AR-15's 5.56 & .22

[wink-_-wink 1]

I went to Sure Shot yesterday to shoot and saw their wall was fairly full of rifles. I saw prices of $1600 and $2200... I dont have my FID yet (still waiting) or I would have been more seriously shopping. I was there to compare pistols so that when my permit comes in I know whether which pistol to buy. I am currently carrying a Taurus PT101 but am looking to upgrade to either an M&P .40 or a xD (or xDM) .40. I shot both rented there... The M&P was not bad but I think I am leaning toward the xD. Theirs DEF needed to be cleaned and oiled but still the overall experience with the gun was enough for me to lean that way. But anyway I just wanted to share that they do have a decent amount of rifles hanging from the wall. Oh yea the only name I really saw (again I wasn't really inspecting them) was Stag.

[RubberBullets 65]

Id buy a handgun and wait for the price of rifles to drop. If theyre keeping stock.. Either the supply is catching up..or they cleared all the suckers out on overpriced ARs. Prices will cool off more in the coming months.

[Tactical Turtle 11]

Id buy a handgun and wait for the price of rifles to drop. If theyre keeping stock.. Either the supply is catching up..or they cleared all the suckers out on overpriced ARs. Prices will cool off more in the coming months.

Dude u can find ars easy as hell now. Even finding ammo for 485 a case + shipping. Its all slowing down. I say wait on the rifle buy a hand gun like rib said

[T Bill 649]

Yes, you can find AR's at LGS, but still very high priced IMO. My LGS got a shipment of S&W's early this week. Word hit the street and it was like ants to a picnic. Money was no object. I am sure shelves there are bone dry again. I would venture to say based on inventory showing up at LGS and on websites the tide has turned for now. Barring any wacky moves at the Federal or State level prices may begin to taper over the next three months as inventory starts to recover. What will happen here in NJ is the biggest fly in the ointment.

 

Hey Wink don't be in a big hurry for that AR yet. It's your money. We're here to help. Build it. Save at least a little money. (Like the 15% Federal Excise Tax on completed rifles).

Shop for a lower and hold onto it. The roller coaster rides' not over just yet! But it's slowin' down.

[peterk2000 0]

I 2nd that comment on things are becoming more available. I put in a bunch of back orders back in January. The UPS guy is hating me now because of all the heavy shipments.

[when_shtf 4]

I saw prices of $1600 and $2200

 

Wow, what a bargin. I tell you what, I'll remember who was helpful and who wasn't during this manufactured crises. I haven't paid panic prices for guns or ammo these last months, but there are fewer places I can go that I trust now. Those places that stuck by their customers deserve my lifetime business.

 

$2,200 for a Stag Arms AR...give me a friggin' break. I paid $800 for mine last year. Stag Arms hasn't raised their price.

[dtown223 12]

 

Wow, what a bargin. I tell you what, I'll remember who was helpful and who wasn't during this manufactured crises.

Alot of us will

LGS and forum members alike

Once things quiet down I hope they're many of us who won't deal with the "opportunists"

And yes, I do understand how the concept of supply/demand works.

It's just not how, & with whom I choose to do business.

 

 

[Clintoon Eastwood 2]

I dont have my FID yet (still waiting)........

I am currently carrying a Taurus PT101 but am looking to upgrade....

 

Me no understand, waiting for an fid but carrying? How?

[Tactical Turtle 11]

 

 

Me no understand, waiting for an fid but carrying? How?

Maybe a leo.. some depts issue off duty weapons. And opt you to buy ur own.

[Shawnmoore81 623]

Maybe a leo.. some depts issue off duty weapons. And opt you to buy ur own.

 

Maybe moved from out of state too

[Njgunowner 2]

Still shouldn't be "carrying" anything.

[MUGENFRED 0]

little by little they r comin back ill seat back and wait

[BlueLineFish 615]

if you buy your own you need an FID and permits. I am guessing leo.

[wink-_-wink 1]

I am a federal officer and am allowed to carry under LEOSA (law enforcement officer safety act). I brought the taurus with me when I moved back home to jersey and just had it sitting in the safe until I became a leo. I cleared it all with my local PD and they have assured me as well as my agency that I am authorized to carry FID or not. I just can't purchase which is why I am waiting on permits and FID.

 

To the earlier posts I have waited this long for an AR I am NOT going to jump into a sucker panic price. It was just something I saw and wanted to share for those of you who have money to throw around. I am going to buy my pistol first. I also will shop around first as well as it seems like SS's prices were pretty high on some of their handguns.

[BlueLineFish 615]

I am a federal officer and am allowed to carry under LEOSA (law enforcement officer safety act). I brought the taurus with me when I moved back home to jersey and just had it sitting in the safe until I became a leo. I cleared it all with my local PD and they have assured me as well as my agency that I am authorized to carry FID or not. I just can't purchase which is why I am waiting on permits and FID.

 

To the earlier posts I have waited this long for an AR I am NOT going to jump into a sucker panic price. It was just something I saw and wanted to share for those of you who have money to throw around. I am going to buy my pistol first. I also will shop around first as well as it seems like SS's prices were pretty high on some of their handguns.

ss is one of the goigers that took advantage. They will he remembered for that. 2200 for basic ar's. That's bull. Welcome from a fellow LEO by the way

[wink-_-wink 1]

Build it. Save at least a little money. (Like the 15% Federal Excise Tax on completed rifles).

Shop for a lower and hold onto it. The roller coaster rides' not over just yet! But it's slowin' down.

 

I am reading more and more about this online. It is definitely cheaper I have seen that from members here and on ar15.com. I am a littler nervous about doing it myself. I mean I have taken my m16a2 apart and reassembled it several times while deployed but we didn't COMPLETELY piece by piece it just separate the upper and lower, remove the bolt and fire pin and basic cleaning. I imagine building one from scratch is much more difficult. Sure maybe not for some of you who have been doing this for years but I am just getting into this hobby. Call it zombie invasion training, call it practicing my 2A, call it crazy dad about to have his second daughter and they will be 18 months apart,,, either way I am new to it and can not wait to become that "crazy gun nut down the street"

[wink-_-wink 1]

ss is one of the goigers that took advantage. They will he remembered for that. 2200 for basic ar's. That's bull. Welcome from a fellow LEO by the way

 

Yea it seems they put a sour taste in EVERYONES mouth during this craze and abandoning members. I shoot there because it is fairly close and my wife bought me a year membership for valentines day. thought that counts really so I don't mind.

[Purple Patrick 638]

 

I am reading more and more about this online. It is definitely cheaper I have seen that from members here and on ar15.com. I am a littler nervous about doing it myself. I mean I have taken my m16a2 apart and reassembled it several times while deployed but we didn't COMPLETELY piece by piece it just separate the upper and lower, remove the bolt and fire pin and basic cleaning. I imagine building one from scratch is much more difficult. Sure maybe not for some of you who have been doing this for years but I am just getting into this hobby. Call it zombie invasion training, call it practicing my 2A, call it crazy dad about to have his second daughter and they will be 18 months apart,,, either way I am new to it and can not wait to become that "crazy gun nut down the street"

 

I'm 20 and for my first gun i decided to build an ar to learn the functions and stuff and following a write up it took me less then an hour to build my ar.... 500 rds later and it's been flawless

[wink-_-wink 1]

I'm 20 and for my first gun i decided to build an ar to learn the functions and stuff and following a write up it took me less then an hour to build my ar.... 500 rds later and it's been flawless

Hmmmmmm

[BlueLineFish 615]

I have also decided to build all mine from now on. That's why I have 8 lowers ready to build

[wink-_-wink 1]

I have also decided to build all mine from now on. That's why I have 8 lowers ready to build

 

See this is what I am afraid of. Though I am partial to that instant gratification, I wouldnt mind building my own for that gratification of self accomplishment. Also I dont want to end up with 8 lowers but still no AR... hahah hmmmm I need an FID to buy a RIFLE, what about RIFLE parts?

[BlueLineFish 615]

Just the lowers require fid

[ECShooter 0]

 

See this is what I am afraid of. Though I am partial to that instant gratification, I wouldnt mind building my own for that gratification of self accomplishment. Also I dont want to end up with 8 lowers but still no AR... hahah hmmmm I need an FID to buy a RIFLE, what about RIFLE parts?

 

You only need fid for the stripped lower at a minimum (though you can buy a complete lower, but that defeats the purpose of building IMO). Parts kits are becoming more and more available, PSA, CMMG, Daniel Defense are all god lpks. Pick and choose your stock, many to choose from (magpul, ace, etc...) and learn to pin them before you attach the buffer tube (that's what I did). You have several choices with uppers... Complete, partial (usually no charging handle [good], no bolt or bcg) or stripped to build from parts.

 

It's rewarding to build your own because you can solve most of your problems with a few well explained questions up on the forum, with YouTube, ar15 forum or with the many available pubs that are out there. Good luck and don't hesitate to ask questions when you are ready!

[lexcruiser 12]

I'll chime in and say definitely build your own AR. My first one was also hand built and I can barely change a light bulb without breaking something. =)

You'll be fine. It'll definitely feel more "yours" and you'll learn a lot about it as well.

 

I ended up spending more $ building but I went and splurged on higher end parts. Thats the beauty of it; you make it totally your own.

Go for it..!

 

I'm currently gathering parts for a 2nd build..

[wink-_-wink 1]

You guys may have lit a spark that is going to cause a fire.... I am pretty interested in doing this... So I will ask you guys, where to start... I am guessing I will start with an upper since my FID isnt in yet. Is this a piece by piece type deal or is that mainly the lower. I mean I know the look i want (have built it a billion times on arbuilder). My wife would deffinitely support cheaper parts but I don't want to get cheap crap that I will have to replace quickly. To add salt to the wound, one friend from my unit, said he just sold an AR for 1050 but would gladly have sent it my way for 700..... GRRR

[lexcruiser 12]

You've made the right choice wink.

Due to my innate ability to break anything I try to craft, I went with a fully assembled upper on my first build. Fully assembled meaning the barrel, upper received, gas block and tube were already installed along w/ the muzzle brake already pinned.

 

I did end up changing the dust cover and added the handguard, but other than that, the other parts of the upper came to me assembled.

 

For the lower, I started w/ a fully stripped one and built it from scratch with help from a friend and advice here on the forums.

There's also great videos on youtube on full AR assemblies. STUDY THEM MY FRIEND! It'll be a great help.

 

As far as searching for parts, thats the difficult part. Most everything is out of stock right now so you'll have to be patient and keep scanning the sites and this forum for things to come up for sale.

As for where to start, I say check out Bravo Company. I went w/ one of their completed uppers and do not regret it one bit. There's a reason why none of their stuff is ever in stock!

 

There are some parts for sale right now over in the for sale forum... take a look.

 

Good luck w/ whatever you decide to do. Like I said, you wont regret it. May be overwhelming at first but I think you'll be fine.

For this second build, I'm planning on assembling the upper myself (with help of course).. wish me luck.....

[DargZ 5]

Assemblying the upper is tough. You will need more tools to do so and there are tons of parts to customize your upper so there is no standard "upper parts kit" which I learned.

 

My first AR, I assembled the lower which was pretty easy. I just purchased a complete upper. I was looking for a 20 inch A2 style upper for my brother in law but could not find anything. My only option was to build the upper myself which was an adventure. I purchased the individual pieces and try to assembled. It's great if you have patience as you will wind up missing a part. These parts are not quite available at your local gun shop so you have to order it online and pay for shipping which can add up. Eventually, it was done.

 

Now that I've done the first one, I've continued to build a dedicated 22 upper and in the process of completing my AR10 build which I assembled everything by pieces. These are all great fun projects but they surely have stressed the wallet.

[ECShooter 0]

My suggestion is for your first ar build, go with a complete upper. Lex and vtec have the right idea. Look at lwrc (pricy), noveske, larue and bcm before going anywhere else, the prices range from around 700 up into the 2k range, but you will find something that fits your look an feel. You have choices. Take their advice and hit YouTube. Take a look at nutnfancy's di vs piston video, hit sootch's ar lower build videos, just search YouTube after that and you will see gigs worth of videos on the subject.

 

Then reach out to the forum, everyone here has been more than helpful.

 

Like these other guys said, you can adjust your complete upper somewhat and make it more yours than an out of the box config.

 

Beware the draw of ninjafication too. You want it to be light, practical and reliable. Don't get stuck in the rabbit hole of multiple optics, lasers, red dots, flashlights, propellers, hoop earrings and such. Build first then research. Did I make your head spin?

[wink-_-wink 1]

Head is not spinning, I have been watching videos, and reading articles and gaining a ton of confidence! I am curious as to the average price of a self built AR. I am being told it is cheaper this way but it doesn't seem that way. Uppers for 700-1000, which can be (if you can find it) the price of a completed rifle. I have yet to research how much lowers are but I don't imagine them much cheaper. I am starting shopping for the uppers today.

[wink-_-wink 1]

First of all thanks to everyone for the information. I am actually really excited to build this rather than buy it. The more I think about it the more excited I get. From what I read, it can be cheaper, you get that self astisfaction and can customize it the way you want/can afford. I am actually basing the one I want to build of a spikes model I fell in love with. That is the look I want and will be going for. (http://www.spikestactical.com/new/z/st15-16-midlength-le-w-9-bar-p-796.html) Anyone have any good/bad input on spikes? I haven't seen any negative that I can find...