The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Tactical Rifle & Carbine => Topic started by: Hazcat on June 05, 2009, 07:23:22 PM
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Dudes and Dudettes,
As many of you know I cam into possesion of an AR a while back. Well I am thinking of doing exactly opposite of what most of y'all do.
I want to take it back to 'basic'. All the way back to the old triangle handguards!
Here are a couple of pics of it 'as is'. (BTW the dates on the pics are not right. fresh batteries and too lazy to correct the date ;) )
(http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p78/hazcater/Guns/100_1094.jpg)
(http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p78/hazcater/Guns/100_1096.jpg)
It is a 16 bbl not including flash suppessor. Notice that the front site is WAAAAAAY back from the muzzle. The gas tube ends in the site. What do I do to move the site (it has pins through it so I am pretty sure that it how to lossen it) But what do I do with the tube AND any one have some ouls school handguards?
Reason I want to move it is the gun has the bayonette lug and it is useless that far back.
OH...it is a Bushmaster upper.
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Dudes and Dudettes,
Reason I want to move it is the gun has the bayonette lug and it is useless that far back.
This is a hog hunting gun for mini-Haz isn't it? ;D
FQ13
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This is a hog hunting gun for mini-Haz isn't it? ;D
FQ13
Naaa, he wants to use the Ishy with the 18" sticker.
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I ran into this getting a replacement foreend for one of mine. You will need a new barrel if you want to move the sight - which also doubles as the gas block. This rifle has a carbine or mid-gas block. IIRC the original A1/A2 has a rifle gas block farther forward on the barrel. You're right that the pins (they come out left to right BTW) will remove the sight. It helps to have the Brownell's organge plastic sight replacement tool too.
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Ya mean I can't lenghten the gas tube or place a gas block were the site is now?
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Best thing you could ever do is just send the damned thing to me.
It'd free your troubled mind on this issue, before it ever gets out of control.
;D
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Ya mean I can't lenghten the gas tube or place a gas block were the site is now?
There is a hole under the site for the operating gas to bleed off to the gas tube, for the work and expense you would go to you might as well just buy a new upper.
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Sorry but new upper is not in the financial cards right now.
I can't believe they don't make a gas block that can be placed there and just move the sight forward. I thought you guys said the AR was Like a tinker toy!
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There is a hole under the site for the operating gas to bleed off to the gas tube, for the work and expense you would go to you might as well just buy a new upper.
I knew that Tom. I just thought someone would have built a 'bolt on' for this.
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Sorry but new upper is not in the financial cards right now.
I can't believe they don't make a gas block that can be placed there and just move the sight forward. I thought you guys said the AR was a tinker toy!
Even if that COULD be done it would not fit under the retro hand guards, which may not fit on a 16 inch barrel anyway.
The original CAR 15 had round hand guards just like the ones you've got, the triangular ones were on the 20 inch barrel. So if you want to go back to the original AR 15 /M16 A1 you need a new barrel anyway.
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Haz, PM sent
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Sharp toungs both ways tonight with this thread? Wow?!?!
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Oh well.
Thanks, guys.
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I'm with Haz on this. I was looking at an Olympc M4. I was planning on losing the carry handle and front sigt and putting on fold ups and a scope (when funds permit). Can I still lose the sight and put in something else for the gas block or am I stuck with the A2 configuration unless I just mill it down flush?
FQ13
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Oh well.
Thanks, guys.
Sorry. I hate it when some one points out why a neat idea won't work :(
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I think that the front sight tower also holds the front handguard cap in place. Rock River Arms has 16" barreled ARs that use a midlength handguard/gas system that works with a bayonet. I suppose you might be able to trim down the existing front sight tower/gasblock and install the midlength handguards over it leaving the original gas system in place. I'm not sure it would fit. It would probably be troublesome to intall a new front sight tower further forward on the barrel. It's difficult to home drill the the barrel slots that the front sight pins go through. Bushmaster won't sell the front sight towers because of this, but other places sell them. To get the triangular hanguard retro look you want you would most certainly need to get a differant barrel or upper. You could get a differant gas block and hanguards/free float tubes, for a differant look, but tht's not what you stated you wanted. There are clamp on/set screw typs gas blocks and sights available. I think Yankee Hill Machine makes some.
You could always sell or trade this upper for a differant one.
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I'm with Haz on this. I was looking at an Olympc M4. I was planning on losing the carry handle and front sigt and putting on fold ups and a scope (when funds permit). Can I still lose the sight and put in something else for the gas block or am I stuck with the A2 configuration unless I just mill it down flush?
FQ13
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=7592&title=AR-15/M16%20ADJUSTABLE%20GAS%20BLOCK
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=19515&title=AR-15/M16%20CLAMP-ON%20GAS%20BLOCK
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=23163&title=AR-15/M16%20LOW%20PROFILE%20STEEL%20GAS%20BLOCK
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=21446&title=AR-15/M16%20CLAMP-ON%20FRONT%20SIGHT%20GAS%20BLOCK
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=19614&title=AR-15/M16%20FRONT%20SIGHT%20GAS%20BLOCK
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=26110&title=AR-15/M16%20GAS%20BLOCK%20WITH%20FRONT%20SIGHT
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/ns/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=21358&title=GAS%20BLOCK%20FRONT%20FLIP%20SIGHT
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Just to help muck things up some more...
The sights are A3 I believe, maybe A2, but they would definitely have to go to get back to the A1.
I would suggest looking at a new upper as well Haz, the conversion would probably not be worth the effort.
But on the happy side, if you get another upper, you can basically get a new AR for a couple hundred $$!
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After reviewing my previous post, I would like to add:
Congrats on getting a great rifle, I hope you have as much fun with yours as I do mine, regardless of what it looks like!
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Haz,
Now that I think about it, if you want to just make a bayonet lug more useable, DMPS use to offer a clamp on lug just for the purpose of being able to mount a bayonet on the short gas system carbines. I don't know if they still offer them or not. I have seen some of them available on the net. Also have seen them at gun shows and I think some were other brands besides DPMS.
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The simplest solution is to get a longer bayonet, I can't tell you where to get one, but it should be easy and less expensive than a new barrel, since your purchase is an H bar, the barrel is machined flat not tapered, and can take the gas blocks with bayonet lug, not in the original location. The triangular hand guards were not made for the carbine, so round or M4 is the game.
Get an original bayonet, and have a longer blade welded to it in a good profile, and you will have what you want, minus the triangular forend.
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You wouldn't need a new upper, just a new barrel. If you get the right one, the front sight should switch over and you would also need a new gas tube.
If you want to go cheap and are dead set on the triangular hand guards, they do make them in carbine length. My buddy just picked up a pair at the last show we went to. The place that had them was Sherluck (they are from Ohio). I can't find their info right now but if you're interested let me know. They pretty much have everything you could want for a black gun and have always treated me well.