hello there again I have recently found available a bravo company upper (with BCG and charging handle). I have looked into them and they sound and look solid I was wondering if anybody has any experience with them. Also I was wondering if any one had any oppinions on good lowers to put under it. Would it be cheaper to buy a complete lower and just slap it in, or should I try and find a stripped lower and parts kit. TBH im leaning to the complete lower it sounds like a lot easier of a process for my unexperienced self, but ive heard buying a parts kit is pretty straight forward. I just don't know if I want to hassle with it. oooo and im on a budget of course (aren't we all.) something between 150-200

Build your own lower as it is fairly simply. It's also cheaper and will help you understand the workings of the components which will benefit you in the future to troubleshoot your weapon and also upgrade parts as needed.

150-200 is not gonna get you a complete lower.. Maybe a stripped lower.. Keep saving your pennies till you have enough funds.

BCM is good stuff you should have no problems there. I would suggest you build your lower just so you get the experience should something break or you want to change something on the gun. you WILL want to change something on the gun.

 

But as the above poster alluded to, you won't find anything more than a stripped lower under 200 except a polymer lower. I don't know enough about them to recommend them.

I love Seekins products. They just came out with this lower get it stripped and you can put the parts you want in it. Just my opinion. (see below link) it is very easy to build the lower and it give you much needed experience with the componets.

 

http://midwestpx.com/product_info.php?products_id=609

I love Seekins products. They just came out with this lower get it stripped and you can put the parts you want in it. Just my opinion. (see below link) it is very easy to build the lower and it give you much needed experience with the componets.

 

http://midwestpx.com/product_info.php?products_id=609

glad to see a review of seekins lowers because I've held off purchasing that lower from mpx for over a week now.

As others have responded, the budget's tight for a complete aluminum lower let alone trying to build off a stripped aluminum lower. Your closest budget option is a complete poly lower not including NICS. At pre-Sandy times, you can get close to $200 but will still likely go over depending what type of furniture and parts you want to slap on.

 

If you increase your budget a little, you'll have more flexibility and be able to open up to more options, ie. stocks, grip and triggers. You can opt for plain jane parts but may eventually change things up later on. Buy once, cry once instead of having a box of parts later on. Complete lowers, even if you can find one, will be pricey in current times. My recommendation is to get a lower and slowly begin collecting your parts for the build.

 

On another note, can anyone provide info on what lower NOT to get? I've seen and played through quite a bit of lowers. I really can't see any lower being bad. Some more costly ones have additional bells and whistle like magwell, ambi mag/bolt release, frame tighteners, billet machining, etc. With that factor removed from the equation, only real differences I see are quality of the finish and the quality of machining for upper to lower fit.

Building your own right now is pretty tough but can be done. I just finished mine but it took months. Fortunately I purchased my lower, a Stag Firearms lower, for an amazing price of $85 back when you could actually find one and order it. That sat around while I acquired other parts. My major score was the upper, found right on these forums (thank you JamesC). The specs are:

 

BCM Standard 14.5" Mid Length Upper Receiver Group w/ VTAC Alpha 11" Handguard & BattleComp 1.5 (Pinned & Welded)

UPGRADES INCLUDED

Battle Comp 1.5 - Permanently pinned and welded to make overall length requirements ( BCM Link: http://bit.ly/WCPmkd )

BCM Bolt Carrier Group (MPI) - Auto ( BCM Link: http://bit.ly/Ym5roP )

BCM Gunfighter Charging Handle Mod 4 - Medium Size latch ( BCM Link: http://bit.ly/YUP4iO )

Magpul FDE MBUS (Both front and back) - (BCM Link: http://bit.ly/13Q2IMo , http://bit.ly/YQbk0j)

 

It's a beautiful setup, I am extremely happy with it.

Next I searched exhaustively for a LPK and finally ended up finding a complete LPK from Palmetto Arms (their premium version) packaged with a Magpul stock, buffer tube, spring and buffer. That I found on gunbroker.com for an amazing price again from somebody that in this case ordered it months ago for a build they never did and decided to sell what parts they had for what they had into it. The entire LPK stock and accessories cost just around $200.

 

I finished the build Monday this week and it's a beautiful piece. Added a great scope, side mounted laser/flashlight and bipod to finish it off. Pinned the stock and finished the assembly for a fine firearm. So you see it can be done but take my word for it, you need patience and the will to pass on some of the offerings on the web that are crazy expensive. If your not willing to put in the time to search and wait for good deals I suggest you just sit back and wait for the market to calm down. Then all the crazies will be stuck sucking wind trying to resell parts for a loss.