# Finally Finished My Grendel Build!



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Its been months in the making and I am a little sick to my stomach about how much money I have invested in this thing, but here it is.

[attachment=0:s9n6yh9v]Grendel.jpg[/attachment:s9n6yh9v]

I had Precision Firearms of MD put the upper together for me but it wasn't a standard configuration so it took a fair amount longer than usual.

24" Fluted Lilja barrel 1/8 twist
ASA side charging, non-reciprocating upper receiver
POF milled lower
Timney trigger
Magpul PRS stock

Now I just have two things left to do with it. I plan on having the rifle Cerekoted, and put optics on it. So far I have really struggled on optics but it seems that the overwhelming cry is Vortex for the Grendel, but I am really skeptical of Vortex. So it may be a long time before I choose the right optic.

Precision Firearms was a pretty nice company to work with and they have a very very good reputation among the Grendel enthusiasts, and they offer barrels from some very well known manufacturers like Krieger, Bartlein, Lilja, etc so it seemed like a no brainer to choose their product over Alexander Arms. My only complaint is that PF seems to be a one-man show and they are slow to respond to any e-mails. But their reputation outweighed the long wait.

Lets hope this thing really does shoot .5 MOA or better like they say it will


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## Huge29 (Sep 17, 2007)

Its about time! Let us know how she rides!


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## Cooky (Apr 25, 2011)

Nice looking set up.

Optics aren’t permanent ya' know, you can put them on and off. Put something on there and tell us how it shoots already…geeze. 

What kind of trigger guard is that? I don’t think I’ve seen one.


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## Springville Shooter (Oct 15, 2010)

if it shoots as good as it looks, you are in business.-------SS


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## Al Hansen (Sep 7, 2007)

Must have some big guns there Bax...............................jus sayin. Lookin at that weight bench. Looks like ya built a good un. 8)


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## huntingbuddy (Sep 10, 2007)

I would suggest the Viper PST by Vortex, this is a sweet optic. I will be putting one on my next rifle (whenever that is) One of my co-workers at Get Some is putting one on his .338 Lapua.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Cool Bax*. I like that barrel.


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## sawsman (Sep 13, 2007)

Looks like something out of the Terminator movie…  

Hope it shoots as good as that Kimber of yours.


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## JDF_GSP (Jul 4, 2009)

Looks very nice!


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## reb8600 (Sep 8, 2007)

Cooky said:


> What kind of trigger guard is that? I don't think I've seen one.


It is milled out as part of the lower. The one on my Specialized Dynamics lower is the same way.

Bax you will like the Grendel. Mine has the 18" barrel and shoots real good with my reloads using an 85 gr bullet. Also with the factory Hornady 123 gr. I have heard good reports on the Sierra 123 gr and am going to try them also.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Thanks for the kind word guys!

Reb, does anyone sell brass locally? Seems like I will need to order it in


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## Afishnado (Sep 18, 2007)

You can't go wrong with the Vortex scope. They are fantastic. Just ordered one for my new 3gun rifle that I built, but it's backordered.


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## reb8600 (Sep 8, 2007)

Bax* said:


> Reb, does anyone sell brass locally? Seems like I will need to order it in


I couldnt find any locally so I had to order them.


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## Cooky (Apr 25, 2011)

Cabelas will ship to the store for free if that helps any. They carry Lapua.


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## reb8600 (Sep 8, 2007)

Cooky said:


> Cabelas will ship to the store for free if that helps any. They carry Lapua.


There are cheaper places to buy than Cabelas to buy reloading supplies. They are usually the last place I buy. If I am ordering, I have items shipped to my door. Besides, Cabelas is to far away to justify driving there to pick it up.


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## Afishnado (Sep 18, 2007)

Bax, I was just curious to know why you didn't build the upper yourself? I don't know much about the Grendel, that's why I'm asking.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Afishnado said:


> Bax, I was just curious to know why you didn't build the upper yourself? I don't know much about the Grendel, that's why I'm asking.


Good question. I'm lazy :mrgreen:

Honestly, I decided to have it built from a reputable business for a few reasons. 
* Resellability. Precision Firearms has a hoard of dedicated customers that will pay top dollar to buy a used PF upper as opposed to a no-name home built upper. So if I ever want to sell it, there are lots of people willing to buy it.
* Barrel. Getting high end barrels for the Grendel has been really tricky, most custom barrel makers are so back ordered for AR barrels that the wait time just wasnt worth it.
* Warranty. Precision Arms doesnt necessarily have a warranty per-se, but they do guarantee the upper to be free from defects and will service their products at minimal cost as opposed to a conventional gunsmith. So it was more of a piece of mind thing for me.
* Reputation. If you ever have some time, look at http://www.65Grendel.com and read up on Precision Firearms. Their rifles are shooting .5 MOA which is almost shaming Bill Alexander of Alexander Arms. Most custom builds that were build at home are still pulling sub-MOA, but its nice to know that this upper can do better (if I do my part).


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## JERRY (Sep 30, 2007)

Looks sweet! Let's go do some shooting! 8)


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## MadHunter (Nov 17, 2009)

Are you selling it now?

https://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&a ... d=&search=


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

MadHunter said:


> Are you selling it now?
> 
> https://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&a ... d=&search=


If someone will buy it..... yes

Im swamped with work lately and my wife is badgering me to remodel the master bathroom


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## MadHunter (Nov 17, 2009)

That will usually do it. I am selling a remington 700 SPS in .308 for almost the same reasons. Too busy, I really don't shoot it much and my wife wants a fireplace in the bedroom.

The Honey-Do will usually do it.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Dang wives. Thing is, my wife doesnt know what this dang thing cost me to build.......


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## Al Hansen (Sep 7, 2007)

Ya gunna put a "silencer" on it ???? :lol:


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## Cooky (Apr 25, 2011)

Guns come and go. Done correctly, wives don't.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Al Hansen said:


> Ya gunna put a "silencer" on it ???? :lol:


Actually thought about it.... but there isnt enough space from the muzzle to where the flutes begin to thread it properly


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## chet (Sep 7, 2007)

what is a side charging non recip rec?


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Most AR-15s have a little latch on the top of the receiver that you use your index finger and middle finger to grab and pull back to chamber a round. This is know as the charging handle. In a conventional platform like an M4 configuration, this works just fine for the shooter, but once a scope is introduced it is somewhat annoying to try and chamber a round on the AR platform. So some companies have introduced side-charging handles that allow the shooter to grab a latch / bolt from the side of the rifle that will allow the shooter to pull the bolt back and chamber a round. Alexander Arms makes one that is attached directly to the bolt on the right side of the receiver, each time a round is fired the charging handle flips back which could theoretically hit your knuckles. So American Spirit Arms designed an upper that charges from the left side and does not attach directly to the bolt which means that when a round is fired, the charging handle does not move.

This is a picture of the ASA upper I have:
[attachment=0:t7znjgzo]asa.jpg[/attachment:t7znjgzo]

And here is a video on the upper I have that shows the upper that I bought in action:





And here is a picture of the Alexander Arms version:
[attachment=1:t7znjgzo]alex6_54.jpg[/attachment:t7znjgzo]


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