So I was traveling on business to Lexington KY. About 10 years ago I bought a Thompson/Center rifle from Buds Gun Shop online. I was in Lexington so I thought I would go shopping. Well shopping turned into buying. I bought a Sig M400 Tread for $750. They threw in a trial on the range with a rental M400, 100 rounds, targets and ear protection.

My intended use for my first AR is target fun out to about 200 yards.

So I am now $750 into an addiction that will most certainly cost me a lot more. I am sure all my virtual friends can help me spend more.

Here is the list:
1. Magpul Flip up Back Up sights unless y'all tell me something different
2. What other optic. I dont really want a scope and would like to keep it under $300.
3. Sling - yes or no? does it really help? If you have one, do you use it?
4. Fore grip - vertical? other? what does everyone like
5. What am I missing?

The Sig Romeo5 is a decent red dot.
I like the XDR with the front loading AA battery.
I've been looking at the Aimpoint PRO quite a bit lately, it's about $450 with the mount.

I have Magpul and Vickers slings.

Don't like VFG's but have a finger stop on one rifle.

Congrats on the purchase it is a great rifle but Next time you are in town let me know. I know a place that will do ya better than Bud’s!! They happen to have a Tread with optic and vertical fore grip on the wall.

As for optic I must highly suggest the Stiener MRS in a Kinetic Development Mount!

Steiner MRS Micro Reflex Red Dot Sight https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0..._encoding=UTF8&psc=1

https://kineticdg.com/product/...short-version-black/

I just ordered a 2nd I am so pleased with the 1st I ordered.
And yes the Magpul MBUS sights are just fine. I have a few sets.
Have a set of Troy flip up sights on my work rifle but they are exspensive.
I just got some Wilson Combat manual sights for a current rifle build.

https://shopwilsoncombat.com/S...roductinfo/TR%2DBUS/

I do not like vertical foregrips personally.

As for Sling the Vickers or Haley Strategic D3

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Black92LX,

Magpul MBUS is good to go. I like the Pro better, but not enough to tell someone else to spend the extra money.

At that budget and on a "fun" gun, the Romeo 5 is perfect. I've got one that bounced around a couple of different ARs and is currently on an AUG. No issues other than the mount feeling a bit cheap.

Sling. Yes. It's like a holster for a long gun. I've moved almost entirely to the Vickers sling. Adjustable enough to be useful without being cumbersome. Mine have QD attachments.

I hate foregrips. I've got a barely used Daniel Defense that fits a Picatiny rail that I'll send you if you want it and have a rail it will fit.

A light? Magazines and ammo.

Get a set of backup irons, the magpul's are fine. But so are just about everything else if you have some preference on size/shape/design. Get a decent optic. Me personally I'd just save my pennies and then get an aimpoint. Bullet proof, will last forever, and really there is no actual reason to have a 'fun' level or unproven optic IMO.
Get a sling, the Vickers is my favorite but the magpul is a decent choice as well. Heck even a GI will do on an interim basis.
I'm not a vertical foregrip guy like copaup.
Mags and ammo and have fun.

Unless you were born with four arms, yes, you need a sling.

Irons, sling, and flashlight are the three things that should be on every long gun IMO.

I'm also a fan of the Romeo 5.

Thanks for the input everybody.

I like the Romeo 5 too. I have spent too many hours looking at sights over the last two days... I think I may up my budget to $500 or so. This $750 purchase will easily cost me $2k before I even go to the range.

Sig stole almost $50 for the low profile rail needed to mount the front sight. MBUS came from Amazon today along with a small and medium rail section- they are both too tall. After more time online, I found out I have to order a low profile rail. And Sig is the only place I can find the rail. $30 + $10 shipping + tax.

Total thus far:
Rifle $799.49 - total after sales tax...
MBUS Rear $44
MBUS Front $31
Magpul 3 slot rail $17
Magpul 9 slot rail $21
Sig 3 slot low profile rail + shipping $43
1,000 rounds of ammo $590


Still to buy:
Sight $500? Romeo 4 or Aimpoint? more budget gets a better sight...
Magnifier $??? Maybe a Juliet? if I go all Sig or something else.
Sling $60
Flashlight - I haven't even started looking but I am betting on $100
PMAGS - $12 each. Probably pick up 10 - $120


copaup - I will take you up on that grip. I will email you. Thanks

If you are upping your budget for the optic take a hard look at the Trijicon MRO. I have had one since their inception and it has been flawless.

Here is a 10 pack of Pmags for $90
https://dsgarms.com/magazines-dsgtenpack01

I like metal mags too.
https://dsgarms.com/magazines-dsg-4401-0004

But Lancers are by far my favorite.
https://dsgarms.com/magazines-lan2320-03-5

This is heck of a deal $130 for 10 mags and a BCG. Not a bad idea to have an extra around
https://palmettostatearmory.co...-5-56-magazines.html

And for lights I like the Inforce WML mounted with a Haley Strategic Thorntail mount.
https://haleystrategic.com/sho...r-offset-light-mount

I'll get that package out to you one day this week. Just have to dig it out of my Box O' Abandoned Parts and find a box to stick it in. I'll let you know when it's on the way.

Yeah. If you up the budget on the optic a MRO is pretty nice. The older ones had some issues with very slight magnification and batteries, but I've got one of the newer green ones on a SBR and like it a lot. It's got more parallax than an Aimpoint, but it's not an issue as long as you aren't looking at it from a fairly extreme angle. Light, compact optic that uses an easily available battery. I MAY end up replacing it on this gun with the new Aimpoint Duty and move it to the AUG, but there's nothing about it that I don't like.

Much good advice thus far. My own thoughts:

The Aimpoint PRO is an excellent sight: turn it on and leave it on, change the battery once a year; no fancy motion detection feature to fail; extremely rugged; large illumination level knob is easy to adjust even with gloves; but there are countless alternatives. Do your research on whatever catches your eye.

A vertical foregrip is okay as long as it’s not used as a vertical foregrip. Manufacturers like to picture them on their guns because they add to the “look” and we see police officers and military personnel using them because they weren’t trained properly. If grasped like a cow’s teat being milked, they move the support hand down from where it should be on the handguard/forend for best control of the rifle. They’re all right if used just as a stop to ensure our hand is positioned on the handguard the same way all the time, but that’s hardly essential.

I do have a short VFG that I used to use for one purpose: It makes it easier to hold the rifle with my support hand in a more natural position (i.e., palm vertical) when holding the gun for long periods as when riding in a vehicle waiting to respond to an attack or when standing around on perimeter watch for hours at a time.

A sling on a rifle is like a holster for a handgun. If you ever might have to take your hands off the gun someplace where you don’t want to leave it lying around, you need a sling. There are countless varieties, some very expensive, so a very simple carrying strap will do for starters until you decide you need something more sophisticated. Slings can be used for support in certain marksmanship positions, but that’s somewhat of a lost art for most of us. If you think you need one for that purpose, get one that’s intended for the purpose. Many slings that people recommend these days are designed for tactical operations, not marksmanship support.

After a sighting system, I personally would put a flashlight at number 2 in importance.

Check out these websites for light mounds, and lights.

https://www.impactweaponscompo...tegory/light-mounts/

https://arisakadefense.com/light-mount/

O light is the joke of the internet, Streamlight is bare minimum in quality, and Surefire and Malkoff and Modlight are good to go.

Magpul is releasing their gen 3 version of their plastic backup sights soon. If you are going with cheap plastic sights, I would wait until they are out and compare them to the current version.

For aluminum sights, Troy, Midwest Industries, Daniel Defense, Ultradyne are good to go.

Slings that I like are from Savvy Sniper, Blue Force Gear, and Viking Tactics VTAC sling.

After putting some rounds down range, you can see if it needs any other "upgrades".

For me, I wont put up with a gritty, nasty trigger. I use BCM polished nickle triggers in almost all my guns. They are still GI style triggers (my preference for a defensive rifle) but they have a nice clean break.

I also upgrade the charging handle with a BCM or a Geissele. They are more robust than a GI charging handle and have extended latches that make charging the rifle easier.