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Posted: 1/8/2008 7:50:19 AM EDT
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Hi Folks. I'm new to the AR15 world. I just bought a nice new 6.8 SPC Rock River Arms AR-15 for antelope hunting, but for just fun shooting, ammo is a bit pricey for my wallet. I'd like to put a 5.56 Barrel on it. My question is; Do I need a complete upper or will just a barrel suffice. My dealer claims the same clips, either 5.56 or 6.8 will work for either cartridge, but suggests I might need a different bolt. Thanks in advance for any enlightenment. |
You will need a different bolt. The mags are not so compatible either, however what folks in ban states have done is just used pre ban AR mags ans swapped out the 556 follower for a 6.8 follower (www.magpul.com). Enjoy the RRA, they make a good product. |
You will need a barrel and a bolt, at a minimum. If you are going to do the barrel swap yourself, you will also need some tools, otherwise you will have to find a gunsmith to do the work. When it's all said and done, it would probably not be significantly more expensive to just get a 223/556 complete upper for your rifle, which would allow you to use either caliber whenever you want. The mags are interchangeble to a certain extent, but you will have feed issues if you try to load more than 18-19 rounds of 6.8 into a .223 mag (even with the Magpul followers, you're still limited to about 25 rounds). |
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