The best AR?

[dankenstein101]

Im buying an AR 15 for the first time. Ive done alot of reading on manufactures websites about option and warraties etc.. but I want to know what the end user thinks. Who makes the best AR and why?

[Helix_FR]

Honestly they all feel about the same to me. LWRC and Christianson are some of the most expensive and honestly they feel and run no different than the 700 dollar DPMS or M&P but thats just me.

[reynolds357]

Originally Posted by dankenstein101

Im buying an AR 15 for the first time. Ive done alot of reading on manufactures websites about option and warraties etc.. but I want to know what the end user thinks. Who makes the best AR and why?

"Best" just depends on what you want to do with it. My favorite is Rock River, but I think Smith and Wesson is impossible to beat for the money.

[dankenstein101]

By "best" I mean "value". Quality, options, accuracy, warranty, for the most reasonable price.

[jlloyd73]

I built my own...........but I like the Stag and Rock River guns..........also one of our member's custom builds ARs for a very,very good price......"StoneChimney" is who you need to look for under the TFF Sponsor Storefronts section.

[joncutt87]

The best ar, is the one in your safe

[reynolds357]

Originally Posted by dankenstein101

By "best" I mean "value". Quality, options, accuracy, warranty, for the most reasonable price.

I would take a serious look at S&W Ar's.

[American Leader]

I know a very nice fellow who has one of the M&P Sports which cost him $599. Before he purchased it he heard they were too cheap and must be garbage. Because they were made by Smith & Wesson he decided to give it a try figuring he wouldn't be out as much as a more expensive model if he didn't like it. Well he shot quarter size groups with it the other day and figures he got a pretty fare bargain!

[Snakedriver]

Your question doesn't have a single answer. "Best" means many different things to people. That's why we all drive different types of cars and live in different places.

When it comes to AR's if "Best" means most reasonably priced with good performance, the S & W's, Del-Ton's, Spikes Tactical and Palmetto State Armory AR's are very good choices.

If "Best" means a medium range priced AR's that are very accurate, Stag, Armalite and Rock River are a few choices that are excellent choices.

For the highend of "Best" AR's of course Colt, Bravo Company, Daniel Defense, LMT, Noveske and Larue Tactical are some of the best.

A recent list of AR manufacturers showed that there are over 140 different brands of AR's currently on the market. Your best bet will be to stay with the recognized name brands with a good warranty and reputation for customer service. Colt, S&W, Ruger, Mossberg and Remington all have their own version of the AR.

I recently put together my first AR and I went with Rock River as my choice of best value with a reputation for excellent accuracy.

[Helix_FR]

I second the Smith AR line. We sell the heck out of them and they perform flawless.

[gdmoody]

I personally prefer Bushmaster. I think that they are all pretty much the same, no matter who makes it.

[ka64]

I like my M&P.

[bigbluetruck]

I put together a spikes this year for my girlfriends father. He loves it! Hes in the military and he likes it more than his issued weapon! Any other AR that i put together will be spikes for sure

[reynolds357]

Originally Posted by gdmoody

I personally prefer Bushmaster. I think that they are all pretty much the same, no matter who makes it.

I also like Bushmaster. Ar's are definitely not "pretty much the same no matter who makes them."

[jlloyd73]

Originally Posted by reynolds357

I also like Bushmaster. Ar's are definitely not "pretty much the same no matter who makes them."

Actually there is truth with what gdmoody says.........but to be more specific, most manufactures in the cheaper/more affordable base AR's are pretty much the same out of the box. For example a base Bushmaster, Remington, Rock River, Stag, etc are pretty much the same now.

When you throw in AR's with more options like quad rails, chrome lined barrels, Magpul buttstocks, better triggers.......etc, then that's what separates the guns and price point.

Then again when you compare two guns with the same type options they will be pretty much the same gun.

[reynolds357]

Originally Posted by jlloyd73

Actually there is truth with what gdmoody says.........but to be more specific, most manufactures in the cheaper/more affordable base AR's are pretty much the same out of the box. For example a base Bushmaster, Remington, Rock River, Stag, etc are pretty much the same now.

When you throw in AR's with more options like quad rails, chrome lined barrels, Magpul buttstocks, better triggers.......etc, then that's what separates the guns and price point.

Then again when you compare two guns with the same type options they will be pretty much the same gun.

I used to build a lot of AR's. The parts in them are definitely not the same. It might be arguable that the stripped lowers are the same, but past that, you start to see quality differences in components. There are even differences in the stripped lowers.

[jlloyd73]

Originally Posted by reynolds357

I used to build a lot of AR's. The parts in them are definitely not the same. It might be arguable that the stripped lowers are the same, but past that, you start to see quality differences in components. There are even differences in the stripped lowers.

I will not dispute that there is a great difference in available parts and building your own with the parts you select individually. As far as lowers.....there are only a few manufactures of them, so most of the difference are the stamping and/or roll marks.

The main point was the base out of the box guns (like the Bushmaster) ....and still stand by what gdmoody and I said. Most out of the box AR's are pretty much the same guns with very similar parts. That's why many of them have a very similar price point. The quality doesn't really change until you get into the upper end guns.

That is why I stated early on in this topic....I suggested building an AR, just like I did. I got the best "bang for my buck" because I searched a year for the best deals and took my time getting to know the AR platform. I would guess that I built my AR for a base model price, but wound up with a upper end gun.