Question for the accurized AR-15 crowd...
- Thread starter kthomas
- Start date
Okay, so I have a response from Falkor.
From their main "info" email, they told me that since the model has been discontinued and out of warranty period, there's nothing they can/would do for me.
I also directly emailed a representative who was once active on the 'Hide, and he was certainly more helpful. He didn't seem to think that the barrel extension was damaged, but maybe its just hard to see on pictures. He stated that while the rifle doesn't have an accuracy guarantee, it should be capable of consistent sub-MOA. He also re-iterated that the gouges on the bullets were likely caused by the feed ramps on the extension, and they could polish it for me. However that would come at a cost of shipping rifle there + $75/hr gunsmithing rate + $75 to ship back to me.
I decided to reach out to Proof as well, since it is their barrel and barrel extension, to see what they say. I think they were also the ones that donated the rifle to the SHC. I just sent them an email, so waiting to hear their response.
So now I'm left wondering if I need to spend $200-250 to send it off to polish the feed ramps (and that still may not address the accuracy issues), do I just put that money towards a Craddock RTR in .223 wylde or 6 ARC?
From their main "info" email, they told me that since the model has been discontinued and out of warranty period, there's nothing they can/would do for me.
I also directly emailed a representative who was once active on the 'Hide, and he was certainly more helpful. He didn't seem to think that the barrel extension was damaged, but maybe its just hard to see on pictures. He stated that while the rifle doesn't have an accuracy guarantee, it should be capable of consistent sub-MOA. He also re-iterated that the gouges on the bullets were likely caused by the feed ramps on the extension, and they could polish it for me. However that would come at a cost of shipping rifle there + $75/hr gunsmithing rate + $75 to ship back to me.
I decided to reach out to Proof as well, since it is their barrel and barrel extension, to see what they say. I think they were also the ones that donated the rifle to the SHC. I just sent them an email, so waiting to hear their response.
So now I'm left wondering if I need to spend $200-250 to send it off to polish the feed ramps (and that still may not address the accuracy issues), do I just put that money towards a Craddock RTR in .223 wylde or 6 ARC?
Ooof. Yeah that's begging for a good polishing/blending job, arfcom has a suprisingly useful ancient thread on the topic here if you want to DIY: https://www.ar15.com/forums/precision-rifles/Hellbenders-guides-to-Ultimate-AR15-and-or-AR10/4-42/
Covers a bunch of good accurizing steps such as feed polishing and barrel shimming (the latter probably not needed in your case)
Here's some more pictures, this is what happens when the BCG is ran at any speed less than "full speed ahead":
The ammo gets consistently hung up on the feed ramps.
This is with 20rd pmags, 30rd pmags, metal 30rd KAC mag, and regardless of what side of the mag the ammo is stripped from.
The ammo gets consistently hung up on the feed ramps.
This is with 20rd pmags, 30rd pmags, metal 30rd KAC mag, and regardless of what side of the mag the ammo is stripped from.
Send the upper to Craddock and get them to put you a new bartlien on it and be done with it dude.Okay, so I have a response from Falkor.
From their main "info" email, they told me that since the model has been discontinued and out of warranty period, there's nothing they can/would do for me.
I also directly emailed a representative who was once active on the 'Hide, and he was certainly more helpful. He didn't seem to think that the barrel extension was damaged, but maybe its just hard to see on pictures. He stated that while the rifle doesn't have an accuracy guarantee, it should be capable of consistent sub-MOA. He also re-iterated that the gouges on the bullets were likely caused by the feed ramps on the extension, and they could polish it for me. However that would come at a cost of shipping rifle there + $75/hr gunsmithing rate + $75 to ship back to me.
I decided to reach out to Proof as well, since it is their barrel and barrel extension, to see what they say. I think they were also the ones that donated the rifle to the SHC. I just sent them an email, so waiting to hear their response.
So now I'm left wondering if I need to spend $200-250 to send it off to polish the feed ramps (and that still may not address the accuracy issues), do I just put that money towards a Craddock RTR in .223 wylde or 6 ARC?
I'm currently working this through with Proof right now, they have been awesome and have given me a couple of suggestions for troubleshooting.
If this ends up being a hassle and/or considerable money to get working right, then I'm going that route and sending it to Craddock for a fresh start.
Went to the range today to specifically test for ejection pattern. The rifle was ejecting at about 1:30 with suppressor, perhaps closer to 2:00 without suppressor. So it does appear to be a bit over-gassed.
Didn't do much accuracy testing today as it was incredibly windy. But surprisingly the few groups I did shoot were closer to 1 MOA today. One group was even around ~0.7 MOA. The best group was shot without the suppressor. This range trip was with a clean barrel, perhaps I just let the barrel get too dirty which had an effect during the last outing.
Today gave me some hope, this may be an easy fix. I'll get the gun out again soon for more testing, but perhaps all I need is a BRT EZ-Tune and some polishing to achieve my goals.
Didn't do much accuracy testing today as it was incredibly windy. But surprisingly the few groups I did shoot were closer to 1 MOA today. One group was even around ~0.7 MOA. The best group was shot without the suppressor. This range trip was with a clean barrel, perhaps I just let the barrel get too dirty which had an effect during the last outing.
Today gave me some hope, this may be an easy fix. I'll get the gun out again soon for more testing, but perhaps all I need is a BRT EZ-Tune and some polishing to achieve my goals.
I don’t let a barrel extension near an upper receiver until it is de-edged, blended, and feed ramps polished.
Manufacturers can address this using tumble-polished extensions like BAT used to do/still does?
You can see a clear difference between extensions and how they are made. Most on the market are not in-spec to the TDP, so lug clocking might not even align with your bolt lugs correctly.
But those dings and gouges are normally caused by sharp feed ramps.
The inside forward edge of the lugs in the ejection clock location will also bite into your necks on some cartridges during ejection, so I sometimes will take those edges off carefully.
For companies charging that price point, all of these features should really be baked-into their processes.
Manufacturers can address this using tumble-polished extensions like BAT used to do/still does?
You can see a clear difference between extensions and how they are made. Most on the market are not in-spec to the TDP, so lug clocking might not even align with your bolt lugs correctly.
But those dings and gouges are normally caused by sharp feed ramps.
The inside forward edge of the lugs in the ejection clock location will also bite into your necks on some cartridges during ejection, so I sometimes will take those edges off carefully.
For companies charging that price point, all of these features should really be baked-into their processes.
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Circling back on this to provide some closure. I think I got the main issue(s) sorted out.
I finally got to the range today after changing out the stock gas tube for a BRT EZ-Tune.
Rifle definitely seems to be shooting better now. Most of the 5-round groups were around 1 MOA, with the best being ~0.70 MOA. I wasn't shooting my best today, I had some rear bag management issues that led to a couple of first round flyers - without those, the groups were right around 0.5 MOA.
In the future I may polish the feed lips, but it looks like it's shooting as it should now. Appreciate all the help!
I finally got to the range today after changing out the stock gas tube for a BRT EZ-Tune.
Rifle definitely seems to be shooting better now. Most of the 5-round groups were around 1 MOA, with the best being ~0.70 MOA. I wasn't shooting my best today, I had some rear bag management issues that led to a couple of first round flyers - without those, the groups were right around 0.5 MOA.
In the future I may polish the feed lips, but it looks like it's shooting as it should now. Appreciate all the help!
Man, sometimes I just don't shoot well. Most of the time I'm pretty consistent but some days I just can't be consistent
Same here. Especially since I'm not shooting as much these days as I used to.
There are days where it seems like I just can't get comfortable behind the rifle.
How long did it take you to get your BRT EZ-Tune gas tube? I ordered one last Nov17 and havent got an update or response from multiple inquiries. Is this normal?
That has not been my experience with BRT. They've always shipped fast. I just checked email from my order in March 2024 - one day from order confirmation to shipment.
-Rainman
Good News: Bullet gouges (which probably have minimal effect at <=100 yards) can likely be eliminated with careful polishing and smoothing of sharp edges on the ramps.
Bad News: If you want significantly improved precision you need to give that barrel flying lessons.
(And handload some ammo tuned to your new REAL barrel.)
Bad News: If you want significantly improved precision you need to give that barrel flying lessons.
(And handload some ammo tuned to your new REAL barrel.)
