For now it is my everything AR. I'm saving for a good one but it will likely be the end of the year before I'm able to get what I want. Thats why I'm asking all these questions and seeing what I should replace to get the most out of this one for now.
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Hello, I'm mtdawg169 and I'm a parts snob.
- Thread starter mtdawg169
- Start date
Interesting read. Just confirms my thinking to buy the best you can once. Had a guy come into my friends gun shop complaining his .380 pocket pistol not feeding and firing. Said he just started having problems. Found out the problem was his $5 discount ammo. My standard comment to people trying to just get out cheap is "What's your life worth"
Update on the PSA misaligned gas tube from post #130.
It's a PSA 16" Freedom Rifle - 508052
When I took off the HG to prep the rifle for barrel nut realignment I noticed the barrel nut has 4 or 5 teeth marred beyond what I would reckon was acceptable for a factory gun passing through any sort of QC/QA.
I tried taking a pic but I couldn't get it done.
On to the misaligned gas tube issue. Here is a pic of the tube:
The tube was so misaligned that removing it was a chore. There is no way that the person who installed it could not have know that it was way...WAY to far out of spec. As I mentioned in post #130. so far out of spec that when a stripped bolt carrier assembly was inserted and the carrier key made contact with the gas tube it stopped cold....like hitting a brick wall and pulling the charging to the rear was way too harder than it should have been. Before removing the barrel nut I also noticed the front sight base was canted..........double. It's all good now......but I bet if PSA could get a do over they would want it on this rifle....maybe? 
Like I mentioned in a earlier post I have very limited exposure to PSA rifles. Maybe this one was one of the few that slipped through the crack. I do know that if I was interested in buying one now I would take a very hard look at it, inside and out. As always, YMMV.
It's a PSA 16" Freedom Rifle - 508052
When I took off the HG to prep the rifle for barrel nut realignment I noticed the barrel nut has 4 or 5 teeth marred beyond what I would reckon was acceptable for a factory gun passing through any sort of QC/QA.
![](https://www.theoutdoorstrader.com/javascript:editorInsertAtCursor( '<img src="/images/smilies/smiley_freak.gif" class="sm">', '[%|]' );)
I tried taking a pic but I couldn't get it done.
On to the misaligned gas tube issue. Here is a pic of the tube:
The tube was so misaligned that removing it was a chore. There is no way that the person who installed it could not have know that it was way...WAY to far out of spec. As I mentioned in post #130. so far out of spec that when a stripped bolt carrier assembly was inserted and the carrier key made contact with the gas tube it stopped cold....like hitting a brick wall and pulling the charging to the rear was way too harder than it should have been. Before removing the barrel nut I also noticed the front sight base was canted..........double
. It's all good now......but I bet if PSA could get a do over they would want it on this rifle....maybe? ![](https://www.theoutdoorstrader.com/javascript:editorInsertAtCursor( '<img src="/images/smilies/2016/idunno.gif" class="sm">', '[idunno]' );)
Like I mentioned in a earlier post I have very limited exposure to PSA rifles. Maybe this one was one of the few that slipped through the crack. I do know that if I was interested in buying one now I would take a very hard look at it, inside and out. As always, YMMV.
Were you able to do anything for the canted FSB?Update on the PSA misaligned gas tube from post #130.
It's a PSA 16" Freedom Rifle - 508052
When I took off the HG to prep the rifle for barrel nut realignment I noticed the barrel nut has 4 or 5 teeth marred beyond what I would reckon was acceptable for a factory gun passing through any sort of QC/QA.
I tried taking a pic but I couldn't get it done.
On to the misaligned gas tube issue. Here is a pic of the tube:
View attachment 1114592
The tube was so misaligned that removing it was a chore. There is no way that the person who installed it could not have know that it was way...WAY to far out of spec. As I mentioned in post #130. so far out of spec that when a stripped bolt carrier assembly was inserted and the carrier key made contact with the gas tube it stopped cold....like hitting a brick wall and pulling the charging to the rear was way too harder than it should have been. Before removing the barrel nut I also noticed the front sight base was canted..........double
Like I mentioned in a earlier post I have very limited exposure to PSA rifles. Maybe this one was one of the few that slipped through the crack. I do know that if I was interested in buying one now I would take a very hard look at it, inside and out. As always, YMMV.
And I hate to say it, but based on the nightmare stories I've heard, I don't think they're super worried about second chances. It seems to be more of a "we'll get around to fixing it eventually, maybe."
FWIW, The turn around time for an out of spec rifle to get sent back to me was one day. It was absolutely amazing that it got turned around so fast. It's a BIG contrast to the absolutely miserable experience of dealing with their customer service department on the phone.
I forgot to add the front sight was canted to the left....I am sure you find that to be no surprise. When I removed the barrel nut I found the barrel index pin slot on the upper receiver was cut too wide and allowed the barrel to shift through a pretty good arc. When the barrel index pin was resting against the right side of the index slot the front sight was aligned. When the index pin was rested against the left side of the index slot the sight was canted left.. I used a small punch and light taps with a small ballpeen hammer to peen the left side of the barrel index pin....test fit...repeat....until the front sight indexed true. I then put some aeroshell 33ms on the receiver threads, re-torqued the barrel nut three times, and finally indexed the nut to the upper receiver gas tube hole. Everything - barrel nut/gas tube/front sight base - looked aligned. The owner then took it to the outdoor range a re-zeroed. The rear sight went from being 2 clicks shy of all the way left to two clicks right of center.....we called it good.
Hey, quit doing things correctly as per the TM. According to many on the ODT, the TM, and its assembly procedures are nonsense anyways...
Framing hammer + vice grips + harbor freight punch set + Amazon "armorers" hammer = ODT "mil-spec"
Nice work. And not an easy fix. I figured that the alignment slot was probably too generous, as that's usually the case. In the past, I've seen guys actually torque the barrel nut into place and give the FSB a whack with a rubber or delrin mallet to realign. It sounds crude, but shimming the pin, peening it or starting over with a different upper are the only other ways to fix it.I forgot to add the front sight was canted to the left....I am sure you find that to be no surprise. When I removed the barrel nut I found the barrel index pin slot on the upper receiver was cut too wide and allowed the barrel to shift through a pretty good arc. When the barrel index pin was resting against the right side of the index slot the front sight was aligned. When the index pin was rested against the left side of the index slot the sight was canted left.. I used a small punch and light taps with a small ballpeen hammer to peen the left side of the barrel index pin....test fit...repeat....until the front sight indexed true. I then put some aeroshell 33ms on the receiver threads, re-torqued the barrel nut three times, and finally indexed the nut to the upper receiver gas tube hole. Everything - barrel nut/gas tube/front sight base - looked aligned. The owner then took it to the outdoor range a re-zeroed. The rear sight went from being 2 clicks shy of all the way left to two clicks right of center.....we called it good.
