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After that, this is for Rsquared. All hail braceman! He is the machining god that makes magic! I sent him this: And he sent this back: All I have to do now is get a barrel and a flash hider to modify and I can start building!

Well gang, the receiver set is on it's way back. Talked to John this morning. They're paying 2-day shipping there and back. He's already set aside the correct upper receiver and will have his production manager handle the fitting of the new upper personally. I hope to have it back before Christmas.

Thanks for helping to put my mind at ease. I was supposed to hear back from them today and receive another shipping label but nothing. Oh well, that'll give me something to do tomorrow morning. :eek7:

Well folks, I must admit I had a completely different expectation of what was going to happen this morning. Talked to John at SI Defense. Apparently they have some new folks that aren't paying attention! Anyway, they're going to pay for 2-day Air both ways and make this right. Regardless, this is frustration that I really don't need right now.

Additional good news about Pat at Armalite! I received another package from Armalite this Friday with the last few parts needed to complete my non forward assist BCG! Thank goodness I have been fortunate enough to contact Pat! The only part I lack now to complete my "Cuban/Portuguese/Guatemalan AR-10" build is the barrel. And unfortunately it seems like that is one of the few items that absolutely cannot be found right now, at least not at Armalite. Everything else that I needed Pat was able to get it shipped! Thank you sir! if I ever meet you in person you've got many beers coming! <thumbsup>

Well guys, I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I had to leave town to take care of a short notice problem up north in Indiana. As I mentioned earlier I saw that SI Defense had shipped the "fixed" upper/lower receiver set. The package arrived Friday and my neighbor was good enough to pick up my mail and put the package from SI Defense (and one from Armalite, too! Different story though!) inside on the dining room table. Got home early this afternoon, all excited of course! After unloading the truck and getting settled back in I opened the package from Kalispell, Montana. Looked at the paperwork that accompanied it which said "RETURNED TO CUSTOMER WITH NEW UPPER RECEIVER". I then unwrapped the receiver set. It looked just like the set I sent off! The "new" upper is a standard - again, not the HK format, and is brand new because this one isn't serialized to match the lower. It looks like they just slapped another standard upper on there without even looking. WTF!!! Just in case there was something I might be missing, such as the possibility that they had modified a standard upper to work with the HK magazines I tried it out - still no go! Again WTF!!! This has been a monumental waste of 20 days! Do these people even look at the parts they're handling??? I was going to e-mail John in the sales department but I think this crap deserves a phone call! I don't think this is gonna be fun. >:(

Alright gents. I received a shipping notice from UPS. A package was sent from SI Defense today. Now the hard part - waiting for it to get here! :drool:

That man has been a godsend! Awhile back on a whim, I called to inquire about ordering a few items, some of which showed out of stock - the rifle length gas tube for one. Pat took my order and said that as soon as they were in stock he'd ship and then charge my card. I don't know what kind of magic he worked but those items came back in stock and shipped faster than a lot of other merchants ship in stock parts! And I got another call from him today to verify some info, and I believe some other out of stock items mysteriously came in and are on their way to mid Georgia! If it is indeed Pat Raley, thank you kind sir!;)

Well, according to UPS, SI Defense received the receiver set today. I guess we'll see how things shake out.

Found one guys! Talk about luck! I was perusing the Equipment Exchange at another forum and a guy was selling an older, non forward-assist bolt carrier. Of course I jumped on it! It was a bit pricey but still cheaper than going through Armalite who doesn't have that particular one anyway. And speaking of Armalite, Pat in their sales dept called me to verify some info and I was able to at least order the last few bits and pieces, other than the barrel. And on that topic, I think I'll be getting one of Rainier Arms stainless match 20" barrels and getting it re-profiled in front of the gas block. With the particular three-prong flash hider that I'm thinking about using, I can build a Sudanese, Guatemalan, or Cuban version. It all depends on how much work and effort I want to put into modifying the flash hider. I'll be getting started on re-profiling an A1 pistol grip and then painting it and the Type D stock I've got sitting here. I'm hoping to be able to post photos sometime late Jan.

While I've got you guys' attention and we're waiting for John at SI to work his magic, I've got a dumb question. The ejection port door rod and spring - are they the same between Armalite and DPMS pattern weapons? The doors themselves are the same, correct? I figured I'd ask since I still have a few smaller parts to gather for this and my AR-10B build.

Well gents, I received an e-mail from John at SI Defense this morning. He's sending me a shipping label and wants me to ship both the upper and lower back. I'll give him a call in a bit and discuss the particulars, but that's where we stand at this point. Just the fact that they're paying for shipping both ways is an excellent note. Something that other manufacturers should take note of and try to emulate! ;) Edit: Both the upper and lower went out today at 1149 eastern time.

Thank you. I feel more and more at home every time I sign in. But, as the FNG here I need to remember, "cough, cough MRAD", my place here and act accordingly! Sorry, I couldn't help myself! ;)

Damn, reminds me of many a "kangaroo court" convened when I was still active duty. Didn't matter how eloquently you pleaded your case, how innocent you really were, someone was gonna buy the beer! ;)

Guys, I just got an e-mail back from John at SI's customer service. He confirmed that we'll take care of this Monday morning. I'll keep you guys posted. ;)

Robocop1051, yes, I noticed the bolt catch cutout earlier, but thought that they had tried to consolidate their line-up by combining those different features. I just pretty much figured, "hey, they designed and built the thing - they know what they're doing." Boy, was I wrong! I take it you actually meant the take-down pin, right? There's no problem at all with the safety lever. Now on the rear take-down pin, without the detent in the receiver the take-down pin goes all the way in to where the head is flush on the right side and the small end of the pin is protruding very slightly on the left side - just enough to start pushing it through to open it. That's why I inspected the "slot" in the underside where the detent pin slides and verified it was the culprit. 98Z5V, on the spring issue, I think the problem lies with the DPMS LPK that I received. The detent pin springs were different size, both length and diameter, but just very slightly. All the rest of the springs were of the "usual" sizes and instantly recognizable.

Kicked In The Nuts! :( That's usually the kind of feeling you get when you realize something has gone terribly wrong with a project that you really want to go smoothly. I received my DPMS LPK today and got started installing it this evening. Everything seemed to be going along pretty good. I was initially concerned about the front pivot/take-down pin being long enough - it was. I think the other member here that had problems with an SI lower receiver was trying to use an Armalite LPK. Anyway, front pin - good. Magazine release - good. I even tried it with a 20rd G3 mag and release was very smooth and positive. Hammer, trigger and disconnector all went in fine - just like an overgrown AR-15. Rear take-down pin needed work on the "well" for the detent and spring. The spring included with the DPMS LPK for the rear take-down pin was slightly larger in diameter than the spring for the front pin. I ended up having to ream out the detent hole in the receiver about 7/8 of the way down so the spring would go in, the detent itself fit fine. One minor gripe, and I'll talk to SI about getting a pin from them, the slot in the rear take-down pin doesn't extend close enough to the "head" so the head of the rear pin ends up sticking out a bit on the right side when closed and requires another pin to push it out from the left. These are all minor gripes as far as I'm concerned. Now for the acid test, mate the receivers together. They went together okay, closed them and they're a little loose. Might just be the take down pins, nothing that one of those little orange wedge dealies won't fix. Now for the big test. Insert and release a magazine with the receivers together - oops! No Go!!! Magazine stops about 3/4 inch from complete insertion - doesn't engage the magazine catch! WTF! Look inside the upper receiver and the magazine lips are hitting on the inside of the receiver. I take a deep breath, set everything down on the work bench so as to avoid "slinging the crap around" syndrome! I looked at the photo of the receiver set that SI sent me before I ordered my set. Look at and compare the bottom forward edge of the upper right above the magazine well, then look above at the upper they actually sent me. Looks like they sent me a standard upper. Plus, since it was serialized to match the lower, whoever did that wasn't paying attention. I'll be sending John at SI an e-mail tonight and then making a phone call Monday morning. Crap, this sucks. Oh well, like 98Z5V said someone's gotta evaluate a new product, and folks, I'm evaluating my butt off! :P

Well gang, to go along with what 98Z5V said, here's my new SI HK format upper and lower receiver set. I must say, my initial impression is very good. The two seem to fit together pretty good, and the anodizing is smooth, even and so black it looks evil! The upper is serialized and matched to the lower. I went ahead and installed the forward assist tonight, which is included, just no retaining pin. Luckily I have several extras. I've got several G3 mags and tried one out. The fit is on par with what you usually see from most AR-15s and GI aluminum mags. I should get the lower parts kit in the next couple of days, then we can see just how tightly these two fit.

Well gents, I should be able to make a better informed report to youse guys soon. My upper/lower receiver set is due to arrive at my FFL tomorrow and I was able to snag a DPMS lower parts kit which I should get this weekend or early next week. I'll go ahead and "attempt" to install the LPK and see what I get. I'll let you guys know and post some photos. Hopefully it all works out. If nothing else I can at least give someone else the straight scoop on these SI Defense HK format receiver sets. BTW, they should have 14 sets left, if anyone's interested LMK and I can PM you the info so you can get ahold of John there. They come in black anodized, NiB or bare.

GOT IT! Folks, I'm looking for an Armalite AR-10 bolt carrier without the forward assist serrations. I know this might be a pretty tall order, but this is for a specific build and a specific look. Thanks in advance.

Well, here's a link to more info on SI's HK format receivers http://308ar.com/lowers.htm Just scroll down a bit.

For the heck of it I looked up Fidelis Arms - not good. I came up with a webpage from 308AR.com that has a message from a deputy with the Deshutes County Sheriff's Office investigating fraud! Look here http://308ar.com/fidelis.htm

Here's a photo that SI sent to me. Looks like a standard magazine catch should work, but - no bolt catch!

Is that a standard Armalite 20" barrel? Looks good, especially with the M60 flash hider! I'd like to use a barrel with a similar profile for my build.

That is just too cool! It's great to see threads like this!