Despite the best efforts of our enemies and the insane rants of the clueless on both sides of the Second Amendment fence, the AR-15 truly is America's rifle. Doubt me? Take a quick stroll through the aisles of your local gun show (provided you don't live in, say, California), or peruse the latest Shotgun News, and you'll see that AR-style rifles and parts make up a solid percentage of the available wares. And when it comes to accessories, no rifle I know of has as wide a variety of parts and doodads just begging to be bolted, strapped, or clamped on as the good ol' AR.

The right tools make everything easy. This barrel fixture makes it easy to hold a barrel securely without damaging it.

Besides the obvious benefit of being the semiautomatic twin of our country's service rifle, the AR is so popular because it is so darn versatile. Different barrel lengths and contours, countless sight and scope configurations, and a wide variety of calibers mean there is almost certainly some AR flavor to suit your fancy.

I am a good shooter and a reasonable handloader, but I am not the most tool-savvy guy in the world. Still, it seems that I am constantly stumbling my way through assembling and disassembling various AR-15s as I add or replace parts in my quest to bolt as much as I possibly can onto my black guns.

Recently, as I helped a friend replace the trigger on his AR-15, I came to the realization that for once I actually knew what I was doing. That realization and my recent infatuation with the fun little .204 Ruger cartridge inspired me to order the parts necessary to build my own rifle.

good bench block makes driving the AR's many roll pins easy.

I became interested in the .204 Ruger because of its low recoil and its excellence as a prairie-poodle death ray.

Consequently, I decided to build a heavy-barreled precision rifle to take advantage of the flat-shooting cartridge. Based on an excellent reputation as a manufacturer of quality rifles and parts, including .204 Ruger rifles and uppers, I ordered my components from DPMS.

Parts & Tools
Coming up with the parts was fairly simple. I called up DPMS and ordered a stripped lower, a Lower Receiver Parts Kit, a fixed A-2 buttstock, and all the necessary parts to mount it. I also ordered a flattop upper; a round, aluminum handguard; a 24-inch fluted barrel in .204 Ruger; a Picatinny gas block; and a rifle-length gas tube.

Next, I called Timney Manufacturing Inc. and ordered a modular AR trigger. I have installed this trigger before on other carbines and found it to be reliable, safe, and easy to install. The Timney modular trigger gives a light, crisp, single-stage pull that I really like. These units have been so popular that they are constantly on back-order. Fortunately, a new batch had just arrived, so I got my hands on one immediately.

Before assembling the upper or lower, lay out all the parts and make sure they are all present.

Once I had all the parts gathered up, I called Larry Weeks of Brownells to discuss my project. He asked a few questions and helped me put together the perfect tools for the job. They showed up on my doorstep two days later.

This photo shows the lower with the stock attached and magazine catch assembled. It is still shy a few parts, including the trigger, which is clearly visible here.

I will not go in to a step-by-step description of how I assembled the rifle. Rather, I would like to cover a few key parts of the assembly process. If you require complete instructions, both

My new tools included an AR-15 receiver action block, a roll-pin punch set, and an AR-15 armorer's wrench. A vise, mallet, No. 10 screwdriver, antiseize lubricant, and some duct tape rounded out my armorer's kit.

MidwayUSA and Brownells offer several good books and videos on the subject. Internet sites like AR15.com also have good information on building your own AR.