We asked Brownells Gun Techs Steve and Caleb bring their unbeatable combination of wisdom and good looks to answer an important question: What spare parts should I keep on hand for my AR-15? Gas rings and buffer spring wear out through normal use, says Caleb. And he has a handy rule of thumb for telling when that buffer spring needs to be replaced. Most likely to fail on the bolt / carrier group are the extractor spring and pin. The cotter pin and cam pin can break, but more often they get lost when the BCG is disassembled for cleaning. Steve says he’s tried but has never succeeded in getting an AR-15 firing pin to break.
Downstairs on the lower receiver, have spare springs and detents for the pivot / takedown pins. AR-15 hammer and trigger springs rarely break, but if you’re using lighter-power springs, keep standard-power spares on hand. If your rifle stops working, swap in the factory-spec springs to find out if the problem is the gun or your ammo. The buffer bumper pad (say that three times fast!) can wear out in certain circumstances; Caleb explains. Steve’s Wisdom: If you’ve upgraded your trigger, keep the original one as a backup spare. For the other small parts, pins, and springs, keep spares on hand mainly because they can get lost when you’ve got the gun disassembled for cleaning. Why lose a day at the range when you can reach into your ditty bag and swap in a spare in a few seconds?
Are there any parts the guys haven’t mentioned? If so, tell us in the comments below.
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I went to a show recently, and I noticed that not one vendor was selling small parts.
I really enjoy your videos.
The background music is very distracting.
I lose more small parts than I break. I should probably just buy a magnet and a magnifying glass
Except the buffer spring, I just happen to have all those parts after 3 builds
You can avoid all this by just getting a piston upper..
I have learned a lot from this series and enjoy watching them all. Thank you.
Here's the problem I have with spare parts; they keep getting used for a new build 🙂
Gas Rings, Firing Pin retaining pins and a few bolt cam pins is what I keep handy in my spare kits.
The biggest reason you DON'T waste money on a junkie cheap BCG in the first place. Just wait another month if you must so you can buy a very good quality BCG.
Supremely helpful, Gentlemen. Thank You, just placed an order with you guys
Bushmaster used to sell spare parts kits, and a nice field kit in a molly mountable pack but looked the other day and they're discontinued on distributors sites. Wish they still offered these.
Not like you shoot much ammo in boot camp . I would still buy extra firing pins
Extra firing pins , just in case .
Semper Fi
Great video
I guess it's from being a mechanic that I have to offset the rings lol
I know it doesn't matter but I do it anyways
How about crush washers? Aren't those only one use?
Best spare part, a complete AR
Great video, great info guys.
Public update no need for spare parts. No ammo to shoot in sight.
I really appreciate u guys , to someone who thinks I'm alone in this passion, deep down I really appreciate what u all show me…
I have removed the buffer tube to update a stock a few times. The buffer retaining pin and spring tend to want to fly to the far corner of the shop. Fortunately I have a magnet on rollers built for picking up nails from the floor, which makes finding these parts "easier". But the parts that don't want to hang around are always good ones to have a spare of.
Thank you for another informative discussion.
How about put together a link to Brownell's AR-15 and AR-10 "Spare Parts Kit" and include all the things you recommend?? Brownells could offer a discount when purchasing the kit.
Brownells Is great
I knew a military armorer and he kept two Buffer Retaining Pins in a zip-lock bag in his rifle's butt-stock storage compartment. He said that was the part that seemed to break most often among the rifles he serviced.
@brownells ,inc you guys should do one of these on an ar10/large frame ar, a lot of the things u would need that wear out would be different in several ways and also would be great informative content for newbies and those that don’t know what they’re getting in to in an ar10 most don’t realize there’s many different parts compatibility as well could open some eyes and save a lot of people who think it’s the same jus a lil bigger and that’s up for debate at the least. Jus a thought/request I guess that could also be a smythbusters video as well🤔 thanks for the great content!
I keep having to put new bullets in mine. Seems like they wear out pretty quick with normal use.
if it needs spare parts its not so mighty. all my Garand needs is ammo……………………………….
Cam pin,gas tube
Roll pins and crush washers if you replace handguards or muzzle breaks
Lol that sarcasm confirmation look @0:50.
The older fellow is an arse to the younger one, perhaps the arse needs a intervention.
I’ve had trigger (stock mil spec) retaining pins wear out in sandy or high dust areas. Failure caused a runaway condition
So basically, keep on hand what you're likely to lose.