.22 ar upper build question

[vince1015]

I'm building a .22 AR and this is my first AR build so I'm not entirely familiar with the components, but I am getting there. I have the lower set up, and now I'm trying to find a cheap but reliable solution for the upper. I'm looking into piecing together a custom build and need some info on the bolt group. I know that in a 5.56 AR you have a bolt, and a carrier. But all I can find on a .22 bolt is just the "bolt assembly" from Palmetto

http://palmettostatearmory.com/index.php/ar-15-05/conversion-kits/cmmg-ss-bolt-assembly-22ba492.html

Is this an entire bcg? And If I need a carrier, and this doesn't have one, anyone know a good spot to find one?

Thanks for the help.

[B!ngo]

I'm not an expert here but I went through a similar process a year back or so. I wanted a reasonable clone of my left handed Stag 3G (L) but chambered in .22LR. After reading about conversion kits, I abandoned that path because the barrel twist rate of a .223 is so different (my 3G is 1:8) than a barrel dedicated to .22LR use (about 1:16 or so). So the bullet shot through a .223 barrel doesn't really stabilize properly. It's probably fine for occasional use but I really wanted a proper .22LR rifle.
I ended up buying a complete polymer receiver and a CMMG upper configured for left handed shooting and chambered in .22LR.
Definitely a pricier way to go, but I now have a separate receiver that I 'could' build in to a more conventional AR/MR rifle but I will likely always keep it as a .22.
B

[vince1015]

Yea that's exactly what I'm trying to do. Just build a dedicated .22 upper for my AR. It looks like, if this bolt is complete with the carrier, that I will come in at about $350 which is as cheap as a cmmg upper and far less than tac sol or spikes. I can get the barrel for about $130 and a blemish upper for about $100. Dunno whether I'd need some kinds of special delta ring, and I have a red dot laying around, so I'd save money from not needing to buy optics.

[vince1015]

Anybody have any advice? I have selected this bolt, a loaded upper and a .22 barrel. Is that going to be everything I need for a .22 AR upper?

[Chaos47]

No that is not the correct bolt only part of one.
You need a whole 22LR conversion like this:

http://palmettostatearmory.com/index.php/ar-15-05/conversion-kits/cmmg-alpha-black-phosphate-w-25-rou-22ba6fd.html

But that ones has a 25 round magazine so you will need to find one with a 10 round magazine.

[vince1015]

Oh wow that's a bit pricey. I could get an entire .22 or two 5.56 bolt groups for that price. If I need the carrier, do you know where I could find one for the bolt I found? Coudnt imagine someone sells a bolt which can't be used without the carrier, and nobody makes the carrier.

[Chaos47]

In this case I wouldn't piece it all together.
Heres the other parts PSA sell but it doesn't look like all the parts you would need

http://palmettostatearmory.com/index.php/ar-15-05/conversion-kits.html

[kkp]

You need a .22lr barrel and the full bolt kit:

Bolt Kit (10 round version, of course):

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/bolt-parts/caliber-conversion-kits/ar-15-22-lr-conversion-kits-prod54549.aspx

Barrel:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/barrel-parts/rifle-barrels/ar-15-m16-dedicated-22-lr-barrel-prod42099.aspx

Otherwise, assembly should be just like any other AR upper, except with .22lr you don't need a gas tube.

[nick]

CMMG makes pretty good .22 uppers. They show them out-of-stock, but they shipped mine a couple of weeks after I placed the order. It's waiting for me now

[vince1015]

Thanks for the responses guys. Sounds like it will be cheaper just to grab a complete upper. I was set on the chiappa, I know people have had some complaints but a friend has one and he's had no issues. Thought I might be able to build my own for not much more but it's not looking that way. Cmmg is about $380 and the chiappa, can be had for $270. Oh well, hopefully I don't get a dud. Was looking for used but for some reason people are asking over new retail for their used uppers...not sure what's up with that. I guess it's like the guys you see on craigslist selling their 5yr old LCD tv for $300.

[Chaos47]

You need a .22lr barrel and the full bolt kit:

Bolt Kit (10 round version, of course):

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/bolt-parts/caliber-conversion-kits/ar-15-22-lr-conversion-kits-prod54549.aspx

Barrel:

http://www.brownells.com/rifle-parts/barrel-parts/rifle-barrels/ar-15-m16-dedicated-22-lr-barrel-prod42099.aspx

Otherwise, assembly should be just like any other AR upper, except with .22lr you don't need a gas tube.

You do not need a 22LR barrel the whole point of these is you fire them thru .223/5.56 barrels thats why they are conversions.

[kkp]

You do not need a 22LR barrel the whole point of these is you fire them thru .223/5.56 barrels thats why they are conversions.

Re-read the thread. The OP is "building a .22lr upper", later referred to a dedicated .22lr upper, and made comparisons to the dedicated CMMG and TacSol uppers.

As such, I am working under the assumption he wants a dedicated .22lr upper. In that scenario, it makes no sense to use a standard .223 barrel since you'll lose accuracy for no reason, for a dedicated build. .223 has the wrong twist rate for .22lr and the [tiny] size difference doesn't help, either.

[Chaos47]

Re-read the thread. The OP is "building a .22lr upper", later referred to a dedicated .22lr upper, and made comparisons to the dedicated CMMG and TacSol uppers.

As such, I am working under the assumption he wants a dedicated .22lr upper. In that scenario, it makes no sense to use a standard .223 barrel since you'll lose accuracy for no reason, for a dedicated build. .223 has the wrong twist rate for .22lr and the [tiny] size difference doesn't help, either.

kpp you do not know what you are talking about.
The bolt kit you linked above works for the chamber of a 5.56/.233 barrel. NOT a 22LR chamber.


Conversion Bolt


Dedicated Bolt

See the difference? The conversion has the extra part on the front to work with a 5.56/.233 chambered barrel.

OP does not know what he wants (no offense, thats why hes asking for help) he originally posted just part of a bolt. You are making wrong assumptions.

[kkp]

^^ Whoops. You are dead right, I linked to the conversion kit. Too many balls in the air, and I wasn't paying attention to the that part.

Still best to use a dedicated .22lr barrel for a dedicated upper, however, but yes, you do need the right bolt.

[NorCalDustin]

You need this: http://www.taccom3g.com/TACCOM_22LR_M4_BARREL.html

Then you need a complete dedicated .22LR bolt OR a conversion kit, which you can install the barrel collar that the barrel kit comes with.

From there you need a stripped upper, charging handle, barrel nut, rail, muzzle device, maybe a dust cover and forward assist.