quote:

Originally posted by IndianaBoy:
We are not very far removed, in regard to time, and political climate, from the time when you simply could not buy a bolt carrier group because there were none to be had.

People tend to forget the rollercoaster that we have experienced in the past decade.

The Obama ammo rush, when the only thing you could find in '08-09 was 22LR (and I bought a lot of it).

Then the Sandy Hook craze when magazines, weapons, and components dried up in a weekend. Some ammunition like 5.56 Green Tip was pushing $1/rd and I saw people pay $3K for a case of 100 PMAGs and $2K for Colt AR15s. That lasted 12-24 months, depending on what you wanted.

Then came the glut of 2014-15, when even BCM was giving away free BCGs with any upper after all the over ordering / production came to roost after 2012.

Then the ramp up to 2016 POTUS election...

And now today, when the lower cheap tier ARs can be had even cheaper - the DD / Colts / BCMs / LMTs of the world seem to have weathered the storm and keep selling at near their regular prices.

Who knows what tomorrow / next year / next 3-5 will hold? We have no idea. If you were in the marked for AR / Glock mags this week, you will likely find them hard to find with the CA mag situation and a whole state trying to gobble up nearly 20 years of appetite for standard magazines.

Rest assured 'this will not last'. If there is something you want, get it NOW. Weapons. Magazines. Ammo. Components.

Don't get caught with your pants around your ankles, wanking about "I was JUST ABOUT TO BUY THIS and only want it for a FAIR PRICE". And I'm not talking about gouging, but just the supply / demand / free market of things. Prices for a lot of stuff can't realistically get much lower.

Wait / delay at your own peril.

quote:

Originally posted by Il Cattivo:
^^ I wish that were true, but barring the odd 5.56 all the cheap Armalites and LMTs I was hoping to see never materialized. The guy who owns PSA has stated before that he's on a mission to sell as many ARs as possible, and he apparently avoids having to charge to compensate for higher excise taxes by not selling complete rifles - that is, by selling parts kits or by selling uppers and lowers seperately.

Anyone looking for Colt, LMT, DD, BCM, or any other 'top tier' manufacturer to drop their pricing better have nothing but time on their hands. Those are the guns that command a premium in the regular market, and are unobtanium during a shortage. What I'm talking about is places like PSA, Bushmaster, S&W, and everyone else who were riding the Obama phenomena and selling everything they could make. I'm in and out of a half dozen local gun stores in my area and they've all experienced a Trump slump. Even with the SAFE Act in NY we're almost back to pre '08 ammo prices. I wish I could take advantage of the glut in pretty much everything AR these days, but everyone else should be stocking up because I just don't see it getting any cheaper any time soon.

Definitely stock up on ammo and magazines. As to AR prices, I bought my first AR in 1985 and paid
$600 for a Colt AR (20" barrel). Considering that was over 30 years ago, paying $1100 for a Colt 6920 LE seems perfectly reasonable. Cars have certainly more than doubled in price over the same period, and they won't last nearly as long/depreciate at a lower rate than a quality AR.

These are the best of times for AR owners. As others have said, do whatever you need to do now.

quote:

Originally posted by SgtGold:
I wish I could take advantage of the glut in pretty much everything AR these days, but everyone else should be stocking up because I just don't see it getting any cheaper any time soon.

Ah, well, but that depends on what you want. I'm trying to get in on the cheap ammo as much as I can, myself, but I'd rather have a better rifle than a couple of cheap ones.

quote:

Originally posted by SgtGold:

quote:

Originally posted by Il Cattivo:
^^ I wish that were true, but barring the odd 5.56 all the cheap Armalites and LMTs I was hoping to see never materialized. The guy who owns PSA has stated before that he's on a mission to sell as many ARs as possible, and he apparently avoids having to charge to compensate for higher excise taxes by not selling complete rifles - that is, by selling parts kits or by selling uppers and lowers seperately.

Anyone looking for Colt, LMT, DD, BCM, or any other 'top tier' manufacturer to drop their pricing better have nothing but time on their hands. Those are the guns that command a premium in the regular market, and are unobtanium during a shortage. What I'm talking about is places like PSA, Bushmaster, S&W, and everyone else who were riding the Obama phenomena and selling everything they could make. I'm in and out of a half dozen local gun stores in my area and they've all experienced a Trump slump. Even with the SAFE Act in NY we're almost back to pre '08 ammo prices. I wish I could take advantage of the glut in pretty much everything AR these days, but everyone else should be stocking up because I just don't see it getting any cheaper any time soon.

If someone was buying their first completely assembled AR would you recommend they go with A COLT 6920 (OR?)

Or one of the cheap ones right now, and if so which one and why? Rugar? S+W? etc

Or one of the

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:
If someone was buying their first completely assembled AR would you recommend they go with A COLT 6920 (OR?)

Or one of the cheap ones right now, and if so which one and why? Rugar? S+W? etc

To me it depends on the person and how serious they are as a shooter.

(1) A serious shooter who just hasn't gotten into the AR15 game yet or has serious use of the weapon in mind? Colt 6920, Standard 16" BCM or DD rifle. Centurion is another solid option at the $1K price point.

(2) Occasional shooter? Offer up those for (1), plus S&W MP15 Sport or Ruger options depending on their price point.

(3) 1-2 Days a year shooter? Any of them, because 100rds a year shouldn't break any of them.

Even the cheaper options should last several thousand rounds. The biggest factor in longevity is the barrel right? The CHF barrels from Palmetto are made by FN and still very reasonably priced. Outside of serious hardcore duty, I see no reason to blow a ton of cash on an AR at this time.

Even at $1000 for a LE6920, or $1200 for a midlength LE6960, I think the Colt is a good option and it’s hard to go wrong. BCM’s midlength is also around $1200. Daniel Defense stills seems a bit overpriced ($1500 and up), but they make a good gun.

But, I’d be happy with 3-4 PSA guns, averaging $450 apiece.

quote:

Originally posted by Leemur:
Even the cheaper options should last several thousand rounds. The biggest factor in longevity is the barrel right? The CHF barrels from Palmetto are made by FN and still very reasonably priced. Outside of serious hardcore duty, I see no reason to blow a ton of cash on an AR at this time.

I’d expect a nitrocarburized barrel to go 20,000 rounds. A stainless barrel would wear faster. I’ve no idea on the double-chromed CHF barrels, but perhaps 30K or more? Depends largely on the type of shooting.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:
If someone was buying their first completely assembled AR would you recommend they go with A COLT 6920 (OR?)

Or one of the cheap ones right now, and if so which one and why? Rugar? S+W? etc

To me it depends on the person and how serious they are as a shooter.

(1) A serious shooter who just hasn't gotten into the AR15 game yet or has serious use of the weapon in mind? Colt 6920, Standard 16" BCM or DD rifle. Centurion is another solid option at the $1K price point.

(2) Occasional shooter? Offer up those for (1), plus S&W MP15 Sport or Ruger options depending on their price point.

(3) 1-2 Days a year shooter? Any of them, because 100rds a year shouldn't break any of them.

I agree with RHINOWSO on this one. The heart of any rifle is the barrel. If the rifle is for self defence then it better be hammer forged 4140 and both MP and HP tested. 4150 is what the military uses, but the extra cost will only help if full auto is in your future. The following is a pretty good article on the subject.

https://gunnewsdaily.com/best-ar-15-for-the-money/

Thanks for the info. An AR is the only thing my collection is missing, but with good reason. The ONLY range I could shoot it at (or any rifle caliber) in my entire county (and it's a 35-40 min drive) SUCKS. 100 yards. Can only shoot 1 round every 5 seconds, range is 10 minutes hot, 10 minutes cold. Can't have any silhouttes of animals or people, not even outlined ones. And, a bunch of other nonsense and there is always a huge wait on the weekend to get a spot to shoot. However, I have keeping thinking of getting one. I have shot a Colt 9MM M4, but never an AR .223 oddly enough.

I've been scooping any oddball military style semi auto I've had my eye on along with mags. It's almost too quiet right now

quote:

Originally posted by SgtGold:


I agree with RHINOWSO on this one. The heart of any rifle is the barrel. If the rifle is for self defence then it better be hammer forged 4140 and both MP and HP tested. 4150 is what the military uses, but the extra cost will only help if full auto is in your future. The following is a pretty good article on the subject.

https://gunnewsdaily.com/best-ar-15-for-the-money/

The average person that owns an AR15 isn't going to shoot out the barrel in their lifetime. Pretty much all of them will serve anyone well.

Capitalism: It is awesome.

Buy 'em

Stack 'em

Love 'em

cause when you can't buy 'em anymore, is exactly when you WILL NEED them.

quote:

Originally posted by Jelly:
I can remember when you could buy a Colt AR-15 A1 for $299.

And it took two weeks to make it.

Oddly, I don't see so many Colt 6920 LE for sale on GB, a few for sure but not like before where there were so many listings for sale. Also, what happened to the 6920HBPW (HB 14.5' pinned & welded)? They came out what seems like 6mos. to a year ago, don't see many being offered for sale these days..wonder if they were a special limited lot, perhaps the HB configuration proved unpopular, or the opposite..people loved the shorter barrel and bought em up?

Using the Inflation Calculator can be interesting for those of us that have been around long enough. An $850 AR in 2019 would have been $408.94 back in 1989.

My first lower cost me $50 in 1990!
I think my fully assembled first build cost around $400 then.
I just got an e mail from sportsmans warehouse for S&W rifles on sale for something like $475.
If you are an AR person, this is the golden age!

quote:

Originally posted by rpm2010:
Oddly, I don't see so many Colt 6920 LE for sale on GB, a few for sure but not like before where there were so many listings for sale.

Yeah, not nearly as many as the last 4-18 months. Glad I got my 6920 Trooper around Xmas and should have picked up 2 last summer when they were $700each.

quote:

Originally posted by captain127:
If you are an AR person, this is the golden age!

If you're not an AR person, now is the time to get into one even if it's just to have one in the safe.

Stripped receivers are so cheap these days that PSA frequently has sales where you buy a gun from them and they include 3 stripped receivers with the deal.