Am I missing something... Why are AR rifles so expensive?

[benEzra]

I now own a ruger SBH that my late father bought new in the 70's for less than $200.00, my brother has his colt series 70 that cost not much more, both companies have upgraded thier methods and equipment to reduce the manufacturing costs, and yet with each upgrade, the price went UP, and the quality went DOWN.

You're forgetting the fact that Federal Reserve policies have deflated the currency since then. A dollar in 2010 is worth waaaaaaaay less than a dollar in 1970 or 1975 was, so it takes a lot more of them to buy the same thing. Don't forget that a brand new car or pickup truck in the 1970's would have probably have cost $5K to $10K, a nice house might have cost $30K or 40K, and making $20K/yr was a lot of money.

Adjusted for inflation, guns are actually less expensive now than they've ever been, and functional quality has gone up, as far as average working-class guns go; a lot more rifles will shoot 1 MOA out of the box now than in the 1950's. As far as craftsman-grade fit and finish, it can still be had if you are willing to pay through the nose for it, just like in 1950 or 1975.

 

[Shear_stress]

You're forgetting the fact that Federal Reserve policies have deflated the currency since then. A dollar in 2010 is worth waaaaaaaay less than a dollar in 1970 or 1975 was, so it takes a lot more of them to buy the same thing.

It is absolutely amazing that people don't take this into account. As they say, Cokes ain't a nickel any more. That Ruger SBH, had it been bought in, say, 1979, cost the buyer $583 in 2009 dollars. Buds will ship an SBH to your dealer for $83 less than that today. If anything, guns are cheaper now than in the past.

And as for "expensive"--what does that mean anyway? Expensive by what arbitrary standard? Reminds me of the time my dad wanted to buy one of my Springfield M1As off of me: "those are kind of expensive rifles, aren't they . . . . how about five hundred bucks?" I offered it to him for free.

 

[stubbicatt]

I dunno. I remember a few years back the .mil was buying A2s for like $140 a copy with spare parts. At the same time these rifles were for sale at 6 - 10x that price for civilian copies.

I lost interest at that point.

 

[stsimons]

Hmmm... well I guess I must be in the minority around here. I usually won't spend more than about 450 for a gun (or optics for that matter). So I guess I fall into the category of "everything over $500 is expensive" crowd... I know its all relative...

 

[mljdeckard]

to yhe OP: How much do YOU think they should cost? How much can YOU build one for?

 

[CraigC]

Compared to most other guns, the basic models are quite affordable. Everything else has gone up significantly in the last few years but AR's are pretty stable. Back when you could get a good boltgun or older S&W N-frame for $400 or less, AR's were around $800. Now that those same boltguns are $600-$800 and S&W's are approaching $1000, I just bought a brand new S&W M&P15OR for $600.

 

[stsimons]

It seems like a person can build an el cheapo AR of dubious quality and reliability for around $500 or so if they use some used parts and a basic parts kit. As far as how much I think they should cost? Well... not sure, but I do think the prices seem to me to be about 2-300 more than I would reasonably expect for a gun made of wholly standardized parts and some bolt on plastic bits.

 

[ugaarguy]

I dunno. I remember a few years back the .mil was buying A2s for like $140 a copy with spare parts. At the same time these rifles were for sale at 6 - 10x that price for civilian copies.

I lost interest at that point.

Well, when you sell to the .mil (or anything .gov) you don't have to send the IRS an exorbitant excise tax per complete firearm made. The .mil is buying a single version in the tens of thousands at the time, and getting them shipped to centralized points by the truck load as well. The .mil has their own warranty & tech support (aka Armorers) too. The .mil also publishes their own manuals; and supplies their own magazines, slings, and cases.

Break that down to sending 5 or less at a time by UPS to a dealer, who's only buying 5 or less at a time, and you have to pay an excise tax on each one you make for the consumer market. Factor in that the dealer isn't usually buying 5 of the same rifle either: he wants a 20" A2 for the guy or gal who wants an AR like his or her old service rifle, a couple 1:7 twist chromed lined 16" M4geries for the guy & gal who want one like their current service rifle, a 16" std. 1:9 twist heavy bbl for the farmer / ranger who wants something handy to bust coyotes with but doesn't care about it looking like an M4, and one 20" or 24" stainless 1:8 or 1:12 twist barrel tricked out for the long range predator or varmint hunter. Now add in retail packaging, a mag or two that you have to buy from another mfr, a sling you have to buy from another mfr, and a manual you have to get printed. Keep in mind that you also have to pay a technical writer, and a photographer or illustrator, to compose your manual for the consumer market end user; rather than the .gov/.mil end user who'll get more detailed instruction in house. It can add up very quickly.

That's got to be a .22 for that price

Nope, they're 5.56. It's CMMGs bargain bin. They've been doing for several years now when supply has allowed, and it's a great deal for a mid tier AR.

 

[Shear_stress]

I dunno. I remember a few years back the .mil was buying A2s for like $140 a copy with spare parts.

A few years back . . . maybe during the Johnson Administration. Current price for the M4 is about ten times that amount with accessories (sights and mags).

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/02/atCarbine070219/
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,351887,00.html

 

[Glocked-N-Loaded]

I try not to think too hard about such things. To me, it is what it is.... I've got a Colt 6920. Did I feel like spending $1100 on it? Heck no, but that's how much they were. Nice things cost money, you gotta pay to play, etc etc. Trust me, if I controlled the market they would cost less than half that. As it is, Colt has the equipment, they did all the work, paid all the workers, they charge what they charge, I either pay it or don't have the AR I wanted.

 

[Runningman]

Adjusted for inflation, guns are actually less expensive now than they've ever been,

Good point, I can remember looking at a new Colt AR-15 A1 20" at a Hardware store in 1973 for $299. Using the Government own inflation calculator that $299 = $1468.14 in todays dollars. I could not afford a AR-15 back than. Bought a new Remington 788 in 22-250 for $104.95 that same year.

 

[qajaq59]

I now own a ruger SBH that my late father bought new in the 70's for less than $200.00

They call it inflation. Which means that the gun is still worth $200, but your money isn't!

 

[stchman]

Because the manufacturers are getting it.

 

[JTH]

They're American made!
JT

 

[rattletrap1970]

Get your Type 03 FFL (Curio and Relic) then you will have a Dealer Discount from Brownells. You can build a pretty damn nice AR for way less than $1000.

 

[killchain]

I bought my AR right at the height of the Obama scare. Two days after he became President-elect.

I paid TOO MUCH for it. It was $1081, and it was the display model at a Gander Mountain. But it was the last one, and everyone around me was panicking. Don't you love groupthink?

For the record, it has yet to fail on me, and I've put it though some licks.

But the moral of the story is: All of us, and our friends, caused this price hike.

 

[ugaarguy]

But the moral of the story is: All of us, and our friends, caused this price hike.

Yep, and now the market has fallen to prices below pre-scare levels.

 

[Zanad]

has anyone heard of the $599 m&p-15 at CDNN?

 

[MinnMooney]

AR-15s are stamped out in record numbers for both the military and private personel so that would lead me to believe that they should get pretty cheap by now. Some mention that $1000 is cheap. Huh? Many mfg'rs are making very good bolt action, high-powered rifles for (street prices) $280 - $500. Marlin, Savage & Mossberg come to mind and there are more so why can't they make a $400 AR-15?

 

[leadcounsel]

$800 is dirt cheap for a high performance rifle!

 

[ghostman1960]

I built this one for a tad under a grand.

 

[rscalzo]

bought new in the 70's for less than $200.00

Back when $200 was a week's pay.

 

[SpeedAKL]

ARs are actually somewhat of a bargain compared to other military-pattern carbines sourced from or designed to be used by Tier-1 armies. Going rates are below:

A few M4-type AR-15s:
Colt LE6920 - $1250
LMT Defender -$1100
Stag Model 1 -$850
Bushmaster M4A3 - $1000
etc etc

Other carbines:
FN FS2000 - $2000
SIG 556 - $1350-1800 depending on options
Steyr AUG A3 - $1800
FN SCAR 16S - $2400
Bushmaster ACR - $2000
Robinson XCR - $1600
etc etc etc etc

 

[50caliber123]

Do politics play a role? I seem to remember companies like Hi-Point and even Century arms getting called out for having such "low-priced weapons" on the market. From a political standpoint, it may not make sense to lower the cost unless demand drops significantly. In ten years, I bet the cheapest AR's will be in the $400 range. That being said, I think that AR's are overpriced when you can get something with more history or built from better materials for the same price as a good AR.

 

[Zerodefect]

Ar's seem pretty cheap to me.

$900 for a decent plinker. $1300 for something combat grade. $1800 for one customized to fit it's user perfectly.

I don't understand why precision bolt action rifles are so expensive? A barrel, a chunk of wood, and a few trigger parts deosn't seem like $2500-3000 to me. Especially if it's hardly any more accurate than an AR15 or AR10, or loses zero every time it gets knocked around. I'd love to have a long range bolt gun but I don't undrstand them at all. Lucky for me Larue and LMt have .308 AR's out now.