New AR15 upper with issues
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LiveLife
Member
Einen wunderschönen guten Morgen, aus Kalifornien (Extent of my High School German ... I was sponsored to be trained in Germany as factory Porsche mechanic ... But my parents said "Nein"
My Dutch stepfather's step-nephew is one of factory designers for VW/Porsche/Audi)Depending on the price point and use/application of the upper.
If I paid higher price for premium upper for precision target shooting, I would be disappointed and may contact the vendor/manufacturer.
If it was lower cost/economy/entry level upper for range blasting, mediocre staking could be anticipated but you could contact the vendor/manufacturer about it. As to damage/tool mark and rust, you can certainly let the vendor/manufacturer know as they are not anticipated. I have lived at the coast with salt spray mist that will rust even stainless steel gun parts for 10 years and have yet to see rust on my AR barrel chambers (I lost count how many I built).
Thank you for your answer and your German 
The upper is made by a German premium manufactor ( Schmeisser) and I paid 1500 Euro, about 1600 USD. So I am thinking of returning it tomorrow based on the poor craftmanship. I have seen Faxon barrels and Anderson BCGs and they were better made.
The upper is made by a German premium manufactor ( Schmeisser) and I paid 1500 Euro, about 1600 USD. So I am thinking of returning it tomorrow based on the poor craftmanship. I have seen Faxon barrels and Anderson BCGs and they were better made.
Buzznrose
Member
LiveLife
Member
Wow, I would definitely be sending that upper back, schnell.
You can buy a tool for the gas key, it's called the MOACKS. There's a couple different versions of the tool.
Or you can use a hammer and punch to stake the screws in place yourself.
As for the barrel, for the money, I would want it replaced also.
Or you can use a hammer and punch to stake the screws in place yourself.
As for the barrel, for the money, I would want it replaced also.
Taurus 617 CCW
Member
I teach an AR-15 armorers course. I can tell you that gas key will fail at some point during use. It will stsrt to leak and the bolt will fail to cycle properly. No company should sell a bolt that has not been properly staked regardless of the price. The things that add additional cost are metal finish, how tight the tolerances are in manufacturing, and HP/MPI testing.
LiveLife
Member
Not acceptable for me, at any price point. Definite NO for $1600 upper.
If possible, I would inspect the barrel and components before paying/leaving the store.
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Taurus 617 CCW
Member
I wouldn’t call that a tool mark, I would call it a gouge. It is running parallel to the rifling. The gouge is heaviest near the gas hole and gets lighter as it moves rearward. My guess is that there was a burr left over feom the gas hole drilling (which should have been reamed), a piece got stuck between the rod and barrel which caused the gouge. The rod was inserted from the muzzle based on the direction of the gouge. Shoddy work all the way around.
Varminterror
Member
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- Jul 17, 2016
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That tool mark cannot have happened when drilling the port. It's on the wrong side of the barrel.
I wouldn't overthink the gas key staking, personally, I find that to often be much ado about nothing for 99.9% of AR owners. But that barrel damage isn't something I'd be happy with. In reality, there are likely millions and millions of rifles on the market with the same kind of bore damage, and many of them shoot just fine. BUT... I'm not a huge fan of any barrel with the port drilled through the lands instead of the groove anyway, so having a big gouge in the land right after the port just looks like a trainwreck to me.
It might shoot fine, but it's not what you should be getting from a quality builder.
A good cleaning may take out that stray piece of metal or whatever it is, and it may shoot just fine, but I wouldn't be happy about a new upper looking like that.
They should have inspected that and fixed/replaced it.
They should have inspected that and fixed/replaced it.
Taurus 617 CCW
Member
Agreed. ^^^
CapnMac
Member
Es tut mir leid. Was this sold as a complete upper, or just the barrel? I know Scheisser uppers are very expensive over in Schweiz, but, I have head the barrels alone are pretty reasonable (but, that is within Schweiz).
€1500 is not chicken feed, they need to make good on what you bought.
Issue resolved, the upper was exchanged for a new one. Just FYI in Germany we are unable to buy just barrels on amy type of receivers. Barrel change on any work on a firearm as fas as receiver, barrel or bolt jas to be done by a gunsmith and afterwards it has to be send to be proofed. So in other words I can't just go and buy a barrel and fix it myself. Small stuff lile trigger change or change parts that are nor deemed "relevant" parts can be done by me but all the rest jas to be done by a gunsmith and send in to a federal proof agency and testfired and proof marked. This makes it expensive, time consuming and somewhat restrictive.
CapnMac
Member
Admittedly so. The alternative being to not being part of the "shooting community," and that, well, it feels like it would be worse for me.
Bcwitt
Member
If you paid a premium for a higher end upper, I'd definitely tell them about it.
