Help Buying My First AR?

[Dave R]

Be sure to post a pic in the AR thread. I'd like to see.

[whitebear620]

I apologize for being so slow about it, been super busy. Took the rifle to the range on Sunday before work, zero malfunctions with the different brands of ammo I had (Federal Bulk, American Eagle, IMI Independence, and Winchester I believe), have 100 more rounds of American Eagle coming in from PSA soon. Will post a picture tomorrow if I have time.

[Erick]

Its always good ot try different ammo.
Also try different mags and steel ammo (90% of ARs are fine with it)

Its important you know what you can and can't use in case you see a deal on the internet you wanna pull the trigger on in ammo or mags...

[whitebear620]

First picture is obviously of the rifle as it sits now, just waiting to get the rail section in to put a flashlight on it. Second picture is of the "blemish", if you look close, you might be able to see the slight scratches above the fire/safety markings; I really don't care about it since this rifle will probably be getting a gun skin.

I've got four different mags right now: Tango Down, GI, Magpul Gen 2, and Magpul Gen 3. I don't really like GI personally because it reminds me of the Guard/Army mags that jammed constantly and I start having flashbacks of repeatedly performing SPORTS during qualification , purely a personal thing. Tango Down mag fits well but the large lip on the middle of the body make reinserting into pouches interesting. Gen 3 mag is tough as hell to insert on a closed bolt. Gen 2 mag is my current favorite, can insert fully loaded on a closed bolt and reinserting into pouches is easy since it's generally smooth.

[Erick]

The TangoDown Mag is probably the number one Mag in quality that money can buy IMHO..
Strong.. + smooth as butter...
BUT its too thick for a great many pouches.. Most pouches are desgned with the USGI in mind which is both slimmer and shorter.

Your old ARNG USGI mags jammed because they were just bad mags overused over decades.
Current crop of USGI mags with the immproved followers can be quite good.

I personally run Lancers as my balance between Quality (which is very high) and affordability (which is high when there is a sale.. otherwise expensive).

MSAR transparent mags are often on sale for crazy good prices ($7) on either CDNN Sports or Botach Tactical (I forget which) and I run quite a few of them now as well.
The MSAR has an extrem thick lip against overinsertion and for that reason does not work with some of the fancy forged lowers that feature an exaggerated front mag well for ergonomics (like seekins precision )
The troy mags (usually on sale for $9 at quantico tactical) are often a dollar less than PMags are of equal quality IMO but are the only polymer mag I know of that is just as slim and short as the USGI mags most pouches are designed for.

That may be important depending on what rig you run..

An inexpensive first mod I might suggest for your rifle is a custom trigger guard.

When I run a gun for an entire weekend with a stock trigger guard ... well  w/o gloves eventually you'll wind up chafing pretty badly on the trigger guard. basically it makes Tac gloves a must (well ok they are kinda must anyway)

There are many good aftermarket terigger guards out there .
MagPul is good+affordable.

If you install yourself ( which anyone with a good punch kit can do be CAREFUL about supporting the lower AT THE BASE OF THE RIGGER GUARD while you do your punching though.
Its easy to break off that part of the lower and ruin the lower this way.

[4track]

Yikes!

What is that optic?

I am not trying to bust your chops, here, because I understand that this is your first AR weapon, and that you are on a tight budget, but aside from that being a crummy clone of an Aimpiont, which will probably fail when you need it, it looks like it is mounted way too low.

Money spent (wasted?) on that sight might have better been invested in a quality weapon light and mount, instead.

I would recommend that you just learn to use the iron sights, until you can afford a quality optic.



If you are interested in one of the Magpul trigger guards, that Eric referred to, then I have a spare (used) one that you can have for free.

I also have some used Magpul furniture that you can have too: CTR stock, MOE grip, MOE fore end (this will better help you to mount a light).


Just send me your info, in a private message, and I can mail it out to you.

[waffenmacht]

As for mags, this has been my experience.

Ive tested many mags and keep going back to USGI with magpul followers. They are the BEST IMO. And can be had for as little as $7 from PSA.

Tango Down- I've had issues. TD sent me replacements, more issues. In the end, when monopodding hard on the mag I could get a double feed. This particularly happened on concrete when hitting the deck and engaging quickly. It would happen every time, but happened more then once so..bye.

Magpul- The fat baseplates cause a tolerance stack-up in pouches so thats a no go. Yes I could stage them everytime ensuring the front mag is on top of the inner mags baseplate but "Aint nobody got time for that". Plus I've seen a few magpuls cracked in the field, so...bye.


As others have said, lose the cheap optic and get a metal BUIS. Troy, and Magpul Pro's are both budget friendly quality replacements. If you want an optic, that's cool, save up and buy quality. An Aipoint Pro with mount is about $400.

You've got a good start, just don't go down the road of "tacti-fooling" it out with cheap accessories.

[whitebear620]

The optic is a Primary Arms AA red dot, it was rattle canned to match the somewhat camouflage I have on my 15-22, didn't want the camouflage on the optic until I get the skin for my rifle (after more mags and ammo) so I rattle canned it green (I was hoping to match it more to my MBUS, but it didn't turn out that way). I already had it on the 15-22, so it was "free" for the rifle. I've tried out lower one third cowitness and I just prefer absolute cowitness for my red dot.

Edit: hopeful plan down the road is to eventually replace it with a AA Aimpoint

[panzer0170]

Can I throw in a totally random question whilst this is still a relatively hot thread; How much hassle is building an AR? And what are peoples thoughts on 7.62 AR's (in terms of compatibility with stuff like rails. will an AR15 rail fit an AR308? I'm not 100% sure on dimensional differences other than barrel/chamber/magwell, but would be interested if anyone knows?

[trailrunner909]

Assembling an AR15 is relatively easy. I don't believe there is another firearm out there that has such a prolific amount of parts, almost all of which are within tolerances that allow for assembly without any need to adjust them to fit. LEGOS are a good analogy, get the right parts and follow the directions. 

As for 7.62 ARs there is still no set standard for parts, even with the same manufacturer. But as long as you go with an sr25 spec or dpms spec gun you will be able to get parts from reputable manufactures and configure it however you like. 

Most folks who are serious about 7.62 ARs seem to wind up with an LMT, or SR25... Or both.

[waffenmacht]

Trailrunner is right.
AR15 rails are not compatible with Ar10/SR25 barrel nuts.

Ar builds are relatively easy after you've done a few. It takes some tools and skills.

[panzer0170]

This makes me sad. I look at the ALG EMR V2 and I see everything I could ever want in a grip. Really not a fan of throwing Pic rails everywhere, or squared off anything.

Oh well, by the time I get round to being able to build one they might have come up with some 308 gear given it's gonna be 2-5 years before I get there...

[whitebear620]

Anyone have any advice on buying/putting together an AR lower with an A1 stock?
Working on getting the wife's rifle put together, got this upper because it's what was available at the time (panic buy, I admit it).

www.midwayusa.com/product/233217/del-ton-ar-15-a3-upper-receiver-assembly-556x45mm-nato-1-in-9-twist-20-government-contour-barrel

Now I just need to buy/put together a lower for her. She wants the fixed stock, with a preference for the A1 stock and won't budge. It's gonna be her rifle so she gets the final say.
Thoughts are to just get a PSA complete lower, and then swap out the stock assembly with an A1. Or to try to piece one together.

Advice would be appreciated, thanks guys. 

[Dave R]

I say go with a complete PSA lower with a stock YOU want ro replace for your first rifle. Swap the collapsible stocks and then throw her A1 on it. Win win.

As for an A1 stock. Ive heard good things about cav arms. www.cavmfg.com/C1-Buttstock-C1.htm

[whitebear620]

I know this is blasphemy, but I'm just fine with the standard M4 plastic stock 

Although I see your point. I was looking at the Cav arms but was hearing mixed reports.