From Boise with Love; Palouse-Lite Lower

With all the shenanigans going on in Washington, this is a really good time to invest some coin in lower receivers. Even if you don’t plan on a build right now, one never knows what the future will hold. Calibers are changing as the years go by, as are attachments and rules for how the game is played. I was recently in need of a lower to finish out a 7.62×39 AR build and was very happy to find a huge assortment in stock at Primary Arms.

As I was opting for a pistol build (more on that in a week or two), I wanted a unique-looking lower. Not just for style points (which do matter), but for logistical ease in the future. It wasn’t all that long ago I learned something unique about purchasing a lower instead of a factory built gun. A receiver is listed on form 4473 as a…receiver. Which means it can be anything I want it to be. It can be a pistol, then a rifle, then a pistol again. Anything except an engraved, form 1’d SBR, and it can go back to parts at will. That isn’t true of a factory built gun, which is listed as “whatever it is” on the 4473.

And this presented a little bit of a problem. I have bought more than one stripped lower over the years, but I have no idea which is which. Now, are the odds of me getting pinched for accidentally using the wrong lower to convert to a pistol low? Yes. But they aren’t zero. And when it comes to felonies, I defiantly err on the side of caution. So in planning for the future, I decided to pick a very unique lower for this build, that in a decade I will still remember started life as JUST a receiver.

Digging through Primary Arms in stock stripped lowers, I was amazed to find the Palouse-Lite from 2A Armament in stock. I have been to 2A’s machine shop, I know they build high-quality stuff. Does the lower look unique? Yes sir, absolutely, so check that block. And on sale for $118.75? That has to be a typo.

So like any good gun monkey, I whipped out the credit card and ordered it before they could do a price correction. And I am very happy with my purchase. For the Palouse, 2A lightened everything that could be lightened. Not only is this a little weight saving, but the lower looks absolutely sexy. From the raised sections for the safety selector to the ribbed undercut below the buffer tube, 2A spent some CNC time on this little guy. I couldn’t be happier with my purchase, and would compare this to cool kid lowers that cost twice as much.

While I was there, I gather the other necessities for a build-out. My new favorite lower parts kit is from Rise Armament. The option I chose has no fire control group, pistol grip, or trigger guard. Basically, that means I don’t have to pay for the parts that I usually throw away. It’s 2021, I’m not putting a mil-spec trigger in something I build. Not while AR gold is still around at least. Same with the pistol grip and trigger guard. I even opted for a Gucci B5 trigger guard in OD green this time, just for a bit of color.

The other reason I chose the Rise is the packaging. And by that, I don’t mean they got me with some whiz-bang logos. I mean that Rise segregates each part into its own little plastic bubble so that I can easily verify they are all present. Usually, lower parts kits come in a Ziploc bag. Which makes stuff both very easy to lose, or not to have made it in the bag to start with. Rise saves me the time of a layout, as well as keeps everything in its place until I need it.

This is a great time to grab a great deal, especially if you want to follow along at home. Next week we will be building out a dedicated x39 AR Pistol, with some other goodies to follow. The 2A Palouse Lite is a great way to get it done.

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