Darkop's Super Lightweight AR-15 Project

Our friend Darkop started a project to build a super lightweight AR-15. He could have used various non-standard polymer receiver parts, but chose instead to see what he could do with standard aluminum parts. Here are the results of his project:

Rainier Arms slick-sided upper with no forward assist. Upper with bolt and carrier group weighed 3 lbs 5.8 oz.

Daniel Defense 14.5" lightweight profile barrel, low-pro gas block, barrel nut, and battle comp compensator.

Daniel Defense fixed iron sights. 2.8 oz.

Troy handguard - 6.0 oz.

Squaring the upper receiver.

The barrel dimpled for the set screws on the gas block.

A little grease for the barrel nut.

Loc-tite on set screws under the gas block. I wiped up the excess with q-tips.

Troy's new attachment screws.

Prepairing to blind pin & weld the Battle Comp 1.5.

Palmetto lower receiver, before I lightened it with the drill press!

Old school CAR stock with receiver extension (buffer tube).

A2 pistol grip ready to drill.

Pilot hole for 1.5" hole saw.

It's getting uglier.

Loosing weight, getting skinny and svelte!

Lightening the receiver extension.

Drilled out the standard GI trigger guard.

Touching up the holes with Dura Coat. Then baked in the oven until medium rare!

The DuraCoat is still wet.

Making the CAR stock lighter.

My old school semi-circle Colt 6920 bolt carrier group.

That weld really looks better than the picture shows

Drilled out the brass deflector . . .

. . . but not all the way through.

Overall weight when done: 4lbs 14.5 oz

The pretty side.