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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Del-ton? (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 1/30/2008 9:24:31 AM EDT
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first off I would like to say hello, I am considering building my first AR, and have been looking at an m4 rifle kit from del-ton and a stag lower. anyone have any experience with del-ton or any suggestions. Thanks, J |
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Del-Ton does a quality job and wants the customer satisfied.They are top notch folks to deal with.M4 kit is a good kit and I have had no problems with it.Call them and talk to tony and he will lead you down the correct path for what you want.Good luck and have fun,Steve. |
I just put together a Del-ton Mid-Length carbine kit, and it went bang! the first time out, shoots real good. Nice looking AR kit. The top rifle is an RRA NM upper, on a Superior Arms lower, with a Del-ton lower parts kit. The lower carbine is the Del-ton 16" Mid-length kit, on a Stag lower, with a RRA 2 stage trigger upgrade (all from Del-ton). Del-ton mixed up a spring in the RRA kit, which they promptly sent me no charge. Great communication via email. I like the RRA trigger, better than the standard creepy trigger, but I've since adjusted the set screw on the Superior Arms lower, with the standard trigger, and it feels real good- -better break than the RRA 2 stage. I've just dry fired it since I've adjusted it, so I'm anxious to see how it feels under live fire conditions. Hopefully it resets correctly and don't go BUUURRRPPPP on me. You might want to give Superior Arms lowers a look, I can't see any difference in the fit and finish, and it comes with the screw to adjust the creep out. I will say the stamping on the Stag receiver is more consistent than the Superior Arms lower though. |
+1000 And if Tony is not there 'cause he's at the Shot Show... ask for Laura. She's sweet and will take good care of you.  CPO SWCC US Navy (Retired) |
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I bought the M4 kit andput it on a DPMS lower. Fit and finish are great. Shoots good too. I have't put many rounds through it yet but have had no problems so far. http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh193/ricandshe/pictures51106009.jpg |
| you folks that have ordered kits what upgrades are you going with??? What advantages is there going with the mid length or not? Also is the only purpose of the flashhider to keep the muzzle blast down? Would it hurt anything to put one of there compensators on instead a flash hider? Im new to this game and trying to figure it all out. |
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I ordered the m4 16" kit and received it I think 4 business days after I placed the order (awesome!). It had a very noticeable brownish rust looking mess on the top of the chamber (and a few smaller splotches on the sides, I can't see the bottom.. I posted about it here: www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=66&t=361214 I emailed del-ton about it the same night I received it on Jan 31st, have yet to hear a response. This is my 3rd AR and I've never seen anything like that on/in the chamber of my other uppers. Based on the responses in the thread I started above, I deduced it to be a non-issue and a cosmetic problem. In del-ton's defense I've come to find over the years companies like to drop off the radar for a few days when shot show comes around....Never called them because I wasn't THAT concerned about it, slightly annoyed that they haven't responded to me in a week, though.. I then put some midwest industries two piece rails on it..Immediately noticed the gas tube was slightly crooked coming down the barrel, again, appears to be a non-issue as it is still seated perfectly in the receiver and there is no impact with the gas tube and gas tube hole on the bolt carrier..It is crooked because of what appears to be an improperly tightened barrel nut. Also, there are what appears to be numerous scratches on the barrel, mostly on the end nearest the receiver and around the barrel nut. There are two big ones an inch and almost an inch long (guestimating) and a few smaller ones 1/8" to 1/4" long. Running my finger over them there are no variations in the metal so I guess its just where bluing is missing. All of these are underneath the handguards so again, non-issue as far as I'm concerned. On the gas tube, there are several scratches that are very noticeable and I can feel the deviations in the metal, though nothing is punctured. Gas tubes are cheap and easily replaced as well as retightening of the barrel nut (to correct the slight alignment problem) if ever needed, and knowing that, I decided NOT to address this with del-ton and did not email or call them again (I really don't want to have to ship the rifle back and seeing as it performed flawlessly, see below, again, non-issue as far as I'm concerned). All of that said, the rifle performed flawlessly and ate a varied diet of 6 different types of rounds for a total of 210. The only failure, if you consider it being, is on the very first mag (which was rem UMC 55gr) it did not hold the bolt open when the mag was empty, it did on all of the other mags to include two mags of Wolf MC, which both of my RRA uppers occasionally fail to hold open on wolf..definitely a non-issue. The M4 feed ramps do not look perfect at all, the ramps on both of my RRA look MUCH better, as perfect as the rest of the chamber. Nothing like the "monkey with a dremel" job I've seen on some uppers, but it could be better. Does this affect the function of the rifle at all? Probably not, just saying it could look better. Worst case scenario I have a few 'scratches' on the bbl underneath the handguards and have to replace the gas tube. Several discrepancies but the rifle works great, accuracy is what I expected (probably better than I can shoot) and I will try them again on my next build and hopefully not have any of the issues I had this time around. I'm posting this to contribute to MY experience with del-ton, note I have not harassed their customer service about any of these issues or started my own rant thread I'd like to think del-ton would have been willing to fix all of my whiney concerns had I made it an issue, which I did not. It's really hard to beat their price and I'd say IMPOSSIBLE if you don't upgrade anything (I upgraded to chrome lined barrel, m4 ramps and t-marks). |
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Welcome to the site These guys have covered it pretty well, the only thing I would say is make sure you spring for the cash to have the barrel chrome lined. If your not dead set on DelTon May I sugguest Modle1Sales.com I have had great luck with them and I recomend them to anyone in the market for a kit. Good Luck |
if you still have not decided on a lower you may want to give Anvil Arms a look they have a sale going on right now, i have used several of them, the quality is great and Jon and his crew offer great customer service, plus you can get some kewl graphics put on it  here is a link to the sale on their lowers Anvil Arms Lower |
| From what i've been told that getting a chrome lined barrel decreases accuracy.... I don't see why a regular barrel is so tough to clean? I clean all my other rifles without a problem. What is the purpose of those T-markings????? and the M4 ramps or whatever? I havn't decided much on lowers yet, right now im trying to figure out what everything is. Also I don't think im going to spring for the 2 stage trigger, alot of guys that don't shoot competitions seem to think its a waste and takes way to long to pull it to trigger.... For my first one i think ill keep the 80 bucks and use it on somthingelse.... |
Chrome lining affects accuracy a little, not by much though. (not that I can notice under 200 yards!) it does increase barrel life though. I think the whole cleaning thing is propaganda, but that's just me. I'll let someone else chime in on M4 feedramps and the Tmarkings, I haven't figured that out yet, i think it's so you can remove an optic and put it back in the same place. unless you are building an SPR, Varmint, or match rifle, skip the 2 stage, I like the single for combat-type shooting. |
This is the EXACT same rifle I put together. I bought 2 EA lowers 1-2 years ago(when they started forging them) and built a middie from Del-Ton. Have since put a few hundred rounds through her. Runs flawlessly! I got the lowers with the "Tough-coat",it really matches up with the D-T upper,although the finish is starting to get shiny where I put my trigger finger when not fireing(by the mag-release button). Buy from both EA and D-T with confidence!! Their customer service is second to none!! I'm going to build my nephew a carbine from D-T's carbine LPK and I'm going to order a few more EA lowers before the BAN!! |
When I ordered the middie,I didn't realize that it came with a heavy(SOCOM) barrel. It is a little unbalanced but bothing to cry about. I also opted to not have the chrome-lined barrel. I wasn't too worried about cleaning,I just wanted to build an inexpensive mid-length! I've only shot Wolf amoo through it,so can't really comment on its accuracy,but at 75 yrds they all hit/around the bull. Some people have mentioned that the middie has alot smoother action when fired because of the longer gas system. I only have a 20' and the middie. They both feel about the same when fireing. |
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Derag2: I have (had) a mid length from RRA for a bedroom gun. I believe the barrel contour is similar between Del-ton and RRA. If you leave the front end stock, they're fine, albeit a little heavy. If you plan to put on any type of free float tube, or especially a light (as I did), they are too heavy. I turned mine down to government profile. Other than that, I like the mid length a lot. Hope this helps. |
It's heavy but feels solid to me. I actually put on a Troy midlength FF rail. Now it's good and heavy! However, I put a Tango Down VFG on it and it balances pretty good with it mounted close to the magazine. Then I put TD panels at the end of the rail (perfect fit). It also helps to counteract the weight. I may have mine profiled down someday, but I like the solid feel. I went with a lightweight upper for my second AR15 to offset the weight of the other one. I guess that would be a con, you have to buy a lighter AR later on.  Not much of a con to me though, except I want a 14.5" barrel now.
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Well I don't think im going to get a mid length then.... for hunting I don't want a heavy gun, as I hunt a place with alot of hills and valleys i have to walk up and down... Now just gotta decide a 16 or 20...... I wish they would give specs on overal length of these rifles to give me an idea. They seem to be longer than your average rifle ?????? |
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I'm having some problems with Del-Ton myself, which I think is due to emptying the place for the SHOT show. Suffice to say, I'll be buying elsewhere from now on, their customer service definitely isn't up to snuff and I'm paying NC sales tax on every purchase. -1 Del-Ton |
| That seems to be a problem with alot of places right now..... I don't know if Id blame del-ton. From what i've read everyone likes them and their customer service. I think im gonna hold off until this SHOT show is over and done with before I order. I don't know when that is but, im waiting. |
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You can't expect a company to be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, even if it's an internet buisiness. People need time off. Do you work around the clock, probably not. I'm going to be getting a 20" kit from Delton with my income tax return, and expect nothing but good things. It is a free market economy and everyone is free to spend their money where and how they want. I've heard more good about Delton than bad, so I'm going to give them a shot. YMMV. As might mine. |
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It always surprises me when people have negative comments about Del-Ton. My experience with them has been mostly FTF at the Dixie gun show and a few online transactions. The owner (forget his name) once stood with me and explained in great detail the process of building my own upper from parts in the middle of a very busy show. He could easily have determined my Low-Speed status and pending paltry $400 order and moved on to someone more important. Yet he stood there and even offered to answer any questions I had after the fact by phone or email. The only single issue I've had was that when putting a rifle together with a 6-pos stock I realized I didn't have the buffer and spring... one call and they overnighted the part to me no questions asked. No name, no order number, just customer service above and beyond the call of duty. |
| Never had a problem with Del-Ton. I just placed an order for 3 DPMS lowers and they were kind enough to leave a message on my answering machine the other day to let me know that they had them in stock and that all 3 were being shipped out that day. Then, today, I received an invoice stating that I placed an order with them and that they were being shipped. Again, never had any issues with them and they have an absolutely great customer service. |
I honestly haven't seen a warranty for Del-Ton parts. Maybe their kits or complete rifles have them, but I haven't seen any warranty info with any of my complete uppers. That being said, I still wouldn't risk it if they say not to shoot it out of their uppers. They may only say that to avoid issues that could arise from shooting that type of ammo. If you there is no warranty given, then you can shoot what you want. I don't think Wolf is as hard on the AR15 as it is on a handgun where people have reported broken extractors (at least that is what I have read about GLOCKs). Wolf is supposed to be underpowered, so I won't shoot it because of that. if you are sighted in with a more powerful round, you will not be as accurate vertically with the weaker ammo. |
| sometimes they do have some play. I think it often depends on the brand of lower. I am not familier with the Essential Arms lowers though. My Superior Arms lowers didn't have any play. I think RRA is the lower that usually is super tight, to the point you have to work at it for a while to get it to seat. There is an Accuwedge device that is supposed to take the play out of it. Here is some info on the Accuwedge |
| I just got my rifle kit from them today, they were a little behind (from what I've been told), and I hit them with the order Monday before the Shot Show. Put the lower together this morning, put about 60 rounds through it, everything worked great. Laura was great and kept me updated on everything too. |
be careful what add-on parts you order, because every option I selected was on back order. edit: Also, I had to call them to find out why my card was charged and I hadn't received an email notifying me of shipping, which is how I learned that my gas block was on back order, only to find out when I called to switch to a plain gas block, that my hand guards were also on back order. |
[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Del-ton? (Page 1 of 2)
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