I love to work on my toys. Nothing stays “factory”. There are always things that can be improved over off the shelf items. With all the aftermarket support in the market today all you need is a few tools and some self confidence. So everyone let me see your upgrades and custom touches.
Over in the 1911 pic thread you can see where I have checkered the front straps of all my 1911s.
Nothing Fancy. Just upgraded Recoil Springs and installed a flat trigger.
We’ll see if stronger springs improve followup shots and reduce muzzle flip. The DA trigger pull feels way better in the dry fire. Now its range time!!
What were you upgrading an AR? I recently did the same thing on a German framed Sig P229 from 2008. I picked up the P229 nos in the box LE trade in. I installed the Armory Craft slightly curved dual adjustable trigger and the Sig Short Reset Trigger Kit. Installing the two made all the difference in the world. I am a bit of a trigger snob so doing updates on factory triggers is a regular issue for me. [
@Kowboygunsmith that is some nice work there. I enjoy seeing other people’s work. Customizing a firearm to me is a hobby and it cements the bond with it. I have a Colt Gold Cup that I added a few Wilson Combat parts to. The Hogue rubber grip with finger grooves is my favorite grip. I have fairly large hands and the grips are very comfortable to me. I have put Hogue grips on several of my projects. Before I put the grips on I used a forstner bit to install some Colt grip emblems on the Hogue grips just to bring a little of the classic Colt look back.
Very nice.
Thank you. It is a work in progress. I don’t think i will ever stop upgrading it bit by bit as i learn.
That is what is good about doing it yourself. You learn, get the tools you need, and get more confident as you go. There is no substitute for being able to work on, build and repair your own stuff. It never ceases to amaze me how many people that are scared to work on their own firearms. Yes you need a little bit of knowledge but you can educate yourself fairly quickly.
There are so many sources of good information! My dream is to attend the gunsmithing course at the colorado school of trades.
I sure wish you all the luck.
I recently put a new spring kit in my LC9S. I have an Apex trigger to go in my S&W M&P 2.0. They did improve the trigger with the 2.0 but the Apex is still better. I already put one in my original M&P.
A friend of mine has a Browning BAR in 7mm type 2 that was made in 1979. He got the BAR from his father. He has killed a ton of deer with it. He dropped it one time when he was young and cracked the original wood stock. He replaced the stock and forearm with synthetic furniture. Over time the synthetic stock had started cracking and was binding the action. I completely totally tore the BAR apart down to it’s component parts. I did a thorough cleaning and a trigger job. I thoroughly cleaned the gas system. I was also able to find new old stock original Browning wood replacement stock and forearm. The wood on the stock and forearm are beautiful. The old girl is now a classy old girl that shoots better now than when she was new. He is very sentimental about this rifle and I am glad that I was able to help a friend out.
My biggest upgrades for my guns is more ammunition. I don’t have display guns, they get shot and rotated to the range as much as possible. 
After working on my friend’s BAR and being able to find such beautiful wood I decided to upgrade the wood on my Browning BAR Mark II Safari in 30-06. The wood that I got for my BAR isn’t as dark and pretty as my friends is but it is still beautiful. My friend wanted his wood in a satin finish. My wood is in the high gloss finish. The high gloss reflects a lot of the light back so you don’t see the grain as well as you do with the satin finish. My wood is darker than it looks in the pictures. It was hard to get a good pic of the wood. The stock that I got for my BAR was for the type 2 BAR and not for the Mark II. The stocks for my Mark II were out of stock. I had to route, cut sand and fit the stock to my receiver. The original wood on my BAR was just straight grain in a light finish. Now the stock that I have is darker and the grain stands out more and it also has some of the “tiger” striping in the wood. The forearm is the same way but also has some swirling in the grain. Overall I feel that it was a good upgrade for my BAR. I have had my BAR since 1995. It has been my faithful companion on many hunts. It has also helped me put a lot of meat in my freezer over the years.
I have all the ammo that I need for a good while. I have hunted with this rifle for over 25 years. It has been with me in the rain, sleet, snow and heat. It still pretty much looks brand new. This isn’t about being a display rifle. This rifle gets used but it also very well taken care of. You can have a very nice rifle and still use it.
Go for it. If it doesn’t work out right the first time a little mineral spirits on it and you can start over.
Already got a gallon for prep and other uses, and hoping I don’t need it for a do-over. Like you said worst case just wipe it off (or of it wears and still looks decent keep slapping matte clear down). I’m no pro, but I’ve done a fair bit of painting and stumbled across a good thread on ar-15.com. Plan is to give all of the “black guns” the treatment.
Don’t forget to post some pics for us once you get done. I have seen some pics of other people’s camouflaged AR that turned out awesome.