So I know most of the major parts (barrels, receiver, etc.) are made by just a handful of manufacturers (FN, LMT, etc.) and finished to the specs of the AR company (Colt, BCM, etc.) But what about the small parts like pins and springs and what not? Do the AR companies supply the specs on these too or do they just get them from manufacturer as is. Like is a Schmidt FCG group going to be the same where ever it comes from?
OK, first let me point out that your initial statement is wrong. There are dozens of manufacturers producing receivers and barrels. The only reason this notion exists in the AR world is because people want to use “just as good as ____, since ____ makes all of ____ and they source it from the same place” arguments to justify poor purchasing decisions.
With small parts, yep, there are dozens of manufacturers, as well. And, indeed, the parts are sourced according to whatever specifications required by the buyer.
For the love of God, just get a LPK or individual parts from a reputable company.
I’ve seen dog shit pins/springs from all sorts of manufacturers.
I say again, For the love of God, just get a LPK or individual parts from a reputable company.
Buy a LPK from DD or Colt and be done with it.
Minutia, man. You are making this harder than it needs to be.
Amen.
Dude, take it down a notch.
I spent over a month on here researching parts before I made any purchases. I ended up with a G&R LPK, Geissele SSA, and BAD A.S.S. and EPS in my Noveske lower. And it’s run great the past couple years. So I am not looking to buy parts. I just happen to be genuinely curious about this. What’s is wrong with that?
There’s nothing wrong with being curious.
Someone, mark my words, will come into this thread, and proclaim that “my Shitbird Arms Kit has run flawlessly for XXX rounds.” Erroneous information/sample of one.
These types of threads have an ability to go down the swirly quick, and are usually nothing more than a waste of bandwidth. The answer is simple.
I’m not going to get into company bashing, but I will state, without any doubt, to answer your original question, NO.
Whether or not they are manufactured by the same supplier, I have seen parts kits that vary WILDLY in not only the triggers and springs, but simple shit like the detents.
Where I see consistently good parts is from the names synonymous with “quality”.
That being said, all GI triggers are inferior to a Gieselle, JP, Timney, etc. There’s some gems, but they’re like finding a four-leafed clover. I assembled a lower for someone a couple of weeks ago with a DD LPK. The trigger in that kit, for not being broken in, broke like an icicle and was as smooth as silk. I will reiterate that not every DD trigger has been like that one, but they have all been boringly good.
GI triggers are built for reliability, not precision shooting.
I’ve seen, in the last month, LPKs that have flat detents. Like, no cone, no tip, not rounded - ****ing flat. Like cylindrical flat.
That is unacceptable.
LPKs are cheap. Dirt cheap. Anyone trying to save $20-$30 on one is an abject ass.
Thanks. What prompted this was the last couple pages of the new FN carbine thread. People are saying FN is using the same selector as DD or this part is the same as XYZ company uses. And also another thread mentioned how many receivers BCM reject because they do not meet their standards. I just wondering if this type of specification goes into the smaller parts as well.
Unequivocally, yes.
Don’t ask me what kind of voodoo, or materials selection process goes on, but from an end user/assembler standpoint, my personal experience is that there is a good bit of difference.
I’m sure an armorer, or someone with more unit-level experience can chime in, but from what I’ve seen, there’s only two LPKs I would put in a personal weapon. A detent may be a detent, but how many times are you going to put one in a pivot pin? For a ~$0.99 part, I’m going to stick a solid one in there, and never mess with it again.
I will state, without any doubt, that EVERYTHING I’ve seen from BCM has been, again, boringly good. It’s a consistency thing. I have no idea where they source their components from, but the QA/QC process is what makes the biggest difference in this arena.
I saw a 6920 that looked like it had a roll pin installed with a ball peen hammer by a 700lb Silverback. The receiver was scratched to shit (this was a new firearm), and the roll pin wasn’t fully driven into the trigger guard. Like I mentioned earlier, the DD triggers I’ve installed, have always been “good”. They haven’t all been as crisp as the most recent one I installed, but they’ve been as “excellent” as a GI trigger can be.
There’s always going to be a Monday morning product. Always.
The “top tier” manufacturers will just have significantly fewer.
YMMV