mhm2a

Thanks for the feedback...

Any signs of melting on that front magpul sight? It says not to mount them directly to the gas block, but I was betting it would be o.k. unless you are into mag dumps and excessive rounds being fired at one occasion.

I got one from Phil at Bellshire Hardware a year or so ago and I like it. It has never malfunctioned and It is the compact tactical model.

This is my first AR build! J&T upper with MI back up irons and I am wishing for an Magpul MOE set soon:

Here is a pic of my new J&T w/ Spikes lower:

J&T and Doublestar are one in the same if you did not pick up on that. In fact, their supplier manufactures some parts for colt and other name brands as well. FYI...

I just fired my first build last night so I wanted to chime in and say a few things. I purchased a lower from a forum member and then hit the gun show in Murfreesboro for an upper. I ended up with a J&T kit that completed my lower into a fully operational firearm. It came with everything you need to get up and running as long as you have the lower. I did not use any specialty tools and had the completed lower built in probably 45 min. while watching t.v. and checking out the tutorials online. I only ran into one issue which was kind of my fault for not paying enough attention. I wanted to put the disconnector spring in the wrong way which caused it to bind on the fat end of the spring and the holes would not line up with the trigger housing/lower. Once I figured out the spring was backwards I was in good shape. I ran a safety check and everything was good so I installed the J&T upper which fit like a glove on my Spike's lower. I was very pleased, but I had a flat top upper and a railed gas block so I needed some sights. I ended up ordering Midwest Industries BUIS front and rear to finish it for now. The reason I chose those over a carry handle is because I knew that I would want to add an optic in the near future and wanted to have back up sights to that optic. In my opinion this is the way to go because you will probably take that carry handle off if you plan to run optics in the future. Then you will probably want a rear back up sight so do it that way the first time right? I got to take it out to my parents house and test it for function last night and I am very pleased. I loaded one round in the magazine, pulled the bolt back and let it ride forward. It stripped the round from the magazine effectively and I fired one round. I then loaded two and fired two....no problems with loading or ejection. I then loaded 30 and let them fly with a second or two between rounds....no problems at all. When I got home I completely field stripped, cleaned, and inspected the rifle.....It is good to go and I am very happy with my J&T build and would build another from their company. I will follow up with a few pictures when I get a chance.....and if youhave any questions just let me know.

Have you looked at any pre-built structures that can be delivered to your site? There are several here in Mid TN and that may take the hassle out of it for you.

You can cure anything with enough alcohol...so just stock up on booze.

Just put together a J&T/Doublestar kit myself and so far so good....

I have the camo Remington 597 with iron sights that was sold at Wal-Mart a few years back. It is picky about ammo.....but it loves the CCI mini-mags and I have not had any feeding issues with either ammo. When I was comparing .22's the 597 just had a better fit for me and that was the reason I made the decision to go with that one. I added a Simmons 22 mag scope and rings about a year ago and I must say that I have been impressed with the accuracy at 50 and 75 yds. It is my go to squirrel gun and it has been handed to many first time shooters to get a feel for the sport. It has hooked a few of them as well.

Gold Dots, Hornady Critical Defense, Cor-bon DPX, are among the most popular.

Great Trip......I was out there for a week last summer running a few rivers that snaked between Colorado and Wyoming. I would love to go back out during the winter....maybe next year.

All under the Freedom umbrella......clear as mud.

All you need is a pneumatic air hammer/chisel and a couple of bucking bars. If you drill out the head of the rivet in the both the bucking bar and the air hammer end it will form the rivets for you. You will have to make an offset bucking bar for the ones near the mag well and other "one per side" rivets. It is easier to use the modified bolt cutters for these. I built a hybrid using screws and rivets and it had zero problems. That is when kits were $89.00 and it was just for sh*&ts and giggles.

I have a H&R Ultra in .243 with a bull barrel. I bought it several weeks ago, but have not had the opportunity to mount my scope, which is on order. H&R and NEF have a cult like following and they are not fond of the Rossi's for quality control reasons. I think Remington now owns H&R and they have an excellent barrel exchange program if you get the itch for another caliber. FYI - there are a few H&R's on ###.com right now in .308 if you are looking locally.

Simplicity, Ruggedness, Reliability, and Comfort are a few of the things that come to mind for me. It seems that my S&W J-Frame is carried more often than any other sidearm in my lineup.

I bought one from Phil at Bellshire Hardware last year as well....It is the compact tactical model and has impressed me from the beginning. It is my first 1911 style pistol so I do not have much to compare it to, but it is accurate and has not had any failures in about 300 - 500 rounds. I did not realize they were hard to come by right now but I have heard that twice this week from different people who are in the market for one.

TDR.....I think you can get a semi in and out of there without much difficulty. Middle Tn Christian School shares the same access road and I know they have big trucks delivering stuff to the cafeteria etc.... Mr. Taglio is an awesome guy and will give you the best cuts and advice on how to prepare whatever you purchase. Pick up some of his rub while you are there if you like to BBQ.

I think you should have both in your collection, so by the one that you can afford now and save for the other. I built an AK from a Romanian non G kit before the prices went wacky and also purchased a Century Built Yugo Underfolder on a DCI receiver that was handpicked by myself. I sold my Ak build to keep the Yugo, which is a good shooter and more comfortable to me. However, I am getting ready to purchase an AR lower to begin building a varmint rifle so basically we are back to the beginning of the circle and my advice would be both.

I carry my 637 the most out of my lineup....my only complaint is that the finish coat or clear coat began to wear off the back strap within months of everyday carry. I could have sent it back for a free refinish from S&W, but at the time I decided to bead blast the the clear coat and I like the results. The frame was the only effected area so the cylinder and barrel are still o.k. Since the frame is an alloy I do not worry about rust or any other problems that would normally be a side effect of removing the finish...

I bet my century build will shoot as well as Arsenal, Vector, and Lancaster. It may not be as pretty, but its an AK. You have to hand pick them even from the best builders. There were batches of Arsenal that had canted sights and gas blocks a year or more ago.

I was there two weekends ago and it was 55 degrees and sunny....that is my camping weather.

The biggest thing in my opinion is to handle the weapon and hand pick it if possible. Even the best importers have bad days that end in canted sights and gas blocks. I have a century yugo on a DCI reciever and I would put it up against any other AK even though some bash century builds.

I am gonna smoke one on my Ugly Drum Smoker. I got a 14lb enhanced bird so I wont need to brine her. I plan on rubbing her down with some Cajun seasoning (Under the skin). Apples, onions, and garlic in the cavity to give keep her moist and then throwing a basket weave of bacon on top because everything is better with bacon. Should be on the smoker for 5 hours @ 250-265 degrees or until the bird reaches 160 degrees then she will be foil tented and let rest for about 45 minutes before carving.