Cryostructure?

[Rudy]

Bought a lower from them 2.5 years ago, super smooth transaction with no issues.  At the same time the owner said he was tooling up to make 5.56 generic Fightlite barrels.   I have been contacting him about every 6 months and after about 1.5 years, he offered me two for the same price to keep my order alive.   I now see that they are actively advertising and selling them on the website.  I left several messages and emailed their customer service over the last few weeks and have been ghosted.   Just curious if anyone else has had the same experience or know if this place is still in operation?

 

Thanks,

 

Rudy

 

[Rudy]

Actually, just heard from the owner after I posted this and he said they will be sent this month.   

 

Rudy

 

Edited April 6 by Rudy
update

[mattnh]

I paid for 3 uppers.

After delay, was promised 6 uppers.

Was promised a refund last year.

Was sent tracking info - but they never actually shipped the refund.

 

Also ghosted after following up numerous times…

-M

[JMPinTN]

Wow, 4 total free uppers on just 2 orders is a pretty substantial offering. 

[mattnh]

Google Reddit Cryostructure 

look at the bottom of the thread

 

[mattnh]

lol, the irony

[MPFiveO]

I've been wanting to get one of their belt fed lowers, either an 80 or 100 to put my Shrike upper on but have been hesitant because of all the reports of bad dealings. But, on the other hand it only took 11 years to get my Shrike...

[JMPinTN]

Has anyone received an upper from them? Reddit thread is bad.

[SGT Fish]

On 4/6/2026 at 5:36 PM, JMPinTN said:

Has anyone received an upper from them? Reddit thread is bad.

No. There is a good ar15.com thread on the uppers as well. It hit the 2 year mark in February.  

Here is the link to it https://www.ar15.com/forums/Armory/It-s-2-14-2024-where-s-the-Cryostructure-Shrike-clone-upper-/65-550065/

Paul wont answer any questions about it either. He just will give you another BS delivery time. He has yet to even show a complete prototype. 

 

Barrels and uppers have been promised to be delivered 2 years ago. And its always "waiting on one part" or "the last part is out for coating"

 

But if all they are waiting on is one part(the bolt he claims), then thatd mean the barrels people ordered are just sitting on a shelf and he isnt shipping them, or he is lying. Not sure there is a third option 

 

Here is a decent video with some (not all) of the highlights of dealing with Paul Russ. 

 

Edited April 10 by SGT Fish

[SGT Fish]

5 hours ago, Rudy said:

Actually, just heard from the owner after I posted this and he said they will be sent this month.   

 

Rudy

 

I will eat my hat if you get an upper this month, let alone two. 

[M38A1-Josh]

I bought an HK21 barrel from him and a belt fed AR lower. Lower is nice and came fast. It took a while to get the HK21 barrel, and I got one with shallow chamber fluting. Shame, because otherwise it is a great looking barrel. It won't eject when firing. So he owes me a barrel, which was supposed to ship last week and didn't. I think he has a lot of bad HK21 barrels to replace. He said some barrels were good but then tooling wore down, it wasn't caught, and shallow fluting resulted.

 

Against the advice of some, I ordered one of his 5.56 belt fed uppers late last year. I have cast my penny into the wishing well. I don't expect to see it for quite some time, given his track record.

[JMPinTN]

1 hour ago, SGT Fish said:

No. There is a good ar15.com thread on the uppers as well. It his the 2 year mark in February.  

Here is the link to it https://www.ar15.com/forums/Armory/It-s-2-14-2024-where-s-the-Cryostructure-Shrike-clone-upper-/65-550065/

Paul wont answer any questions about it either. He just will give you another BS delivery time. He has yest to even show a complete prototype. 

 

Barrels and uppers have been promised to be delivered 2 years ago. And its always "waiting on one part" or "the last part is out for coating"

 

But if all they are waiting on is one part(the bolt he claims), then thatd mean the barrels people ordered are just sitting on a shelf and he isnt shipping them, or he is lying. Not sure there is a third option 

 

Here is a decent video with some (not all) of the highlights of dealing with Paul Russ. 

 

Thanks for the link. This guy has been at it for a decade or so it seems.

Getting started on the Shadow ops scam now.

 

[NDG]

You guys are nuts if you don't demand a refund like yesterday on uppers and barrels. Over 2 years now of me reading Russ responses of 2 weeks, next month blah blah blah. 

Edited April 7 by NDG

[M3sa]

Curious if anyone has received a DF lower from him recently? I placed an order for one last month when they were showing to be in stock, with no prior knowledge of Paul or his dealings. Noticed today that he's pulled the completed lowers from his website entirely. They are still for sale on the Black Widow website, but OOS with "beginning of April" as the estimate for restock.

Guy on reddit says he's been waiting for his for over a year now. Which seems on par with everything else I've read...

[SGT Fish]

5 hours ago, M3sa said:

Curious if anyone has received a DF lower from him recently? I placed an order for one last month when they were showing to be in stock, with no prior knowledge of Paul or his dealings. Noticed today that he's pulled the completed lowers from his website entirely. They are still for sale on the Black Widow website, but OOS with "beginning of April" as the estimate for restock.

Guy on reddit says he's been waiting for his for over a year now. Which seems on par with everything else I've read...

The black widow connection is weird. Paul claims no ownership whatsoever of BW, but calls all of their products his. They are located in the same building. And the YouTube guys i posted above said he got very upset when they said it was Paul's company. 

I dont think cryostructure or Paul have an FFL as far as I can tell. I could be totally wrong. But if he did, why wouldn't he have the BW lowers made under a variance with his company name? Why wouldn't he make them. 

 

And if he doesn't have an FFL, why wouldn't he? Just more questions to the pile we already have. 

 

And yes Paul, I know you are reading all of this and won't answer our questions. Just like you dodged my questions on the 1919a4 forum. And I still dont care that you know who I am and have my "name & phone number and I know exactly who you are Jacob"

[AGG]

The owner sounds like a shyster--- why are they allowed to be a vendor here? 

That is one of the reasons that we do not allow vendors on HK Proshop. 

Tony

Edited April 11 by AGG

[jntmjt1]

He's just a scam artist.  He'll always give you a good story.  Either it's shipping very soon (like in a week or two), and/or he'll offer you some -over the top- free item or tremendous discount (on parts he does not have in stock), just to keep you on the hook.  I got nailed by him with a HK21 barrel that's no good (waited forever, and the flutes are too shallow), and associated hardware that I paid extra for didn't arrive and I know that will never materialize.  

Don't pay any attention to what he says.  Watch what he does.

His ad at the top of this website makes me sick every time I see it.  He should be banned, not advertising here.

JT

Edited April 11 by jntmjt1

[M38A1-Josh]

I ended up canceling my belt fed upper order through my credit card processor. Got my money back.

 

I was promised a replacement HK21 barrel weeks ago and still nothing. Every week I email to ask for an update and no response. 

[MPFiveO]

I ordered a BFR 80% lower on April 9. I don't think my credit card was even charged although he did call and get the information to process my order. I haven't seen the lower yet and they showed 5 in stock when I placed my order but are down to 2 now. Since my card hasn't been charged I'm not even going to worry about it.

[gamebit21]

To all:

     The AR10 belt  feed upper shoulder very well be possible, and yet why does someone get so scatter focused?? I mean they could go with a few quality producer at least they could make good money on. Then they could move on and add new producers. 
     This guy even uses money to advertise on this site for what?? It is like another Bob Lazar Guy is an intelligent, yet they are not just with the rest of us enough. In the case of Bob Lazar, he had metal alloys developed from near zero and cryonic technologies. 
     Rather than distance and burn people out, again, he could start with the basics, and he could add on. If he just built a good rep, and he communicated with people well, then he could even “finance” and “alpha” and “beta” test products with more than enough help and interest in the community……

     I mean I would have went with others, and I am sure we could as a community get the AR10 belt feed Item Working. There were even working produces I saw, and it was not hair his photos.  I guess my only thoughts are he is lost to the Cryonic Process. He has gotten cold deep cold inside…. It is a hard and cold heart….
 

Edited May 27 by gamebit21

[gamebit21]

To ALL:

     I would like to pursue a AR10 belt feed upper to use with a AR / M16 lower. I would like to work with say an HK21/HK21E/MG34/MG42/MK47/M60/M1919 or any belt feed component section to use for the feed mechanism. 
     Really the key would be to again find a wag to have a base / modifying a base feed chains to work on. It may be possible to use a AR10 upper mass out of 7075-T6 Allot, so it can be cut to have a pinned in feed mechanism for example.

     In 2026, it is just ridiculous that no one can make process with all the talent and tech is out there…..

Edited May 27 by gamebit21

[MPFiveO]

On 5/26/2026 at 7:13 PM, MPFiveO said:

I ordered a BFR 80% lower on April 9. I don't think my credit card was even charged although he did call and get the information to process my order. I haven't seen the lower yet and they showed 5 in stock when I placed my order but are down to 2 now. Since my card hasn't been charged I'm not even going to worry about it.

So, here's an update. On May 30 I received a missed call, a voicemail, a text message AND an email from Paul wanting to know if I still wanted to proceed with my BFAR 80 order. Of course I did and I gave him permission to charge my card. He asked if I wanted any engraving and I declined because I have all that covered. He said he'd have it in the mail right away. Tonight I was taking a stroll around the house and found a box on the front porch. I usually get my packages on the carport but who knows what delivery people are thinking at any given time. I picked up the box and saw that it was from Cryostructure. I opened the box and there was a BFAR 80 lower just like I wanted. I don't know how long it had been on the porch but if it was delivered today it only took four days to get here.

Sometimes we don't hesitate to slander someone if we hear something negative about them from someone else, we just repeat what we heard as if we know it was true. My only dealing with Paul was this one order. Since my card was never charged I decided it wasn't worth worrying about. It definitely wasn't worth saying negative things. You just never know what someone has going on at any given time. I had a rough week last week. A very expensive lawnmower belt broke and one had to be ordered because it was out of stock. Some lady with no drivers license and no insurance backed into the bumper of my truck at the store. At least she stayed to tell me. Then at the tail end of all this a storm came through and blew down three trees in the yard and knocked out power for a couple of days. All of this right before I had to spend this week at the police academy range teaching recruits how to shoot. At this moment I have two days worth of sunburn and some serious fatigue. It's after midnight and I'll be back up at 5:30am for the final day... I'm tired.

Anyway, I had nothing negative to say about Paul and I didn't even mention the delay when I spoke to him on the phone. He sent my lower out promptly just like he said he would. I didn't do or say anything to get special treatment. The only thing I did was make my original contribution to this thread on May 26. I can only assume that it was brought to his attention and he acted upon it. That is at least one little spark of light in my very fatigued existence at this moment in time. According to Howard Jones, Things can only get better.

[gamebit21]

     Good points MP5 O. PAUL, please continues youor work on the AR10 upper and matching lower. I am for sure as well as others are too in getting a practical belt fed in 7.62x51mm based on AR type systems. 
     There are efforts out there, and there really is only limited options for a 7.62x51mm belated item. There are plenty of bulk reload people and zinc cases lubed bull ammo to use for it. You will make sales for it. 
     PAUL, no one would be against a developed project bulk group buy either. I am sure you have good ideas and experiences with this. This market will never just be offered out of the blue to shooters. It must be a community development….

[SGT Fish]

8 hours ago, gamebit21 said:

     Good points MP5 O. PAUL, please continues youor work on the AR10 upper and matching lower. I am for sure as well as others are too in getting a practical belt fed in 7.62x51mm based on AR type systems. 
     There are efforts out there, and there really is only limited options for a 7.62x51mm belated item. There are plenty of bulk reload people and zinc cases lubed bull ammo to use for it. You will make sales for it. 
     PAUL, no one would be against a developed project bulk group buy either. I am sure you have good ideas and experiences with this. This market will never just be offered out of the blue to shooters. It must be a community development….

Continue developing? He hasn't even finished the 5.56 CLONE of an existing design. Let alone a new design. 

[M38A1-Josh]

I cannot recommend anyone do business with Cryo Structure, owned by Paul Russ. I already posted some of this in this thread but I will summarize it.

I ordered an HK21 barrel in mid 2024. Received it in late 2025. Tested it in January 2026 and found it was defective. I contacted Paul Russ and he told me he was aware some barrels had gone out with shallow fluting. I was told I would have a replacement in 30 days. Last I heard from him was in March when he said a barrel would ship the following Monday. Since then I have not received a replacement barrel or refund and he has not responded to my weekly inquiries. I just filed a complaint with the VA BBB and I will continue to escalate this.

I had one of his belt fed 5.56 uppers on order and have since canceled it via emails he did not respond to and a charge back. I got my money back through my credit card company and he finally sent an email confirming my order was cancelled and fully refunded.

To his credit he did discount the price of my HK21 barrel $200 for the delay and he did give me a discount on one of his belt fed lowers, which I received. But a discount on a bad barrel isn't worth anything.

[M38A1-Josh]

Here us a post from user cms81586 on ar15.com. There are a couple threads following his shenanigans.

 

"If you’re considering buying from Paul and Cryostructure…DON’T!

You’re not getting your money back if he already has it. After two years, three bad barrels, and countless hours trying to help him unfuck his product, I finally asked for a refund. After a bunch of reminders and persistence Paul refunded me $100 and then $300 in a couple separate instances. I called him on ending the games at the beginning of this month and demanded he pay me the remainder of the balance (call it about $600) and he sent me a screenshot of his Cryo bank account overdrawn with a negative $229.16 balance. I asked if he’d provide me with a dual feed AR lower or other product instead…he doesn’t have anything for inventory except feed box adapters and reinforcing rails that obviously aren’t selling (fast anyways). I was going to just take that offer but I’ve changed my mind. Asked if he has any personal firearms he could use to cover the rest…he does but won’t. He’s a textbook sociopath who will sell you a line of bull with a smile, take advantage of every bit of patience and kindness you have, and then walk away with whatever he can.

PLEASE READ IF PAUL HAS YOUR MONEY AND WILL NOT REFUND YOU…

Send me a PM if you’ve paid Paul for a product, asked for a refund, and have been unable to secure a refund. Keep all of your correspondence with him. I’m having a chat with a VA Commonwealth’s Attorney in the next week or two in order to explain the situation and confirm my planned way ahead is the best way to proceed. To go into that conversation informed I’d like to be able to give a rough estimate on the number of people he ripped off and the amount of money he stole. May never see a cent of money back, but if I can get Cryostructure shut down and prevent him from stealing anyone else’s money then it’s a win in my book.

PM me by the end of June with a rough amount owed. If you know anyone else he’s ripped off let them know or help me account for what they’re owed too." 

[Bdubber09]

Sooo. We hear about cryostructure huh? lol. Buckle up gentlemen. 
 

so ordered a dual feed lower and complete upper April 2025. Lower took maybe 3 months and a few calls/emails but ultimately received it and was all good. (Which makes sense since that’s made by blackwidow who has since cut ties with Paul a month or so ago) anyway, more emails, instagram messages about upper eta (it was always just a few more weeks or waiting for a certain part to come in to be ready). October 2025 I got tired of waiting and asked to cancel and refund my order. He then sent a bad check about 2-3 weeks later. Then said he’d get me refunded in full asap. Since Oct 2025 until now (June 2026 he has zelled me a whopping 450$ on my 2950$ refund. I’ve asked him about every month since October when I’d get paid in full. I left a BBB review on him which he likes to bring up as to why he’s lost business. Crazy right? One bad review apparently ruined his business to where he can’t even refund you. Also about a million other bullshit excuses throughout this entire ordeal. Guy is a straight up scam artist. For the love of god please don’t order anything from him. Especially those lowers since he doesn’t even have access to them anymore. 

[Bdubber09]

 Left out some stuff.
 

There’s atleast 2 other guys who had almost the exact same experience as me with his upper. Some got money back with credit card dispute others like me still out money.  He will play the blame game with you if you say anything negative publicly or leave a bad review saying you caused him to lose ‘investors’ so that’s why he can’t refund you. Also said some stuff about he was selling a bunch of these uppers to India… also pretty sure he’s still taking orders on the lowers he no longer has via zelle payments. Telling yall, stay as far away from this dude/company as possible as he’s essentially stolen a lot of peoples money. 

[JMPinTN]

Even crazier is reading how he’s ripped everyone off and his add is at the top of this thread.

[D Edwards]

this guy may have mental issues and need some professional help.

darwin edwards

[taylorwso]

Ill put this in here because I helped him here/there and I still talk to him.

The dude is not a con artist, he got in over his head with a couple projects, then got fucked in life, that's it. He is still trying to get refunds, even if its a little at a time.

Does he stretch the truth on deliveries, 100% and that fucked him. The projects he talks about have been designed, some millings/test stuff but nothing complete and I wouldn't expect it. Yes there is a ar10 version (not his design).

I've lost money to him as well, but he has completed the BFAR/dual feed, hk21 adapters, hk21 barrels (this was the big problem), and other stuff. He can build/design great stuff and still does, his business stuff needs serious work.

IMO you have every right to be pissed. I've been screwed on mult gun deals, but don't trash him as a con artist. Sh!t business, for sure.

Whether you like that or not, that is 100% truth.

[SGT Fish]

14 hours ago, taylorwso said:

Ill put this in here because I helped him here/there and I still talk to him.

The dude is not a con artist, he got in over his head with a couple projects, then got fucked in life, that's it. He is still trying to get refunds, even if its a little at a time.

Does he stretch the truth on deliveries, 100% and that fucked him. The projects he talks about have been designed, some millings/test stuff but nothing complete and I wouldn't expect it. Yes there is a ar10 version (not his design).

I've lost money to him as well, but he has completed the BFAR/dual feed, hk21 adapters, hk21 barrels (this was the big problem), and other stuff. He can build/design great stuff and still does, his business stuff needs serious work.

IMO you have every right to be pissed. I've been screwed on mult gun deals, but don't trash him as a con artist. Sh!t business, for sure.

Whether you like that or not, that is 100% truth.

When you lie to customers to get their money, you are a con artist. I dont care if you are selling gun parts or new roofs. 

He didnt stretch the truth on deliveries, he has flat out lied about them. Quoting dates that he fully knows won't happen, maybe its a psychological problem, idk, but either way, he is conning people out of their money. 

Nobody has said that he cant make or design an item, ive bought a small item from him that seems well made. But he definitely can't deliver on the deals he is making. He still blames everyone else for his issues, you even said that he got F'd. Yet he is the one that is telling the lies. He is the one taking their money.  And when id tell the truth about him on forums, he liked to reply with crap like "I know who you are Jacob, I have your phone number, etc, etc..." as some sort of intimidation tactic, but he wont answer questions or tell the truth about why he isnt shipping x, y, or z. 

 

 

Edited June 30 by SGT Fish

[taylorwso]

On 6/29/2026 at 4:10 PM, SGT Fish said:

When you lie to customers to get their money, you are a con artist. I dont care if you are selling gun parts or new roofs. 

He didnt stretch the truth on deliveries, he has flat out lied about them. Quoting dates that he fully knows won't happen, maybe its a psychological problem, idk, but either way, he is conning people out of their money. 

Nobody has said that he cant make or design an item, ive bought a small item from him that seems well made. But he definitely can't deliver on the deals he is making. He still blames everyone else for his issues, you even said that he got F'd. Yet he is the one that is telling the lies. He is the one taking their money.  And when id tell the truth about him on forums, he liked to reply with crap like "I know who you are Jacob, I have your phone number, etc, etc..." as some sort of intimidation tactic, but he wont answer questions or tell the truth about why he isnt shipping x, y, or z. 

 

 

Dude Im not going to get in on what he said, IRDGAF, I don't do forums or social media any more BUT the way he has run things is f'ed, I even said that.

Im here so it's not one sided, that's it.  I have no money involved in anything with him except what is gone.

Like I said he wasn't intentional, dude was producing, got fucked on some stuff, got behind, then he tried to "manage it"   If he lied, then that was stupid.

You can label him whatever you want, but he wasn't there trying to fuck you, he is still trying to send small refunds here and there. He ended up in a situation, 100% his fault, and handled it poorly.  I'm not trying to convince you otherwise, but his intentions was not to rip anyone off. 

[M38A1-Josh]

As someone who got a bad barrel, was told I would be getting a replacement, and has not heard from him in months about a replacement barrel or refund, he sure looks like a whatever we want to call him from my viewpoint. 

[JMPinTN]

On 7/6/2026 at 1:05 PM, taylorwso said:

Dude Im not going to get in on what he said, IRDGAF, I don't do forums or social media any more BUT the way he has run things is f'ed, I even said that.

Im here so it's not one sided, that's it.  I have no money involved in anything with him except what is gone.

Like I said he wasn't intentional, dude was producing, got fucked on some stuff, got behind, then he tried to "manage it"   If he lied, then that was stupid.

You can label him whatever you want, but he wasn't there trying to fuck you, he is still trying to send small refunds here and there. He ended up in a situation, 100% his fault, and handled it poorly.  I'm not trying to convince you otherwise, but his intentions was not to rip anyone off. 

He’s been scamming people for at least 15 years with Shadow Ops and Copper Kinetics. There are probably other company’s out there that I’m not aware of and someone here that could shed light on them.

[JoshNC]

In case anyone wants a good laugh…

 

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1188240742

 

[Nugg]

Seeking legal advice that knows VA law on what I should do next. Message me in private if it involve names/ numbers.

So here is my story with Cryostructure, I get the email Oct/2024 on the soon to be released BFAR upper, ETA 11/30 time frame so I order an upper, spare barrel and some small parts then checked back on his website around 12/01 and the ETA was moved a month. A month later I get my small parts delivered leaving the upper and barrel. From Jan/25 till Oct/25 I would check the website every 2 weeks or so and the ETA for delivery kept moving up 2 weeks or a month. The ETAs changed about 15 times in a course for a year so I contacted  Paul Russ and canceled the remaining upper/barrel.

Paul said he would give me my order for free (upper and barrel) and UPS me a company check for the refund, told me to not cash it until he says so. He also said he couldn't return the refund through my credit card because it was over 4 months since the purchase?.  I told him that I don't want anything free, just want my refund ASAP. He cancels the rest of my original order and issues another new one with the upper/barrel as comp for waiting on a refund. I received the company check with a letter explaining that generates 5 to 6 figures per month and he has several big loans/contracts coming in.

So a month goes by and I don't here from Paul so I decided to go to the bank that the check was issued from to see If I can cash it. The teller takes the check, goes through the account and gives me back the check, tells me she can't cash the check and can't tell me why, tells me also to not deposit it in my account.

Every month I would call Paul to get updates and it would be the same talking points with him, either production woes or waiting on loans or incoming contracts, billionaire sponsor going to supply resources so he can go "full production" bla, bla, bla. 

Fast forward to April/26 and I started reading all the complaints on Cryostructure through ar15, Reddit, You tube, all very similar to my case and one success story stuck out for me. An individual was able to "charge back" his refund after 18 months from Chase Bank.  I never knew you can do a charge back after so long after a purchase. I have Chase, so I tried the same thing, filed a dispute, Chase said that I waited to long to file ( limited to 110 days after cancelation),  also they contact Paul Russ and he refused to issue a refund to Chase. 

The last time I talked to Paul was 2 months ago for an update and it turned into a heated conversation where he is asking me If I tried to do a charge back and was schooling me on the statues of limitations to do one cause he had money in his merchant account. I told him I tried, Chase contacted him and he refused to refund me. He had no response other than offering me $100 Venmo for " Good faith" on $3900.

So my advice is don't wait like me, as soon as you get a canceled invoice do a charge back. As for me I'm trying to figure out my next step which I need legal guidance. I am out of state but can travel for small claims court if need be. I don't know If someone else in the same boat as me.

Sorry for long rant.

[MPFiveO]

Not sure about VA law but in Alabama you have a period of one year to pursue a bad check case with the district attorney's office. You can contact your local DA's office and ask for the bad check unit.

[JECIII]

On 7/17/2026 at 5:16 PM, JoshNC said:

In case anyone wants a good laugh…

 

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1188240742

 

Wtf

[gamebit21]

     This whole scenario is hunter Biden except with guns. No matter what “talent” or “intelligence” you may have, now one wants to deal with of will tolerate this type of treatment. 
     Even reforming all these digital companies still leaves fingerprints, marks, and a bad taste with people. It is a shame that good talent and development could have helped everybody. Well it seems Lima 6, Cloak Arms, and a few others will fill the market hole and demands. 
     There is a smaller yet solod market for an AR10 type belt fed in 7.62x51. It can work on an a widely available AR15/M16 lower. Cloak Arms is scaling up their MFR56 to a MFR76. These are the glory and golden age of guns….

Edited August 2 by gamebit21

[SGT Fish]

2 hours ago, gamebit21 said:

     There is a smaller yet solod market for an AR10 type belt fed in 7.62x51. It can work on an a widely available AR15/M16 lower. Cloak Arms is scaling up their MFR56 to a MFR76. These are the glory and golden age of guns….

Well kinda. System defense of Turkey is making them. Supposedly cloak made some of the parts for the 5.56 uppers and wants to make more in the USA. But I dont think are really designing anything

[gamebit21]

     Dear sir, 

 

     I stand corrected. Perhaps it more correct to say they are “involved” with some parts and peripherals. They are “involved” with the units being imported and available in the USA. 
     That said, this will definitely be a windfall for the USA Market. Due to the 86 Ban for civilians, no new models are to be available from that perspective. 
     At least the USA common tried and true tested AR will be able to have many more great upper options and accessories….

[M38A1-Josh]

Still no update. No replacement HK21 barrel.

[M38A1-Josh]

Recently posted here: https://blackwidowfirearms.com/cryostructure-notice/

 

Notice: Black Widow Arms Is Not Affiliated With Cryostructure

 

 

Black Widow Arms is not affiliated with Cryostructure, LLC or Paul Russ. Black Widow Design, LLC d/b/a Black Widow Arms ("Black Widow Arms") wants to be direct with our customers and the wider community: we do not own, control, or share any ownership with Cryostructure, LLC or its owner, Paul Earl Russ III, and the two companies have never been the same business. Any business dealings between us have ended.

Why the confusion exists

Black Widow Arms operates from a multi-tenant business complex at 2309 Lee Highway, Mount Sidney, Virginia, which has housed a number of unrelated businesses over the years. Cryostructure was a tenant of that complex from 2023 until its eviction in April 2026. Cryostructure also offered for sale lower receivers manufactured by Black Widow Arms, and its website and communications with customers at times implied a closer relationship between the two companies than actually existed. As a result, some customers who paid Cryostructure and never received their product have understandably come to believe that Paul Russ owned or ran Black Widow Arms, or that the two companies were one and the same.

They are not, and never have been. Black Widow Arms has been in business since 2002 and has been located in Augusta County, Virginia for its entire history, more than two decades before Cryostructure arrived. It is a separate legal entity, independently owned and operated, and holds its own Federal Firearms License (Type 07/SOT). Neither Cryostructure nor Paul Russ has ever held one in Virginia.

What actually happened

Cryostructure leased manufacturing equipment from Black Widow Arms and defaulted on those leases, and did not pay Black Widow Arms in full for the materials used in the receivers it offered for sale. Separately, Cryostructure was evicted from the complex in April 2026. Black Widow Arms subsequently filed a civil lawsuit against Cryostructure, LLC and Paul Earl Russ III in Augusta County Circuit Court. On August 25, 2026, the Court entered judgment in Black Widow Arms' favor against both defendants for the full amount sought, plus fees, costs, and interest. Black Widow Arms was not a party to Cryostructure's dealings with its own customers and did not authorize Cryostructure to represent otherwise.

If you are a Cryostructure customer waiting on an order

We understand this has been frustrating, and in many cases costly. Black Widow Arms is not able to fulfill orders placed with Cryostructure, issue refunds on Cryostructure's behalf, or take responsibility for that company's transactions. If you paid by credit card, we strongly encourage you to contact your card issuer about a chargeback as soon as possible, since these requests are subject to time limits. If you would like to place a new order directly with Black Widow Arms, we are glad to help.

Law enforcement

Black Widow Arms has referred this matter to law enforcement and is cooperating fully. If you are a Cryostructure customer and have documentation of your experience — order confirmations, payment records, or communications with the company — please send it, along with your order details, directly to the investigating officer at Brandon.Hazelwood@fcva.us.

Questions

If you have questions about this notice or about Black Widow Arms' products and services, please reach out to us directly at blackwidowfirearms@proton.me. We appreciate your patience and continued trust in Black Widow Arms.

[MPFiveO]

Interesting, the original post was made April 6 and Cryostructure  was evicted on April 26.

I had posted earlier that I had ordered an 80 percent lower on April 9th. I didn't hear anything until May 30th and Paul contacted me to complete the transaction and shipped the lower that day.

I guess I got really lucky in that window of time.

[SGT Fish]

Looks like the cryostructure banner ad has finally been pulled from this site.