Getting ready to order a BCG. Have seen PSA and Spikes for $110 or DD or BCM for $140. Are the latter worth the extra scratch or are they all about the same? Would rather save same money on it. What do you all suggest?

the bcm is gonna be 100% mil spec, the other ones might not be.

Spikes is GTG.. PSA had extractor issues.. BCM & DD is also GTG..

 

Rock River WAS in question last year but have since been vindicated also..

I did lots of research on this and from I have read spikes is as good as bcm, although bcm has been around much longer and is more proven, spikes are the newer guys but have very very good reviews... I also read that most of the standard bcg all come from the same factory, not sure if this is true. I went with spikes cool spider that matched my lower plus i saved some money...

Most BCGs are decent. Spikes is fine, BCM is good, daniel defense is good, rainier arms thunderbolt BCG is good, Palmetto state armory deluxe BCG looks like it is sourced form the same place as most of those.

 

For a BCG, there only a few things that REALLY matter.

 

1)IS it made of decent stuff? Mil-spec is sufficient. There are some parts out there made of other good steels. The thing is, if it isn't 8620 for the carrier and carpenter 158 for the bolt, and it ISN'T more expensive than the mil-spec BCGs, then I'd avoid it.

 

2)Is it staked right? This matters in terms of reliability, and a poorly staked gas key is likely to cause issues sooner rather than later (if it causes issues at all). The main reason why this became such a prevalent meme in the world of AR parts is because pretty much all commerical BCGs were staked like crap early on (think when people would tell you to always look at the ABCs for quality ARs. MEaning armalite, colt, and bushmaster... look at how often they are recommended these days).

 

An example of the usual crappy commercial staking can be seen here http://www.rainierarms.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=114

 

Looks like someone whacked it with a cold chisel form the top. Which is pretty much useless. It may still work fine because staked or not, most manufacturers use some form of serious trhead locking agent on the screws anyway.

 

an example of good staking is here http://www.rainierarms.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=1578

 

You will note it is poked in from the sides enough to really deform the key material AND the head of the screw, AND does so in a manner that the displaced key material interferes with the rotation of the screw.

 

3) Is QC good? You want the bolt to be at LEAST MPI tested. Preferably HPT tested as well. About all you cna do is take the manufacturers word for it unless you want to ask them for documentation on the method and sampling frequency.

Thanks for the replies guys. I knew enough about them. Just wanted to see if the DD or BCM was really worth $30 more. I wound up ordering the Spikes from AimSurplus with free shipping. My first AR build is almost done. Will write it up when I finish it.

Make sure to remove the 'resin' on the firing pin with the Spikes, and the bolt.. and inside the BCG.. they have a film which will result in a non-fire event.. (ask me how I know)..

Make sure to remove the 'resin' on the firing pin with the Spikes, and the bolt.. and inside the BCG.. they have a film which will result in a non-fire event.. (ask me how I know)..

 

Thanks for the advice. I do believe I've heard this before. I plan on giving the whole thing a clean and lube once it's finished.