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I told you so...
- Thread starter LRRPF52
- Start date
Firing pin died within 60 rounds on the first upper. Lol
Nothing but FTFeed, FTExtract, looked like gas pouring out of the uppers, crazy trash of the worst trash.
This is why I hate it when people start threads asking for help troubleshooting, but don’t mention it’s a BCA.
BCA? Sorry, can’t help other than telling you to get something else.
Imagine driving 2 hours to the range, and spending money even on Russian steel case ammo, only to have this happen to you.
The steel case ammo is more valuable than these uppers.
Nothing but FTFeed, FTExtract, looked like gas pouring out of the uppers, crazy trash of the worst trash.
This is why I hate it when people start threads asking for help troubleshooting, but don’t mention it’s a BCA.
BCA? Sorry, can’t help other than telling you to get something else.
Imagine driving 2 hours to the range, and spending money even on Russian steel case ammo, only to have this happen to you.
The steel case ammo is more valuable than these uppers.
I have had ok luck with ar stoner upper recievers, which would appear to be BCA. I also have a BCA 17hmr upper that cost 200 dollars and shoots about 1" at 100 yards. I wouldn't say they make high quality parts but I wouldn't say Savage or remington make high quality parts either.
BCA was raided by immigration, it stands to reason they aren't high quality.
Yes, very low. Like tied for or battling for the lowest. Like I said my 17 hmr upper was 200. That's with carrier and buffer and spring.
I feel like with low pressure cartridges you can get away with a lot.
It kind of scares me they make a 300 Win Mag gun
It kind of scares me they make a 300 Win Mag gun
Cheap yes. I bought a BCA upper in .300 BO for my nephew a couple years ago as a bad weather/backup hunting rifle. Since that time it's probably had a whopping 25-30 rounds fired through it? It'll probably average about 5 , maybe even 10 rounds a year. So it's working great for that. lol
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I prefer that people buy better rifles than the low cost bargain bin stuff. If they do, stick with standard barrel lengths and avoid the shorties.
And, the more rifles in civilian hands the better.
Know a few people with BCA ar-15. They shoot more accurately than most PSA rifles I have seen.
One of the guys had his BCA break a hammer. Low round count ar-15.
BCA and PSA are hit and miss.
And, the more rifles in civilian hands the better.
Know a few people with BCA ar-15. They shoot more accurately than most PSA rifles I have seen.
One of the guys had his BCA break a hammer. Low round count ar-15.
BCA and PSA are hit and miss.
The best budget is Aero lower, BCM upper. Why anyone buys cheaper than that is beyond me.
Bcm blems are where it's at. Geissele usual has good deals on blems also. You can still build a high quality ar for under a grand
I’ve noticed with several of the online reviewers that BCA has sent them cherry-picked product, while they ship a high % of trash to customers. Even for BCA dealers who pimp the brand, they have really high reject rates.
It’s just not worth even considering them if you want to have a positive experience when you make it out to the range, pay for gas, ammo, range fees, food away from home, and your precious time.
I was watching this with my 8yr-old and I said, “Do you remember how many malfunctions we had with the Grendels last week?"
Him, “None....?”
Me: “Exactly. I’m not paying $80-$100 in gas, range fees, ammo, and food at the diner just so we can drive down there and screw around trying to clear malfs. That’s not my idea of a fun day at the range."
It’s just not worth even considering them if you want to have a positive experience when you make it out to the range, pay for gas, ammo, range fees, food away from home, and your precious time.
I was watching this with my 8yr-old and I said, “Do you remember how many malfunctions we had with the Grendels last week?"
Him, “None....?”
Me: “Exactly. I’m not paying $80-$100 in gas, range fees, ammo, and food at the diner just so we can drive down there and screw around trying to clear malfs. That’s not my idea of a fun day at the range."
If you’re looking for baseline 5.56 reliable performance, my easy answer is BCM and has been since the late 2000s.
I have always liked RRA for decent quality accurate rifle.
My baseline is Colt but can't go wrong with BCM either
I always say that cheap has it's place but it's a distant 99 out of a 100
I have never owned one of the bear creek complete builds, so cant comment , Only BCA component have bought is the 'side charge' Upper to build on . I see nothing wrong with their uppers.
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I tend to agree here.
I used to think the same. After the "expanse" came out, I changed my tune, however. I'm not sure where their quality is at now, but, I would say it really depends on the specific model.My baseline is Colt but can't go wrong with BCM either
I always say that cheap has it's place but it's a distant 99 out of a 100
I'd look at an FN button barreled rifle before a Colt, though.
I can say while mine shoots pretty good for a rimfire. It took most of the windage of my LRTSi to zero it. It also took them about a month to ship an in stock item and the upper I received was beyond filthy dirty. Every square inch was covered in dirty oil inside and out and a patch down the barrel made suspect it had been fired quite a bit more than just a test fire.
My brother has one in 22 mag. It was feeding into the ramp setting bullets back. Then it blew one up and blew the mag out. They replaced it. I don't know if he has shot the replacement yet.
If you feel like gambling and don't live near a Casino...
I have a couple BCAs and PSAs, and a Daniel defense. Obviously my DD is the best. But you can get pretty dang good PSAs. BCA on the other hand? They suck bad with a nice one for every 3. But I got those barrels for $40 a pop on sale, so I can get like 5 of them for every one nicer company.
- Nov 3, 2010
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I’ve got a 22 mag uppper sitting in the box still. Picked it up for like 200 bucks with 2 mags. Maybe one day I’ll actually shoot it?I can say while mine shoots pretty good for a rimfire. It took most of the windage of my LRTSi to zero it. It also took them about a month to ship an in stock item and the upper I received was beyond filthy dirty. Every square inch was covered in dirty oil inside and out and a patch down the barrel made suspect it had been fired quite a bit more than just a test fire.
My brother has one in 22 mag. It was feeding into the ramp setting bullets back. Then it blew one up and blew the mag out. They replaced it. I don't know if he has shot the replacement yet.
If you feel like gambling and don't live near a Casino...
A few years back on a local forum there were a couple guys who would best be described as "fan boys" for how hard they shilled BCM products. They convinced a bunch of people that's what they needed to buy, they were the most-bestest-thing-eva! A few did order them and there ended up being three guys who had issues with their uppers. Anecdotal, doesn't really mean much, but it was funny as hell to see the fan boys eat crow.
My local LGS told me a couple years ago that they were fixing BCA uppers every week. People buying them, having serious issues with them and bringing them to the shop.
Misaligned gas blocks, ports too small, ports too big, machining inconsistency. Mostly seemed to be problems with the uppers/barrels/gas that were fixable but not confidence inspiring.
They never saw this many issues with any PSA product they had sold or had been brought in.
Misaligned gas blocks, ports too small, ports too big, machining inconsistency. Mostly seemed to be problems with the uppers/barrels/gas that were fixable but not confidence inspiring.
They never saw this many issues with any PSA product they had sold or had been brought in.
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If you’re talking about legacy Colts, yes. Colt has forgotten more about the TDP than most companies will know, since Colt had to meet the Arctic, high dust/sand, and full compliance of parts from raw materials to the total finished product.My baseline is Colt but can't go wrong with BCM either
I always say that cheap has it's place but it's a distant 99 out of a 100
The new “Colts” I’m seeing seem to be made by other companies with CNC-engraved Colt logos. They might run well or not, I don’t know.
well I stopped buying them years ago but yeah, my Colts are the baseline for acceptable and zero issues in any environment and conditions. They just run and run and run
I really only run them, CA and LMT now. I sold off my KAC with the ridiculous pricing
I don’t like the fact that Kyle Rittenhouse had an out of battery malfunction just from bumping the butt of the M&P-15 on the street, which failed to go back into battery after the BCG retracted from impact-induced momentum. That is a problem that never should have happened.
I tried replicating that failure in a bunch of my 5.56 blasters and could not duplicate it. In other words, they always went back into battery with a cartridge after being bumped. I even slammed them pretty hard into a cement floor. With stronger action springs, the BCG won’t even move.
With my beater 14.5” BCM barrel/upper/BCG on Essential Arms lower that has been used for high volume a lot since the late 2000s, the BCG moved noticeably to the rear, but went right back into battery no problem. My SOPMOD Block II build didn’t budge, and my old school Bushmaster with 16” heavy fluted barrel in a JP FSP cut rifle Handguard barely moved.
It brings up a good point about an unexpected failure mode with Vismod-15s or worn guns that should be considered outside of actually shooting.
The M&P Sport II has a good reputation for a budget AR.
Of the three I’ve messed with, I basically had to rebuild the reciprocating system along with taking barrel off and bedding/shimming the BE. New buffer, new spring, new BCGs and they became decent reliable shooters. They are the biggest waste of time and money. By the time you get them diagnosed and running you could get something like a Saint or 6920 or even a M&P that would get the average weekend warrior shooting instead of clearing malfunctions. I follow a BCA facebook page and it seems customer service is MIA most of the time. I see customer support is about the same as Arken.
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Windham Weaponry was the real Bushmaster after the owner sold the Bushmaster name to “Freedom” Group. Freedom Group bankrupted all the brands it held, then sold them off, like Bushmaster, DPMS, and Remington.
Bushmaster was never able to regain its brand recognition and market space, which was substantial prior to sale to Freedom Group.
The main thing I liked about Bushmaster was their barrels, while the rest of the parts were Vismod/imitation parts that often had problems or corners cut from the TDP.
In the 1990s, they were one of the only production AR-15 looking options besides Colt. Eagle Arms and Olympic Arms were the others, all with their own issues.
Cool things Bushmaster had were the heavy fluted barrels with a nice phosphate finish, and the Dissipators.
Windham continued making the Dissipator:
When I worked at an FFL 20 years ago, we threw XM15E2S Bushmasters out the door like a crack dealer because they were one of the main available AR-15s through distributors that we could get in predictable, consistent volume with good margins.
Most of them were fine, but enough of them had loose gas keys that manifest quickly in high-volume shooting sessions, and guys came back pissed, including friends of mine. We squared them away with correct attachment of carrier keys and fasteners, but it did not instill confidence.
When you dip into the Vismod guns (imitation AR-15s), you really have to inspect them with tools and know what you’re looking for, in order to have confidence or know what to replace.
It’s easier and more affordable to just get a complete BCM upper at that point for a basic forged receiver, Mil-Std parts solution. Pick a known forged lower and good LPK, install a Mil-Std RET, spring, and buffer, and go shoot.
Not all action springs are created equally.
Not all LPKs are created equally. I like J&T LPKs with cadmium plated detents per the TDP, or stainless detents.
For a long time, DPMS and other small parts suppliers were selling cheap, porous, trashy LPKs with zinc-plated detents.
Doesn’t matter for the weekend plinker, but when I was shooting high-volume suppressed in the Arctic in -30˚, and my Gen 1 MIAD cracked, when I went to replace it, you could see fizzling corrosion happening in real-time on my selector detent on my RRA MLGS 16” heavy barrel carbine. I thought to myself, “Hmmm. I never saw this with M16A1s, M16A2s, M4s, or M4A1s."
Most of them were fine, but enough of them had loose gas keys that manifest quickly in high-volume shooting sessions, and guys came back pissed, including friends of mine. We squared them away with correct attachment of carrier keys and fasteners, but it did not instill confidence.
When you dip into the Vismod guns (imitation AR-15s), you really have to inspect them with tools and know what you’re looking for, in order to have confidence or know what to replace.
It’s easier and more affordable to just get a complete BCM upper at that point for a basic forged receiver, Mil-Std parts solution. Pick a known forged lower and good LPK, install a Mil-Std RET, spring, and buffer, and go shoot.
Not all action springs are created equally.
Not all LPKs are created equally. I like J&T LPKs with cadmium plated detents per the TDP, or stainless detents.
For a long time, DPMS and other small parts suppliers were selling cheap, porous, trashy LPKs with zinc-plated detents.
Doesn’t matter for the weekend plinker, but when I was shooting high-volume suppressed in the Arctic in -30˚, and my Gen 1 MIAD cracked, when I went to replace it, you could see fizzling corrosion happening in real-time on my selector detent on my RRA MLGS 16” heavy barrel carbine. I thought to myself, “Hmmm. I never saw this with M16A1s, M16A2s, M4s, or M4A1s."
Spikes has CHF barrels, options between good forged and billet receivers, overall good carbines.
I haven’t seen a lot from them in terms of pushing the modern gun tuber marketing model, but they always seemed to be a solid company.
I have lowers from them that are nice, and have used uppers that were nicely-finished forged options with no issues.
I have not owned complete firearms from them that I can recall, but that’s true for almost all the companies sine I’ve been a builder for decades.
I haven’t seen a lot from them in terms of pushing the modern gun tuber marketing model, but they always seemed to be a solid company.
I have lowers from them that are nice, and have used uppers that were nicely-finished forged options with no issues.
I have not owned complete firearms from them that I can recall, but that’s true for almost all the companies sine I’ve been a builder for decades.
Had some Spikes products back when I first got into ARs. Never had an issue with them.
I got a deal on a midlength cl gov profile spikes barrel. It was one of their button rifled barrels. Installed it on a build for a friend during one of the panics. The guy called bragging about how good it shot with FGMM 69 & 77 gr smk’s. It’s one of those freak chrome lined barrels that shoots tiny groups. I had to see it to believe it.
Bushmaster/Windham, Colt (select civilian models and some of the SOCOM pipes), Criterion, DD, FN, LMT, and Centurion all have made consistently-accurate chrome-lined barrels for many years.
Military Colt CMV/CL pipes only had to hold 4 MOA and I saw a lot of that across the M16A1, M16A2, M4, and M4A1 early guns pre-SOCOM heavy, pre-PIP M4s (so I only had the older 727-type lighter M4 barrel profiles).
BCM CL barrels are generally 2-3 MOA, great for CQM and out to 300yds minute of chest. Even the stainless pipes from them have a bit to be desired for holding tight groups. BCM is great for high volume and holding to Mil-Std.
Military Colt CMV/CL pipes only had to hold 4 MOA and I saw a lot of that across the M16A1, M16A2, M4, and M4A1 early guns pre-SOCOM heavy, pre-PIP M4s (so I only had the older 727-type lighter M4 barrel profiles).
BCM CL barrels are generally 2-3 MOA, great for CQM and out to 300yds minute of chest. Even the stainless pipes from them have a bit to be desired for holding tight groups. BCM is great for high volume and holding to Mil-Std.
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Ugh... don't even get me started on Freedom Group.Windham Weaponry was the real Bushmaster after the owner sold the Bushmaster name to “Freedom” Group. Freedom Group bankrupted all the brands it held, then sold them off, like Bushmaster, DPMS, and Remington.
Bushmaster was never able to regain its brand recognition and market space, which was substantial prior to sale to Freedom Group.
The main thing I liked about Bushmaster was their barrels, while the rest of the parts were Vismod/imitation parts that often had problems or corners cut from the TDP.
In the 1990s, they were one of the only production AR-15 looking options besides Colt. Eagle Arms and Olympic Arms were the others, all with their own issues.
Cool things Bushmaster had were the heavy fluted barrels with a nice phosphate finish, and the Dissipators.
Windham continued making the Dissipator:
They're the reason I got "snobby" about what I'm willing to spend my money on.
Thankfully, I had what I felt was good guidance at the start. My boss had an AR-15 from Windham Weaponry. So, I got one after that. The Dissipator M4 A3. I have since changed the hand guard to a Mapgul. Still has the original iron sights and mine shot a combat zero fresh out of the box. I mean, I transferred at the counter, then walked into the range room. Loaded, squeeze. Dead on the nut at 25 yards.
Then, I got their R16SFST308 with the collapsible carbine stock. Both this and the Dissipator are mid-length non-tunable gas block. That became important when I changed the AR-10 to have a Magpul PRS Gen III adjustable stock on a rifle tube. I failed to consider the buffer weight and had an overgassing problem. That was solved by having a few buffers laying around and mix and match until I got to 6.1 ounces, which is working fine with the 168 gr HPBT I have used in it.
And really, that is the only solution I know of for a DI gun with a fixed or non-adjustable gas port.
Both have chromed moly barrels that work so well for me.
And the price was not bad. The M4 A3 was about $1,400. The AR-10 was and still is a shade under $1,900.
Definitely a great deal for the price.
Then, I got their R16SFST308 with the collapsible carbine stock. Both this and the Dissipator are mid-length non-tunable gas block. That became important when I changed the AR-10 to have a Magpul PRS Gen III adjustable stock on a rifle tube. I failed to consider the buffer weight and had an overgassing problem. That was solved by having a few buffers laying around and mix and match until I got to 6.1 ounces, which is working fine with the 168 gr HPBT I have used in it.
And really, that is the only solution I know of for a DI gun with a fixed or non-adjustable gas port.
Both have chromed moly barrels that work so well for me.
And the price was not bad. The M4 A3 was about $1,400. The AR-10 was and still is a shade under $1,900.
Definitely a great deal for the price.
Someone musta been shooting their BCA at the range.
I can say while mine shoots pretty good for a rimfire. It took most of the windage of my LRTSi to zero it. It also took them about a month to ship an in stock item and the upper I received was beyond filthy dirty. Every square inch was covered in dirty oil inside and out and a patch down the barrel made suspect it had been fired quite a bit more than just a test fire.
My brother has one in 22 mag. It was feeding into the ramp setting bullets back. Then it blew one up and blew the mag out. They replaced it. I don't know if he has shot the replacement yet.
If you feel like gambling and don't live near a Casino...
OK.. Not saying .. they 'BCA' don't have the worst QC inspection, and don't do low-end builds . also I have never shot or owned one of BCA in-house builds either. I have only bought their Uppers.
I just switched-out Uppers on one of my AR's. With one of BCA's, and put the 1st Round threw it today .
I re-bedded the same barrel on the BCA Upper, put it together, and threw the same scope on it that was on the last Upper with the same Zero @ 100 .
I put up target @ 50 yard to start to put a new zero on. The 1st Round was dead nuts on Wind as on last Uppers Zero, and 2" high @ 50 yard.
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