You Have $1,200....Which AR Would You GET and WHY?

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Nalapombu

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Hey all,

I am about to sell my AR and get the one that I have wanted for a long time. The Colt 6920 with the MAGPUL furniture is what I have wanted for a while.

I have been looking at several picture threads in different forums and there are some awfully nice looking AR's out there. There are also LOTS of manufacturers too, much more than I can keep up with.

I was chatting with a couple on one forum and told them what I was wanting to do and they told me that I should simply build my own AR the way I want it and save money. They said it can be done with TOP Quality stuff for about $900, give or take.

SO, I thought I'd ask you guys and see what you think. If you didn't have an AR right now and someone gave you $1,200 and you COULDN"T GO OVER, what AR would you buy or how would you put one together? Would you buy stock or would you assemble one with whatever parts you wanted?

I'm pretty curious to see what you all would do in this scenario. If you have done something like this, how about showing off your work with pics?

How would you use that $1,200?

Thanks for your time and help.

nalajr
 
Well, I picked up a complete lower this evening for $200, stock and all. I can get a complete upper for $400-$500 so I will have around $700 in an AR with no optics. I've never been a fan of the franken-gun but I will probably hang onto this one until the next panic and dump it. I'm currently trying to put together funds for a Spikes complete rifle with some higher end goodies attached.

What do you want to do? why ask a bunch of other people? And what AR are you getting rid of?
 
Go with the 6920 it is best to get exactly what you want the first time.
 
What is the intended purpose of the gun?

A lot of people will tell you a colt 6920 for right around $1K and that is a pretty solid choice.

Another good option would be BCM.

Personally for that money I'd get a Noveske N4 light basic upper for a touch under $900 and that give's you three hundred dollars to buy or assemble a lower to you liking, which you could do for under $200 right now. Thus, you'd still have $100+ to add a rear sight and make some other tweaks such as a MOE handguard.

http://noveskerifleworks.com/cgi-bi...&cat=138&page=1&search=&since=&status=&title=

Depending on use the PSA patrol package that offers a complete rifle plus an aimpoint pro for around $1k is a pretty good value. Given that the aimpoint pro is a $410 optic you have a respectable rifle for right around $600. You'd also have $200 and could add a Gieselle SSA or whatever else. I really do believe this is a pretty good value.

A guy I shoot with has one and although he hasn't pushed it real hard yet he is pretty happy with it and has had no issues.
 
lower of good quality (spikes, PSA or better)
assembled upper of good quality (thinking RRA here)
decent LPK
Geissele National Match Trigger
magpul stock of choice
 
I would use the $1200 to buy 2 M4 rifles from PSA and the $300 left for ammo. I recently bought my blemished lower+LPK and Black Hawk 6 position stock for $132 free shipping and also ordered 2 of their PTAK M4 complete upper @ $320+$15 shipping each. Going to build 2 $450 M4s. Sorry, I am cheap.
 
I am not one to be stuck on a name. Many differences in AR's are just in the name and a few differences in the bits they are assembled with. There is an old chart somewhere, but it is outdated by two years last time I looked. What it boils down to, identify the features you want, learn to look for those features and find a rifle that matches them. Don't be stuck on who made it. At the core, there are only so many companies forging uppers and lowers. It is possible to have a $1500 rifle and a $700 rifle with the only difference being the words stamped on it.
 
If you want a Colt I would buy a Colt. They build solid AR's and as a matter of fact some of the best available. You also can't argue with the fact that it is a Colt and will always be desired by the masses which in turn means a higher resale value if you ever decide to let it go.
 
For the amount stated I would probably go with a Colt 6920 as well. Still a quality product and the Colt name on it might help resale value if you ever decide to sell it.
 
If you want a Colt 6920 MagPul go for it because it's a great rifle.

My next AR will be a fairly Plain Jane 16" bbl with mid length gas tube & handguard.

I have stripped lower that I still need to build out, and will probably soon buy a PSA lower build kit for it. For the purposes of this discussion we'll say I'm buying a PSA complete lower for $200. I'd add a BCM 16" gov't profile hammer forgeded bbl mid length upper with bolt carrier group for $750. I'd finish it out with a MagPul MOE ML handguard for another $30. That would put me at $980. I'd use some of the remaining $220 to add a rear sight, MOE stock, and either an MOE grip or Ergo Grip to replace the standard pistol grip and stock.

If that $1200 budget includes optic / ammo / accessories, and I didn't need / want the rifle right away, I'd just wait on a PSA mid length patrol carbine with Aimpoint PRO to become available again. If I had to have it right now I'd get a stripped lower from AIM for $80 + shipping & FFL fee, and add an in-stock PSA rifle kit for $660. That would still leave about $500 for an optic or other accessories.
 
I believe BCM is selling a complete 16" midlength with Magpul furniture and a fixed front sight, magazine and case for $1075. That leaves you $125 for a folding rear sight.
 
A used S&W M&P Sport with the 1/8 5R barrel, a bunch of ammo, a simple reloading setup and components, and/or a training course :)

..aside from the training course that's what I did, and spent less than $1200 to boot
 
I'd figure out the setup you want and then keep an eye on PSA daily deals and sales until it comes up or something very similar for a great price.
 
If you WANT the 6920 and have the money, buy it. You'd get a good quality rifle that's built by people who build them for a living. Someone also tried talk me into going the "build your own" route and I'll probably do that eventually... But it will be a learning process. When I get to that point, if it takes some tweeking, I won't care... because I'll just buy a solid working rifle first.
If I had $1,200 to blow on an AR right now, it would go into a BCM assembled lower and a BCM 20" A4 upper. But that's because that's what I want.

Get what you want. You're the one who may be disappointed... and for another $200 when you're already that close, why not?
 
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Someone also tried talk me into going the "build your own" route and I'll probably do that eventually... But it will be a learning process.
Click to expand...
Putting one together is no Gunsmithing job for sure. If you can change the brakes on your car, build a backyard fence or assemble a model airplane I'd say you have the talent needed. Don't skimp on tools and get a real understanding on the assembly and operation and go for it.
I've done three and have 4 more in the near future as well as giving a hand on a couple more and so far they have been reliable guns. It's fun, can be expensive but in general is more economical than buying complete plus with the proper tools, future modifications are no problem.
 
If that $1200 budget includes optic / ammo / accessories, and I didn't need / want the rifle right away, I'd just wait on a PSA mid length patrol carbine with Aimpoint PRO to become available again. If I had to have it right now I'd get a stripped lower from AIM for $80 + shipping & FFL fee, and add an in-stock PSA rifle kit for $660. That would still leave about $500 for an optic or other accessories.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't it be easier to get their patrol rifle package for $999 and have just under $200 left, and you'd have an aimpoint already.
 
X-rap said:
Putting one together is no Gunsmithing job for sure. If you can change the brakes on your car, build a backyard fence or assemble a model airplane I'd say you have the talent needed. Don't skimp on tools and get a real understanding on the assembly and operation and go for it.
I've done three and have 4 more in the near future as well as giving a hand on a couple more and so far they have been reliable guns. It's fun, can be expensive but in general is more economical than buying complete plus with the proper tools, future modifications are no problem.
Click to expand...

No gunsmithing job unless... there is a problem. In which case I, a guy with little experience, am either going to pay someone to figure it out or have to figure it out myself. All the while, I could have just spent another $200 and had a 6920 and been shooting it.

Don't get me wrong. A build is in my future plans. But I can understand why a guy would want to just be able to buy a good rifle and shoot it.
 
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