Need advice

[drarmament]

For the guys and/or gals that have built their ARs, how do you take the time and patience to build it. I could build anyone a perfect rifle, also I can take the time to build weapons for someone else, but when it comes to me I can't. It took me 6 months to refurbish a Syrian mortar for the ft. hood museum and over 3 plus to turn howitzers into lawn furniture, but I lose patience or discipline to build something for me. Its like the guy who you build for asking you its it done every other day. but its hard when your that guy asking yourself the question.
Please share your wisdom on control.

[bluejackets92fs]

Just sounds like you're a "built not bought" kind of guy. No shame in it.

[drarmament]

I just got started on building for myself. I was scared at first because of my position in the government and what i do. But my buddies talked me into it and now I have OCD. Now I stare at my 308 lower and just want it to be magically but together.
Disclaimer: I would never recommend another manufacturer over another manufacturer. The position I have has direct contact and indirect contact with almost every manufacturer that sales to the federal government.

[Iraqgunz]

I'm not entirely tracking. Are you talking about assembling it after you have all the parts? Or are you talking about no patience to plan it out and then put it together? I'm not sure why there would be a lot of patience involved. If you have all the parts and the right tools it shouldn't be more than 45 mins to an hour. The key is to have all the components on hand, everything checked and ready to install.

[drarmament]

IG, I'll buy parts then I'll decide I didn't want that and order another part. I just keep changing my mind on the build I'm going. I'll go from precision to Tac and back to precision. I just get confused on how I want to build it. How to you set your mind on the build you want. Maybe I should buy another lower and build both at the same time.

[Ryno12]

You sound indecisive about your build. Every AR I built I knew exactly what I wanted ahead of time. I bought the parts I needed & I assembled it. And so on and so on. Everyone of them is different & they each have their own purpose.

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[drarmament]

You sound indecisive about your build. Every AR I built I knew exactly what I wanted ahead of time. I bought the parts I needed & I assembled it. And so on and so on. Everyone of them is different & they each have their own purpose.

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thanks. I'll Do that and stick to the plan.

[Ryno12]

You can always build more than one. :)

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[Leaveammoforme]

I just got started on building for myself. I was scared at first because of my position in the government and what i do. But my buddies talked me into it and now I have OCD. Now I stare at my 308 lower and just want it to be magically but together.
Disclaimer: I would never recommend another manufacturer over another manufacturer. The position I have has direct contact and indirect contact with almost every manufacturer that sales to the federal government.

I'll be the first to risk trouble from the mods but I'm gonna say what many are thinking.

Dear OP,
Please stop implying that you are super secret ninja squirrel. If you are , awesome. If not, which is the vibe I get, pose elsewhere or stop. Every third post is "I'm risking everything by posting".

To the question. Patience is learned not taught.

[drarmament]

I'll be the first to risk trouble from the mods but I'm gonna say what many are thinking.

Dear OP,
Please stop implying that you are super secret ninja squirrel. If you are , awesome. If not, which is the vibe I get, pose elsewhere or stop. Every third post is "I'm risking everything by posting".

To the question. Patience is learned not taught.


I'm not no Super secret ninja. I'm not really awesome either. But I don't have patience, I'll just build 2 and won't have to worry about it. It think a lot of it is OCD for perfection for the perfect rifle. In order to do that I'll have to build 2 maybe 3.

[weggy]

I only build ARs. I take my time, try to buy quality parts, and since I'm retired, I'm in no hurry to get it done. I work on them when I "feel inspired".

[drarmament]

I only build ARs. I take my time, try to buy quality parts, and since I'm retired, I'm in no hurry to get it done. I work on them when I "feel inspired".

Thanks for reply.
Truly I been feeling kinda burnt out and complacent. Maybe I need to scale back for a while. I think about what's going to inspire me. Your comment was very helpful.

[MistWolf]

Just take a deep breath and focus on the task at hand. Stop worrying about building the perfect configuration because it doesn't exist. Don't get hung up on building a CQB rifle or DMR or MK whatever or M4 or what have you.

16 INCH BARREL. ALL DAY, EVERY DAY. Most would agree that in a practical sense, a 16" barrel will do anything you ask it to. It gives enough velocity to have reach, the length has no impact on accuracy, it's short enough to be handy and shorter requires a tax stamp. Bottom line, it's the most popular length for a reason. Call it a no brainer and be done.

TANSTAAFL. There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch. With anything you have a choice about on your AR, pick the compromise you like best and run it. You'll either figure out it's working ot that it's not. Either way, don't worry about till you figure it out

KISS. The more complicated the plumbing, the easier it is to gum up the works. That means the more crapola you stick on your AR, the more likely there will be something on it you don't like. Building a basic AR you may change something on later is better than building something fancy that's going to need changes anyway.

ALL FREE FLOAT TUBES DO THE SAME THING. They don't touch your barrel and protect your hands from a hot barrel. Stay away from from known garbage and pick something rugged & light. Quads are ok, but do you really need to spend all that money on rail estate you'll never use? Pick something simple, rugged & light and run it. Easy.

TRIGGER. I see two basic choices: Choose an ALG for combat rifles or spend more on an appropriate Geiselle two stage of your choice. If it's not the right trigger, sell it and try another. ALGs and G triggers are easy to sell, there's always someone looking for one. Don't over think it.

SHOOTING THE RIFLE YOU HATE IS BETTER THAN NOT SHOOTING THE ONE YOU THINK YOU'LL LOVE. Shooting a rifle, even if you hate it, gives you real world experience. If you're shooting your rifle, you'll be making changes to improve it along the way. You'll understand better why your rifle is better than it was. Agonizing over the perfect parts and never building your rifle is like mooning over a girl you're never going to talk to- a complete waste of time.

THE BUILD WILL GO FASTER IF YOU JUST BUILD IT AND BUILD IT RIGHT. Focus on what you're doing now and stop worrying about how it's going to come out. Stop wishing it was built now and just build it. Don't take shortcuts, don't rush, don't waste time and make it right instead of trying to make it perfect.

STOP SABOTAGING YOURSELF. Stop reading this thread. Tell The Voices in your head to shut up. Go build something. Shoot it

[discreet]

IG, I'll buy parts then I'll decide I didn't want that and order another part. I just keep changing my mind on the build I'm going. I'll go from precision to Tac and back to precision. I just get confused on how I want to build it. How to you set your mind on the build you want. Maybe I should buy another lower and build both at the same time.

Solution... build both.

You will go nuts either way, and ultimately end up building another anyways. No point in fighting it. Just build which ever is the most USEFUL right now, and then build up the opposite one later.

You will find many here with a featherweight build, an sbr, a musket, and a precision rifle. All because of the want to have one of each, rather than trying to fit all the things into one gun, in which it will never be.

Just my 2 cents. Building them takes less than an hour... that's the easy part :)

[TacticalSledgehammer]

IG, I'll buy parts then I'll decide I didn't want that and order another part. I just keep changing my mind on the build I'm going. I'll go from precision to Tac and back to precision. I just get confused on how I want to build it. How to you set your mind on the build you want. Maybe I should buy another lower and build both at the same time.

This is when you know you need two rifles. I think you can find a balance with brands like Noveske though.

[houdini23]

to the OP.....its called "instant gratification" and we all have it. you are completely normal.

[drarmament]

Thanks everyone for the advice, and this state of California ruined the real goal of a SBR.

[cjb]

Can you do an AR pistol, and SB15 brace in Ca? Just a thought, as the SB15 shoots pretty well in "alternate pistol firing positions and holds".

Best to have a purpose, have a plan, and stick to the plan.

I think for everyone, the hardest part is sourcing the parts. Knowing what you want, but having to find and/or wait to actually get materials in hand.

Assuming custom finishes are not being applied, actually assembly is a very lazy evening's pleasure.

[drarmament]

You can do AR pistols as long as the lower say pistol. No you can't have the brace. You can put a folding stock, but it has to be pin and welded where it is just for looks.

[Averageman]

May I reccomend taking notes? As you go in to building something, anything; take notes.
Your first paragraph should be your basic outline, i.e. I want a rifle to do X with.
Then add all of your research directed toward achieving "X" and how to get there. Build a list of parts that fit the spec's to achieve "X" then stick with the basic plan. Once you have all your parts, go forward with it.
Along the way if you become sidetracked with something new or a changing plan build another set of spec's for rifle "Y", your next build.
Being able to see your progress as you do the research and go back and read the inital plan may help from getting you sidetracked and having more than one plan on the drawing board isn't a bad thing as all.

[mattiep321]

I second the note-taking. In the mind if someone with OCD, working without a detailed plan gets you in trouble. Taking notes slows down the runaway mind and helps maintain focus. It's clear that you have a lack of structure/plan on your own builds which is why you lose focus...on other people's stuff you have a clear path to completion and therefore get there step by step. Make sense? Ask me how I know...

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[drarmament]

I will start taking notes for me. I usually have a goal and vision for someone else, I just don't know why I can't apply it to me. Mattiep321 you hit the nail on the head. I'll also have a outline, drawings and other stuff for other builds. I'll even know the purpose and intent for the other person rifle.


Its almost like a mental block or like a writer who stares at a screen for days and doesn't have a single word typed out

[kantstudien]

You can do AR pistols as long as the lower say pistol. No you can't have the brace. You can put a folding stock, but it has to be pin and welded where it is just for looks.

Every sentence in the above statement is untrue. You need to do some serious research into CA gun laws before doing anything.

You can only have an AR pistol if the receiver was registered as a pistol through the DOJ DROS process.

One way that is going to happen is if it was made into a single-shot pistol before it got to your dealer. After it has been registered as a single-shot pistol through your FFL dealer (assuming he would undertake such a thing, most do not bother), then it can have a bullet-button installed so that it has a "fixed-magazine" and then you can only use 10rd mags for any fixed magazine semiauto.

Yes, you can have the brace assuming the above has been done.

You do not need to pin a folding or collapsing stock on a fixed magazine rifle. But that is moot on a pistol build.

If you wanted a detachable magazine semiauto centerfire rifle, then you need to go featureless, meaning no flash hider, no collapsing/folding stock and no pistol grip. This is why people use the Monster Man grips on their AR builds.

[Ryno12]

Every sentence in the above statement is entirely untrue. You need to do some serious research into CA gun laws before doing anything.

You can only have an AR pistol if the receiver was registered as a pistol in through the DOJ DROS process. The only way that is going to happen is if it was made into a single-shot pistol before it got to your dealer. After it has been registered as a single-shot pistol through your dealer (assuming he would undertake such a thing), then it can have a bullet-button installed so that it has a "fixed-magazine" and you can only use 10rd mags for it.

Yes, you can have the brace assuming the above has been done.

You do not need to pin a folding or collapsing stock on a fixed magazine rifle.

If you wanted a detachable magazine semiauto centerfire rifle, then you need to go featureless, meaning no flash hider, no collapsing/folding stock and no pistol grip. This is why people use the Monster Man grips.

Sounds easier to just move. :)

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[Iraqgunz]

I suggest you first seek advice beyond what was given here so you understand what is legal in CA. Once you have that down you can plan to your hearts content.