[Chowwow]

On the up side....a steel one can be physically smaller and still stronger than an aluminum one.

What's your opinion on the trigger hole dilemma? If I use the CMMG part, people can go to them for more mag releases if I disappear off the face of the Earth, but the trigger hole will be smaller. Though, looking at the pictures of the MK47, it doesn't look that bad. If I make a custom part, you'd have to rely on me to get these parts out to people, and I may end up with a small inventory of exclusive parts stashed away in my shop but the trigger hole will be unaffected.

I believe the AK-XCR w/ XCR FCG is small enough for a regular AK mag release, but it would only work on that design and AK mag releases can come in all sorts designs and tolerances; I'd never be able to verify that all of them would work. If someone has another idea on the mag release, I'm all ears.

 

[Sean K.]

What's your opinion on the trigger hole dilemma? If I use the CMMG part, people can go to them for more mag releases if I disappear off the face of the Earth, but the trigger hole will be smaller. Though, looking at the pictures of the MK47, it doesn't look that bad. If I make a custom part, you'd have to rely on me to get these parts out to people, and I may end up with a small inventory of exclusive parts stashed away in my shop but the trigger hole will be unaffected.

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I believe the AK-XCR w/ XCR FCG is small enough for a regular AK mag release, but it would only work on that design and AK mag releases can come in all sorts designs and tolerances; I'd never be able to verify that all of them would work. If someone has another idea on the mag release, I'm all ears.

Meh, there's no guarantee CMMG will continue to make the AK mag releases, so I'm not sure anyone can bank on that.

 

[Chowwow]

Meh, there's no guarantee CMMG will continue to make the AK mag releases, so I'm not sure anyone can bank on that.

It looks like I'm building my own mag release either way, since the CMMG release is unsuited for steel mags long term anyway. I was hoping that making a steel version of the CMMG release would also appeal to MK47 users who were interested in using steel mags in their rifles, albeit with lack of steel inserts. I may just use the CMMG design as a reference for a thinner release specific for the AK-XCR; it may be the only option unless there is no opposition to reducing the trigger guard size.

In other news, initial observations with the -M have showed me that the design of the lower is significantly different from the -L; pretty much only the area between the pistol grip to the end of the BHO arm are the same; everything else is stretched to house the longer upper and magazine. In terms of CAD; there is some carry over but I have to go back to my reverse-engineering process to fill in the new dimensions of the -M lower; much more involved than the AK-XCR. Which means concentrating on the -M lower project is going to take place on the later half of this year to beginning of the next, depending on how soon I can get the AK-XCR working.

Speaking of which, I'm probably going to split off the build log of the AK-XCR into its own thread, because I need to set up a new poll concerning preferences for the mag release for it. I'll convert this thread back into a general XCR lower project announcement thread, as the poll is still relevant to gauging interest in what needs to be done for the next cycle.

Here is the mag release poll on Reddit. Vote there if you can!

 

[Chowwow]

While I'm waiting for things to happen, I thought why not do some research?

Reap Weaponries released a lower that turns an AR-15 upper into a bullpup. The result is hideous, but that's one idea that I once considered and shot down that has come to fruition somewhere else.

I wanted to know what everyone thought about making the XCR into a bullpup rifle? Because it's a bufferless, piston rifle, I believe the upper was a great candidate for being made into a bullpup rifle. Below are mockups made by mr_staypuft on the Bullpup Forum before it went down:

Something like this would be something to be realized some other year, but it was something that I was excited about getting into once I got a few things done. What's the enthusiasm for a project like this?

 

[Sean K.]

That doesn't look horrible (though you wouldn't be milling the top rail off for a cheek weld. At best, you'd put a rubbery rail cover over those slots).....I bet the 16" will be the hot seller. I wouldn't pay to SBR the shorter ones personally. Well....and now that I look closer....that's not simply an upper swap to a bullpup lower. The ejection port is moved substantially back from the handguard....but I get that it's just a visual representation and photochop of what it would sort of look like.

 

[TexasChris]

.....I don't hate it....

 

[Chowwow]

That doesn't look horrible (though you wouldn't be milling the top rail off for a cheek weld. At best, you'd put a rubbery rail cover over those slots).....I bet the 16" will be the hot seller. I wouldn't pay to SBR the shorter ones personally. Well....and now that I look closer....that's not simply an upper swap to a bullpup lower. The ejection port is moved substantially back from the handguard....but I get that it's just a visual representation and photochop of what it would sort of look like.

Yeah, there are certain design considerations to be made, such as making a cheek weld over a significant section of the top rail, and making sure there is clearance for the charging handle and ejection port. My primary concern so far has been the trigger system, I've been doing research off and on regarding the best designs that would work for the XCR. Because the rifle wasn't initially designed to be a bullpup, it's going to look a bit like how the CZ Scorpion bullpup looks like.

Again, this is a distant project but something worth looking into from time to time.