Review Palmetto State Armory AR15 Upper

Frost

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Joined
Oct 1, 2009
Messages
2,298
Location
North Chuck, SC
Recently I bought and reviewed a Palmetto State Armory complete AR lower.
I was so impressed with it I went out and bought a complete Upper to match it.
These items I buy are not specially prepared for me they are standard off the shelf assemblies.
I get no special discounts or other consideration for these reviews in fact they are not even forum sponsors.
The one I bought was the basic M4 configuration upper with a chrome lined 1 in 7 twist barrel with the as supplied bcg and hand guard.


I first compared the finish on the upper to the lower and found it a good match.
They are both a uniform black in color with no thin or off color spots.
Everything on the upper is solid in appearance and feel.

Before going any further I fitted the upper to the lower.
There is a small amount of play as found on most ARs but not enough to be of any consequence.
The pin holes lined up perfectly. (don?t laugh this can be a problem)
The assembled rifle has a ready for business feel.

I moved on to sights, as supplied the upper came no rear sight.
I had several types laying around so I elected not to buy any from Palmetto.
I tried a Colt carry handle, I tried a no name carry handle (possibly Chinese), a unknown brand rear sight, a NC Star quick release scope, and Bushnell red dot (the one that sort of resembles an ACOG).
All of them fit just fine with no problem.
I feel confident in saying whatever type of sight you choose to use will fit securely with no modifications necessary.

As we all should do before ever firing a new weapon I cleaned the bore and chamber finding again a bit of protective grease.
I inspected the bore and found the lands and grooves to be sharp with no appearent flaws.
The forward assist worked easily without the gritty feel I have seen on others.
The ejection port cover fit nicely and snapped in place securely.

I next detail stripped the bolt carrier group, as one should expect there was a bit of protective grease in it, easily cleaned.
When inspecting the parts individually I found all to be excellent in appearance with one exception.
There was some coloration difference on the back side of the carrier.
This was of no concern to me as it was cosmetic and in a place than normally cannot be seen.
All in all I could find no problems other than the one cosmetic issue on the bolt carrier.

It was now time to test.
I carried the rifle to Boggy Head for it?s test runs.
I used a variety of magazines, Vietnam vintage surplus 20 and 30 round military, current military, and Magpul 30 round P-Mags. If there was problem with mag well tolerance I was determined to find it.
I was shooting a combination of surplus military and Federal 55 grain commercial from the local Wally World.

As this is a chrome lined barrel I did not feel a break in was needed.
I began the day with the surplus ammunition and at 25 and 100 yards the rifle shot as well as I am capable of.
This was to be true with the scope and iron sights; I did find the Federal to be more accurate than the surplus, no surprise there.

I began experimenting with the magazines fully loaded partially loaded mixed ammunition the rifle did not care. It ate everything I threw at it slow fire, rapid fire, it did not care.
So far so good.

It was now time to give it a real workout.
As y'all know sustained rapid fire will really heat up an AR.
Not being fortunate enough to own a select fire lower I used the next best thing.
For the stress test we used a SSAR slide stock.
We had the gun smoking hot and kept on shooting.
It got to cool off only long enough to load more magazines.
As Pops will attest this gun was really hot and it kept on running with no problems!

I was beginning to get worried, things were going to well.
I took out the oldest, used when I got it 30 years ago magazine I had.
I loaded it with a mixture of loose unknown .223 from the bottom of my bag, the current surplus, and Federal.
I stuck the magazine in the rifle and cranked the trigger.
Using the slide stock one long burst later I was looking at an empty rifle.

I could not make this rifle miss a beat.
I fired 500 rounds through this rifle slow, rapid, and bump fire with not one problem.
Once again I give the products of Palmetto Armory a two thumbs up.
 

Tigerstripe

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Joined
Nov 7, 2011
Messages
2,304
Location
Upstate
i like psa. they have sales on 22 blazer at 14.99 for 525 or 150.00 a case. the last time they had lowers for 49.00 i got 2 and 2 lower parts kits for 52.00 each. an m-16 complete bolt and carrier is 99.00 bucks.
now the bad news. last time i was there they said they would never have the lowers for 49 bucks again. it seems the owner and family were left to pack ,box and ship so many lowers that they said they wouldnt do it again.
for now they have 3 or 4 models of the XD with 2 mags and a rebate to get 3 more mags for 399.00. for that price it cant hurt to have another handgun, right?
David
ps they say they sell a complete deticated 22 uppers for 339.00. trouble is they are sold as fast as they get them.
 

DFWffmedic

New Member
Joined
Nov 26, 2012
Messages
1
I ordered an upper from PSA in the middle of October and have been getting the run around and been flat out lied to by several customer service reps (Adam, David, Brian L., Nicole Kone, to name a few) there about where it is and when it will ship. I have been told 4 separate times by several different people that they guaranteed that my order would ship that day, that week, etc. Their web site states very clearly how long it should take and that time frame passed several weeks ago. This is word for word from their site:

Q: When will my order be shipped?
A: Orders currently may take up to 5 business days to ship (uppers and rifle kits may take up to 15 business days).

According to their policy, my order was due to ship AT THE LATEST November 9th. Today is November 26th. As of 15 minutes ago according to David via phone call, they have no idea where my upper is or when it will ship. Even if this upper I ordered is decent and functions well, I don't think it will be worth this hassle. I would strongly caution anybody building a rifle to look elsewhere when building an AR. I wish I would have.
 

Tigerstripe

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Joined
Nov 7, 2011
Messages
2,304
Location
Upstate
i would rather take a drive of 90 miles each way than take any chance of shipping something that means as much or costs as much to me as a rifle or even a $50 upper.

i have many of PSAs products and im happy as a clam at a hotdog cook out with then.
 

fordnut

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Joined
Oct 4, 2009
Messages
2,165
Location
Hanahan, SC
Dear DFWFFmedic: I am very sorry to hear about your problems with PSA...I have had a couple in the past.

They have started to do the growth thing. They have added 2 new stores, and, I don't believe they had the Employees to run them...They were just hiring about anyone that could walk and breath.( My Oppinion)...They have made a lot of people promises that they knew they couldn't keep....then, the Election scared everyone and the boom was on....

I am hoping they get their act together. They have a great product...when you get it.

I have 2 PSA M4 AR's and love both of them. I have also had 3 more that I took in trades. I have had no problems with any of them...they just need to get over their growing pains...

Steve
 

Frost

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Joined
Oct 1, 2009
Messages
2,298
Location
North Chuck, SC
Their products are decent quality.
However Notice They ARE NOT FORUM SPONSORS
They have been approached about forum sponsorship multiple times.
Please spend your money elsewhere.
 

armaborealis

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Joined
Dec 27, 2011
Messages
575
What size groups were you seeing under what conditions (bench, prone supported, prone unsupported, etc)?
 

Glockrunner

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Joined
Jan 28, 2011
Messages
113
Location
Summerville
Frost said:
Their products are decent quality.
However Notice They ARE NOT FORUM SPONSORS
They have been approached about forum sponsorship multiple times.
Please spend your money elsewhere.

After reading the whole post you are referring to "PSA" as not being a forum sponsor, right? I did a search for "Palmetto State Armory" and when reading the results, just this reply popped up. At first I took it to mean we shouldn't from Palmetto State Armory.

Never mind, I found more in a later post. Sorry about the mixup. http://www.palmettoshootersforum.co...27&p=30146&hilit=Palmetto+State+Armory#p30146
 

armaborealis

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Joined
Dec 27, 2011
Messages
575
More data:

I just zeroed a PSA 20" A2 style upper (1:7 twist, NOT the "premium" barrel). Upper had a Spike's A2 detachable carry handle. Weather was cool (60s) and ammo was XM193. I fired four three shot groups from the bench. Three of the four groups were 2 MOA or less. The fourth was a 4 MOA group but I called one shot bad, so I would chalk that up to operator error. I was using a cheap lower with milspec trigger I had just laying around.

I am looking forward to getting the upper out to a known distance range. I think a combo of ball ammo, myself in a prone unsupported position, a decent lower with match trigger, and this upper will easily shoot 4 MOA. This upper will be used for some entry-level service rifle competition and I think it will serve that role at a good value.
 
Joined
Oct 20, 2013
Messages
10
Good report man. I been seriously considering making my next AR a PSA and after reading through this thread I think I'm going to stop considering it and pull the trigger! (Pun Intended) I will just make sure not to order one and go pick it up instead. I hate all the trouble that one guy was having with his still not being shipped. I couldn't handle that, I believe I would've been demanding a refund so I could just go buy something else. Anyway, thanks for the useful info everyone.

Masterblaster556 - Kevin
 

Avtomat-Acolyte

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Joined
May 22, 2011
Messages
945
Location
Charleston, SC
Masterdisaster, be sure and sign up for their email newsletter/promotions. They have ridiculous sales all. the. time. You can put together an AR for like $500 - $700.
 

94formulabird

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Joined
Apr 13, 2012
Messages
156
Location
Goose Creek, S.C.
I'm a little more patient than most...I ordered some part for my ar on the 29th...they shipped today...shipping was free however and I still need a barrel/gas system/ free float tube to finish so I'm not in a hurry..however to do wanna post some pics of the 40rd pmag on Facebook to annoy some liberals
 

Avtomat-Acolyte

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Joined
May 22, 2011
Messages
945
Location
Charleston, SC
94formulabird said:
I'm a little more patient than most...I ordered some part for my ar on the 29th...they shipped today...shipping was free however and I still need a barrel/gas system/ free float tube to finish so I'm not in a hurry..however to do wanna post some pics of the 40rd pmag on Facebook to annoy some liberals

Patience is something that denizens of The Internet have a problem with.

Palmetto State Armory isn't lightning quick with shipping nor with communications. Their products and prices are very good, however.

Botach Tactical doesn't keep accurate inventory and sometimes has items on backorder and they aren't responsive when contacted. Their products are name brand and often the cheapest anywhere.

If you don't need something "RIGHT NOW OH MY GOD IT IS THE APOCALYPSE" then either of these two companies are awesome.
 

armaborealis

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Joined
Dec 27, 2011
Messages
575
Update: I've been shooting the 20" PSA upper for awhile now and am happy with it. I've confirmed it will group 2-3 MOA with larger strings (5 shot groups) from the bench with XM193. I've also been shooting 4-6 MOA with it from unsupported, slung field positions. THere is a 2 MOA shift in the POI when tightly slung as the barrel is not free floated.

FOr the money -- good value. I'd watch them closely come Black Friday. :D
 

Hbhtex54

New Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2013
Messages
1
PSA has really impressed me on all the orders I've made. Their products are as good if not better quality than anything you will find at great prices. I built my 4th AR15 w/their upper and lower,,..very accurate,top quality.I will build a couple more AR's then go to something else.
 
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