Been putting together a tool kit for a fellow overseas, trying to build an AR armorers kit but leave him some room to work on other stuff.
Thanks to
Tumbleweed and Paul at
Bravo Company USA for donating the most specific pieces, the combination wrench and the action block set, more on that later.
Those two pieces combined will run around $70, don't scrimp on either one, nothing more irritating then when your ONE barrel wrench snaps a peg.
Thanks to GhostRing for the photo assist
This is portion of the letter I included in the package so you'll know why the tools were included.
8 piece pin punches. Use the 5/16” to knock loose taper pins, the 1/16” is for gas tube roll and windage wheel pins, I ground the shaft of the 3/32” to clear the hump in the mag well, use it to remove bolt catch pins, 1/8” is trigger guard pins, make sure to support the offside “foot” on the lower and keep the trigger guard between the feet when installing or removing trigger guards or you will break off the “foot”.
Quick change bit screwdriver. Not the widest selection and not the best quality, luckily there are few screws on the AR/M.
10" adjustable wrench. For flash suppressors, lower receiver extensions, sight mounts, and whatever else comes up.
Small needlenose plier. For holding small damn roll pins and removing stuck cleaning patches from chambers.
Nail set punch. Use as starter punches for 1/16" roll pins.
3/8" prick punch. For staking carrier keys and lower receiver extension lock rings.
Orange dead blow no mar hammer. For adjusting parts, mainly the alinement of the front sight base in relation to the rear sight. I use a rawhide mallet as they’re more forgiving both of the tool and the work surface. If you use it a lot this hammer will chip eventually, keep that in mind. NEVER adjust the alinement of the front sight with the upper clamped in the action block; you risk bending the barrel. I take mine to the range, prone out, fire a group, and adjust the sight from there. Takes a bit of practice to figure out what Minute of Angle of your stroke is but it’s fast to do and you get a live fire zero instead of just a boresight in the shop.
Big fucking screwdriver. Removing upper buttstock screw on fixed stocks, pistol grip screws, adjusting gas tube, as a pry bar, and flinging cross the shop when a fucking rifle doesn’t work right; hence the orange handle for easy detection. Dead blow hammer can also be used for this but will fly farther and cause more damage in impact.
Slip joint pliers. Actually, the easiest way to install windage roll pins and bolt catch roll pins. Can also be used when heating or grinding parts and when you need a blood blister between your thumb and index finger.
8 oz ball peen hammer. Standard gunsmith issue, shouldn’t ever need more than that to work on the AR/M. Light enough so that if you miss your target the part won’t be destroyed. Keep an eye on this one, I’ve had good luck with these Chinese hammers but I’ve seen a couple of heads come loose.
12 piece Allen key set. Didn’t scrimp here, as the tool holder says, they’re Gorilla Proof. I hate when Allen keys rounds off or bend. I have a larger set from the same company in my tool box, I only ever use three of the wrenches. You’ll see two sizes of bolt carrier key screws and lots of companies use Allen screws for their sight mounts, pistol grips, and handguards.
I also threw in an assortment of spare punches, wrenches, pliers, and various files since he might wind up having to make his own parts/tools. Those and the tube of grease (for barrel threads) aren't shown in the pic for clarity. I also found one really cool item that I've been looking for ever since I heard a SIG armorer describe them. I'll post that thread later.
All told the tools came to $90 but you can cut some of that out by dropping the items in the preceeding paragraph, get it down to $65-70.
Hope this helps to serve as a guideline for new builders/wrenches.