Conventional wisdom on a AR-15 .22LR upper
What is the conventional wisdom on a AR-15 .22LR dedicated upper? I think I want to avoid the Ciener/conversion kits, and go with a dedicated .22LR upper. I'm most concerned with accuracy and reliability, especially in regards to the magazines. Price is not so much of an issue.
Thanks guys!
-TD
Last edited by TonyDedo; 08-15-2007 at 08:49 PM.
The Poster Formerly Known As "Livinlawatertown"
The two big names that HP guys use are Compass Lake Engineering and Accuracy Speaks.
YMMV
B
"No not in half an hour you rubber desk johnny! Send the bitch with the wheels right now or I'll fly back to England and give your wife something to hang her towels on!"
Lord Flashheart
I have a DPMS 22LR upper for my AR and have found it to be a great training tool. I have improved my rifle skills for short money.
That's the good news. The bad news is that the unit came with a rough chamber. After it got dirty, it would fire slightly out of battery as the cases wouldn't completely chamber; the ejected cases had a distinct bulge where they were unsupported. That didn't bother me too much, I just kept the gun clean. Unfortunately, one night at MRA a case blew and also blew the extractors out of the bolt. I had to sweep up all of the brass and dust around my booth, take it home, and run a magnet over it to recover the parts (these little devils cost a lot of $). Polishing the chamber solved the problem and the upper has been trouble free, more or less. The next problem was the mags; I dropped one on the floor at MRA and cracked the plastic outer body badly. A call to DPMS yielded no satisfaction at all; their opinion on the matter was "So what". No customer support whatsoever. These mags must have a protective base pad. Based on my experience with DPMS I would recommend another upper, such as the unit sold by Dillon and Midway.
One other problem you will have to deal with is the 22 rimfire ammo. It is much harder to ignite than .223 centerfire. You will need a stock hammer spring; forget about the triggers that need a light hammer spring; they simply won't work. The Jard trigger I started with that was 100% reliable with .223 was only about 80% reliable with 22 rimfire. I solved this problem by going to an Accuracy Speaks trigger that gives you a crisp 4 lb trigger with a stock hammer spring.
One of my friends purchased the Compass Lake. He is extremely happy with the accuracy, and reliability. He uses it for a rimfire league that shoots at 50 and 100 yards. If you want an accurate unit, this is the route to go.
Where can I get some info on this unit?Originally Posted by Dan S
Right here http://www.compasslake.com/
Jr
Wow
those are kinda pricey.
They aren't cheap. The people that buy them aren't looking for a plinker to burn up Walmart ammo. They buy them for training, either service rifle or match rifle divisions in highpower.
What exactly differs on a dedicated upper? Everyone I know says "get a dedicated upper" And I think I'm now guilty of saying "get a dedicated upper" whenever someone asks about conversion kits....
so beyond having an upper in which you don't need to swap the bolt carrier....how does it differ and are the parts available that a person can build one themself?
I have a Ciener kit for mine which shoots very well. But,a quality dedicated upper will generally give you better accuracy due to barrel twist and diameter.
.223 is actually .224" and a .22LR is .223", so a barrel designed for .22LR will perform better.
Here's some info on building one:
http://www.nationalmatch.us/forums/i...showtopic=6002
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