I’ve always liked pistol caliber carbines and more applications are coming out for them with their growing popularity.
My first AR was a 9mm Spikes. I later bought an AR57 carbine upper and mounted it on a Spike’s lower. Now I wanted to pursue a carbine that sends .45auto down range.
There are some choices in the market when you venture down this path: Thompson 45, Marlin Camp 45, Hi-Point 45, Taurus CT G2, Beretta CX4, Military Armament Corp (MAC-10), H&K USC, and KRISS 45 (I just saw Total Recall and everyone's got a KRISS in there). There are others models out there, but that’s quite the design variety already.
I went with an AR platform from Justin at CNC Guns. The criteria I made for deciding this route: date of the design, visual appeal, cost of parts to repair/replace, and familiarity…I’m a creature of habit.
I also went with this lower because my research has shown that everyone that has one loves it. It’s rare to see someone sell their CNC AR45.
LOWER
CNC AR45 lower
LWRC Deluxe Lower Parts Kit (I’ll explain later)
LWRC QD Rear Sling Mount Latch Plate
Magpul ACS
The lower assembly went in like any other lower parts kit. I’ll just note some odds and ends to this portion.
Installing the front take down will reveal that it will not go all the way through the receiver. It will still detent securely in place when the upper is mounted, but I need a punch or pen to push out the front detent for field stripping. The Yankee Hill EZ Pull Takedown Pin Set would remedy this.
The LWRC nickel Teflon had this weird green/blue color on top of the coating, and was not as shiny as the Spikes nickel boron coating. Not knowing if the coating was on or not, I called LWRC and asked about it. I love their customer service, but this time the rep seemed annoyed by my question, like she gets it a lot. “YES, the nickel Teflon coating is on there.” She said with an exhaustive sigh. Oiling makes it go away.
I got this trigger set to see for myself, what kind of trigger people are working with when they pay over 2k for an LWRC rifle. After installation of it in my AR45, I compared it with my Daniel Defense trigger in my 9mmAR and the Spike’s NiB in my 5.56.
LWRC Nickel Teflon trigger set is beefy in construction. I don’t see the disconnector or disconnector spring ever being replaced after installation. Definitely solid with tight tolerances and the springs are pretty strong too, probably because it was designed to strike a primer for a NATO7.62 out of their R.E.P.R..
I’m not going to talk badly about the trigger because I know that it does need to be broke in. However, I was a little discerned comparing the LWRC to the other two (considering the price), because it has a more noticeable longer creep to the break than the Daniel Defense. It was just as smooth but has a harder break than the Daniel Defense, so I at least have an idea when I’m about ready to send one down range. A lighter spring (JP) would change this characteristic, but again, I know that the trigger springs will soften up with use and need to be broken in. So the tension characteristic will change, but the creep has to do with the sear design. The Spikes NiB trigger has that consistent glass break feeling while shooting. Comparing the three triggers and evaluation by amount of creep and release characteristics. I would rate them in this order: Spikes, Daniel Defense, and then LWRC. You can get these trigger kits and you can judge for yourself, but this is just my opinion.
Here’s the steel magazine catch that allows un-modified grease gun magazines. It takes two roll pins to hold it in position.
Since the pins move freely in the magazine release lever, I punched the top roll first, making installation easier. I then dropped the second roll pin in the lever and finished punching the roll pin thru while pushing the spring and lever in place, until they were centered. I had a patch of leather that I wrapped the receiver in to prevent any damage while hammering the punch.
I inserted a magazine just to see how it fits. The magazine snaps in securely, sits flush to the receiver and fits very well with very little wiggle once engaged. I shook the lower aggressively with a loaded magazine in it and it didn’t fall out. Once I pushed the steel magazine release, it drops freely out of the magwell. The steel magazine catch is a solid design.
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