Best low budget, factory built, off the shelf AR-15

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  • jd4320t

    Grandmaster
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    23   0   0
    Oct 20, 2009
    22,891
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    South Putnam County
    The title says it all. What are the best low budget, factory built, off the shelf AR-15's? I'm talking around $600.

    With everything thats's going on these days I find myself being asked pretty much daily which AR-15 to buy. I always go through my same routine of asking questions about what they want to do with it and how much they want to spend. Most never really know but still want to buy. I mention PSA and other manufacturers. I talk about how easy they are to build and how cheap it can be but most shy away quickly. I've even talked with guys who work with their hands daily in maintenance and HVAC and they aren't even interested in building one.

    After all that I'm left with recommending rifles that I don't have any hands on experience with but I've read enough about to give the thumbs up. I'd like to change that. I plan to buy myself an off the shelf $600 or so AR and prove what I think I already know will be the case. I think there are some pretty decent budget AR's out there right now.

    I know it is inevitable that this could turn into a "this maker is better" or "just spend a couple hundred more and get a Spikes/BCM or whatever" thread. Those statements are true but not the point I'd like to make. Most new buyers who aren't on this forum want a low budget rifle and unfortunately on here we rarely here about them.

    So, what are they? Who has them and actually shoots them? That's the key. Many of us have AR's but not all of us make sure they're actually good to go and will run when we need them to.

    Again, I'm looking at the $600 range. Factory built and off the shelf of a local shop.

    A few I'd like to learn and hear ACTUAL real life INGO experience about:

    S&W M&P Sport 1 and 2
    Anderson Manufacturing
    New Bushmasters
     

    MohawkSlim

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    Mar 11, 2015
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    15th Street, Bedford
    I've spent thousands of hours on the firing line watching "cheap ARs" getting fired by noobs during training. Without hesitation I can tell you all the "cheap guns" are all about the same quality because they're, more often than not, manufactured by the same people.

    Sure, there are different brands out there and different companies use different parts and components but almost all the "cheapos" or "entry level ARs" are assembled from parts made by outside suppliers. Notice I said "assembled?"

    The three you mentioned are all just fine. I wouldn't fast rope out the little bird in the sandbox with them but for the "I don't know squat about ARs" folks coming to you for advice, chances are good any of those three will be way more rifle than they really need.
     

    cbhausen

    Grandmaster
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    128   0   0
    Feb 17, 2010
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    Indianapolis, IN
    Hell, you can get a premium rifle kit from PSA and buy an Anderson lower, get help building the lower if you need it, and have a much better than every-level AR for even or less money (but I digress...).
     

    jd4320t

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    23   0   0
    Oct 20, 2009
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    South Putnam County
    Hell, you can get a premium rifle kit from PSA and buy an Anderson lower, get help building the lower if you need it, and have a much better than every-level AR for even or less money (but I digress...).

    We know these things but the others don't. Trust me, I've tried to get many poeple to build and they just don't want to.
     

    Bapak2ja

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    Dec 17, 2009
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    Fort Wayne
    We know these things but the others don't. Trust me, I've tried to get many poeple to build and they just don't want to.

    Can you blame them? For a noob building is as daunting as bringing home your first baby. It has seemingly endless complications and ever increasing costs. It takes time, research, and more research to figure out where to start building an AR. Consider:

    1. A1, A2, A3 or A4? Before you can make that choice, you have to learn what these four categories are.
    2. Tools. There are the professional sets, the essential sets, the "I did it with chewing gum and baling wire" sets, and the "use what you have and buy what you need when you need it" options. Then there are the sets that do not include this or that essential tool for that spring or pin installation, but you can get by without it as long as you have a clean workshop and can find the spring or pin that flies away.
    3. "Complete build kits" that have different parts lists. For example, one complete kit lists the charging handle but the next kit does not mention it. Does that mean it is included in the upper assembly of the kit that does not mention it, or do I have to purchase one separately? How do I discover what is not mentioned because it is included so I do not end up with three of the same part because it was included in different sets but not listed, so I ordered one separately?
    4. Parts list. Brownell's list runs 14 pages. How do I know which ones are included in the parts kit and which ones I have to order separately? Which ones are essential and which are optional?

    For someone without military experience or tool/die, machine shop, gun smithing experience contemplating a build is as daunting as heart surgery. It will take months of study, using every spare moment, just to figure out where to start. At this point the noob, who has a job-maybe even two, a wife, two kids, a budget-with college funds for both kids, a mortgage, and at least one car payment asks, "What is the best I can get already assembled for $600?"

    Paraphrasing Boromir, one does not simply walk into a gun shop and walk out with a cool build kit to be assembled in 90 minutes. It is a bit more complicated than purchasing one off the wall. YMMV but for some of us noobs that learning curve is overwhelming. I am close to retirement and have some available cash, so I have started the journey; not all are so blessed.
     

    warriorbob

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    Feb 6, 2011
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    I had good luck with the delton sport. It had had the forward assist and dust cover as well but had a non chrome lined pencil barrel, which I didnt mind.
     

    eldirector

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    Apr 29, 2009
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    Brownsburg, IN
    Following with interest.... I am a complete AR n00b (all I know I read on INGO), but find myself interested in trying one. If I do, total budget would be $1000 for the gun, any parts/tools needed to maintain it, spare mags, and the first box of ammo. So, a $600 gun would be a good start.
     

    boogieman

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    Nov 14, 2009
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    under your bed!!!
    I have 2 in that price range and would buy both again. The first is a Smith M&P15 (1st gen) and the other is a Double Star. I slightly prefer shooting the Smith but really couldn't tell you why. The biggest difference I have found in them is the Smith likes Pmags and the DS likes GI mags.
     

    cedartop

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    Apr 25, 2010
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    North of Notre Dame.
    Hell, you can get a premium rifle kit from PSA and buy an Anderson lower, get help building the lower if you need it, and have a much better than every-level AR for even or less money (but I digress...).

    In class with Mike Pannone this past weekend (he may know just a wee bit about AR's) he mused that he couldn't figure out why people would build franken guns when there are so many quality reasonably priced AR's out on the market. He followed it up with mentioning that most home built guns he sees in classes have problems.
     

    FWJK

    Marksman
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    33   0   0
    Feb 2, 2016
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    Fort Wayne
    In class with Mike Pannone this past weekend (he may know just a wee bit about AR's) he mused that he couldn't figure out why people would build franken guns when there are so many quality reasonably priced AR's out on the market. He followed it up with mentioning that most home built guns he sees in classes have problems.

    I agree with this. Plus the added benefit of a warranty makes a difference as well.
     

    MuttX7

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    Sep 13, 2015
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    Monroe County
    I have a 2nd gen M&P Sport. I bought it after they changed the twist rate and quit calling the barrel Melonite coated ( because of a lawsuit). It's worked perfect for me as a first AR. The only downside of it is that the foregrip doesn't have a heat shield so if you shoot it for very long, you can feel the heat off of the barrel. I went with the Sport because it was the best priced name brand entry AR at the time and to make sure I liked shooting it. The next AR I buy, I will build.
     

    Spear Dane

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    Sep 4, 2015
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    Kokomo area
    Radical Firearms, but you will not find them on a shelf except used. They are not 'assemblers'. As I understand it their entire manu operation is totally in house. I have their 7.62x39 and 50 Beowulf AR's. :yesway::yesway:
     

    jd4320t

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    Oct 20, 2009
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    South Putnam County
    I'll second all of the M&P Sport suggestions. I had a first gen and it was awesome. The Sport II's have dust covers and forward assists and can be had around that range.

    I have a 2nd gen M&P Sport. I bought it after they changed the twist rate and quit calling the barrel Melonite coated ( because of a lawsuit). It's worked perfect for me as a first AR. The only downside of it is that the foregrip doesn't have a heat shield so if you shoot it for very long, you can feel the heat off of the barrel. I went with the Sport because it was the best priced name brand entry AR at the time and to make sure I liked shooting it. The next AR I buy, I will build.

    This is definitely what I'm leaning towards. The gen 2 seems to be a no brainier to me
     
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