Ruger SR-556, good business or no?

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Do you think that it was a good idea for Ruger to sell their own AR as a whole package only?

Sure, I don't think it's a bad idea - then they get the profit on both upper and lower; if you want one, you gotta shell out for the whole shebang. Coupled with good marketing making people want any part of the shebang, it works. For us, it might not be so good, but on the whole for them yeah, I think.

Was it a good idea for Ruger to enter this market at a similar price point to everyone else, as opposed to something more groundbreaking?

No, I don't think so. Ruger's are "value guns", and this one ain't. Doesn't make any sense to me. We'll see how they sell, I suppose. They oughtta be about $250-$400 less than similar high-end competitor's models to be a traditional Ruger.

 

[W.E.G.]

4 pages of discussion of this rifle at:
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=455443

 

[dogboy]

Don't know about good business, but I'm about ready to drop my dime on one. Of all the new piston systems out there, I'd trust Ruger's the most. Not necessarily because it is the best, but Ruger has been around for well over half a century, and they have always stood behind their products, to the best of my knowledge. I couldn't care less if it is someone else's design, it has Ruger behind it. Now if I were going into battle, then I might reconsider. Probably the only better supportability is going to be a DGI gun. But as far as pistons on the AR, it is probably the way I'd go. If it only came with a 1 in 7 twist, it would be a no-brainer.

 

[Boba Fett]

nutnfancy has some reviews on the Ruger 556:

Specific to the Ruger 556
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxBBn88PfJg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98Vff1np7jk

About piston vs DI, and uses the 556 as one of the guns to discuss the differences, advantages, and disadvantages of both systems:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6auXTiqNtEo

 

[dogboy]

Wow, Boba Fett. EXCELLENT links.

I still think I'm gonna get an SR556, though, even though all the real advantages of it will likely be lost on me. I like Ruger.

 

[tango2echo]

FWIW the SR556 is going for $1800+ in my area due to limited availability.
I think that is WAY too much to pay for any AR.

A close friend of mine has one that I've put a couple hundred rounds through. It worked flawlessly and was very very accurate. If it was $1000, and not $1500-1800, I would probably own one.

One nice thing if you reload is the SR556 doesn't throw brass a quarter mile away.

 

[ArmedBear]

It worked flawlessly and was very very accurate.

That's a pleasant surprise (the accuracy part). Still, you can certainly get an AR that works flawlessly and is very accurate for under a grand, so I have to agree with what you say about price.

What's the trigger like? Anything special, or a regular military trigger? I have nothing against the regular military trigger, myself, it's just readily available for literally a few dollars, so not worth a premium price.

If Ruger were to offer the upper for $800, I'd probably be saving for one.

 

[tango2echo]

The trigger was average to good and broke clean at about 4 to 4.5lbs. Too heavy for my taste, but about right for a battlefield rifle. It took some though in grip position and tension to get repeatable unexpected breaks, but once you have a feel for it, it became natural. There are better AR triggers for under $150 IMO.

 

[FIVETWOSEVEN]

how much does it cost to make a ar-15?

 

[Boba Fett]

how much does it cost to make a ar-15?

Piston or DI AR-15?