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New Luth-AR Lo-Drag Upper Receiver: Minimalism To The Max
The new Lo-Drag upper receiver from Luth-AR has been stripped of anything not integral to the function of the rifle to make it as lightweight and snag-free as possible.
Luth Lo-Drag Upper Features:
- No Shell Deflector
- No Forward Assist
- No Dust Cover
- Thicker Receiver Walls
When Eugene Stoner first designed the AR, it too did not have a shell deflector or forward assist, so in a way Luth’s new Lo-Drag upper is returning to its roots. Only at the insistence of the military were the forward assist and shell deflector added later on. Original ARs did have dust covers, however, so Luth’s design is taking things even a step further.
Similar low-profile uppers have been made before, but most have either been discontinued or include at least one of the three features omitted from Luth’s design. This new Lo-Drag upper will be more affordable and available than other low-profile designs on the market.
Featureless AR uppers like this are popular on varmint-gun and bench shooting builds, but there are other applications as well. If I were to build something based on the Lo-Drag upper, it would be streamlined in other areas to make it as lightweight as possible (the low weight is my favorite aspect of the AR platform in general). If you’re looking to build the lightest AR you can, try using the AR-15 parts weight database. This crowd-sourced databased is an excellent resource for finding the lightest parts possible.
That being said, it would be helpful if Luth-AR had bothered to list the Lo-Drag upper’s weight since that’s one of its main selling points. It may be a bit heavier than expected due to its thicker receiver walls which were added for extra strength, and its 6061-T6 aluminum construction is marginally heavier than MilSpec 7075-T6 alloy.
With an MSRP of $99, the Lo-Drag upper is an interesting new offering from Luth-AR. Personally though, I hope they start churning out more A1 uppers soon, there’s been a serious shortage lately.
For more information on Luth-AR, please visit luth-ar.com.
AR Building Info
- How To: AR-15 Assembly Tips
- AR-15 Lower Assembly Guide
- The AR-15 Upper: How It Works
- AR-15 Upgrade Guide
- Five Areas Of Concern During An AR-15 Build
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