I’ve put together a number of AR’s. It isn’t hard, nor does it require a lot of special tools. There are a few, such as a wrench and an action block that I think pretty essential, and they are fun to build. Having said that, you won’t save much, if any money. The lower will still have to be purchased through an FFL. The advantage of buying assembled is it is ready to shoot when you get it. Building yourself, you get to choose brands of components, barrels and triggers, if that makes a difference. Some places you can purchase them already assembled will let you choose some of the components, as well. If this is going to be a one time acquisition, I’d probably just buy it and be done, if you intend on owning others based on that platform, build it and enjoy the project!
Even in light of my post in this thread, I am no where near a pro with this topic.. But I am confused, and you look like the FReeper I can turn to for an answer.
At the federal level, if you do completely fabricate an AR9 low end, you have to number it to be used in a pistol ?
What about things like 1911 blanks? These don’t require numbers, but an AR9 lower built for pistol does ? I’m confused.