I am in the market for an AR. I don't know anything about them but I will tell you that I rather buy the best from the beginning, clean and take care of it and not have to replace. Any recommendations of manufacturers, models, calibers, would be appreciated. I plan to target shoot, hog hunt, etc. with it. Thank you.
Daniel Defense and BCM are well regarded as top of the industry. If just plinking and some hunting are your main criteria then alot of the others will serve you well. Best buy for the buck right now would be the S&W M&P15 sport right around $600. I've personally seen a couple of those go through 600+ round count classes without a problem. Caliber wise .223/5.56 is going to be the cheapest to feed, second most popular would be the 300blk ($1 a round unless you reload your own) Its a good hunting round, but the 300 really shines in a suppressed SBR . I have no experience with the 6.8, but the guys that have it love it but its pricey to feed as well. You could always buy a .223/5.56 and get a different upper in a different caliber.
Depending on your budget the possibilities could be endless. I built my own and in the process of building another now. One I'm building now is gonna come to around 900 and my first one is closer to 1400. Klump kinda hit in on the head with caliber and I'd go that route to start off and can always change down the road if want to. S&W and DPMS both have some good entry level ar's for good prices. Stag Arms and Rock River have a few nice hunting rifles but they'll cost little more. A buddy has a Stag varminter that a pretty nice hunting rifle, but with the bull barrel it gets kinda heavy packing around but that thing can shoot.
yeah that is the one down fall of my rock river is that it has a 20 in bull barrel non-fluted so it comes in at 9.4 lb. empty and without a scope. but i can also put 4 shots in about a dime to nickel at 100 yards. they are tac drivers
I don't know a lot about AR platforms but I have a Stag Arms Model 3 .223 and really like it. I was always told not to go to cheap when buying an AR, but most platforms are very similar. A lot of my buddys who build AR's told me to build one but the Stag seemed like a good start. It was priced right and I plan on adding more to it in the future. Right now I just have magpul foregrip, flip-ups, Bushnell Red-dot and a single strap. I plan on upgrading optics, stock, and grip. Good luck
I purchased 2, A Bushmaster Varminter, 24" barrel, .223 caliber and a Remington R-15, 18", .223 cal. The Bushy is the most accurate gun I own, have shot honest .25 inch groups with it with reman Black Hills factory ammo, the Remington since it is light and short is the gun I use to coyote hunt with mostly. I have built 2 more, 1 a custom built .243 WSSM that I love and reload for and just got done building a .300 blackout that I am having all kinds of fun with from a suppressed, subsonic perspective, I reload so ammo is fairly cheap and hasn't been a consideration in any of the calibers. The 300 is very versitle, can shoot supers and subs and can do a very good job with both, I have killed a deer with the 300 shooting subsonic and it was very lethal. Most people which hunt for hogs would shoot supers I would imagine. The .243 WSSM is a great cal. but if you don't reload I would not recommend as ammo and brass is hard to find at times. Killed a very nice buck once with the WSSM and would make a great coyote gun in a longer range application in my opinion as you can really push the speed if you want. If I could condense it down I would say spend your money on triggers, barrels and quality optics. That is where you will get the most bang for your buck with AR's. The rest is generally mil-spec type stuff and what you may or may not prefer from an asthetic standpoint. Lots of choices and good luck.
I didn't touch on building one for several reasons. First because of your said limited knowledge of AR's. While they are simple to assemble, certain things like quality of parts need to be considered. Added cost of shipping parts,tools and parts bought that you find that you really don't like. One of my builds had almost $200 in just shipping ( could have gotten 5 magazines and 150rnd of ammo for that) If you know somebody knowledgeable, that solve one problem but the other considerations are there. You can always change parts later as you gain more knowledge and hands on with different configurations. I can't build one in a basic configuration cheaper than you can buy them right now. Rock River is known to build good shooters due in large part to a Two stage trigger they use. A trigger upgrade is probably the biggest accuracy gain that you can give an AR. Most AR's are far more accurate than the person behind it. Given good ammo and not surplus. Also buying a complete AR gives you a warranty to fall back on. Other brand to look at in addition to those already mentioned are Colt,Windham Weaponry, CMMG,Larue , Palmetto State has been hit or miss as of late . Hope that helps. Anything else just ask.
Working at a range/gun store I see countless types come in and I'd tend to concur with some others here. If mainly plinking and some hog hunting is all you will be doing anything will complete that task. However if you are more of a get me some quality for a few extra bucks you can't go wrong with a BCM, Daniel Defense, Rock River, Adams (piston uppers) and some others. To me The M&P 15 is a solid gun but don't expect the glitz and glamour or refined feel of others. Reliable usually, however I've seen some be ammo picky...me personally I believe I should be able to run ANYTHING through my AR worry free. One thing to keep in mind is think local too. Many states have small business now making some freaking awesome rifles....but also some very "shi****" ones as well. Our shop refuses to sell one local shop's ARs due to they do not feed reliable and have a terrible record....while another local shop we sell them constantly and to be honest their fit between their upper and lower is perfect, their barrels are cut at their shop and they've been in the machining business for years and ARs for only like 5 but put forth some AWESOME ARs that we sell in the $650 to $800 range depending on model. I would advise personally against the post like 2010 Colts as their production grade has plummetted with all their money worries and possible bankruptcy....I've been able to fit playing cards between their uppers and lowers...not good. Bushmasters are hit or miss model wise honestly...their lower budget ones suffer but their upper stuff is typically solid!
BINGO BINGO!!! I highly recommend this...this is the one part not to skimp honestly. If you build barrel choice is something some fight over too...I chose to not go chrome lined barrel personally because I wanted the utmost in accuracy and I don't run my AR so hard that heat up becomes an issue (takes far more than most AR owners even realize). The chrome lined stuff is good for guys shooting comps or 2-gun but nothing is gained from them in range visits, accuracy contests or hunting situations.
Lots of quality choices out there, but most pre-manufactured AR's will have nothing but Mil-spec parts. That's fine for most of the parts, but Mil-Spec triggers are junk. If you are looking for any real accuracy and repeatability out of the gun, you really want to make sure it has a quality trigger and quality barrel. I just sold my DMPS Bull 20. The upper was fantastic,but the trigger was junk. It was hard to get really consistent groups. I'm in the process of building a custom 300 Blackout and swapped my new lower onto the Bull 20 upper and immediately had tight groups. The main difference is the trigger. I put a drop in POF-USA 4.5lb trigger in the new lower and it's a night and day difference in accuracy. Obviously the most common caliber is the 5.56/.223 and that would probably be where you should start at with an AR. It's fairly cheap to run and ammo is typically available(assuming no more gun scares). The 5.56/.223 platform is great for shooting, but not really ideal for hunting, especially for hogs. It's a light weight bullet that has fairly poor knockdown power. The beauty of the AR is that you can have multiple upper assemblies that all work with one lower assembly. The 300 Blackout uses a .308 bullet, but is cased in a .223 casing which allows you to use all standard AR parts, including the same bolt carrier group and magazines. The only item you would need different is a 300 Blackout barrel. It doesn't have ballistics like a .308 would, but it does give you the option of having a much heavier bullet that would perform similarly to say a 30/30. The 300 Blackout would be a great Hog gun. My suggestion would be to start with the 5.56/223 variant, then eventually you can add other calibers like the 300 Blackout for close range knockdown power or 6.8 Spc for long range shooting. I would make sure that whatever AR you are buying has an upgraded trigger that is clean and crisp with no travel to help with consistency and accuracy. Or, you could build your own part for part. It's not hard at all and there are literally thousands of YouTube videos showing you how to do it. It takes a few specialty tools, but you can get all the tools necessary for less than $100. It will help you have a more intimate knowledge of the firearm and allow you to build exactly what you want. I will have just a little over $1000 in my new 300 Blackout, but it has a high end trigger, upper end adjustable buttstock and grip, high end barrel, and high end rail system.
My personal AR is a Spikes Tactical. For my job we are required to use Colt AR's. Both are fine weapons but I prefer the Spikes. It just shoots better for me.
I agree. I opted to go with a QPQ Nitride finished barrel. For those that are not familiar, QPQ Nitride is not a lining like Chrome, it's actually a process of changing the molecular structure of the surface metal on the barrel. It will harden and add lubricity to the barrel without adding any type of lining that affect accuracy.
I did a partial build on my first AR just so I would have a better understanding of how they work. I bought a stripped palmetto lower, a DPMS lower parts kit and an Adams Arms piston complete upper. It was surprisingly accurate even with the run of the mill trigger. My husband then stoned the trigger to smooth it more. We handload and it has a favorite load for sure but it does good with most ammo. I have since put in a Timney trigger. We also have some bushmaster ARs. They are fine guns, they just don't get used like our built ones.
Have 2 of these and I agree, great triggers. For my most recent build (300 blackout) I put a timney in it and have been satisfied with it so far. My Bushy has the 2 stage match trigger and it is good also.
I think you will get a ton of opinions on this one, I know mine might be slightly different though I bought my first rifle and have built another 5 since then focusing on three calibers. There are a boatload of solid manufacturers and many of them source their parts from a smaller pool of suppliers. A good friend of mine supplies lower parts kits sold under Rock River, Palmetto State Armory, Spikes, ALG Defense to name a few. He also makes the Spikes Battle Triggers and the New Bravo Triggers. His families company has been in the business for decades and most commenting on this topic likely have their parts in their guns. There are about 4-5 companies that do the casting and most of the finishing on lowers and uppers which are then machined by dozens and dozens of companies. There are several barrel manufacturers that ultimately supply the barrel blanks to many name brand barrel companies. Bravo Company's SS410 barrels are Criterion barrels which is cost effective unit of Krieger who makes some the the best barrels out there. Wilson, Shilen, Lothar Walther and a few others also make barrels marketed under other companies names. The you have various barrel profiles, finishes, materials, etc. Calibers keep expanding, there are 5.56/.223, 7.62x39, 5.45x39, .204, 300 Blackout, 6.8 and 6.5 Grendel offerings. There are also non mil spec which will be cheapest in most cases, mil spec and then companies making better than milspec. All will fire a bullet but you get tighter tolerances and usually a better product with mil spec or better. The Bolt Carrier Groups are now made in several finishes. Phosphate is the time tested option you usually get in most rifles you would buy online or over the counter. There is also Nickle Boron and Nitride which are easier to clean, require less lube to run and in many cases cycle better. There are a few other finishes available as well such as Titanium Nitride. Based on what you are looking to do you would be best getting a 5.56 caliber and exploring an upper in 6.8, 6.5 grendel or 300 Blackout and 7.62x39 depending on the range you are looking for to hunt hogs. Once you get the gun the the battle of public opinion over the best optic can be hashed out
I would argue all day on this one. I would get a rifle clearly marked 5.56 as it will feed any 5.56 or .223 ammo. Some .223 specific rifles have issues with 5.56 ammo.
Agreed. My point was to go with a 223 round rather than a high power rifle round like a 308. No one wants to shoot 308 all day. But a 223/5.56 is great for it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
