Finishing an 80% lower

[Radtekk]

I have a couple pre 7/20 Anderson lowers. I also have a pair of AK47 lowers from a buy a couple years back. All 4 are 80%. I've got no jig, no press, and no skills. Yup, I suck.

I asked my LGS, good guy, bought a few guns from him. He said "I can't finish them for you, that would make me a manufacturer, but once they are I can build them out for you no problem."

So, what can I do with them and how?

 

[Machines]

 

[flippedr6]

You can find someone with access to a machine shop that can teach you how to use the equipment. IANAL but anyone besides you finishing them would be illegal, from what I understand.

 

[greencobra]

an old guy i know finished his 80% at his kitchen table using a hand drill and the supplied jig. seriously, it looks like crap inside but i think anyone with a few files and a little skill could have finished it better. point is it works. where there's a will there's a way. but you need that jig or your fried imho.

 

[allen-1]

80%'s are interesting. And fun.

You have two sets of laws you have to be aware of, (and then you can choose to comply or violate).

I can take an 80% lower and complete it for my own personal use without violating any state law here in Georgia and without violating any Federal law.
Yet, the same actions violate CT law because CT says I'm not allowed to have any NEW AR's...

I'm not sure what the Massachusetts state laws governing your actions are, you'll have to figure that out, particularly with Maura's BS.

I can tell you this - the ATF says that YOU must do the work yourself. If I do the work for you, then I'm a manufacturer, and since I'm not licensed, and I'm not a FFL, I'm violating ATF regulations. They frown upon this.

My suggestion to you is to find a friend with the jig set who has his own 80% to do, go watch him do his, then do yours using his equipment while he watches/coaches. But do your research about what the ATF considers legal, they really don't have a sense of humor from everything I've read and heard about them.

I have a set of the jigs. I use a small milling machine to complete my 80%'s, but it can be done with a drill press and a router.

 

[Thirwell1216]

A drill press really isn't a huge investment for a hobby gunsmith. I picked up a WEN brand press with a vice for about $125 total on a prime deal. Works great. I picked it up to open a gas port on a FAL. Other people have done 80% lowers with a router with a template as well.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZlALs6xEPk

 

[MAJoe]

Anderson made 80% lowers?

 

[NH Phantom]

A drill press really isn't a huge investment for a hobby gunsmith. I picked up a WEN brand press with a vice for about $125 total on a prime deal. Works great. I picked it up to open a gas port on a FAL. Other people have done 80% lowers with a router with a template as well.

A drill press really isn't a huge investment for a hobby gunsmith. I picked up a WEN brand press with a vice for about $125 total on a prime deal. Works great. I picked it up to open a gas port on a FAL. Other people have done 80% lowers with a router with a template as well.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZlALs6xEPk

Good basic video. This is the older jig. the 5D is much better now.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZlALs6xEPk

 

[NH Phantom]

I have a couple pre 7/20 Anderson lowers. I also have a pair of AK47 lowers from a buy a couple years back. All 4 are 80%. I've got no jig, no press, and no skills. Yup, I suck.

I asked my LGS, good guy, bought a few guns from him. He said "I can't finish them for you, that would make me a manufacturer, but once they are I can build them out for you no problem."

So, what can I do with them and how?

I have a 5D jig. I have a couple of 80's to do. I'm in Hudson, NH. you could watch me do one if you want. PM me for more info.
Dave

 

[Peicemaker]

Get a jig and make friends with someone who has an old school, manual milling machine. Then learn how to use said milling machine and go to work. Anything else is going to produce a sub par result, although it may still work. When we start talking about hand drills and files on the kitchen table we're getting into kyber pass, hacksmith tier shit.

 

[Brian5582]

I am in Douglas and have a small mill, drill press, shop press... don’t mind making friends.

 

[arcticzr600]

Miss the days of building partys

 

[42!]

IANAL
80% means they aren't really lowers yet, so it doesn't matter when you got them, they don't become a firearm/lower until you go beyond that 80%. So if, big stress on the if, you follow Maura's BS, you would still have a problem.

So what you left out was you started finishing them immediately after buying them, pushing them .00001% past 80%, making them firearms, but not yet capable of firing a bullet (so you don't have to eFA10 them yet). But are just now realizing that you can't finish the job without the jig....Right?

 

[akma]

Forget the AK lowers. Way to much experience and tooling to finish. Jig to bend the flat then weld rails then heat treat. Childers and Recreator make really nice 80% lowers. Rails welded and heat treated. Good reviews on both. You actually build an AK but assemble an AR.

AK Receiver Blanks
ReCreator Blanks AK74 AK47 blank receiver shells 80 percent

 

[jayhitek]

Anderson made 80% lowers?

That was my first thought too.

 

[radioman]

In the above video you can see the drill press table flexing when he pulls down on the levers. POS!
Don’t use a drill press or a router or your whittling knife at the kitchen table.
As others have said—-befriend someone who has a manual mill.
Preferably a Bridgeport. I held build parties all the time before 7/20.
People made some nice lowers on my machines.
Never had any complaints. I have several 80%’ers that work awesome!
Do it the right the first time and you’ll never have any problems.

 

[radioman]

Forget the AK lowers. Way to much experience and tooling to finish. Jig to bend the flat then weld rails then heat treat. Childers and Recreator make really nice 80% lowers. Rails welded and heat treated. Good reviews on both. You actually build an AK but assemble an AR.

Does this one look assembled? Or does it look like I milled it out of a big chunk of 7071 aluminum flat bar?

 

[dhuze]

Anderson made 80% lowers?

AM-15 80% Lower Receiver – Anodize – Anderson Manufacturing

Everyone makes 80% lowers, and for some reason they cost more than a completed one.

 

[headednorth]

AM-15 80% Lower Receiver – Anodize – Anderson Manufacturing

Everyone makes 80% lowers, and for some reason they cost more than a completed one.

Youre paying for a certain degree of anonymity I guess, as long as the NSA has no interest in you and the FBI/ATF/whoever else has no interest in the customer list of the company you bought it from.

 

[71montess]

View attachment 219607


Does this one look assembled? Or does it look like I milled it out of a big chunk of 7071 aluminum flat bar?

I'm wanting that.

 

[headednorth]

Forget the AK lowers. Way to much experience and tooling to finish. Jig to bend the flat then weld rails then heat treat. Childers and Recreator make really nice 80% lowers. Rails welded and heat treated. Good reviews on both. You actually build an AK but assemble an AR.

AK Receiver Blanks
ReCreator Blanks AK74 AK47 blank receiver shells 80 percent

Sorry for the slight threadjack maybe, unless the OP can benefit from my question as well...
Regarding AK receivers, I see so many listed as Russian, Polish, Bulgarian, etc. Does this refer just to the markings, or is there a difference between one and the other. (aside from underfolders, 5.45 vs 7.62, etc) Could someone with a Polish parts kit with a fixed wooden stock build off of a Bulgarian receiver made for a fixed stock and same caliber for instance? Does the origin of the parts kit have to match the "origin" of the receiver? (I know theyre being made here, not North Korea, Poland, etc) Are there any differences between different countries receivers given the caliber and stock are the same?

 

[akma]

View attachment 219607


Does this one look assembled? Or does it look like I milled it out of a big chunk of 7071 aluminum flat bar?

Very nice job sir.

My point is unless you are milling a complete lower there's
more of an assembly rather than building going on. AK's are a lot of work and tooling to complete.

 

[akma]

Sorry for the slight threadjack maybe, unless the OP can benefit from my question as well...
Regarding AK receivers, I see so many listed as Russian, Polish, Bulgarian, etc. Does this refer just to the markings, or is there a difference between one and the other. (aside from underfolders, 5.45 vs 7.62, etc) Could someone with a Polish parts kit with a fixed wooden stock build off of a Bulgarian receiver made for a fixed stock and same caliber for instance? Does the origin of the parts kit have to match the "origin" of the receiver? (I know theyre being made here, not North Korea, Poland, etc) Are there any differences between different countries receivers given the caliber and stock are the same?

Yes the markings designate the country of origin on these lowers. They are not authentic for country as far as welds style or other style features.

 

[jron]

I have never done one but have always wanted too...

 

[headednorth]

Yes the markings designate the country of origin on these lowers. They are not authentic for country as far as welds style or other style features.

So if I have say a Polish parts kit with a fixed stock it really doesnt matter what receiver I get, as long as its for a fixed stock and the caliber matches. Is that right?

 

[radioman]

Very nice job sir.

My point is unless you are milling a complete lower there's
more of an assembly rather than building going on. AK's are a lot of work and tooling to complete.

I’ve never built an AK, I hear there’s a lot involved.
When you build your own AR lower from a block of 7071 I assure you there’s a
lot of tooling and work to it. So I guess it all depends on where you choose to start.
I don’t know if AK’s have the benefit of an 80% lower being available?

 

[namedpipes]

I’ve never built an AK, I hear there’s a lot involved.
When you build your own AR lower from a block of 7071 I assure you there’s a
lot of tooling and work to it. So I guess it all depends on where you choose to start.
I don’t know if AK’s have the benefit of an 80% lower being available?

Plenty out there, but it's not "much" harder to start with a 0% receiver AND as a bonus you get a nifty stock:

 

[42!]

Plenty out there, but it's not "much" harder to start with a 0% receiver AND as a bonus you get a nifty stock:

I was starting to wonder when this was going to be mentioned. I was all set to do it myself, scrolled down and there it is. But I will add the link DIY: Shovel AK - photo tsunami warning!

 

[radioman]

That shovel AK is a crap ton of work.
I’ve built similar projects in my shop.
If I was building the shovel AK it would take me weeks!
The welding he did I wouldn’t let go on the original shovel!
Other than the welding I’ll give him a7 on the other work.
Now we need locks on our tools sheds?

 

[pastera]

It really doesn't take much of a mill to finish out an 80% lower - made my own side plates to hold the lower and finished out by counting turns on the wheels.

This was all done on a MicroMill - check out the picture for to see how small it is compared to a lower