r/canadaguns • u/Ustauk • Aug 07 '26
Fix my gun Makasi serialized part?
On the Brigade Arms Makasi, what is the serialized part? If it is the lower, could someone buy the upper, handguard, BCG, and other proprietary parts from BA and take barrel and bolt from a donor rifle? I know you would either need the same position/length of the gas port, or you would have to plug the existing port ala a Renegade and drill a new port. I was thinking this way people can make their own upper for 300 Blackout, 7.62x39 mm, Grendel, 6 mm ARC, etc without having to wait on Brigade Arms. Thanks!
Edit: Thanks to Acceptable_Visit_115 down-thread for confirming the lower is the serialized part.
I emailed Chris at Third Echelon in Edmonton a while back. He used to make mid-length pistons for the WK180-C. If someone has a Makasi in Edmonton, he can measure the piston for comparison to see if his leftover stock of pistons will work with the rifle. You can email him at [c@thirdechelon.ca](mailto:c@thirdechelon.ca) . Someone like Neuman Metalworks may also have the wherewithal to make different lengths of piston, if there is demand. Time will tell.
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u/Ustauk Aug 07 '26
I wonder if instead of getting a rifle or mid length piston for the Makasi or sealing the port and drilling a carbine length port you could create a Perun X16 style alternative gas block positioned at the carbine length position that instead of taking gas directly from the port would tap the piston from a gas tube cut to length to tap the rifle or mid length port and interface with the gas block? Probably easier to just have someone make the correct length of piston, but having the gas block at the carbine length spot would keep weight of the piston closer the centre of balance of the rifle.
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u/SmatheAverage Aug 07 '26
I get your enthusiasm and I've tried to figure out a caliber conversion as well. Practically, it's not as easy as it seems. I would assume people will be buying an NR Makasi and would prefer to keep the caliber conversion NR as well which eliminates 300blk as a viable option (no 18.5" barrels available). Any new barrel must have a carbine length gas system with 0.750" gas journal to reuse the short stroke gas piston system, but it may be possible to manufacture pistons of various lengths as you say. However, you must remember that you are dealing with a short stroke gas piston system and not the AR15's internal piston so you will likely need to enlarge the barrel gas port to have enough gas to operate which is not easy without negatively affecting accuracy.
For a internal piston conversion, the easiest way is to cut down an AR15 BCG to fit, but there is no space for a proper recoil spring. To my knowledge, the centerline of the bore to the centerline of the hole in the upper receiver for the gas tube is not the same height as an AR15 which will inhibit compatibility without significant modification. The hole in the upper receiver is also larger than an AR15 so the gas tube would not be secured or properly aligned with the gas key. You also lose the ability to tune the gas system without the buffer weights of an AR15 which complicates things even further.
Not to be too negative, a 9mm conversion is a fairly easy affair but again, you don't have buffer weights to troubleshoot with. I've yet to confirm if a CMMG .22lr conversion kit fits but it should work okay. All that to say, if there's a will, there's a long and very expensive way.
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u/Ustauk Aug 07 '26
Thanks! According to Military Arms Channel, the bolt, firing pin, and cam pin are all standard AR-15, with only the bolt carrier being proprietary, so you would want to get an extra bolt carrier. And perhaps the gas port from a standard DI AR would not have a suitable gas port, but if someone has a piston rifle they could use for a donor, like a WK they built into Grendel, perhaps they could use that barrel. Like you said, this only applies to motivated individuals willing to try. https://youtu.be/d0vZgT7yIjQ?si=OHjLwLqOPkPIprIZ&t=1020
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u/Puzzleheaded-Tie35 Aug 07 '26
A lot of similarities with the R18 gas system. If there's any old stock of their rifle-length pistons, it may be worth looking into.
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