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AR Dealers going dark?

sentry1

Crayon Eater
Full Member
Minuteman
Jul 7, 2012
1,991
5
41
Madison, Alabama
Just saw Fulton Armory shut their lines and website down. I get it, they're flooded with panic buyers, as is every other dealer of ARs.

Dammit, I guess my plan to build a MATEN slow and steady is going to be VERY slow.

I ordered a MATEN receiver set back in November, and planned to space out the purchase of barrel, bolt, etc... over time so as not to go broke all at once.

Now I'm gonna have to turn tricks just to get a BCG.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

Stag Arms is backordered for a year, also.

It's not just the AR's; it's pretty near everything.

Between my local dealer and several online vendors, backorders I had placed pre-Connecticut, promised for early Jan delivery dates already past, have been rescheduled for delivery to way out in late Feb to even April. This even includes Mosin-Nagant 91/30's.

Spoke with a CSR yesterday, and they said their problem is that their own suppliers are getting hammered beyond precedent. She offered a guess that things might start to even out after about another week.

IMHO, good luck with that.

Whatever else is going on in state and the national capitals, these shortages are being caused by none other than ourselves, demonstrating poor operational prudence (If you needed it, why did you wait until November, Dummies?), leavened with an unhealthy dose of optimistic/speculative panic buying (Like, what did you expect to happen, Dummies?).

I refuse to allow this madness to prompt me to either place or cancel any orders I wouldn't have placed/cancelled this time last year. I don't think any of us can make realistic, accurate predictions of where we'll all be on this anytime soon.

The grabbers are in a frenzy. This is not good, and it's not like anything that went before. They won, then they lost, and now they are wiser and more organized. They know how and why they failed the last time, and will be more formidable.

Talking, Emailing, letters, etc., all well and good. I think they have their places, but I think they have more effect on their senders than on their addressees. Of all the folks who represent me, only one isn't overtly allied with the grabbers, and he's a Freshman in Congress

I fail to see the benefit of placing my faith in politicians. If such was worthwhile, it wouldn't have taken this nation since 1968 to be so far conflicted/worse off than when we started. They've been playing highly visible politics with the Second Amendment for roughly a half century, but it's the hand you don't see that's doing all the witchcraft. Nothing has been accomplished beyond the furtherance of many, many political careers.

I think this Nation's means of governance has met its limit. The system may or may not be broken, but it is certainly stalemated and totally engaged in the worthless.

Where we go from now is nobody's guess, but allowing the electorate to be disarmed on the eve of what I believe will be a period of high instability is too risky to be left in the hands of the current crop of political bosses and their slavish minions.

No-one who respects, loves, and intends to preserve and defend our Constitution is going to help them.

But not helping...; is this enough?

Greg
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

Last time we did this I was traveling quite a bit.
Had instructions from a local gun shop owner/friend to buy and ship any firearms and ammunition I found to his shop, at which time he'd pay a 25% commission over the purchase price, as he could not find anything to buy using his normal distribution channels.

This time the market conditions are going to be much worse for much longer I'm afraid.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: jdh4376</div><div class="ubbcode-body">People went crazy ,and broke buying</div></div>
I hope not, I was thinking about getting rid of a 20" A-2 at the gun show next month.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

Well i hope that Magpul has their injection molding machinery running 24/7. That every mill and lathe in every AR-15 manufacturer is cutting metal 24/7.

There is still time to bring a happy seller and happy buyer together.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Gunfighter14e2</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: jdh4376</div><div class="ubbcode-body">People went crazy ,and broke buying</div></div>
I hope not, I was thinking about getting rid of a 20" A-2 at the gun show next month. </div></div>

You would be better off putting it on consignment at your favorite dealer that doesn't have any decoration at the moment.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

There are considerable drawback to damned near any approach, given the degree of absolute uncertainty that's being projected.

My favorite toast is "Confusion to our enemies...!". Right now, I'm pretty certain it's theirs, too.

Stay away from the light...!
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

There are considerable drawback to damned near any approach, given the degree of absolute uncertainty that's being projected.

My favorite toast is "Confusion to our enemies...!". Right now, I'm pretty certain it's theirs, too.

"...Stay away from the light...!".
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Greg Langelius *</div><div class="ubbcode-body">No-one who respects, loves, and intends to preserve and defend our Constitution is going to help them.

But not helping...; is this enough?</div></div>

I read your last sentence like I intuit the obvious but unwritten line in quality haiku. The first swirling fingers of a killing cold are settling around us, Greg. Now, we make a fire, or we freeze.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

Me, neither; but I'm keeping my matches dry...

Seeing, hearing, thinking...
The breeze picks up from in the North...
We pine for Summer...
(...and mayhap prepare to sally forth...)
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

Two problems I see, machine time, and then finish time.

I was at one of our customers' place putting in a new Haas machine the other day, he happens to make billet AR lowers, we had an extra minute and he ran through the numbers with me.

Each side of the lower is done in one mill, two setups per lower, total forty five minutes of machine time per side, then it goes to a mill with a 4th axis to do the magwell and all the cutting on the 'edge' we were calling it of the lower, this is about 51 minutes of machine time, ( for the entire program).

So, best case scenario, he runs 24/7, never sleeps, and can on a perfect, no-fuckup day run 23 lowers, which still have some hand finishing, (this can obviosly be done while the machines have parts chucked up and running), he runs his in a tumbler for a few hours, them sandblasts them before going to anodize, which is about a ten day turn.

He had eight hundred lowers backorder on Friday, 1-4-13, and the order were still coming in, and he an esoteric builder I doubt anyone has ever even heard of.

Run twelve hours a day at six days a week, and you see the math problem here, he can only do 75 a week, assuming everything goes perfect, the machine overlap is correct, ( which I can see as no way most of the time), and there is no scrap. Add in finish. Twelve weeks to catch up, and that's just the current backlog, remember the orders keep coming.

His prices didn't change, so paying his employees twenty hours of overtime a week, (assuming they'll even work that many without wrecking any parts), is kind of a no-win for him...

Kinda put it all in pespective for me, and these don't need heat treat, MPI, hard chrome, etc like bolts and carriers.

Just one way of looking at for some of those who forget the parts actually have to be made, and most people want them perfect every time, me excluded.

IMG-20130104-00054.jpg


sean
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: hofhine1</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Two problems I see, machine time, and then finish time.

I was at one of our customers' place putting in a new Haas machine the other day, he happens to make billet AR lowers, we had an extra minute and he ran through the numbers with me.

Each side of the lower is done in one mill, two setups per lower, total forty five minutes of machine time per side, then it goes to a mill with a 4th axis to do the magwell and all the cutting on the 'edge' we were calling it of the lower, this is about 51 minutes of machine time, ( for the entire program).

So, best case scenario, he runs 24/7, never sleeps, and can on a perfect, no-fuckup day run 23 lowers, which still have some hand finishing, (this can obviosly be done while the machines have parts chucked up and running), he runs his in a tumbler for a few hours, them sandblasts them before going to anodize, which is about a ten day turn.

He had eight hundred lowers backorder on Friday, 1-4-13, and the order were still coming in, and he an esoteric builder I doubt anyone has ever even heard of.

Run twelve hours a day at six days a week, and you see the math problem here, he can only do 75 a week, assuming everything goes perfect, the machine overlap is correct, ( which I can see as no way most of the time), and there is no scrap. Add in finish. Twelve weeks to catch up, and that's just the current backlog, remember the orders keep coming.

His prices didn't change, so paying his employees twenty hours of overtime a week, (assuming they'll even work that many without wrecking any parts), is kind of a no-win for him...

Kinda put it all in pespective for me, and these don't need heat treat, MPI, hard chrome, etc like bolts and carriers.

Just one way of looking at for some of those who forget the parts actually have to be made, and most people want them perfect every time, me excluded.

IMG-20130104-00054.jpg


sean </div></div>

Looks like Silencer Research DBA as Xcaliber [Mena AR] ? (maybe not he doesn't show a 9mm lower)

xcaliberar15e.JPG


I saw he was tooling up. 1 per hour is no good. We need more guns!!! America needs an Ar in every house! That X symbol on the lower is taking valuable time! We need more GUNS!! And more ammunition!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
"Today, we need a nation of Minutemen, citizens who are not only prepared to take arms, but citizens who regard the preservation of freedom as the basic purpose of their daily life".
-President John F. Kennedy March 20, 1961
</div></div>

<span style="font-weight: bold">Perhaps your customer should take a specific set of orders for overtime pay at overtime prices- and run the machines 24 hours a day. </span>
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

My store received 35 AR's last Wednesday, all Bushmasters, half M4 A3's (standard carbines...999.99), the other half were Carbon 15's (649.99). Not only did the store sell out in 2.5 hours without advertising them, but now there is a metric shit ton of Carbon 15's and M4 A3's for sale on our local classifieds.

And guess what? They're twice the price!
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Griffin Armament</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

xcaliberar15e.JPG


I saw he was tooling up. 1 per hour is no good. We need more guns!!! America needs an Ar in every house! <span style="color: #CC0000">That X symbol on the lower is taking valuable time! </span>We need more GUNS!! And more ammunition!

<span style="color: #CC0000">Yeah get rid of the "X".</span>
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
"Today, we need a nation of Minutemen, citizens who are not only prepared to take arms, but citizens who regard the preservation of freedom as the basic purpose of their daily life".
-President John F. Kennedy March 20, 1961
</div></div>

<span style="font-weight: bold">Perhaps your customer should take a specific set of orders for overtime pay at overtime prices- and run the machines 24 hours a day. </span> </div></div>

Thats the answer. For any ban the key is lowers and magazines(because to talk of banning) out the door into the hands of the final buyer.

He needs to talk to his buyers. Advise him of what the costs of 24/7 operations are, advise them in advance. After all the political BS is done with back to regular operations.
 
Re: AR Dealers going dark?

You won't be able to find a BCG for a little bit either so don't worry about it. If you don't have it now, you simply don't have it.

If you happen to find something you need to complete your build at a normal price and you have the funds buy it. It'll be a little difficult until things move on.