Gunsmithing

Part 3 of the Ultimate 3 Gun Rifle

Part 2 of the Ultimate 3 Gun Rifle!

In late 2019 I decided it was time for a new rifle. There are many very good factory competition multigun rifles on the market now but I decided to put together my own rifle, with each and every part exactly what I wanted.

Sometimes, to get a gun to function well or to shoot precise groups, a factory load can be found that yields better results than a different factory load. Fortunately, these days there are many factory choices for most cartridges.

There are many factors in any gun that have an effect on precision, and two guns leaving the assembly line, one right after the other, made with the same batch of components and assembled by the same people, can have drastically different precision characteristics.

Everyday carry pistols get worn on the finish, dirt in the internals, sweat, pocket lint, you name it. Sometimes all it takes is a little tune-up, and it’s like you have a whole new firearm.

The benefits to an 18 make it something you should reconsider. For that little bit more length and weight, you get a softer shooter, as well as a minor bullet velocity gain. It is absolutely worth trying out.

This was my first every Polymer 80 build, and I hope it inspires confidence if you have been thinking of trying it out. I am in no way a gunsmith, and arguably not even a decent gun mechanic. I used simple hand tools, that I would wager everyone has laying around. No drill presses or lathes around these parts.

“Retro” ARs are neat rifles, and very interesting to research and build. Brownells did a really good job creating their likeness of the original AR-10. You can buy a complete BRN-10 rifle from them, should you prefer. But then you don’t have the fun of putting one together.