Palmetto shipping $99 complete lowers...any California alternatives?

[Hefledthescene]

Hey guys,

I just started my first AR build and I'm seeing so many great deals on complete lowers going on.

My plan was to build a budget AR that I'd be ok beating up with 3-gun, courses and training.

A $99 lower like the one palmetto is blowing out would allow me to drop an MBT into it and keep the price under 200, but no one ships to Socal.

Outside of moving to another state, any suggestions on how to, at a minimum, buy a budget lower? Meaning I want it in spec and from a reputable forge but am ok with it not being 100% with the finish work or looking cool. I'm getting quoted $60+ for stripped lowers that are $40ish shipped online. It's maddening and would love to know if there's an alternative. Gun shows?

Any advice from you guys that have already been down this path are appreciated.

[SDnewbieshooter]

Your best bet is going to be buying lowers at a store when they go on sale. With DROS and tax if you can get it under $60 it'd probably be as low as you can go. Then, get everything else online from places like PSA to save money on the build.

[NIKSD]

Wait for Palmeto sale on stripped lowers for $29.99. Buy several at the same time, DROS then at the same time. This is the cheapest per lower cost I know of.
Assemble the lowers yourself, put quality triggers on them. Have fun.

[Hefledthescene]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

Wait for Palmetto sale on stripped lowers for $29.99. Buy several at the same time, DROS then at the same time. This is the cheapest per lower cost I know of.
Assemble the lowers yourself, put quality triggers on them. Have fun.

WHOA. So I can't buy a complete lower, but I can buy stripped online?

There's my amateur hour moment for the day.

[NIKSD]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

WHOA. So I can't buy a complete lower, but I can buy stripped online?

There's my amateur hour moment for the day.

Complete lower has pistol grip and detachable magazine capabilities= assault weapon /unless the upper is rimfire I believe/.
Stripped lower is ok for CA because you can assemble it with either non detachable magazine or with fin pistol grip /or other CA legal BS grips/
In order to spread the paperwork and shipping cost, buy several stripped lowers, they will be delivered to your FFL. Do the paperwork, wait 10 days, pick them up, assemble them.

Make SURE you know how to assemble them in CA legal configuration!!!

[Hefledthescene]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

In order to spread the paperwork and shipping cost, buy several stripped lowers, they will be delivered to your FFL. Do the paperwork, wait 10 days, pick them up, assemble them.

Make SURE you know how to assemble them in CA legal configuration!!!

Got it. Out of curiosity, why multiple lowers? To have an extra? My reasoning is I don't want multiple AR's- I can't shoot more than one at a time. Maybe you know something I don't


And got it- I'm just putting the upper together at the moment, not messing with the lower til I know how to make it legal.

[Scratch705]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

Got it. Out of curiosity, why multiple lowers? To have an extra? My reasoning is I don't want multiple AR's- I can't shoot more than one at a time. Maybe you know something I don't


And got it- I'm just putting the upper together at the moment, not messing with the lower til I know how to make it legal.

he literally just explained why you should buy multiple.

it is to reduce the per unit costs of the DROS and transfer fee.

if you buy one lower, it will be $25 DROS + transfer fee.

if you buy 5 lower, it is still only one $25 DROS + transfer fee (try to find a FFL that doesn't charge at all or barely anything for multiple lowers on one dros)

and you can always sell the stripped lower locally if you really decide that you will never have more than 1 AR. can make back partially some of your costs, especially if you bought the lowers on a crazy sale like $29.99 each

[tomk556]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

Got it. Out of curiosity, why multiple lowers? To have an extra? My reasoning is I don't want multiple AR's- I can't shoot more than one at a time. Maybe you know something I don't


And got it- I'm just putting the upper together at the moment, not messing with the lower til I know how to make it legal.

Buying stripped lowers and having them shipped into CA is tricky to do efficiently. I'd kind of reason that if you're buying one from Palmetto, you may as well spend an extra thirty or sixty for the second. The break down is like this:

Lower 1:
Price: $30.00
Shipping: $9.00
Tax: $3.00
Dealer's Fee in CA: $60
DROS: $25.00
Total: $127.00

With all the overhead, it almost makes no sense to do one... But, if you buy multiples, it's only $10 extra per lower in DROS, and probably $10 extra per lower to the dealer, so the price drops to:

Lower 2 - Infinity:
Price: $30.00
Shipping: $9.00
Tax: $3.00
Dealer's Fee in CA: $10.00
DROS: $10.00
Total: $62.00

So maybe buy two or three? Idk, I've played with this deal before. If you're tight with a dealer, perhaps they'll cut you some slack. Oh, and the shipping of $9.00 for every lower is definitely a thing with Palmetto, so be prepared. Form there, whatever POS lower parts kit is out there to finish it, your compliance costs, and then hopefully buy a good trigger later.

Good luck, you've stumbled into the most frustrating modeling exercise ever.

[Hefledthescene]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I think I'll just get a high quality stripped lower rather than the cheap bulk thing. We're talking about an extra $100 here to get through the red tape, might as well get what I want.

I can live with that.

[ARDude]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

Got it. Out of curiosity, why multiple lowers? To have an extra? My reasoning is I don't want multiple AR's- I can't shoot more than one at a time. Maybe you know something I don't


And got it- I'm just putting the upper together at the moment, not messing with the lower til I know how to make it legal.

How you put together the upper may limit you on how you can build the lower.

[tonyxcom]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

Complete lower has pistol grip and detachable magazine capabilities= assault weapon /unless the upper is rimfire I believe/.

It's not an assault weapon because it isn't centerfire or semi-automatic yet. So buying complete lowers online or in store isn't an issue. I am sure there are some FFL's out there with their heads in their rears though that would say otherwise.

Needless to say, AR lowers, either stripped or complete aren't cost effective to buy online unless it is high end. You are generally better off buying from FFL inventory.

[tomk556]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

Thanks for the feedback guys. I think I'll just get a high quality stripped lower rather than the cheap bulk thing. We're talking about an extra $100 here to get through the red tape, might as well get what I want.

I can live with that.

Well, all well and good either way, but I will add that I really don't think lowers vary much in quality; the finish on the PSA lowers may have been a tad rough, but otherwise I don't doubt they'll function as well as any other forged lower.

You could also keep an eye on the classifieds here. If you're not in a hurry you might find someone dumping something for $50 bucks and then it's just $35 for a PPT.

[tomk556]

Originally Posted by tonyxcom

Needless to say, AR lowers, either stripped or complete aren't cost effective to buy online unless it is high end. You are generally better off buying from FFL inventory.

I think that's probably right. I've gotten shipped lowers out the door for $70, and arguably that's a meaningful savings over a $120 lower plus tax and DROS? I guess what gets me about about buying a lower in a store is that spending ~$150 just seems high. It just sucks that a finished piece of forged 7075 T6 that would/could otherwise be had for $25 bucks ends up costing an extra $50-$100 in bs costs.

[baih777]

Just buy one of these.
https://www.riflegear.com/p-2458-and...ped-lower.aspx

Buy a lower spring kit no trigger.
Buy a nice trigger.
Buy the stock your most comfortable with.

More than $100. But it will be much nicer.

[NIKSD]

Originally Posted by tonyxcom

It's not an assault weapon because it isn't centerfire or semi-automatic yet. So buying complete lowers online or in store isn't an issue. I am sure there are some FFL's out there with their heads in their rears though that would say otherwise.

Needless to say, AR lowers, either stripped or complete aren't cost effective to buy online unless it is high end. You are generally better off buying from FFL inventory.

You are right, I stand corrected /I always think “put it directly with the upper”.../.

OP, as far as function, most if not all lowers /Palmeto, Anderson ... included/ are the same. Trigger, barrel, BCG, optics are where I put my money. I have rifles with $2000 optics, $200 trigger... and cheap Anderson lower. If you are after looks- fancy lower is what you want=$$$

Learn what is featureless rifle and what options you have with fixed magazine rifle.
I was on the same boat “I can shoot only one rifle, why do you want multiple ...”.
Several years later- I have to think before I can answer how many ARs I own.

[Hefledthescene]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

You are right, I stand corrected /I always think “put it directly with the upper”.../.

OP, as far as function, most if not all lowers /Palmeto, Anderson ... included/ are the same. Trigger, barrel, BCG, optics are where I put my money. I have rifles with $2000 optics, $200 trigger... and cheap Anderson lower. If you are after looks- fancy lower is what you want=$$$

Learn what is featureless rifle and what options you have with fixed magazine rifle.
I was on the same boat “I can shoot only one rifle, why do you want multiple ...”.
Several years later- I have to think before I can answer how many ARs I own.

I appreciate all the knowledge. I'll be building an 18" 223 wylde upper, so I'm in the clear for the length laws.

As for the lower, will check out some local stores and pawns to see what they have after reading up on featureless.

[NIKSD]

Featureless- allows you to use detachable magazines
No flash hider, muzzle brake is OK.
No telescoping or folding stock /pin the stock/
No vertical fore grip /angled is ok/
No regular pistol grip /either put fin on it or go to the featureless rifles picture section and choose what you like/

If you go with fixed magazine, all of the above is allowed except magazines with more than 10 round capacity.

Please guys, correct me if I am wrong somewhere!

[Hefledthescene]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

Featureless- allows you to use detachable magazines
No flash hider, muzzle brake is OK.
No telescoping or folding stock /pin the stock/
No vertical fore grip /angled is ok/
No regular pistol grip /either put fin on it or go to the featureless rifles picture section and choose what you like/

If you go with fixed magazine, all of the above is allowed except magazines with more than 10 round capacity.

Please guys, correct me if I am wrong somewhere!

I did some homework and my list is pretty much those 4 things.

-I'll run a compensator. (Resurgent arms)
-I'll run a fixed stock or drill & pin the adjustable stock. (Magpul MOE fixed)
-Don't need a foregrip, so that's easy.
-I'll run a decent grip. (Resurgent arms).

You've been really helpful- thank you!

[jsigone]

I got 4 sequential LMT lowers at $99 each during Turners Easter month long sale.

[jimbo74]

Lmt is top notch.... and your pic looks like a swastika

[Big Nasty]

Turners has the Anderson lower for $49 for their hunters ad July 19-25.
You can buy up to 4-5 lowers and DROS them together for $35 total I believe.

Every couple of months , Turner’s has them for $39.
That’s when I buy a few of them.

Good luck with your build.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[M76]

Buy a stripped lower, lower parts kits, buffer tube/stock and build it yourself;
it will be more gratifying, and paying the LGS shipping cost on complete lower
makes no sense given your budget. Just my two cents, good luck w/ build.

[Drew Eckhardt]

Originally Posted by NIKSD

Complete lower has pistol grip and detachable magazine capabilities= assault weapon /unless the upper is rimfire I believe/.

No. A complete lower by itself is not semiautomatic, not centerfire, and not an assault weapon.

PC 30515

(a) Notwithstanding Section 30510, “assault weapon” also means any of the following:
(1) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that does not have a fixed magazine but has any one of the following:

11 CCR 5460

The definitions of terms in section 5471 of this chapter shall apply to the identification of assault weapons pursuant to Penal Code section 30515.

11 CCR 5471(hh)

(hh) “Semiautomatic” means a firearm functionally able to fire a single cartridge, eject the empty case, and reload the chamber each time the trigger is pulled and released. Further, certain necessary mechanical parts that will allow a firearm to function in a semiautomatic nature must be present for a weapon to be deemed semiautomatic. A weapon clearly designed to be semiautomatic but lacking a firing pin, bolt carrier, gas tube, or some other crucial part of the firearm is not semiautomatic for purposes of Penal Code sections 30515, 30600, 30605(a), and 30900.
...
(3) With regards to an AR-15 style firearm, if a complete upper receiver and a complete lower receiver are completely detached from one another, but still in the possession or under the custody or control of the same person, the firearm is not a semiautomatic firearm.

Obviously, people are free to exercise an abundance of caution with respect to current and future California firearms laws. CDNN won't sell semiautomatic parts to California period. Fulton Armory used to ship bullet buttoned lowers with a 10 round magazine preinstalled. PSA can do what they want.

[tomk556]

Originally Posted by Big Nasty

Turners has the Anderson lower for $49 for their hunters ad July 19-25.
You can buy up to 4-5 lowers and DROS them together for $35 total I believe.

Every couple of months , Turner’s has them for $39.
That’s when I buy a few of them.

Good luck with your build.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dang, if you can do one DROS cost for all five, that would be worth it. I've always had to pay additional $10 for the second receiver on... I'll have to dig into that further.

[Drew Eckhardt]

Originally Posted by Hefledthescene

Got it. Out of curiosity, why multiple lowers? To have an extra? My reasoning is I don't want multiple AR's- I can't shoot more than one at a time. Maybe you know something I don't

First you buy one AR-15 because they're neat. That's how it starts.

Then you want one setup for NRA/CMP high power rifle competition. Rifle stock, 4.5 pound 2-stage trigger, maybe some lead weights.

Then you need one in 9mm to shoot at indoor ranges which don't allow rifle cartridges, for steel targets at short range, pistol caliber carbine competition, etc. Leaving a magazine block and pistol buffer in a lower is more convenient than just swapping uppers.

One of your friends shoots a pig, you get to thinking wild boar is very tasty (Bacon!), and build the lightest practical AR in 6.5 Grendel. Fly weight fixed stock, skeletonized carbon fiber pistol grip, maybe a magnesium lower...

Then some evil legislators reclassify your ARs as "assault weapons." You keep those lowers because the next round will be worse, and assemble four more compliant ones.

You can't replace registered assault weapons, whatever you own is a life time supply, and you should buy spares for yours before the new law goes into effect in case they're stolen, confiscated, damaged, or lost in a tragic boating accident.

That's 12. Just like Doritos you can't have just one.

[jsigone]

Originally Posted by jimbo74

Lmt is top notch.... and your pic looks like a swastika

noted, I should take one out to look like a ninja star

[Jimi Jah]

PSA's company policy: No completed lowers or rifles sold to California. You must buy the parts. I've still waiting for the Space Rider lower to come back.

[audiophil2]

Originally Posted by Jimi Jah

PSA's company policy: No completed lowers or rifles sold to California. You must buy the parts. I've still waiting for the Space Rider lower to come back.

or buy from me