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Q.1. Are your lowers “mil-spec”
like others I have seen advertised?
A. “Mil-Spec” is a term that is
much used & abused by the firearms & other industries to give the
impression that their product is produced to Military Specifications & is
therefore robust, tough & superior to other similar products. The truth of the matter is that unless the
products are being delivered to the government, not a single product is truly
“mil-spec” as only the Government can certify that standard. What can &
does happen is that when manufacturers’ state their products are “mil-spec”,
they mean that they have taken every step to comply with the appropriate
standards that the military specification calls out for. That’s what we mean
when we say “mil-spec” regarding our products.
Q.2. Why do your lowers cost more
than some other vendors lowers & why should I buy from you?
A. You, the consumer, have the
choice of who to purchase products from as do we, the supplier. When we started
this business, we had a decision to make; either go with the lowest bidder
& sell huge volumes or seek out the finest products, items we would be
proud to own, charge a fair price & make a decent profit. We chose the
quality end of the equation. Our lowers go through a rigorous inspection
process that begins even before the CNC starts machining them. Look at the
images in our photo gallery for a detailed description of how our lowers are
manufactured. There is real care & pride in our lowers & they have to
cost more than items that are just pumped out with little care or final quality
control. We look at the products we sell with more than a casual interest; this
is what we do for a living so the product must be 100% correct, every time. If
there is ever a problem with one of our products, we have a simple return
policy; 100% refund with no quibbling.
Q.3. I’ve never heard of you, what
guarantee do I have that I will get my product?
A.
You don’t. The only thing you have is trust. We want to earn it &
will by delivering your product
in the fastest possible time with the best quality available. We have run
businesses before & have never screwed anyone & have no intention of
starting now.
Q.4. You say your magazine wells
are “EDM” cut, what is this “EDM” & why is supposedly better?
A. If we start at the beginning,
there are at least 3 possible ways to machine the magazine well on an AR 15
lower; keyway broaching, an actual broach or Wire EDM. Keyway broaching
involves machining away most of the metal in the mag well & using a small
broach (a tool with ‘teeth’ on the same principle as a file) to clean up the
corners. An actual broach can be up to 4 feet in length & requires a
dedicated machine to run it; they are very expensive (both the machine &
the broach) & are used mostly by the major manufacturers due to their cost.
With a broach, you can cut mag wells very quickly & efficiently but the
downside can be tighter mag wells when the broach starts to wear or if it
wasn’t made to the right tolerances to start with.
The manufacturer we use for our lowers
uses Wire EDM to cut the mag well. Wire Electrical Discharge Machining is one
of the most precise forms of machining available today. EDM uses an electrode
of thin wire charged with high voltage electricity to remove metal by spark
erosion. This process allows for precise intricate cuts in conductive metal
material. Rapid AC or DC pulses are generated between the thin wire electrode
and the metal being cut. There is no actual contact between the wire electrode
and the work piece therefore no cutting forces are generated, allowing
machining to extremely high tolerances. As the electrode is directed by CNC,
every mag well is cut to the same standard & the same tolerance, every
single time. The downside to the process is the time it takes to complete the machining
cycle & the additional cost of the operation. To EDM a mag well takes about
20 to 25 minutes & the cost can be up to half of the total machining costs
of the lower. Another reason why our lowers cost more than some broached
lowers.
Q.5. Okay, so is a broached lower
not as good as an EDM lower?
A. The quality of a lower isn’t
defined by how the mag well is produced; it’s so much more than that. Speaking
just about the mag well, an EDM machined well should be more consistent from
lower to lower than a broached well, that’s just a fact of life & machining
tolerances. Most AR 15 lower receivers on the market today are dimensionally
accurate & should be a reasonable fit on most aftermarket uppers. Our
lowers are held to the tightest tolerances, commensurate with fitting to
quality upper receiver groups.
Q.6. Do you sell parts kits to
complete your lowers?
A. Not at this time. We may
consider it as business conditions dictate.
Q.7. Do you recommend any upper
receiver groups to fit your lowers?
A. One of the nice things about
the AR15 weapon system is that it is so modular & allows you to mix &
match parts. Given that there are so many different manufacturers &
companies making upper receiver groups in so many different calibers, we don’t recommend
one upper over another. We advise customers (if they aren’t members already) to
join AR15.com & do your research there as to which upper receiver would
best meet your needs. This might seem like a cop out but without reviewing
every single upper available, it would be unfair to recommend a few companies out
of the many out there.
Q.8. What if I have a problem
fitting my parts kits into your lower or with an upper receiver group not
fitting?
A. Let us know! The best way is
via email with pictures of the issues you are having, plus a description of the
problems & the parts you are using. We will help you resolve your issues as
much as possible via email &/or ‘phone & if need be, we will have you
send us your parts & we will ensure they fit or offer you a solution that
is mutually acceptable.
Q.9. Do you sell complete rifles?
A. Again, not at this time
although we are working on some projects with various industry people that
could be very interesting, stay tuned!
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