Which sub-$500 Upper???

[Skylerbone]

To expound on the thread title, which direction would you go given the following criteria:

Must be .223/5.56/.223 Wylde chamber. Which is not important, I hand load to .223 pressures and this won’t be a hotrod or long range rifle. It might get a red dot since I have a spare.

Must be 16” or longer where I am, no provision for SBR. A can is a possibility down the road but for now, and for this upper it’s straightforward.

Must be mid or rifle gas, no carbine suggestions.

The lower is a basic PSA MOE and the majority of shooting will be from the bench with kids and the future wife. All of them have a basic understanding of the platform and a limited amount of trigger time till now. The kids will likely share time on my current RRA middy as well.

I’ve poured over options, narrowed down to a few contenders, namely the PSA 18” with M-Loc rail, rifle, complete and sights, a Troy 18” with Alpha rail, rifle, no BCG or CH, and the RRA NSP mid complete plus sights. Prices are $380, $475 (+ BCG & sights), and $496. Any of these or any others that stand out? I’m wary of CBC, Bear Creek, and a few other bargain options after careful poking around.

 

[Hokie_PhD]

PSA has a nice 18” with M Lok that they’ve had on sale quite a few times recently. If I hadn’t been putting my AR together from all parts to learn how to do it, I would have gotten one.

 

[badkarmamib]

Also check out jsesurplus.com, and scroll through their customizable uppers options.

 

[someguy2800]

I don't trust people. I'd put together my own. You can get an awfully nice barrel in a $500 budget.

 

[Skylerbone]

Just spotted a Core 15 MOE complete for $369. Heard of them too but don’t know their reputation though they seem to get favorable reviews including from a few High Roaders.

I’m sure I could tackle a build but right now between wedding planning, helping coach Little League 4 days a week, and some major home renovations, my time is pretty tight. Add in 3 Scouts, orchestra, band, and chorus plus church and a full-time job...I’m making excuses. I just think I’d be hard pressed to piece one together for the same prices I’m seeing and I can always grab the wrenches and tear it down if it isn’t correctly assembled.

 

[LoonWulf]

The only complete uppers I've purchased we're from Radical, and PSA. The only .223 was psa. I've been very happy with all of them. Tho I basically tore the PSA upper apart and replaced the guards with a float tube and lopped the front sight, that was just because I didn't like the configuration.
I bought the PSA specifically because at 250 I could still change components and come out to less than I could put one together for.

 

[Skylerbone]

No FSB on any of the potential candidates and the PSA is floated (as is the Troy). I’m leaning toward the Troy which would top $600 with a good bolt and charging handle but if the PSA will do the job for a third less, I might sneak another purchase in this Spring.

The PSA

 

[LoonWulf]

I've been very happy with my psa. Everything was properly assembled and looks good. I've only got about 1k rounds thru it so far but no issues besides those caused by my light weight spring kit and milspec primers.

 

[Browning]

A buddy of mine from work had the same question and I found a PSA 18" upper with an MLOK rail for him that looked pretty good. This one ...

http://palmettostatearmory.com/psa-...weight-m-lok-upper-with-bcg-ch-516445214.html

I helped him with piecing together a stripped lower with a LPK, let him borrow an SWFA 1-4 on ARMS mount/rings and he was in love.



Even with the cheap Federal 55 grain ammo that he finds at Walmart it shoots well.

If price is a contributing factor I'd go with that.

 

[Jackal]

Quality barrel- $150
Good Rail- $150
Upper receiver- $70
Good BCG- $80
Aftermarket charging handle $40
Gas tube, flash hider, crush washer, steel lo pro gas block- $40

Total for custom high quality upper made to your own specs/wishes- $530

Also, who the heck builds an SBR when AR pistols are available?

 

[redneck2]

Quality barrel- $150
Good Rail- $150
Upper receiver- $70
Good BCG- $80
Aftermarket charging handle $40
Gas tube, flash hider, crush washer, steel lo pro gas block- $40

This. AR’s aren’t like cars. You don’t have to get what a few manufacturers say they’ll give you. You can build exactly what you want without having to pay for parts that you replace later that end up in a discard pile.

There is a company close to me (Vision Defense, Middlebury, IN) that will build exactly what you want. I picked the barrel ( Wilson air gauged barrel), my hand guard that I preferred, my Gunfighter charging handle. I think what I have is exactly what you’re looking for. Match accuracy in an 18” barrel. Took them maybe ten minutes to build it while I was there.

Call them. They guarantee 1” groups with match ammo. And their prices are really good.

 

[FL-NC]

PSA is always a good bet. Take a look at total weight- even though you are looking at mostly firing from the bench, its nice to have other options as far as positions where you don't have to fight an excessively heavy rifle.

 

[ar-newbie]

I would have zero problems with a PSA upper based on my, and many others I know experience.

Right now they have a really nice .223 Wylde upper with lightweight mlok rail with BCG and charging handle (SKU#516445214) for $329
It is a stainless steel barrel, so that may or may not sway your decision. Barrel material can be up to the individual, but I actually prefer the stainless.

 

[Geno]

I bought the PSA, .223 Wylde, 18” stainless, nitrided, straight flutes, 15” MLok, nickel-boron BCG for $318 shipped free. It’s nice!

Geno

 

[Skylerbone]

After my 3 initial picks sold out, and two more potentials as well, I caved this afternoon and ordered a PSA. 18” SS A2 Rifle Length, .223 Wylde, 1:7 twist, 15” M-LOK with Nickel Boron BCG. $359.99

I’ll almost predict that there’s a pencil profile upper in her future, maybe I’ll build that one. Thank you all for the suggestions and the future food for thought. The gf gave it 2 thumbs up for now and hopefully she’s smitten once she hefts it (she is pretty darn strong).

 

[Geno]

View attachment 782854 Congrats! They’re nice quality at a nice price point. Bottom in the photo.

Geno

 

[Skylerbone]

The upper arrived today, lower is in transit and due next week as is an engagement ring. I slipped it onto my lower after a careful inspection and everything locked up tight. Initial assessment is very favorable and With its svelt rail I may just swap my SPARC onto it and put the larger StrikeFire back on my upper.

 

[Geno]

Congrats on both the upper and engagement ring!

Geno

 

[adcoch1]

The upper arrived today, lower is in transit and due next week as is an engagement ring. I slipped it onto my lower after a careful inspection and everything locked up tight. Initial assessment is very favorable and With its svelt rail I may just swap my SPARC onto it and put the larger StrikeFire back on my upper.

View attachment 783577

View attachment 783578

View attachment 783579

Congrats on the ring! Nice upper too, looks an awful lot like the one I'm building at the moment for my brother. Gotta love those lightweight long handguard.

 

[Skylerbone]

Thank you all, and yes, those handguards have my mind reeling! The weight and balance is phenomenal compared to my half-quad /FSB set-up. If it hadn’t been an particularly expensive month already I’d be ordering another upper!

Alas between rifle, ring, and washing machine in the span of a week I’m hesitant to outlay further cash. A guy can dream though...suffice it to say I’ve caught the black rifle fever again!

 

[adcoch1]

I feel ya, building three uppers and another custom pdw ar pistol. They certainly are an addiction...

 

[wally]

PSA does very well for the price as does S&W "Sport"
Check these "torture" tests:



Ones that cost ~3-4X as much usually only go through about 2X the round count.
He's got a lot of fun videos of "meltdown" tests

 

[Geno]

Awesome videos! Thanks for linking them.

Geno

 

[Skylerbone]

Stopped by my FFL today and picked up the matching lower. I’m dually impressed with the quality for price and the features list at that price. Worth noting is the trigger; I spent an extra $10 for the pre-polished version. What I received is a clean pull that breaks nicely around the 5 lb mark (by guesstimation). I say “I” but of course I mean “she”.



Turns out this rifle has a sweet n fun side! Thank goodness it’s not one of those assault rifles!