I've used PSA's products before. In fact I have a .308 that uses a Palmetto upper and complete lower. Completely happy with the items I used for this build.
A little over a year ago my son purchased a complete PSA 5.56, AR 15, 16" Barrel, M4 format rifle at my recommendation. He's been mostly happy with it and 'accessorizing' ever since. The honeymoon ended last year when he wanted to replace the A2 handguard with a free-float.
I had a handguard that I had removed from one of my rifles but required the removal of the forward handguard cap from my son's rifle in order to fit. It took two days, a bunch of stuck nut solvent and a lot more force than I was comfortable with to get the gas block off so I could remove the cap. I recall that, when removing the gas block, it appeared that there was some sort of epoxy or "varnish" used after the gas block was installed.
For Christmas this year my son asked for and I got him a new muzzle break and a longer free float hand guard. The new (very nice Seekins Precision - light as a feather) requires a proprietary barrel nut which necessitated the removal of the A2 style barrel nut.
Deja vu all over again. I worked on the PSA installed nut for hours and didn't manage to do anything except mess the nut up (yes, I used a proper barrel nut wrench). IIRC the torque recommended for a barrel nut is +/- 35 lbs. I used all of my prodigious weight and effort (MUCH more than 35 lbs) to loosen the nut and it wouldn't budge. There is NO WAY the only thing holding this barrel nut in place is torque but it doesn't appear to be staked.
I e-mailed PSA about a week ago voicing my concern and frustration and haven't heard a peep from them. At this point it looks like I'm going to have to get a new stripped upper and barrel, salvaging what I can off of this PSA POS, to build a replacement upper. That's a pretty significant expense foisted on to a customer simply because PSA can't follow industry best practices (specifically anti-seize grease and proper torque).
Anybody have a suggestion, insight or similar experience with PSA rifles? At this point they're off my reseller list. I won't do business with them again unless they make this right (i.e. get this frigging barrel nut off). I posted this for some suggestions but also to warn any new AR builders/buyers that the folks at PSA are not your friends. I'm pretty disgusted with them.
A little over a year ago my son purchased a complete PSA 5.56, AR 15, 16" Barrel, M4 format rifle at my recommendation. He's been mostly happy with it and 'accessorizing' ever since. The honeymoon ended last year when he wanted to replace the A2 handguard with a free-float.
I had a handguard that I had removed from one of my rifles but required the removal of the forward handguard cap from my son's rifle in order to fit. It took two days, a bunch of stuck nut solvent and a lot more force than I was comfortable with to get the gas block off so I could remove the cap. I recall that, when removing the gas block, it appeared that there was some sort of epoxy or "varnish" used after the gas block was installed.
For Christmas this year my son asked for and I got him a new muzzle break and a longer free float hand guard. The new (very nice Seekins Precision - light as a feather) requires a proprietary barrel nut which necessitated the removal of the A2 style barrel nut.
Deja vu all over again. I worked on the PSA installed nut for hours and didn't manage to do anything except mess the nut up (yes, I used a proper barrel nut wrench). IIRC the torque recommended for a barrel nut is +/- 35 lbs. I used all of my prodigious weight and effort (MUCH more than 35 lbs) to loosen the nut and it wouldn't budge. There is NO WAY the only thing holding this barrel nut in place is torque but it doesn't appear to be staked.
I e-mailed PSA about a week ago voicing my concern and frustration and haven't heard a peep from them. At this point it looks like I'm going to have to get a new stripped upper and barrel, salvaging what I can off of this PSA POS, to build a replacement upper. That's a pretty significant expense foisted on to a customer simply because PSA can't follow industry best practices (specifically anti-seize grease and proper torque).
Anybody have a suggestion, insight or similar experience with PSA rifles? At this point they're off my reseller list. I won't do business with them again unless they make this right (i.e. get this frigging barrel nut off). I posted this for some suggestions but also to warn any new AR builders/buyers that the folks at PSA are not your friends. I'm pretty disgusted with them.