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OT: Ar 15 building vs buying

  • I am really wanting to get an ar 15, I was wondering if anyone could tell me the pros and cons of each.

    I was thinking of building one because I have quite a few custom parts like handguarts, iron sights, grips, stocks and an angled forgrip that I would love to have and I have read you can save a few $$ if you build one. If anyone could help me out that would be awesome! EDIT: +1 to everyone that has something helpful to say!!

    This post has been edited 2 times, most recently by coolkeeper on 8/10/2012 at 7:04 PM

    coolkeeper ●

  • coolkeeper said...

    I am really wanting to get an ar 15, I was wondering if anyone could tell me the pros and cons of each.

    I was thinking of building one because I have quite a few custom parts like handguarts, iron sights, grips, stocks and an angled forgrip that I would love to have and I have read you can save a few $$ if you build one. If anyone could help me out that would be awesome!

    Buy one. Unless you are a talented 'smith it might not go well. I fly planes but would not build one myself.

    tnbear66

  • tnbear66 said...

    Buy one. Unless you are a talented 'smith it might not go well. I fly planes but would not build one myself.

    See the beauty of building an AR is that you can be just an average joe and put one together, all you need is a rubber mallet, roll pin punches, and a stock wrench. There may be a few things I am forgetting about lol. I am really just looking to buy an upper to the AR without the handguard and I am looking to build the lower from the ground up If that makes sense :)

    coolkeeper ●

  • coolkeeper said...

    See the beauty of building an AR is that you can be just an average joe and put one together, all you need is a rubber mallet, roll pin punches, and a stock wrench. There may be a few things I am forgetting about lol. I am really just looking to buy an upper to the AR without the handguard and I am looking to build the lower from the ground up If that makes sense :)

    It does. My only concern would be 'the ground up' part of your statement. Are you talking about machining parts yourself? If so the action in this weapon could be compromised. Have fun but be safe.

    tnbear66

  • If i was just using for target shooting, I would just buy a MP15 sport. Cheap and smith and Wesson quality.

    SRDC Vol

  • tnbear66 said...

    It does. My only concern would be 'the ground up' part of your statement. Are you talking about machining parts yourself? If so the action in this weapon could be compromised. Have fun but be safe.

    Ooh no! I was going to buy a stripped lower reciever and buy the parts I need, I would probably kill myself if I had to make them haha

    coolkeeper ●

  • coolkeeper said...

    Ooh no! I was going to buy a stripped lower reciever and buy the parts I need, I would probably kill myself if I had to make them haha

    Gotcha'

    tnbear66

  • I would recommend just buying one. The cost saving on building one really isn't worth it in my opinion. I've bought 2 customized AR's on gunbroker and have been happy with both.

    Allvol1983 ●

  • coolkeeper said...

    I am really wanting to get an ar 15, I was wondering if anyone could tell me the pros and cons of each.

    I was thinking of building one because I have quite a few custom parts like handguarts, iron sights, grips, stocks and an angled forgrip that I would love to have and I have read you can save a few $$ if you build one. If anyone could help me out that would be awesome!

    Find a reputable service. Many of the "experts" will get you multiple parts and tell you they're compatable but they are not. Look at this link:

    Tactical Precision Rifles Law Enforcement Military

    Our Mission is to build tactical precision rifles and to do so uncommonly well. For us at Tactical Rifles, this is not simply work, it is a life long passion.

    www.tacticalrifles.net

    WVa Vol

  • I built one and personally the process of picking what I wanted and putting it together was about as much fun as shooting it. You can do a lot more customization for your money if you do it yourself.

    If you decide to go that route let me know and I'd be more than happy to help if you need it.

    5for3 ●

  • Did you get a good deal on them? I was thinking of going through them as well

    coolkeeper ●

  • I paid just under $1000 for both. They both have red dot sights lots of magpul accessories as well as other things. Realistically you could save some money building it but both of mine came with warranties which I like having on anything I pay that much for. The only challenge with gun broker is finding a gun shop that charges a reasonable price for using their FFA to have the gun shipped to them. A few Knoxville area gun shops charge as much as $50 for it while I found a shop in Lenoir city only charged me $15. If you are in this area let me know and I'll tell you which gun shop it was.

    Allvol1983 ●

  • I would suggest that you don't get one because no civilian needs a military grade weapon. You may be the next James Holmes for all I know.

    JellicoVol

  • JellicoVol said...

    I would suggest that you don't get one because no civilian needs a military grade weapon. You may be the next James Holmes for all I know.

    I'm going to ignore your opinion. I am of sound mind, thank you.

    coolkeeper ●

  • coolkeeper said...

    I'm going to ignore your opinion. I am of sound mind, thank you.

    Not if you want/need this type weapon.

    signature image signature image signature image

    OrangeVol79 ●

  • Your "Sound mind" comment reminded me of that scene from Jeremiah Johnson... "I Hatchet Jack, being of sound mind, and broke legs"....

    BigOrangeBeer

  • I say build it. From what I understand, it not too difficult. Anyone can buy one, but I imagine the satisfaction of building it would be great. Plus you can get creative with the customization process.

    BigOrangeBeer

  • BigOrangeBeer said...

    I say build it. From what I understand, it not too difficult. Anyone can buy one, but I imagine the satisfaction of building it would be great. Plus you can get creative with the customization process.

    Thank you BigOrangeBeer that is exactly what I was thinking! +1 to you!!

    coolkeeper ●

  • I would go the build route. Between websites like Brownell's and Del-Ton, there is too much access to parts and knowledge not to. Those sites also offer "Build your own" sections that show you what your finished product can look like on the front end.

    Also, as the earlier poster mentioned, if you have even a small amount of mechanical aptitude and about $15 worth of tools from Harbor Freight, you can do it.

    silver fox

  • It actually requires more than $15 worth of tools if you aren't buying a complete upper. You would need a barrel wrench as well as a few other things.

    It makes me cringe every time I see somebody say people shouldn't be allowed to have them cause they are "military grade" or something along those lines. All guns can hurt/kill people no matter what caliber or how many rounds they hold. Its the idiots and crazy people that we shouldn't have to deal with.

    Allvol1983 ●

  • Allvol1983 said...

    It actually requires more than $15 worth of tools if you aren't buying a complete upper. You would need a barrel wrench as well as a few other things.

    It makes me cringe every time I see somebody say people shouldn't be allowed to have them cause they are "military grade" or something along those lines. All guns can hurt/kill people no matter what caliber or how many rounds they hold. Its the idiots and crazy people that we shouldn't have to deal with.

    Right, do you know exactly what tools I will need if I DO buy a complete upper and a stripped lower? the only thing I will replace on the upper is the handguard and the dust cover.

    As for your second statement I wish I could give you +one million but I guess +1 will have to do for now!

    coolkeeper ●

  • I don't know right off hand what all you will need but I work with an AR-15 guru and if he is at work tomorrow I'll ask him.

    Allvol1983 ●

  • Fantastic! That would be awesome for sure!

    coolkeeper ●

  • Plus 1 for the second statement! As long as it is legal to own one, I WILL! It aint anyones business what or why I need/want one. It is my RIGHT! Being in the military, I am fortunate to play with some pretty awesome toys, I will be damned if I let ANYONE encroach on the rights I risk my life to defend

    BigOrangeBeer

  • 5for3 said...

    I built one and personally the process of picking what I wanted and putting it together was about as much fun as shooting it. You can do a lot more customization for your money if you do it yourself.

    If you decide to go that route let me know and I'd be more than happy to help if you need it.

    This

    bigorange

Tennessee
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