Normal wear??? - Printable Version

Normal wear??? - Printable Version

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Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-06-2011

Hey fella, this is my first AR-15 style firearm. I have a Les Baer Super Varmiter and now have about 1000 rounds through it. I religiously clean it after going to the range. After my last outing i broke it down and it appears I now have some wear on the upper, I don't know if it is from the bolt or the carrier as neither of them are marked in any way. The wear presents itself as three small spots where the finish on the aluminum is gone, two of the spots you can't feel with your finger and one that feels a little rough at the touch. Is this something that is normal for AT-15s or is this a sign of something I need to look into.

Thanks for any input.

Normal wear??? - LRS_Ranger - 07-06-2011

That's pretty hard to diagnose without knowing where the wear is.. can you describe it or post a picture or 2? After 1000 rounds downrange you should be seeing some wear on the moving parts. This is normal, and simply means your rifle is getting broken in. Gouging or metal flakes is a different issue.

-LRS

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-06-2011

LRS_Ranger Wrote:That's pretty hard to diagnose without knowing where the wear is.. can you describe it or post a picture or 2? After 1000 rounds downrange you should be seeing some wear on the moving parts. This is normal, and simply means your rifle is getting broken in. Gouging or metal flakes is a different issue.

-LRS

I wish I could post pics, but my computer is broken and I can't figure out how to do it with my phone.

The wear appears to be rub marks, there is definitely no gouges or metal flakes missing. One rub mark is slightly rough the other two are smooth. They are at the top of the upper on the edge of the trough the charging handle rides in and where the gas tube comes out.

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-06-2011

[Image: 295c59db-prof.jpg]

Normal wear??? - LRS_Ranger - 07-06-2011

It sounds to me like natural wear...

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-06-2011

LRS_Ranger Wrote:It sounds to me like natural wear...

I am going to try and post some pics again tonight.

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-07-2011

[Image: ?action=295c59db-orig.jpg]

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-07-2011

[Image: 295c59db-orig.jpg]

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-07-2011

[Image: 3f044725-orig.jpg]

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-07-2011

Finallyly I figured out how to post pics. Here you can see my wear or worry spots. In the first pics you can see the spot just to the right of the gas tube. In the second pic you can see a couple spots on the right hand side of the upper. The spot in the first pic is the one that is rough to the touch.

Normal wear??? - LRRPF52 - 07-07-2011

Nimrod,

Is it a Les Baer complete upper, with a Young's bolt carrier? Post a pic of the bolt carrier, with focus on the top raceways. That looks a little unusual to me. If there are machine marks on the raceways, and you have an over-size bolt carrier, it could cause that. I've heard of people having problems with some non-standard bolt carriers before, with unusual wear on the upper.

Normal wear that will expose the aluminum in your upper is inside the cam pin slot, where the cam pin articulates against the semi-circular slot right near the end of the gas tube. It is inconsequential, and visible in the pics of your upper.

If you look at the front of the cam pin recess, you see abnormal wear that appears rough in texture in the pics. My immediate suspicions is of an over-sized "National Match" bolt carrier, which is built on the idea that making a tighter bolt carrier fit will result in a more accurate concentric alignment of the bolt, firing pin hole, etc., but these types of carriers have had issues with tolerance excess, and even sluggish cycling.

Just my initial reaction...could be high resolution images and blown-up pics, but that's my gut feeling. I could be totally wrong.

LRRPF52

Normal wear??? - GregP42 - 07-07-2011

Question,

Is that a dent in the gas tube?? Or is it worn away there?? Could the gas tube not be in straight? I have no idea about the other marks, but I did notice that in the picture.

Greg

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-07-2011

It is a Les Baer upper and a Les Baer National Match carrier, can't post a pick of the carrier, I won't be home for two weeks.

I did not notice anything out of place with the gas tube, but now I see it it the pic, I think it is just the pic.

I am going to send the pics to Les, he will know what is going on probably.

Normal wear??? - LRS_Ranger - 07-07-2011

Hmm... Both marks are along where the upper right side of the carrier rides along the inside of the reciever. Honestly, as long as there are no metal flakes, I wouldn't sweat it. I would look for wear marks on the bolt carrier and cam pin to see what is rubbing up against the reciever, but I'll bet you will see it even out and not get much bigger.

I just pullet my 6.5 upper out of the safe and looked at it. It has a similar wear spot to the one yours has by the gas tube. I imagine that has something to do with the cam pin, but since it runs like a swiss watch and there aren't any metal shavings, I just give it a squirt of oil and go. Let us know if it gets any worse, or you notice anything unusual when cycling the weapon...

Normal wear??? - Nimrod - 07-08-2011

I spoke with Les Baer about it today and he told right where my wear spots are. He said it is completely normal an expected, and like Ranger said it will even out and stop, so I backed away from the edge of the cliff, ha ha.