My poor back... an AR-180B story
My back is killing me because I just spent about a half hour trying to learn how to detail strip my AR-180B without instructions because they apparently don't exist on the internet and the stupid booklet doesn't tell you how to take down the lower half. Actually that doesn't explain the back thing... my back hurts because I did it hunched over on my couch with the rifle on my knees and tools in my lap, like almost all gun work I do. I really need to build a work table.
The secret to a detail strip lies in the e-clips. There are two larger pins that are held in place by e-clips, the semi-circular things on the small ends of the pins; one allows you to separate the upper and lower, and the other allows you to remove the trigger group. You get said e-clips off by pushing on both ends of the C (you'll see the E in e-clip when you get it off) with paperclips or punches equally. Pretty simple, really. I'm not sure how strong a point in the design they are if you take the rifle apart a lot, but I suppose we'll see in time. Maybe I'll stress test them by detail stripping it at least once after every firing session and get back to you in, oh, a couple years. I'm sure they'll last a longish time, but they might not last decades like many gun parts do.
I'm not going to talk about the rest of the rifle because I seriously doubt anyone reading this owns one, but I'm going to put together a detailed instruction sheet with photos and host it on my main server. I figure it's about time someone ponied up and got the info out there, though learning to do it yourself is a great exercise in mechanics and learning the mistakes not to make--like what parts to hold down when you remove a pin so they don't go flying across the room or smash a finger when a spring is let loose.
So after I wrote that, I figured hey why not put in that Rock River NM trigger group I have laying around? Shoot me now. It's in, but putting the hammer in is a fucking nightmare and hell on my fingers. That alone took at least 25 minutes. Argh. This detail strip I also launched several parts like both e-clips and the bolt catch and the spring that launched it. That last one came about two inches from hitting the glass of my TV at full speed... this is why my work table will include a plywood three walled part trap. I've dinged my ceiling and walls a half dozen times launching recoil spring plugs from my 1911, too.
I'm not sure I like the trigger. There's an awful lot of take-up; I know it's a two-stage trigger--and I've never experienced a two-stage trigger before so maybe this is normal--but it feels weird. The break is very clean and relatively light, though, so I'll probably leave it in, at least until I take it shooting once or twice.
