Ar15 the current surplus firearm

[OARNGESI]

are ar pattern rifles the current surplus guns? Will they stay cheap or will companies start to go under and over time prices will start to rise? Think about it you can actually get a new ar at 350 and have a pretty descent gun with no end in site. But didn’t we go through this with cheap aks cheap sks then cheap mosin. So is the ar the current surplus gun? And since there made here will the price ever rebound?

 

[adcoch1]

Ar15s are made here, and are being produced in quantity that rival whole arsenals of small country's, with no importation ban potential. I doubt that the basic cheap ar15 will ever really creep up in price like a milsurp unless some assault rifle ban happens limiting further production. There are a lot out there, and they are a lot of gun for the money, yet they keep getting cheaper. That is economy of scale in action...

 

[mgmorden]

Surplus guns tend to creep up and price because they don't make them anymore. That's not currently the case with the AR15, and won't likely ever be the case barring potential legislation banning them. And of course such legislation keeps becoming more and more difficult the longer they keep flooding into the market.

As adcoch1 said - right now competition and mass production have driven the prices down really cheap. They're down to the point now where if someone in the gun hobby is bored they can just build an AR from parts for a reasonable sum of money just as a project to fiddle with (which is why you see so many with a half dozen or more AR's).

Personally, I've gotten a little bored of the platform since it's so common now, but I still appreciate what they AR is. I just personally think I've got enough of them for now.

 

[adcoch1]

I will add that 5.56 variants have gotten boring, filling a need but not exciting creativity, there are lots of other cartridges to build an ar in. Branching out from 5.56 makes the platform a whole lot more fun...

 

[gotboostvr]

I will add that 5.56 variants have gotten boring, filling a need but not exciting creativity, there are lots of other cartridges to build an ar in. Branching out from 5.56 makes the platform a whole lot more fun...

You're telling me! I'm thinking of a 357 MaxAR(wildcat) pistol build.

 

[someguy2800]

I think we are on a bit of a bubble with AR prices. I think the price that the low end rifles and parts are selling for is likely so unprofitable that we will start to see some company’s stop making them or go under and prices will self correct and go up a little bit. Unless they are banned or restricted though I don’t see why this can’t go on forever. As we have seen in the past any hint of restrictions send the market into a frenzy

 

[Officers'Wife]

From what dad tells me, there was a time when my 303 Enfield could be picked up almost anywhere for a little bit of nothing. But thanks to the 1968 Omnibus Crime Bill the prices were artificially inflated. He goes even further to claim that particular bill was passed to prevent crime as much as protect American gunmakers from the flood of cheap surplus rifles that was affecting their marketability.

I firmly believe that unless the AR platform is similarly artificially inflated the prices are not likely to skyrocket as the military surplus rifles of the last century.

 

[GunnyUSMC]

I wouldn't call them Surplus that refers to old military weapons.
They are very affordable right now. The prices have come down so much that you can buy an entry level AR for what it would cost you to build one. But then building basic ARs does get boring.
But then look at how much has changed in the AR market over just the last four years. There are so many different handguards and stocks to chose from now. Then there is the handrail. Just a few years ago the thing to have was a quad rail. Then M-Lok and Key-Mod came out. Then the slim and ultra light rails pushed out the fat ones.
Today where you really save your money is when building a higher end AR. An upper end AR that will run you $1100 to $2200 can be built for $600 to $1200.
Then there are Theme builds. A buddy of mine did a Dead Pool build that turned out pretty good. I have a Sharps Brothers Hellbreaker lower that I plan to do a WWII P40 Warhawk build with.
I have already built a few 9mm, carbines and pistols. I built a .277 Wolverine and plan on doing a 458 Socom.
If you already have a few ARs and you don't feel the need for another, maybe one of the ones you have could use a face lift or some upgrades.
One of the funnest build I have done, I got a lot of help from members here on the forum. I wanted to build a gun from used parts, a Junk Yard Build. I ended up with with a super cool little carbine that is fun to shoot.


You could also build them with your kids. Here’s my youngest and his first build. He was 11 yo.


He later dressed it up in zombie camo.


Here’s his second build at age 14.



Building ARs can get boring, but can also still be fun, just use your imagination.

 

[Varminterror]

I agree with many of the others - “surplus rifle” as a moniker, typically refers to military arms which have been domesticated, and especially which have been imported.

There might be a surplus of AR’s, parts, and assembly companies in the market right now, but that doesn’t drop them into the category of “Surplus Rifles.”

There are booms and busts in many markets. The AR market is riding a boom, and many of the fly by night companies which popped up to profit during said will go bust when they have to compete in lean markets. The prices are especially low currently, but the sales volume remains high. It’s not infinitely sustainable at this volume, but it’s holding on much longer than many of us ever expected.

 

[Llama Bob]

I thin current AR prices are sustainable - we've had multiple build/sell cycles in the last two years since prices crashed, and copious opportunities for manufacturers that were losing money to drop production or exit the market. A few have done so, but only a few. That suggests to me that the situation will continue as it is absent an increase in demand (which is already very high by any historcial measure).

 

[Varminterror]

I think the PRICES are sustainable. The market volume is not. More companies will fall out. Which is fine, and frankly, good for the AR market.

 

[bannockburn]

Gunny

Got to love your Retro XM177E2. Kind of reminds me of my first build!

 

[Coal Dragger]

Current prices are in a bubble. Buyers market.

This is the time to buy complete quality factory guns while you still can.

There’s a lot of garbage AR’s and garbage parts being made right now too. Cheap doesn’t make it a good deal.

If I were able to I’d be snagging up Colt LE 6920’s as an investment because they are very very good functional carbines and at current prices are a heck of a deal. Next panic rolls around and I could make a nice ROI. Frankenstein rifles will not give that kind of return.

 

[Siscowet]

Any market swings due to supply and demand and political forces. Right now, all those things are converging to make for cheap AR’s. No buying before they are banned craze, no immediate risk of them being banned. And a lot of manufacturers have jumped in over the last few years. Personally I think it will cause a shake out of those manufacturers who are financially unstable. But it will also drive some innovation, including piston models versus the traditional direct impingement, more models in different calibers, and other ideas. Enjoy the time, The only thing I can guarantee is it will eventually change due to one market force or another.

 

[CapnMac]

You're telling me! I'm thinking of a 357 MaxAR(wildcat) pistol build.

Pisssht. [] One of my buds was musing the other day (admittedly adult beverages were involved) that what the "AR world" needs is an 8x33 version. (My first thought was whether that would be worth the Chips Ahoy to tell @GunnyUSMC or not []
Mind, I responded with "Only if they also did 7x51"

"Bubble" is possibly inapt. The break point appears to be right at current prices (circa $400). That's rather close to what pieces-parts DIY is costing at the bottom end. (The "free" labor costs probably offset the ability to buy parts at wholesale; probably.)

"Surplus" will only become apt--to my thinking--when/if service rifles are offered as parts kits (presuming such parts are eer rendered non malum prohibitum fiat).

 

[Siscowet]

Once I got into 7.62x51 Armalite AR 10’s, I quickly lost interest in the 5.56ers. Like to rebarrel a 10 in 260 Remington.