choosing a upper for 22lr

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mac1911

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After a unsuccesful attempt at getting a 22lr group buy going I have come to decideing on the choice
#1 http://www.model1sales.com/item-det...varm2022lr.gif&CFID=54173161&CFTOKEN=65863982

OR
#2 http://www.gunkings.com/index.php?m...ducts_id=583&zenid=2i0p6ggg1ce5t4abkk9qomubk4
OR this model

http://www.gunkings.com/index.php?m...ducts_id=582&zenid=2i0p6ggg1ce5t4abkk9qomubk4

I have decided not to go with spikes for 2 reasons. Price, lack of at least 1 mag with their upper and after going through their web site build your AR 22lr upper its to costly.

Anyone one have input on these?
Tactical solutions "lite" model has aluminum barrel with a metal sleeve. Is this new tech or something I just not have seen yet??
 
I have the Model 1 and I'm pleased with the upper shoots well and will function with either Black Dog or the Ciener mags. Had some problems early on with ammo issues but after a quick going over with a cratex stick MANUALLY the issues went away. I can say that this unit does not like any kind of standard velocity ammo. It will eat CCI hv and Federal bulk pack till the cows come home. Down side the upper with bull barrel is heavy. I did replace the hammer spring with the one that Model 1 provided but this is set up as a dedicated unit so that is no big deal to me.
 
+1 on the Model 1 upper. Mine needs CCI Blazers for 100% reliability. The 20 inch fluted bull barrel is a little heavy so I removed the gas block which lightened the muzzle quite a bit. I also rfeplaced the Ciener extractor with a Black Dog unit which greatly improved the extraction of the occasional (rare) dud. I also added a Black Dog firing pin to improve ignition.
 
I am starting to rule out model 1, I do not want to spend additional money to make it better after I get it. I want it to work from the start.
 
They sell the dedicated .22 uppers as well as the conversion kits. So if you already had one of their conversion kits you would only need their dedicated .22 chamber adapter and their upper to make a dedicated .22 upper. (since you already have the bolt)
 
Confused to why you would need a chamber adapter for their upper(CMMG) bshouldnt it be chambered for 22lr already? I have to call them??????
 
mac1911 said:
I am starting to rule out model 1, I do not want to spend additional money to make it better after I get it. I want it to work from the start.
Click to expand...

None of these uppers may work from the start. 22 LR Uppers are notoriously ammo sensitive, so you have to find out what works in your upper. My Model 1 upper is as reliable as any other I have tried. The mods I referred to were not absolutely necessary and quite cheap, about $20.00.

I tried the Tactical Solutions upper and found it to be light (aluminum barrel sleeve) and extremely accurate. Also, the bolt which is made in house, is a work of art. I had ejection problems which might have been solved with another brand of ammo, but the real problem was that this unit would not reliably extract an unfired round. Their tech support suggested that I hold the AR so that the ejection port was facing down and shake the rifle to dump the round. I then explained that the upper would be used in matches and training classes where it was absolutely necessary that the gun be cleared without any moving and shaking.

The Tactical Solutions people accepted the upper as a return and refunded my purchase price. They were extremely helpful and a delight to do busines with. I am still impressed with their upper; you have to see the bolt. It is based on the Ciener design, but much improved and made out of SS. If they can improve the reliability, this could be one of the best uppers on the market.
 
I have a Spikes Tactical M4 .22lr upper on order. These seem to have a good reputation in some corners. I stayed away from the target quality upper and went with their standard barrel.

SWAT magazine has a very complimentary article on these in their Nov 2009 issue which just arrived. Many people (justifiably) poo-poo a lot of gun mags articles but Rich Lucibella seems to aim for and achieve a higher standard of honesty in his field tests. I'll know shortly I hope.
 
mac1911 said:
Confused to why you would need a chamber adapter for their upper(CMMG) bshouldnt it be chambered for 22lr already? I have to call them??????
Click to expand...

If you buy the dedicated upper it will come ready to go.

Some people have already had bought there conversion kit, before they had a dedicated upper available, which replaces you standard AR BCG to allow you to shoot .22lr out of your 5.56 barreled upper. Now lets say you wanted to buy a dedicated .22lr you would get just the upper and a chamber adapter, since you already have their .22lr BCG. That is why if you click on delete conversion (under the mag option) they will deduct $150 off the price.

Hopefully I'm not confusing you more. I've only heard good things about their uppers as well as Spike's.
 
If you have CMMG BCG conversion, why on earth do you need a chamber adapter when you purchase just the 22lr upper with out BCG. I tried to call them but the phone was busy in the time I had on break yesterday to call.
 
mac1911 said:
If you have CMMG BCG conversion, why on earth do you need a chamber adapter when you purchase just the 22lr upper with out BCG. I tried to call them but the phone was busy in the time I had on break yesterday to call.
Click to expand...

The .22lr conversion has the long sleeve type adapter on the end of the of the bolt to adapt the .22lr kit to a 5.56/.223 barrel. The dedicated bolt doesn't have one, it has the dedicated chamber adapter. Scroll down and you'll see the differences between the two adapters, they are the last 2 pictures on the page. The .22lr adapter is for a 5.56 barrel and the dedicated adapter is for the .22lr dedicated barrel http://cmmginc.secure-mall.com/shop/?cart=1890105&cat=81&. The dedicated adapter is more of a collar with a feed ramp and the "kit adapter" is more of a sleeve that gets inserted into the 5.56 barrel.

Not to put any pressure on, I just saw that gunkings has the Tac-Sol M4 upper on sale for $499 with one mag and free shipping this weekend only http://www.gunkings.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=81&products_id=582&zenid=o69oar4c0sqdi630ogaps3oka5
 
Romokid, I have been trying to give my money to someone local SE part of mass for a 22 dedicated upper. Apparently no one is interested in 22lr dedicated uppers or there is no profit margin. I have been in all the local FFL in my area. "can I help you" yes im looking for a 22lr upper. "dont have those" end of discussion. Not a single one said I can order you one or do you know which one you want ect ect. I have been thinking of the gunkings. deals. This guy gets big credits on AR15.com and his prices along with free shipping on alot of his items makes it a go to place.

Also I have made my mind up Gunkings got my $$$ for a tacsol upper. I went with the light model. I plan on putting a scope on this unit.
 
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I always try to give my money to local FFLs. If they stock it or not is not a issue to me. Depending on my want vs need vs man thats cool got to have it mind set that I am in.
I have had the chance to shoot a few 22lr uppers. A older colt unit , oly arms which the owner recomended against buying.

For a side note. When I clicked on the larger image for the Tacsol lite upper I see its mounted to a spikes lower[grin]
 
The one on order will have a protective cap, when it comes in. I will have a break or the protective cap pin/welded.
 
Congrats on you purchase. I got one from Model 1 but have yet found the time to be able to go out and play with it. (2 boys playing hockey doesn't leave too much free time lately) When I saw the one at Gunkings I was tempted to buy a second dedicated .22lr. BRD is very hard to control. Don't forget to post pics when you get it in.
 
DSC00032.jpg

DSC00031.jpg


So its in. TacSol 22AR LT, mounted to my Stag lower. Also mounted until I decide what I want for optics. Is my tasco propoint that I have had for ever and has been monted to just about every gun I own. Ruger pistol, shotgun, AK AR........
 
little range report

100_1130a.jpg

100_1129a.jpg

100_1127.jpg


pic 1&2 are of FTF I had with the unit. They appear to flip up 90% and hang up between the charge handle and bolt. I had a few of these. Most with the CCI mini mags. Other than that the gun functioned fine with the 4 types of ammo.

Mind you this was a function test only. Done @ 50' indoor range my aim point was the small black circles at the bottom of the paper. Shot sitting down and elbows on the bench. Red dot was not zero. I just adjust it to shoot lower on the 2nd and 4th batch
Sorry for the chicken scratch I do not usually test anything. I hand a jumbo sharpie and was difficult to write. anyhows all ammo was 40 grain standard velocity
#1 CCI blaser 1235fps
#2 Aguila super xtra
#3 Centerion target from the CMP 5k rounds. Im so glad this stuff function in this
#4 CCI mini mags 1235fps. These really opened up???

I then moved to the out door range tossed some clay target on the 100y burm. aimed about a 1" low and started smashing clays. What I like to do. I also brought along my steel spinner. The CCI minimags gave me the most problems and also took more shots to hit the clays. All in all im happy aprox 250 rounds through it. The last 2 mags I got 5 stove pipe jams, but it was getting a tad dirty by then. I also was shooting the last 50 rounds of the CCI blaser ammo
 
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According to the MFR these uppers are supposed to work best with Federal brown box bulk pack ammo.
 
I have not seen any fed bulk packs in, jeez feels like over a year now. I shot What I have on hand.
 
Gammon, Tactical solutions web site says CCI mini mags. The directions I recieved with the unit says tested with CCI blaser and American eagle HV ammo. hmmm hmmm
I think just about anything above 1200fps should do it.
 
PS Anything over 1200 fps may not be the solution. I have a Model 1 upper that is 100% reliable with CCI Blazers. Unable to find any Blazers, I tried some CCI Stinger Mini Mags, advertised at 1240 fps. They wouldn't even feed reliably. These 22 LR uppers can be very finicky.
 
funny, thing ammo. The CCI minimags gave me the failure to feeds I have posted above
5 out fifty did this. The cci blazers began to stove pipe at the end of my 250round shooying spree. It was pretty dirty by then..........the unit cleaned up easy and fast.
 

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