Looking for an AR15

DallanC · Site Admin Joined: Jan 18, 2005 Posts: 3572 Location: Utah

Man guns around here are selling at an insane rate! Ammo? You cannot find it pretty much. Cabelas, Sportsmans Warehouse, heck even Walmart cannot keep ammo in stock with the current frenzy going on.

With that in mind, I've gotten to thinking about buying an AR15 for kicks before they get to expensive. I'll be honest though... I know tons about hunting rifles, shotguns and muzzleloaders, I dont know a whole lot about the AR's.

I've done a bit of googling and it seems Armalite and Colt make the best quality rifles, but alot of people have nothing but praise for the Rock River arms AR's. Looking over their list... I see a plethera of models and styles. I think I like the CAR stocks over the fixed stocks but I dont know about barrel lengths in these style rifles Obviously shorter barrels are less accurate than longer barrels, but how much louder is say a 16" vs a 20" barrel? I stood near a guy once shooting a .243 with a 18" barrel and it was louder than a 7Mag with a 24" barrel! Is a .223 round still burning powder at the 16" mark on a barrel?

I primarily want this as an investment / plinking gun or even a "crap hits the fan, riots in the streets protect the family" type gun (although in that case, I think my 12ga auto with 00Buckshot works better :)). I plan to put a magnified red dot scope on it or something similar.

Heres Rock Rivers list of rifles:

www.rockriverarms.com/...ory_id=213

Heres the one I tend to like the look of:

www.rockriverarms.com/...ory_id=219

The only thing I'd have to have is an ambidextrous saftey (I'm a lefty). I dont care about an ambidextrous mag release though, but safety is a piority.

Anyway I'm just entering the the "seriously concidering" phase and would like peoples opinions on what they like, what they hate and anything I might be missing in my conciderations. I know alot of people here have AR's and migth have advice.

-DallanC

chambered221 · Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:08 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

Rock River Rules !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But because you think from the wrong side of the brain !!! check out Stag arms.

www.stagarms.com/index...Path=13_21

Joe Boleo · Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 4:16 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

I have three Colt Ar-15s; two pre-ban and one HBAR target model. I am a lefty and shoot right hand rifles and shotguns. In my opinion Colts and Bushmasters are what I see at the rifle matches. Rock River is fine, but the last I checked they were on lengthy backorder. If you need a source, I have a great local dealer that gets ARs in every week and sells every one that comes in. Send a PM and I will share the contact information. Take care...
Joe

codybrown · Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 9:57 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

I was going to get a Stag model 6 before I got laid off Sad

Anyway, I did a lot of research before I ordered mine, and that's what I decided on. A plus for you is that all of their models are in both left and right handed configurations. Their parent company supplies something like 80-85% of all the parts in the US's lowers. The model 6 also has a 1/2 moa accuracy with high quality factory ammo, and guaranteed for life.

popgun · Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 10:55 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

I am updating the stock on my old Colt SP-1. The adjustable stock should arrive Monday. I put a round forearm on it to replace the old triangle forearm on the standard barrel length and that was a huge improvement. I am putting the adjustable stock on it to see if it makes for a better fit for the wife. She loves the rifle but the fit is not quite right for her and it will probably make it fit me better also. I replaced the grip also to replace the hard standard grip. That too is a vast improvement. I haven't made up my mind about the 16" barrel but from the ones I have fired you will find a bull 16" will duplicate the longer barrels groups. Noise is not a problem with the Flash suppressor except for those standing on either side of you. They will notice the noise.

Rock River Arms makes great Uppers and Lowers as do several others like DPMS. You might be able to save a few bucks by putting one together from parts from these suppliers. If nothing else you will gain a better understanding of the fit and function of the rifle. Anvil Arms is another new company to look at that has quality rifles and parts.
www.anvilarms.com/
anvilarms.com/pc-35-14...rbine.aspx

For grins go to the Brownells.com site and check out their AR-15 builder program.
www.brownells.com/ar15...uilder.htm
Brownell is a great source of parts and assembly information. Here is their instruction video on the AR-15.
www.brownells.com/aspx...t=1&i=1103
It is a good idea to view the video and the builder program before you make your final decision.
Don't forget all the info and suppliers at AR15.com.
www.ar15.com/

Vince · Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2009 8:53 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

Just for a laugh, I went to the Brownells AR-15 builder program that Chris posted.

Pretty cool website....but I wasn't laughing when I saw the price of the AR15 I had "designed". Shocked

Dallan...heaps of great gear there, but make sure you are sitting down when you look at the final price of your creation mate. Scary.

Cheers, Vince

WileyWapiti · Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2009 9:49 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

black guns are tough to get ahold of right now. Either you will pay a big price or you will wait a while for one. I talked to one of the local gun dealers here and I don't remember the manufacturer, but if I would have ordered that day, they wouldn't be able to get fabrication crackin' for about 3-4 months. I would think that if you come across a good deal, jump on it. I went to Sportsman's yesterday, and like Dallan, I was shocked to see very little ammo on the shelves and very few reloading items in stock as well - except for primers and shotgun shells - all you could carry and more......hopefully it will ease up a bit in the months to come...... This guy usually has pretty good access to inventory - hope it helps, the guy is great to deal with:

www4.davidsonsinc.com/..._id=959591

popgun · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 2:21 am Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

Vince wrote:

Just for a laugh, I went to the Brownells AR-15 builder program that Chris posted.

Pretty cool website....but I wasn't laughing when I saw the price of the AR15 I had "designed". Shocked

.........

Cheers, Vince

It goes to show ya what do you want and what you really need. Many folks are putting together military lookalikes and that surely pumps up the prices. The optics alone can break your project.

One good thing about the black rifles is that you can buy a basic model and upgrade over time as the wallet allows. That is what I have started with the stock, forearm, and grip upgrades. I probably won't get around to buying a shorter barrel and winding up with a CAR or A4 with more forearm, sights, possibly upper upgrades. The black rifles are constant upgrade rifles. Very Happy

Vince · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 2:52 am Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

That's the way to do it Chris....a continuous upgrade...bit by bit.

Good thing about rifles like the AR15/M16 is that there will always be bits and pieces available....until they are made illegal, like they did out here.

There are certainly some very nice bits and pieces available through the Brownells site though...but I really wonder how many of the parts are really necessary for a good performing rifle.

Cheers, Vince

BigBlue · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:55 am Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

I think for the most part that ship has already sailed. Right now I think you'll be lucky to get whatever is still available, certainly not the gun of your choice. I believe that one of the best, Bushmaster, now has a two year waiting list! Over the years I've built several ARs and AKs from the ground up and I'm not sure you would even have that option given the rush to buy them following the election results. I think your best bet is to shop the used rifle racks, be prepared to pay a higher price and be prepared to settle on something that you might consider less than your ideal rifle.
I've been shocked by the panic buying and what it has done to the supplies of AR style rifles and more specifically reloading components. I was at Cabelas on Friday and it looked like they had a close out sale on bullets and cases. The shelves were almost empty. Luckily I started buying up supplies on a weekly basis more than a year ago when I thought Hillary may become our next President.
Don

Dawgdad · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 9:42 am Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

Bushmaster is now Remington, The RRA is top dog in my book but frankly this platform is hard to make a lemon out of. If a manufacturer keeps reasonable tolerances they all shoot well and function which is why it is so customizable with drop in parts. I would get a 1:8 for .223 so you can shoot a wider variety of bullets too.

But as someone said you might have missed the boat on this round of manufacturing and price run up. It is like ordering a Harley a few years ago, people are paying well over MSRP if some one can actually deliver one.

Once you have a lower and a good trigger in it, you can slap on a myriad of different uppers and get different calibers and barrel lengths and sight configurations. I use a RRA lower with a two stage match trigger.

White Oak Armament makes some of the best uppers on the planet for varmint rifles and match rifles.

Dtech in Minnesota makes the WSSM AR's better than anyone around. here is a picture of one of his. Good luck!

DallanC · Site Admin Joined: Jan 18, 2005 Posts: 3572 Location: Utah

Thanks for all the tips and sources. I'll keep digging and researching this before I jump in.

WileyWapiti wrote:

I went to Sportsman's yesterday, and like Dallan, I was shocked to see very little ammo on the shelves and very few reloading items in stock as well

Yea! Its like that all over here! Try and find a single box of .270 130grn generic ammo... you cant! I was in a smaller walmart saturday and they put a couple boxes of .243 100grn Winchester on the shelf while I was filling out my new hunting license. I casually walked over and picked up the entire stack and stuck it on the counter Very Happy

-DallanC

Devon · Rookie Member Joined: Dec 08, 2007 Posts: 12

No mention of Sabre? Any reason why?

D

Dimitri · Super Member Joined: Nov 25, 2005 Posts: 5946

Too many shops to count. And the bigger ones that put out more in a year are better known for consistent quality.

As I understand it back when I considered getting my restricted its hard to beat most of the ones listed above.

Rock River Arms was going to be my first choice till I sat down and came to my senses that I couldn't justify that kind of money and not be legally allowed to take it varmint hunting. Smile

Dimitri

d_hoffman · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 10:10 pm Post subject: Re: Looking for an AR15

Hey Dallan, Being that your a south paw, you'll want to take a look at Stag Arms. They make a lefty. I believe DPMS also does. Good luck finding any AR's. The gun store that I go to quite often is also a police supply store and they had 3 last time I was there. They usually have a wall full.