New Frontier Lower review

[black2002ls]

Not sure if this should be here, or in the Build forum. I finally picked up my New Frontier poly lower from Jeff today. HUGE thanks to him for allowing me to stop by on a Sunday and pick it up while I was on that side of the world.

My plan for this lower is to do a pistol build. Not sure what caliber I will go with yet.

I plan to give a detailed build up of the lower using a Rock River Arms parts kit, I've heard of issues with the take down pins, as well as a possibility of the trigger binding and not resetting itself. I plan to show any issues that need to be addressed while assembling one of these.

First impression

It seems much lighter than the forged aluminum one my rifle is built on (I know, that should be a given). I don't have a stripped lower to weigh, maybe someone here who has one can get us a weight on it and I will weigh this one tomorrow and we can see exactly how much lighter it is. It looks to have a pretty good "finish" on it, there is a slight texture to the exterior, but I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing. It looks as though the pieces of their mold don't line up perfectly. There also appears to be some flash (excess plastic from mold seams) that will need to be cleaned up. I plan to assemble the lower, address any issues, disassemble, and then duracoat it OD green. I will get some pictures up tomorrow morning. It has been a LONG weekend.

[Fry86]

I have one of these lowers, I had to file the Mag release down some, and the take down detents a little as well. Also take a 3/8 inch drill bit for the selector switch. I'm very happy with it so far just waiting for it's upper to come in from psa!

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[Ruffdaddy]

Same here, most dims are on the low side so a little filing, reaming, polishing or whatever will be required. Everything fits really tight...and you can see some mold flashing as well. But for the price right now...what do you expect?

[black2002ls]

Thanks for the heads up guys. I will need to do the set screw mod for the rear take down pin detent. Hopefully I can get good enough pictures of all of the small issues so that anyone looking to buy one knows what to expect.

What all is needed for the set screw mod?

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[Ruffdaddy]

Is the polymer tough enough to take a tap?

[Chili]

I will weigh this one tomorrow and we can see exactly how much lighter it is.

Just weighed my New Frontier lower, it's 4.7 ounces.

[black2002ls]

Is the polymer tough enough to take a tap?

It should be.

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[black2002ls]

Just weighed my New Frontier lower, it's 4.7 ounces.

Awesome, anyone have a stripped aluminum one they can weigh?

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[black2002ls]

I snapped a couple of pictures before heading to work to show the starting point



Here you can see some of the mold flashing



You can see the alignment issue here inder the front takedown pin. All of the important areas look fine though






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[Fry86]

Another problem I have is my Mag release button is not flush at all. I can't screw it in anymore every so often it will spin and keep the lever from going in place correctly. Any one else has this issue? I to have wondered if you can tap the polymer safely.

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[black2002ls]

Another problem I have is my Mag release button is not flush at all. I can't screw it in anymore every so often it will spin and keep the lever from going in place correctly. Any one else has this issue? I to have wondered if you can tap the polymer safely.

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Can you tell where the release is catching?

As for tapping the receiver, I don't think it will be a huge issue. I don't feel like there will be enough tension on the threads to cause the spring to force the set screw out of the receiver.

[Fry86]

On the out side of the receiver. I'll take a pic when I get home. I used a psa lpk so it should be quality stuff. It's just like the button isn't far enough down. It catches and holds the mags fine and will release every time but every 5th drop or so it'll get stuck on the outside

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[black2002ls]

On the out side of the receiver. I'll take a pic when I get home. I used a psa lpk so it should be quality stuff. It's just like the button isn't far enough down. It catches and holds the mags fine and will release every time but every 5th drop or so it'll get stuck on the outside

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I dry fitted mine while on lunch, mine seems like the catch lever wont go all of the way into the receiver and is binding

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[BigTex71]

I dry fitted mine while on lunch, mine seems like the catch lever wont go all of the way into the receiver and is binding

I had to take a small file and razor to this same area for my catch to work properly. After that and a little break in, the mag release has been working fine.

[Fry86]

I dry fitted mine while on lunch, mine seems like the catch lever wont go all of the way into the receiver and is binding

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I used a dremel and a grinding stone and went around it until it fit stopping often to check as to not remove to much.

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