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Battle Arms Development BAD-ASS ST Review

BAD-ASS ST - thearmsguide.com

December 6, 2016 by Nate Schultz (nsz85) 17 Comments

When it comes to customizing your AR-15, sometimes it’s the little things that make a big difference. In my case, the small change of swapping out my safety selector granted me the ability to switch from safe to fire quicker, the ability to customize they way my safety looks, and the ability to engage and disengage my safety selector from either side of my rifle. How was this possible? All I did was install a selector called the BAD-ASS ST by Battle Arms Development. Let me tell you about it.

Installation:

When I first obtained my BAD-ASS ST (Battle Arms Development Ambidextrous Safety Selector – Short Throw), I immediately went downstairs to my shop to install it. I was basically like a kid on Christmas morning. I sat down and ripped open the package to find the selector, a new detent, a new spring, a torx head wrench, and a couple of extra screws.

On the back of the package were the installation instructions. I found them to be descriptive and easy to follow. Installing the BAD-ASS ST was a pretty simple process and only required me to have a screwdriver to remove my pistol grip, and a Dremel to grind off a small metal pin. I was unable to put the safety into my lower receiver with the pin installed. Grinding off this small pin was not explained in the instructions and I had to do some online research before installing it. I found out that a pin like this was unique to a “short throw” style of safety and I decided to contact Battle Arms Development and ask them about it.

BAD-ASS ST Pin - thearmsguide.com
This picture shows the BAD-ASS ST pin that prohibits the installation without first removing it. Image courtesy of battlearmsdevelopment.com

Upon contacting Battle Arms Development, I actually had the honor of speaking with the owner, Mr. Roger Wang. He was nice, personable, and took the time to discuss the liability behind what he called the “lawyer pin.”

Roger explained that the process of grinding the pin away had to be done to properly install the BAD-ASS ST on my rifle. Unlike other lower receivers on the market that are already specifically set up for a short throw safety, my AR-15 lower receiver was not engraved or “notched” to receive one. So, in my case, when switching from safe to fire, the indicator on the lever would not exactly line up with the fire position on my receiver. Roger also told me that Battle Arms Development does not condone doing this process and it will void the warranty.

Features:

Along with having a 45 degree engagement/disengagement angle, the BAD-ASS ST is also ambidextrous. This means that I could use the safety from either side of my AR-15. Personally, I like this feature and find it useful. More on that later. If, however, I had decided not to use the ambidextrous feature or wanted my safety to appear more traditional, Battle Arms Development makes an “end cap” to install instead of a lever.

BAD-ASS ST Short Crank Lever - thearmsguide.com
This is a photo of my short crank lever that I have installed on the weak side of my AR-15. Photo by paul-vincent.com

That brings me to my ability to customize my selector to my liking. Each BAD-ASS ST (and the original BAD-ASS) allows for the removal and installation of a variety of different lever sizes, shapes and thicknesses. This is done by unscrewing the torx screw, removing the lever, replacing it with the lever of my choice, and then screwing it back together. On my AR-15, I chose to use the long “crank” lever on my strong side (thumb side) and the short “crank” lever on my weak side (trigger finger side). I found that the short lever on the weak side allowed for the safety to still be operated but was short enough as to not interfere with my tigger finger when gripping and shooting my rifle.

Final Thoughts

I would have never thought that making such a small modification would have made my whole AR-15 shooting experience that much different, but it has. It has allowed me to engage and disengage my rifle’s safety noticeably faster (see it in action here). As a guy with shorter thumbs, it was also easier to manipulate the safety with my thumb vs. a 90 degree angled selector. After a short time of shooting, I found myself naturally using my trigger finger to switch my rifle back into the safe position. I also noticed that there was a much more positive “click” to the lever when moving it between positions. Although, when I installed a BAD-ASS ST for a friend on his AR-15, there was a slight difference in “feel” between his and mine (his had an even firmer “click” than mine). This was probably due to the slight variation in tolerances between lower receivers and pistol grips. For reference, my AR-15 is built on a MEGA lower and I have a Magpul MOE+ grip. His was on a Spike’s Tactical lower and he had a mil-spec A2 style of grip.

Custom Built AR-15 - thearmsguide.com
Here you can see the long crank lever that I have installed on the strong side of my personal AR-15. Photo by paul-vincent.com

Overall, my experience with my BAD-ASS ST has been positive and I continue to use it to this day. I personally like the change from the 90 degree to the 45 degree angle and enjoy the ability to switch out levers and customize it to my liking. Aesthetics are important to me when it comes to my firearms and I appreciate the attention to detail and look of these levers on my rifle. Specifically, I can tell that the machining is well done and at a price point of around $85, I feel that I got what I paid for.

Filed Under: Gear Tagged With: accessories, ambi, ambidextrous, BAD-ASS ST, Battle Arms Development, rifle, safety, selector, short throw

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About the Author

Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)

Nate Schultz (nsz85) Nate Schultz is employed within the field of Law Enforcement, is an avid shooter, firearms enthusiast and hobbiest gunsmith. When he is not writing for The Arms Guide, he is producing content for his YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/nsz85

See All Nate Schultz (nsz85) Articles

Comments

  1. Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)AlessioBaldi says

    May 11, 2013 at 10:54 am

    I think the lever at 45degree is a very useful imrovement. It should allows to manipulate the safety without having to change or losen the grip.
    Have to give it a try 😉

    Reply
    • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

      May 11, 2013 at 5:47 pm

      AlessioBaldi That is also another reason I really like this lever. Not having to re-position my hand is quite nice.

      Reply
  2. Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

    May 11, 2013 at 12:51 pm

    You know what they say about guys with short thumbs don’t you?

    They have less of a chance getting picked up when hitchhiking…

    Reply
    • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

      May 11, 2013 at 5:47 pm

      FrankPopeyeAndrekus You know what else they say?

      Reply
      • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

        May 11, 2013 at 5:50 pm

        Nate Schultz FrankPopeyeAndrekus 
        Ummm… They like repositioned safety levers? 😉

        Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

          May 11, 2013 at 5:56 pm

          FrankPopeyeAndrekus Nate Schultz Oh, ok cool. I was asking because I didn;t know. See what I did there? 😛

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

          May 11, 2013 at 5:56 pm

          FrankPopeyeAndrekus Nate Schultz Oh, ok cool. I was asking because I didn;t know. See what I did there? 😛

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

          May 11, 2013 at 6:01 pm

          Nate Schultz FrankPopeyeAndrekus Yup. Seriously. With the “Lawyer Pin” did you just dremmel it flush there and do you think it would adversely affect the lower if you were to dremmel a notch for it? Or wouldn’t there be clearance inside?

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

          May 11, 2013 at 6:01 pm

          Nate Schultz FrankPopeyeAndrekus Yup. Seriously. With the “Lawyer Pin” did you just dremmel it flush there and do you think it would adversely affect the lower if you were to dremmel a notch for it? Or wouldn’t there be clearance inside?

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

          May 11, 2013 at 6:47 pm

          FrankPopeyeAndrekus Nate Schultz I just dremeled it flush. It took about a minute and was very simple. There are vidoes on YouTube on how to do it. If it were me, I would just dremel off the pin and NOT change my lower.

          Reply
  3. Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FateofDestinee says

    May 13, 2013 at 2:05 pm

    I still have to install mine! Although, finding 5.56 to run through Bruce has been a pain and a half these days :/

    Reply
    • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

      May 13, 2013 at 3:56 pm

      FateofDestinee Bruce? You name your firearms?

      Reply
      • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FateofDestinee says

        May 13, 2013 at 4:03 pm

        FrankPopeyeAndrekus FateofDestinee I name my guns and my cars lol

        Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FrankPopeyeAndrekus says

          May 13, 2013 at 5:11 pm

          FateofDestinee Gurlz 🙂 I may call my cars and guns names, but I don’t name them. 😉

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

          May 13, 2013 at 7:07 pm

          FrankPopeyeAndrekus FateofDestinee I named my AR-15 “Sasha” and my Ruger 10-22 was named by Destinee when I went shooting with her. Her name is “Mercedes”.  🙂

          Reply
        • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)FateofDestinee says

          May 13, 2013 at 10:59 pm

          Nate Schultz FrankPopeyeAndrekus FateofDestinee It suits her ^_~

          Reply
    • Avatar for Nate Schultz (nsz85)Nate Schultz says

      May 13, 2013 at 7:08 pm

      FateofDestinee I was lucky enough to have found some in stock the other day, but yes, it is very hard to come by! It sucks!

      Reply

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