Entry level AR15

[pandemic]

What are some good manufacturers for sub $1000? I've done some research and I've found that:

DPMS = 3 year warranty

Olympic = lifetime

Any other manufacturers? good? bad?

Thanks

[mythaeus]

In my limited experience with customer service and problems with my guns, the only gun I won't buy because of it is Beretta, which asked me for a sale receipt before servicing my gun. The other, North American Arms and S&W never asked me for anything, even both were 2nd hand and well out of any explicit warranty (that I've seen). Most companies have some sort of "limit" to 1 or 2 years; however, my sense is that most will service them free of charge for the lifetime, especially when it comes to manufacturer defects. Abuse is a different story though.

That said, I can't imagine much can go wrong with an AR. Even if something does screw up, AR parts are cheap and easy to replace, even a caveman can afford and do it. Go for whichever is available and for the lower price in comparable options of the 2 listed.

Al

[he11zna]

That said, I can't imagine much can go wrong with an AR. Even if something does screw up, AR parts are cheap and easy to replace, even a caveman can afford and do it. Go for whichever is available and for the lower price in comparable options of the 2 listed.

Al

+1 to what Al said about the ease of replacing AR parts should something go wrong.

I just did some quick internet searching and while I thought this was a GREAT deal,

http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/B....56_Rifle.html

I came across this and quickly changed my mind

http://www.snipercountrypx.com/p-153...-556-nato.aspx

I have a Stag 2. It has been great to me and this is a pre-madness price.
They have a lifetime warranty and come with a hardcase, if that means something to you.

I've always had great luck with Scott at snipercountrypx.com and his prices have always been consistently fair (no supply/demand gouging)

Good luck on whichever you decide.

[mojo]

You can find Stags and most likely Bushmasters for under $1000.

They are all good rifles for plinking. If your looking for something more ... tactical training, SD, etc. You can buy the sub $1000 rifle now, and do a few upgrades as you have money.

[NineseveN]

If you wait maybe a little while longer for prices to continue to fall and stabilize, you'll be able to find everything from tier 2 down for under a grand. Rock River, Stag, Bushmaster, Smith and Wesson, CMMG, Charles Daly...they all have decent, better-than-basic models that are running just over a grand right now...as parts start to become more available and all the n00bs run out of money, they should fall back to normal prices.

You could also go the www.del-ton.com route, get the upper and lower parts kit and get a cheap lower (or you can look into building your own, it's not hard if you know someone who has the tools for it and can guide you along the way and you'll get a better rifle for less $$ in most cases). If you want to upgrade the gun into more of a war-fighting rifle down the road, upgrade the weakest links on most of these guns; swap the bolt carrier group for an LMT/Colt/BCM/Denny's M16 carrier. From there, you're next big upgrade would be the barrel, but that's a luxury IMHO. Some guys make a huge deal out of barrel steel (has to be milspec) but people have been running barrels hard for many, many years with different steels. Sure, a pressure-tested MPI'd barrel is great if you have it, but the gun is not likely to fail under normal conditions without it. It's better, but it's not necessary. The bolt control group on the other hand, is more likely to fail (firing pin, extractor, o-rings, improper staking leading to gas problems etc...) and a failure there can render your gun inoperable. A cheaper barrel that still has decent quality control isn't going to blow up on you, accuracy may suffer, but generally not by enough to matter unless you're going for match accuracy. There are other things that are more important.

Of course, I don't know much about AR's...

[pandemic]

WOW. That'd be about $650 for an AR15?!

[Lycanthrope]

WOW. That'd be about $650 for an AR15?!

Yep.

Lycanwelcometothedarksidethrope

[pandemic]

what are the odds of the price coming down? This may be one of those times where I have to jump on this oportunity.

[Legion_Prime]

If you wait maybe a little while longer for prices to continue to fall and stabilize, you'll be able to find everything from tier 2 down for under a grand. Rock River, Stag, Bushmaster, Smith and Wesson, CMMG, Charles Daly...they all have decent, better-than-basic models that are running just over a grand right now...as parts start to become more available and all the n00bs run out of money, they should fall back to normal prices.

You could also go the www.del-ton.com route, get the upper and lower parts kit and get a cheap lower (or you can look into building your own, it's not hard if you know someone who has the tools for it and can guide you along the way and you'll get a better rifle for less $$ in most cases). If you want to upgrade the gun into more of a war-fighting rifle down the road, upgrade the weakest links on most of these guns; swap the bolt carrier group for an LMT/Colt/BCM/Denny's M16 carrier. From there, you're next big upgrade would be the barrel, but that's a luxury IMHO. Some guys make a huge deal out of barrel steel (has to be milspec) but people have been running barrels hard for many, many years with different steels. Sure, a pressure-tested MPI'd barrel is great if you have it, but the gun is not likely to fail under normal conditions without it. It's better, but it's not necessary. The bolt control group on the other hand, is more likely to fail (firing pin, extractor, o-rings, improper staking leading to gas problems etc...) and a failure there can render your gun inoperable. A cheaper barrel that still has decent quality control isn't going to blow up on you, accuracy may suffer, but generally not by enough to matter unless you're going for match accuracy. There are other things that are more important.

Of course, I don't know much about AR's...

Actually I think the concern with the barrels is more the chamber specs, twist rate and length than the steel they are made of. Most manufacturers use steel that either is TDP specified or better. The chamber is critical if you're going to be firing 5.56 NATO loads rather than .223 SAMMI spec. and the twist rate determines how well you will be able to fire different weight bullets. I honestly haven't heard anyone express concern over a barrel because of the steel it's made from before.

[Guns4Fun]

what are the odds of the price coming down? This may be one of those times where I have to jump on this oportunity.

The prices are already on the way down. Take a Colt 6920 for example. During the run up, people were selling them for 1650 - 1850. Now, you regularly see them listed for 1300. Bushmasters and others were regularly selling for 1400, now they are around 1000.

I would take the advise given by 97. Buy as much gun as you can afford and then upgrade as you can / want. Or just start out with a Colt.

Remember, warrantee means nothing if you are in the middle of protecting yourself or your family and the gun goes tits up.