Retro Arms Works

**sentinel77** · 05-09-20, 09:46

Hey ya'll, I thought I'd post about a recent project I did through Retro Arms Works as I feel this review might be pertinent to what some are looking to do currently or in the future. I set out to build a classic m4gery with your typical parts: 14.5 barrel w/fsb, quad rail, bcm a2x, etc. I sent all my parts to John Thomas, the owner of Retro Arms Works, on a Thursday morning. He completed the work over the weekend and had my upper shipped on the following Monday. I received my package by Friday afternoon (4 days to complete project and 4 days to ship back to me). To sum it up, the work was flawless. Everything was perfectly aligned and nicely oiled up. In addition, the pin/weld job on the A2x was absolutely phenomenal. You literally cannot tell whether or not there is a pin/weld (I'm guessing he parkerized the weld spot). If anyone is looking to do some sort of clone build project or even a simple upper assembly requiring a pin/weld, I HIGHLY recommend going through John Thomas at Retro Arms Works. 10/10 craftsmanship and 10/10 customer service.

Thanks for listening, and hope ya'll stay safe and healthy!

**Diamondback** · 05-09-20, 10:13

Matches my experience with shimming, pinning and welding a standard A2. If you're a cloner who doesn't want to SBR an M4, John should be your FIRST call--and he shines just as much on Service Before Sale too. As I look at my upper, I have to look really close to see where Colt's work stops and his begins...

This is a photo I sent him for his website gallery.

**kyjd75** · 05-09-20, 10:17

I have sung the praises of John Thomas on several occasions myself. He has done a couple of barrel cuts, and several pin and welds, for me over the past couple of years. The quality of his work is excellent. As sentinel77 stated, you literally cannot see the weld spot on the muzzle device, the finish he puts on it is that good. The barrels he cut down for me have worked flawlessly, and the new cut threads have handled whatever muzzle devices I have chosen to put on them. In addition, John does not fool around once he receives your job. He gets it done and back to you in unbelievable time. His rates are reasonable, and he is a heck of a nice guy to talk with, either on the phone or via email. I highly recommend John Thomas for whatever gunsmith work you need done.

**Wake27** · 05-09-20, 10:32

He got a package from me yesterday, complete 12.5 URG build. John is one of two guys I have full faith in giving any work too and he’s the only one that accepts work through the mail so he gets anything serious from me.

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**Aetius** · 05-15-20, 11:17

John Thomas is the High Priest in the Temple of the AR15 Gunsmith. Accept no substitutes

**alx01** · 05-15-20, 23:45

I've used his services based on the recommendations from this forum. I don't know if he personally worked on my upper or not, but my experience with Retro Arms Works, unfortunately, has been different. I really wish this wasn't the case. This is not to diminish his work for other people, just sharing opinion on my one-time personal experience.

**Wake27** · 05-16-20, 00:22

Originally Posted by alx01

I've used his services based on the recommendations from this forum. I don't know if he personally worked on my upper or not, but my experience with Retro Arms Works, unfortunately, has been different. I really wish this wasn't the case. This is not to diminish his work for other people, just sharing opinion on my one-time personal experience.

I believe he works on everything himself. Please explain.

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