6.8SPC have used a not standard HS on the bolt and the extension.
 
#24 ·
I'm jealous Frige. Congrats on the kit. One of these days after weddings, more grand babies coming, and the economy maybe I'll be able to assemble the retro AR that I want. I'm wanting a close copy of what I carried in the Marine Corps back in the early 1980's.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top