My shiny new Cav-15 lower is in my hot little hands, awaiting the installation of a lower parts kit. Brownell’s got it to my FFL in two days’ time, and I dashed right down after work to fill out the paperwork and fork over the transfer fee. It looks like a quality bit of kit and I don’t anticipate any assembly difficulties.
Plans for the upper have changed slightly; after consulting with a few serious AR guys I’m going to use Bravo Company’s lightweight mid-length upper once it becomes available. Compared to the RRA upper I was planning to buy, the Bravo uses a 1:7″ twist barrel (vs. 1:9″), which will stabilize basically any bullet I’m ever likely to use. I’m also assured BCM’s quality is markedly better than RRA’s, and their rating on the famous/infamous “The Chart” is far superior. Will I ever notice a real difference? Maybe not. Am I willing to spend a few more bucks anyways? Sure.
I’m trying to estimate the final weight of the whole gun, a task slightly complicated by the fact that I currently have only one part in my possession. The complete lower should be somewhere around 26 oz, with the upper around 60 oz. Add a couple more ounces for a rear sight, and 88 oz. = 5.5 lbs. I’d been hoping to come in a bit lower than that, closer to the M1 Carbine’s 5.2 lbs, but I can live with beating an M4 by a half-pound.
If anyone reading this has a complete Cav lower, could you throw it on a postal scale for me and give me an exact weight? It’d be much appreciated.
Something you may or may not know – The magwells in the CavArms lowers are slightly different from spec(on purpose) and here’s why, with a Hahn Precision adapter, you can use 45ACP greasegun mags, and a 45ACP Olympic Arms Upper.
Yep, I was aware of that. I’ve also read reports that it may be just a bit too snug to let regular AR mags drop free, but that can be corrected with a bit of judicious filing.
I always had a CavArms lower in the back of my mind for a build. Alas, I can’t do it right now so it’ll probably never happen. Pics when you’re done please.