Of all things to worry about on your AR, this one is way down on the list. A recent survey showed that only .03% of gunfights are lost due to the grip screw

But seriously, I get why the convo on this. It's a matter of convenience and, let's be honest. When you have a system that is highly developed over decades, when almost everything has been standardized and perfected or nearly so, when it has evolved to a point where a mfgr almost has to make a special effort to F it up (and, oh yeah, many do!), then you start reaching of the little details inside other details. So I say good on 'em (SOL and MagPul)for the screw. My only thing would be, now it's a non-standard socket size-- but if ya got all the wrenches, that's no biggie. The slot is a great idea that one of my mentors has been wishing for for years; I took some standard screws a few years back and slotted them so he could stop talking about it for a while.....

As to US-made or not, if SOL says US I have no reason to doubt it, my impression of them is "totally credible". In truth these screws aren't really what you could call a "critical fastener" and I'll wager that the slotted, plated pan-head or round-headed screws that were a Colt standard for so long are made from mild steel and not something like heat-treated chrome-moly (4350 usually, I think). It's not a bridge or a space shuttle.

If I were gonna make grips screws I think I'd use a standard 1/4-28 cap screw with the standard 3/16" socket, slot it, and the end would have a pilot, in other words, the last 3-4 threads would not be present, it would be of a diameter where it would just enter the tapped hole (I think about .210) to help prevent cross-threading.

Or how about-- a double-hex head screw, with a 3/16 socket too, and slotted. Just throwing this out there and haven't checked any dimensions, but could the hole in the charging handle that passes over the carrier key be broached to make a 12-point socket that could reach into the pistol grip? Or maybe the CH could have a blade machined in the end to work in the screw head's slot. I know the CH is only aluminum but these screws don't need a ton of torque. I'm a big fan of "all the tools to take the machine apart are in the machine".

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