AR15 polymer lower failure

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  • AlVine

    Marksman
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 12, 2014
    152
    28
    Owen Co.
    I bought a 80% poly lower a couple years ago and forgot about it until recently. I finished it and it came out looking fine, but it only lasted four or five rounds before breaking. Is this common? I haven't heard a lot of stories about them failing. I have another I haven't yet finished and wonder if I should bother.


    IMG_0512.jpg
     

    d.kaufman

    Still Here
    Staff member
    Moderator
    Site Supporter
    Rating - 100%
    128   0   0
    Mar 9, 2013
    14,721
    149
    Hobart
    I've heard plenty of stories about this happening and this is why i wouldn't own one. Im wondering if they would be fine if you used one for a dedicated 22lr, but why bother when you could just buy a S&W M&P 15-22 for an ar style platform 22lr.
     

    Usmccookie

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    6   0   0
    Jan 28, 2017
    5,838
    113
    nwi
    Out of curiosity, did it happen to be some smaller or off brand? I wouldn't trust a polymer lower, but polymer has proven itself in other firearm applications. I wonder if it was just a cheap manufacturer using cheap plastic.:dunno: just thinking out loud
     

    Ark

    Grandmaster
    Site Supporter
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    25   0   0
    Feb 18, 2017
    6,736
    113
    Indy
    Plastic lowers are trash. CAV-15s got it right, but they're finnicky and the tolerances aren't always right. Supposedly GWACs is coming out with an updated version this year, finally.
     

    kramer5702

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    5   0   0
    May 16, 2015
    569
    18
    Modoc
    My ATI hybrid lower was perfectly fine, both of them. I didn't go for thousands of rounds through mine, but did fire hundreds. Ran perfectly normal.
     

    Mgderf

    Grandmaster
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    43   0   0
    May 30, 2009
    17,882
    113
    Lafayette
    Why?
    Aluminum is light wieght and durable.
    I've never seen the draw toward a polymer lower.
    Some are even more expensive than their metal counterparts.

    Plastics are for toy guns.
    My guns are not toys...
     

    2A-Hoosier23

    ammo fiend
    Rating - 100%
    13   0   0
    Sep 16, 2018
    710
    63
    Lawrence
    The first time I ever shot at an indoor range, a little more than a year ago at Shoot Point Blank in greenwood, the same exact failure happened to the dude in the stall next to me. I don't know what brand it was but it was polymer, he said. While i see the appeal of polymer, I don't think the cost savings are worth it when you have companies like aero precision that are putting out trusted lowers for sometimes well under $100 on sale, im sure there are other companies that are even cheaper
     

    2A-Hoosier23

    ammo fiend
    Rating - 100%
    13   0   0
    Sep 16, 2018
    710
    63
    Lawrence
    When you can buy Palmetto State Armory or Anderson lowers for 40 bucks why mess with polymer?

    I wholly agree with you, but lots of people over the years have said "When you can buy an all metal 1911 why mess with a polymer Glock?" and probably even more said that when Glocks first came out and became popular. I would be willing to bet in 20 years or maybe less there will be a reliable affordable polymer lower option that's much better built than the current offerings and that rivals cheaper aluminum lowers like the 2 you listed.
     

    Notropis

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Aug 22, 2018
    98
    8
    NWI
    I wanted a lightweight pistol and used the ATI hybrid. Sixty bucks for two, I could not pass up. They seem perfectly fine for what I wanted. I don't expect ten thousand rounds from this build.
     

    CENTURIATOR

    Shooter
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Jun 23, 2018
    64
    8
    Saint Louis
    I don't get why anyone would mess around with plastic for an AR lower receiver, given how much is happening in the AR's lower receiver with every single pull of the trigger.
     

    AlVine

    Marksman
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 12, 2014
    152
    28
    Owen Co.
    It’s been a couple years since I bought it and I’m not 100% sure whose it is, and don’t want to guess. If it’s who I think, they’re not a new company. The material looked and felt good, and machined cleanly, but obviously that didn’t mean anything.
     
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