Yes they sell good upper kits.
CBC Industries has some great staff too.
Dean is one of the main guys there. customer service went from ok to really good in the last year.
I wanted to build my brother a good USA made budget AR. I got the 16" barrel full upper kit with 15 inch keymod handguard (shouldve got the M-lok handguard but oh well).
The product code is "CBC-UFH-CBCRFKT2-205-431" or 205-431 for short. Look it up on google if you cant find it on the website search. But as I said the M-lok handguard is better.
I can vouch some things here you wont find anywhere else.. the upper is Cerro Fabricated Products (CFP) and features M4 feed cuts. This company has been around since 1915 and this upper is the only part that isnt really budget on this kit. Its a good upper to have on any build, period. The best part on these kits is the upper.
Next you have the cbc industries cnc cut handguard. I have the recent older version sport or competition keymod where the picatinny rail is present near the upper and at the end of the handguard. It allows full grip and reduces many oz in weight. The only difference in the newer designs now from a year ago is the V shape over the muzzle look, sorta like how a STNGR HWK handguard looks but not as defined. Their new stuff looks better.
The handguards are good.
The bolt carrier has no forge markings except "MPI" but i can vouch this bcg has good specs throughout. Its the 2nd best part of this kit. Tolerances on cheap no name bcgs are a huge problem in most cases such as trendy bcgs people get for looks that have tons of tolerance flaws including loose sitting firing pin, etc. This bcg is true to spec. it doesnt have any tolerance flaws so i imagine it was forged by a good source, i just dont know who yet. The key screws are nicely staked. Its also full auto rated or full size which is good. The material is prone to rusting on the negative side. It has a finish but only a thin 1 pass coating. something you see with military surplus parts which is what most of this kit is.
The mil spec charge handle sucks. just the standard military A1 style.
The trigger assembly is basic mil spec. so is the safety, bolt catch and mag release. all good stuff but upgradable to better stuff like a Rise Armorment RA140 super sporting 3.5lb drop in trigger.
CBC Industries barrels are decent. Ive seen the worst kind out there and this isnt it. Not the best but not shitty. They have M4 feed ramps to match the Cerro upper. barrel extension is mated or sealed well. They dimple the barrel opposite the gas port which they dont mention anywhere on their website which they deserve credit for. I believe these barrels have 11 degree crowns too under the A2 flash hider. That could matter or not. 11 degree is common today and is supposedly backed by certain tests against other degree cuts but i know little about this and mostly read about it in suppressor forums.
The gas port on the barrel is on the larger side so expect a lot of gas. its visually larger than my 16" rosco bloodline heavy barrel for example. At least its reliable. Theyre going for reliability here. Its undergassing you dont want even more. This barrel is government profile. Their website doesnt make this clear but what I see is a Colt government profile. Its thick, slims a little in center and widens out again another 3rd of the barrel.
They pick 1:8 twist which is the best twist rate in my opinion along with 1:7 and 1:9 for 5.56.
Most good barrels for 5.56 are Wydle and/or 1:8 rifling so at least you get one out of 2.
Omega Manufacturing adjustable carbine stock.
Its a good comfortable well built stock. This stock, however, does need a 1 inch strip of soft sided velcro on the inside roof of the stock itself to take out wobble. (see youtube videos on how to take out ar15 buttstock wobble with velcro). Dont forget to drop some oil drops on the soft velcro or it can be a pain to adjust.
The pistol grip sucks but its just a mil spec standard. one thing to replace for sure.
the carbine buffer kit is standard but works. Id upgrade to a rifle buffer kit and buttstock personally but you can play with different carbine buffer weights if you end up with cycling issues or locking back to battery. ive heard of one person reporting cycling issues. this could be due to several reasons with fixes like polishing your barrel extension feed ramps with 3000 grit sandpaper and then polish with mothers mag polish and being it has a full size bcg it wouldnt hurt to play with different buffer weights.
The gas system is a stainless steel tube and a sub par gas block. Its the cheapest mil spec part here next to the charging handle and grip in my opinion. hit it with some slip 2000 ewl asap. this gas block is prone to rust and cracking due to the type of alloy used. its very basic and i highly recommend upgrading this part of ALL PARTS FIRST. The Aero Precision adjustable gas block is a good start.
Aside from this, use Magpul 30 rd Pmags and youll be fine. stick to ammo from 62 to 80 grain. 70, 75 and 77 grain is peak accuracy for this barrel.
70 being most ideal theoretically.
Its a good kit, especially for a gift or first timer. its fun upgrading stuff once they get a feel. I think the upper, bcg, barrel and handguard are best parts.
