12/15/2018 Assemble an AR15 lower | AR15 How To

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Assemble an AR15 Lower

The easiest way to get all the parts for a lower assembly, or at least most of the parts, is
to buy a Lower Parts Kit.

First off a list tools to use when putting together an ar15 lower.

Hammer
Vice Grips
Electrical Tape
Roll Pin Punch set
AR15 Pivot Pin Installation Tool
Screwdriver

Now to assemble, step by step…

1. First lets put in the magazine catch.  This is done by rst taking the magazine catch
like this and placing it into the lower receiver:

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Flip over the lower and put the magazine catch spring and magazine catch button:

Now ip over the lower, while making sure the button stays in the hole, you will have to
push it in and hold it there with your nger.  You will want to push the button as much as
you can so that you can spin the other end of the magazine catch to twist it in.  When
you twist on the catch you want to keep twisting until either the threads of the

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magazine catch reach the end of the button, or until you can no longer rotate the
magazine catch even when pushing in the button as much as it will go.

2. Now to assemble the bolt catch.  Start by taping off around the area, this protects the
lower from scratches and marks.  There are two ways to install the roll pin for the bolt
catch, you can use punch tools, or you can use vice grips, this time we are going to use
vice grips so you want to tape them up too.

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Now take the roll pin that will be used to hold the bolt catch in place and just start it so it
is only in one side and still allows for the bolt catch to be put into place.  This is done with
the vice grips, and just lightly squeezing them so the roll pin starts to go in, enough to
hold itself in place.

Now you want to take the bolt catch detent spring, in a lower parts kit there are two
small springs that are about the same size, one has a bigger end on one side, this is not

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the correct spring.  The bolt catch detent spring is straight.  You will take this spring and
connect it with the bolt catch detent, the spring slips over the detent.

Now insert them into the lower.

Now you will be putting the bolt catch in place as you also have the vice grips ready to
push the roll pin into place.

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3. Now for the pivot pin, sometimes called the front take down pin.  For this I really
recommend using a pivot pin detent installation tool because it helps prevent loosing
the detent and spring, which are very small and dif cult to nd when shot across the
room – trust me…  You rst slide the tool in and align the hole with the hole for the
spring at the front of the lower receiver, like in the picture.

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Now you slide the pivot pin spring into the aligned hole of the tool and the lower
receiver, then place in the detent.  You will want to use something like a drill bit or allen
wrench to push the detent far enough in that you can twist the pivot pin detent
installation tool enough to keep the detent and spring in place.

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Now you will take the pivot pin, align it up with the pivot pin installation tool and slowly
and carefully push the pin in and the tool out.  You will want to do this with pressure on
the pivot pin because when the spring comes loose of the tool and before the pin is
sliding in the hole there will be enough pressure that if you are not ready you could loose
the spring and detent.  I also recommend doing this step with a hand or towel or
something over the pivot pin area to catch the spring and detent if they get loose and y

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out.  You will know the pivot pin is in enough when there is a click, you may want to
rotate the pin to make sure the detent seats itself in the groove of the pivot pin.

4. The trigger assembly and selector switch assembly will be next.  Start with installing
the springs on the trigger.  The trigger disconnector spring is the small spring that has
one end bigger than the other, the bigger end is what goes in the hole in the trigger.  The
trigger spring is installed like in the picture below.

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Before moving on, it is time to put in the selector switch, this is easiest before the trigger
pins are in place.  When installing it you may have to twist it around a little to get it
through both holes and aligned for the trigger.  The detent and spring to hold this in
place and allow for the switch is installed when you install pistol grip, which will be done
on another step.

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Now take the disconnector, it goes in the groove of the trigger.  Then take a trigger pin
and install it through the lower receiver, through the trigger, and through the
disconnector.  In this case it doesn’t matter what side you start on and what end of the
pin goes in rst – this is from a standard trigger from a lower parts kit.

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When installing the trigger pin you must push down on the disconnector to make sure
it’s hole aligns with the receiver and trigger holes, then push the pin in until it clicks into
place.  You may have to use a punch tool, I nd a at head screw driver with electrical
tape wrapped on it can be used to push this into place.

Now get the hammer and hammer spring together, put them together like in the picture. 
make sure they are the correct way, I once helped x a friends AR15 after he payed a

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professional Gunsmith to assemble it only to nd they installed the trigger springs

backwards so his hammer wasn’t falling hard enough to light the primers. I have played
around with the spring both ways though and on match ammo in my 6.5 Grendel the
reversed spring does work quite nicely.

Install the hammer assembly into the lower receiver, be sure the spring ends go over the
trigger pin, there is a notch for one of the two to rest in to keep that pin from sliding out. 
You will want to push the hammer down in place to align the holes for the hammer pin to
go in, then install the hammer pin until it clicks into place, again a electrical tape
wrapped at head screwdriver can be of use with this.

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5. Installing the Ar15 pistol grip, rst you put in the selector switch detent.

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You will want to carefully put the spring into the pistol grip hole and be careful as you
slide on the pistol grip and allow the spring to slide into the hole of the receiver.  Do this
carefully as you put it all the way in place so that it does not bend the selector switch
detent spring.

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Now take the pistol grip screw and washer and tighten down the grip all the way.  These
parts were from a DPMS Lower Parts Kit.

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6.  Installing the standard trigger guard.  One end of the standard trigger guard is held in
place by a spring and detent that comes setup on a standard guard, just snap it into
place, this end goes in place on the side that only has a hole on one side of the receiver. 
Since the other end is held on with a roll pin we start by aligning the hole on the trigger
guard and push it in all the way using our taped up vice grips.

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7.  Installing the standard A2 stock.  You start with the buffer tube, and screw it in part
way onto the lower receiver.

Now take the buffer detent and spring, the detent slides over the spring and is installed
in the lower receiver, the buffer tube is then screwed on enough to hold the detent and
spring in.

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Now you will hold down the buffer detent and screw on the buffer tube the rest of the
way.

Now you can install the buffer spring and buffer.  You do this by using our tape wrapped
screw driver to hold the detent down, rst slide the spring in (make sure the hammer is
back so the buffer can clear it), then put the buffer in sliding it in past the detent and
then releasing the detent to hold it in place.

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Now before we install the stock, install the rear take down pin, detent, and spring – the
spring and detent are held in by the stock.

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Now slide on the stock and be careful, you don’t want to bend the take down pin detent
sping as you slide it on.  The stock has a knob that sits in the receiver.

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Now use the screw to attach the buttstock to the buffer tube.

The lower Receiver is now complete!

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My 6.5 Grendel AR15 Build

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