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Least expensive AR you’d trust your life to?

I was at the gun show this weekend 90% of it was A.R. 15‘s. They range from literally $400 all the way to $4000…. And they all could show any of the issues that these types of semiauto have. So to answer your question…. ymmv on any one you pick 😎
 
The last PSA I helped fix:

meth.jpg
 
Not going to do you much good when you wake up to find them standing over you.

Also how are your fine motor skills working to open that locked box when you are so scared you're pissing yourself?
You actually read my post and believe I don’t have that situation practiced and under control.

In order to be standing over me they would have to get past the barking dogs, break into my house, get past my house keeper and find my bedroom. By then I will be pointing my Wilson super grade from behind cover at the door. If you read my post you will see I put a lot of emphasis on practice. I can roll out of bed and have my gun in hand in less than 4 seconds. My mechanical box has five buttons. Literally 1 2 3 and it’s opened. I have practiced using my box under stress. I can open it in less than two seconds my 9 mm Wilson super grade is cocked and locked. Thumb down on the safety no more bad guy
 
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You actually read my post and believe I don’t have that situation practiced and under control.

In order to be standing over me they would have to get past the barking dogs, break into my house, get past my house keeper and find my bedroom. By then I will be pointing my Wilson super grade from behind cover at the door. If you read my post you will see I put a lot of emphasis on practice. I can roll out of bed and have my gun in hand in less than 4 seconds. My mechanical box has five buttons. Literally 1 2 3 and it’s opened. I have practiced using my box under stress. I can open it in less than two seconds my 9 mm Wilson super grade is cocked and locked. Thumb down on the safety no more bad guy
I never believed those stories, till one time, it happened to me.
One time in band camp, I halo'ed into the girls camp on the other side of the lake. As I was looking through my oxygen mask on the way down from 35,000 feet, I could see the hotties rubbing themselves, splayed out on the bunk beds.
I landed on the roof, did a quick SWAT roll off the edge, and before I hit the ground, I had my razor sharp Hattori Hanzo blade out and ready to taste blood.
 
I never believed those stories, till one time, it happened to me.
One time in band camp, I halo'ed into the girls camp on the other side of the lake. As I was looking through my oxygen mask on the way down from 35,000 feet, I could see the hotties rubbing themselves, splayed out on the bunk beds.
I landed on the roof, did a quick SWAT roll off the edge, and before I hit the ground, I had my razor sharp Hattori Hanzo blade out and ready to taste blood.
Sounds like a hell of a mid-life crisis.
 
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You actually read my post and believe I don’t have that situation practiced and under control.

In order to be standing over me they would have to get past the barking dogs, break into my house, get past my house keeper and find my bedroom. By then I will be pointing my Wilson super grade from behind cover at the door. If you read my post you will see I put a lot of emphasis on practice. I can roll out of bed and have my gun in hand in less than 4 seconds. My mechanical box has five buttons. Literally 1 2 3 and it’s opened. I have practiced using my box under stress. I can open it in less than two seconds my 9 mm Wilson super grade is cocked and locked. Thumb down on the safety no more bad guy
I read this whole thing and all I could think was; "pics of the housekeeper?"
 
You actually read my post and believe I don’t have that situation practiced and under control.

In order to be standing over me they would have to get past the barking dogs, break into my house, get past my house keeper and find my bedroom. By then I will be pointing my Wilson super grade from behind cover at the door. If you read my post you will see I put a lot of emphasis on practice. I can roll out of bed and have my gun in hand in less than 4 seconds. My mechanical box has five buttons. Literally 1 2 3 and it’s opened. I have practiced using my box under stress. I can open it in less than two seconds my 9 mm Wilson super grade is cocked and locked. Thumb down on the safety no more bad guy
Is your manservant house keeper named Cato, perchance? Yes? Then you must be Inspector Jacques Clouseau…

625DB513-105A-4A28-9853-2AEE147E03BA.gif


and Inspector Clouseau never loses (in spite of himself), so stay clear, people. Stay the fuck clear.
 
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I've heard about those band-camp girls. I wouldn't touch them with Hattori Hanzo's dick...
 
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Just for shits and grins, how about we include the least expensive hand gun you’d trust your life to? Lol
Ruger LCP. Not sure how many rounds but zero malfunctions of any type. I've carried it off and on since 2008. The Hellcat I bought a bit over a year ago has had zero malfunctions but not near as many rounds through it as the LCP. I have run a few matches with it, the Hellcat, with no malfunctions. I specifically did several matches just to get dynamic range time and for reliability as matches tend to find the weakness in firearms.
 
It comes down to a quality trigger, barrel, and properly setup gas system, its not rocket science, the base m4 is bought by uncle sam for $625-650. And people trust there life to it. Money doesn’t mean quality, my $800 Seiko keeps better time than my $14.000 Rolex. The problem with the AR is those that build them with so much bling from so many companies they have a weapon with $3k in shit that can get a round off without. Problem. Here $399 300 blackout 7.5” flawless and will end any intruder. True reality though, Ak47, they’re near indestructible in the field, but a clean home environment, you could hand it down 3 generations and it’ll still be going, and i have several PSAs. And the PA10 is not light years from my REAL DPMS 308. DPMS today is simply a loose copy of the original. PA 10 shoots great bit again is barrel and trigger, for target use without a very heavy or full bull its 5-10 rounds and needs 30 to cool for any distance over 2-300 yards
 

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It comes down to a quality trigger, barrel, and properly setup gas system, its not rocket science, the base m4 is bought by uncle sam for $625-650. And people trust there life to it. Money doesn’t mean quality, my $800 Seiko keeps better time than my $14.000 Rolex. The problem with the AR is those that build them with so much bling from so many companies they have a weapon with $3k in shit that can get a round off without. Problem. Here $399 300 blackout 7.5” flawless and will end any intruder. True reality though, Ak47, they’re near indestructible in the field, but a clean home environment, you could hand it down 3 generations and it’ll still be going, and i have several PSAs. And the PA10 is not light years from my REAL DPMS 308. DPMS today is simply a loose copy of the original. PA 10 shoots great bit again is barrel and trigger, for target use without a very heavy or full bull its 5-10 rounds and needs 30 to cool for any distance over 2-300 yards
it came out that colt was getting less than $400 per rifle
 
....my observations at the ranges and in many of the forums posts is pretty much the same as @ebbiv about how/why builds go wrong.

...while I was still in, Uncle Sugar always issued me something that was at least "minute of man" within the range limits of the ammo issued and the platform issued, be it the A1 in the beginning thru the A4 at the end.
 
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You guys arguing DPMS vs PSA are gonna have your minds blown when I tell you PSA owns DPMS now
 
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Are we talking about a just "Off the shelf" rifle you have no experience with, just have to grab and go? In that case, probably BCM, Colt, or DD would be my "low-ends".

If we are talking about a rifle I had experience with, that's a whole different story
 
Comment deleted... It was meant as sarcasm but given current events it's better to not even joke about .
 
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....if and when that "moment" arrives in your lifetime, it may not even have an AR involved... ;)
I had a SCAR16 at home all kitted out with the latest shit and left it there. Aimpoint, SF m600, all the goodies. I knew it like the palm of my right hand knows my cock.

Was informed we were having “a thing” and was issued a Bushmaster since I had left my ride at home. It had a 10,000 year old Mesopotamia, ME marked Surefire incandescent light and fucking iron sights. Looked at the local PD guys and was like “any of you guys that served in Korea wanna trade me this thing for a Noveske?”.

At least I got my dick sucked by a Scandinavian chick that night.
 
I had a SCAR16 at home all kitted out with the latest shit and left it there. Aimpoint, SF m600, all the goodies. I knew it like the palm of my right hand knows my cock.

Was informed we were having “a thing” and was issued a Bushmaster since I had left my ride at home. It had a 10,000 year old Mesopotamia, ME marked Surefire incandescent light and fucking iron sights. Looked at the local PD guys and was like “any of you guys that served in Korea wanna trade me this thing for a Noveske?”.

At least I got my dick sucked by a Scandinavian chick that night.
I think I just found who the author is of the books my wife has been reading.
 
I own: PSA, BCM, Larue, Compass Lake, PWS, and custom high end builds with all top notch parts (JP, Criterion, Larue, etc). Honestly I'd trust my life to any of them. People like to think you can't get a decent rifle for less money. The truth is any mil-spec AR will serve you just fine. The real difference comes in fit and finish, tolerances, coatings, etc. But the reality is that none of that is needed. Any budget PSA with a few key mods will make it just as reliable as anything out there in my opinion.

1) Pin the gas block
2) adjust buffer and spring for the ammo of your choice until it ejects at 230-3 o clock

Then run the gun for at least 500 rounds to break it in properly. If you have no malfunctions, I'd clean it put it away and trust my life to it.
 
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If you're looking for pure reliability on a budget, I think the PWS MK PRO is probably more reliable than any DI gun including KAC, Geissele, etc just by the basis of it's design and function. Especially if you run suppressed with a lot of gas/stuff coming back into the receiver.
 
If you're looking for pure reliability on a budget, I think the PWS MK PRO is probably more reliable than any DI gun including KAC, Geissele, etc just by the basis of it's design and function. Especially if you run suppressed with a lot of gas/stuff coming back into the receiver.
Got a PWS here somewhere. It works pretty good.

The big trick is to toss 1k down range with anything you think is gonna work and see if you were right. And if you are rocking any piston AR make goddamn sure you get the right buffer in there.

Same exact thing when I used to be in good health and do protection details. if the detail started at the main office we would load our weapons and fire one round at the range, then tug on all the mags and holster/safe everything.

Then when we came back we would mad minute everything empty like we were doing break contact type shit at the range.

It cut down on bullshit fast and some folks learned their shit didn’t work. My Cz bren died in this evolution.

We did find through testing that pretty much any high end AR was more than capable of making it through all the mags you had on your person and then some. And most of the low end ones too.
 
What buffer do you use in the PWS? They recommend carbine buffer tube/spring with H2. But I’ve heard everything from tubbflatwire/h3 to a5 setups
 
What buffer do you use in the PWS? They recommend carbine buffer tube/spring with H2. But I’ve heard everything from tubbflatwire/h3 to a5 setups
The mfr recommended one will be the one that was in all the testing they did. I would make sure you have it.

My point was more towards all the carbine buffers I have seen on piston guns when they wanted an H2 or H3
 
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Yea I hear ya. I plan on running a h2 with a tubb spring for extra unlock time because it will be dedicated suppressed. In my opinion with todays gas port sizing and these shorter barrel and more suppressors common now the H buffer has no place in a modern AR. Start with a H2 and only change of its short stroking which I doubt it ever will
 
What buffer do you use in the PWS? They recommend carbine buffer tube/spring with H2. But I’ve heard everything from tubbflatwire/h3 to a5 setups
I converted my pistol to an SBR. I ended up swapping the stock buffer system to a Geissele flat spring with a H3 buffer. I also exclusively shoot 72 and 77 grain ammo with a Dead Air Sandman S. When you switch the gas block to suppressed, this ammo, plus buffer, plus spring gives me the best recoil impulse and an ejection pattern between 3 and 4 o'clock.
 
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Was talking guns with one of my sub contractors today. He was talking about “battle rifles” he’d trust his life to. He named a few of the typical upper echelon rifles like Knight’s, LMT, hodge, Radian (pretty sure he just googled “best AR”) etc… I get only wanting the absolute best, we all want the best but dropping $2,500-3,000 isn't in the cards for some people. My Brother in Law for example has been wanting an AR that won’t break the bank for his go bag/shtf rifle.

At this point he’s said he’s better off spending $1,000 bucks on a rifle and buying a bunch of ammo to go train with. (I agree 100% with that, a $3k rifle is only as good as the guy running it)

I don’t have a ton of experience with semi autos so I figured I’d ask here. Any body have recommendations for stuff in the $1000-$1200 range? Is that a realistic budget to get a decent rifle in today’s world?
I have a few PSA builds that work and work well, but I’m not sure I’d want to run them as a shtf gun. I liked my BCM but I sold it to fund another project before I could really put a ton of rounds through it. Like I said earlier I’m not real into semi auto’s so I dont know where to start with a recommendation.

I bought a plane Jane MIL SPEC $600 AR in 5.56 ... Everybody has these & you can find them under any name in any wweb place or any Bricks & Mortar store.

Installed a CMC 2.5lb curved bow single stage trigger .. installed a NIB BCG .... installed a G Super Charging Handle ( Spent $500 for those 3 parts ) Installed a EOtech 512.a65 ($400.00) ..... so at $1,500.00 ... I think ... this set up is a GR8T start ... again ... Just my own humble personal thoughts ... I know everybody has their own flavors .... Just sharing one of my own set ups

My '68 Camaro has a 350 Cu motor ... just like everybody else .....B U T .... it's what's INSIDE that motor that sets me apart

AR 15 are the same thing ... everybody has one and they start being a MIL SPEC design .... but what do you have inside????

To me ... What you have inside ... Now that's whats counts
 
What buffer do you use in the PWS? They recommend carbine buffer tube/spring with H2. But I’ve heard everything from tubbflatwire/h3 to a5 setups

I have a dozen+ piston ARs in my collection, Most are various PWS but also LWRC and HK. The best buffer/spring varies depending on what you are trying to accomplish. For example if you are shooting suppressed or running a FRT the best may very well be completely different solutions. That is why you see so many variations.

Something I do in my shop is weight the various H thru heavy PCC buffers and mark the exact weight on each. When fine tuning this is very useful! Haven't found many buffers over the years that really weigh what is advertised even from the same manufacturer - a brand XYZ H2 for example can vary quite a bit. Lots of variance but that isn't always bad when tuning AR operation!

Springs are also all over the place as well. I keep many different types on hand to fine tune. Twisted wire, flat wire, various lengths, Sprinco red and blue, VSeven teflon, etc.

The best spring/buffer is the combination that results in the desired operation of your specific AR.

Don't claim to know everything about anything. But a long military career, being a certified gunsmith & armorer and having my shop at a large gun club and range (www.theranchgunclub.com) provides lots of experience and many opportunities to try and test things in the real world - not behind a key board. With that lot to do on the benches. Cheers
 
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I have a dozen+ piston ARs in my collection, Most are various PWS but also LWRC and HK. The best buffer/spring varies depending on what you are trying to accomplish. For example if you are shooting suppressed or running a FRT the best may very well be completely different solutions. That is why you see so many variations.

Something I do in my shop is weight the various H thru heavy PCC buffers and mark the exact weight on each. When fine tuning this is very useful! Haven't found many buffers over the years that really weigh what is advertised even from the same manufacturer - a brand XYZ H2 for example can vary quite a bit. Lots of variance but that isn't always bad when tuning AR operation!

Springs are also all over the place as well. I keep many different types on hand to fine tune. Twisted wire, flat wire, various lengths, Sprinco red and blue, VSeven teflon, etc.

The best spring/buffer is the combination that results in the desired operation of your specific AR.

Don't claim to know everything about anything. But a long military career, being a certified gunsmith & armorer and having my shop at a large gun club and range (www.theranchgunclub.com) provides lots of experience and many opportunities to try and test things in the real world - not behind a key board. With that lot to do on the benches. Cheers
I recently bought a food scale for this exact purpose so pretty funny you mentioned that actually. I plan to run my piston gun 100% suppressed because I’d like as little gas as possible. My other rifles I like to tube on the edge for super soft yet still reliable shooting with mild loaded ammo. This ensures it will fire hotter loads very reliably yet you’re still able to have the can on it and not be terrible, although not ideal. I think I need to buy a Surefire rc2 for this purpose as well to have less back pressure and leave my YHm turbo knon the piston 11.8”
 
Dpms is defunct after the rem fiasco, and nothing psa ecen remotely interchanges with dmps. I have them all

JJE (parent co of PSA) absolutely owns DPMS and will be using them as the retail brand that they sell into dealer/distributor networks. They bought them at auction along with H&R, AAC, Parker, and Storm Lake.
 
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