Gunsmithing Armorers kits

[disla82]

Good day all,

I was looking for some recommendations on a armorers kit for ar platforms and basic hand gun parts installation. I saw the avid one online and a few others. However it seems that those kits have crappy parts. What do yall say?

 

[disla82]

I am no armorer just trying to do some ar lwer assembly and swap a few parts on my pistols. Nothing to crazy

 

[sam4886]

I've got some real avid tools that are good quality. I'd say they are slightly better than the few wheeler things I've got. For the hobbyist, I'm sure that real avid kit is fine.

 

[disla82]

I've got some real avid tools that are good quality. I'd say they are slightly better than the few wheeler things I've got. For the hobbyist, I'm sure that real avid kit is fine.

Thanks for the reply man. I am probably going to buy avid ar armorers kit.

 

[chongoMT]

Look at Brownells for the full kits, stress on the "look" part. After you see what all the gadgets are, take inventory of what you already have. You probably don't need a Brownells vice and pliers and hammer, some of that may already be in your toolbox or on a bench. Some of the punches and basic tools can be sourced cheap at Harbor Freight or online sellers of chinesium.

Hockey pucks and pieces of horse stall mat make good alternatives to the Armorers blocks sold as is.

Tools that I do not diy are roll pin starter/holder punches, Bolt Catch punch and very small punches for say the gas tube.

I hope that helps, reach out if you have questions about specific tools.

 

[Carlos Danger]

Have the AVID kit. I'm a beginner. Don't use all the tools but pleased so far.

 

[FuhQ]

Avid makes some decent stuff. I have their reaction rod for building uppers, and it works great. Very high quality. And if you're building uppers, or swapping muzzle devices, or anything like that a lot, it's an invaluable tool.

Grace USA makes the best punches, hammers, and screwdrivers for gunsmithing, IMO.

The best armorer's wrench I've ever used was the Magpul armorer's wrench. It's worth the money. I'm glad I bought one years ago, it's been an essential tool on many occasions because of the strength, leverage, design, and that it's made of solid steel. Definitely recommend getting one of these.

Also, get yourself a good inch-pound torque wrench. I use a Wheeler FAT Wrench. Also highly recommended.

 

[gunsnjeeps]

I built my tools from Brownell's list for their AR tool kit. Some stuff I bought from them, some I bought local. Hammers for instance can be bought front third or less of Brownell's price. HF has a decent ball peen set. Some of my stuff is Craftsman from when they were good tools. The AVID stuff looks ok, I'd try some of it. If I can find my source list I'll post it.

 

[E. Bryant]

My preference is to have a handful of required platform-specific items (barrel nut and action wrenches, reaction rods, etc.), and buy complete sets of tools such as pin punches, hex keys, screwdrivers, and what-not. Generally speaking, I'm not a huge fan of "armorer's kits".

 

[rafiki76]

I learned from when I was a mechanic that sets are generally more expensive and lower quality. I piece together what I would need for each project, platform and go from there. For example getting Proto punches instead of a set from PSA or something.