Thinking about getting my first AR

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To be honest, I've never really had that much of an interest in AR-15's. I've always seen them as sort of generic, and the non-conformist in me kept me away. Recently though I've started to gain some interest in them and have considered buying one as a birthday/Christmas present for myself. I must say though that the world of AR's is a confusing one. The alphabet soup that is military terminology and internet abbreviations has confounded the hell out of me for the most part, but I'm learning.

After some research into what's available out there, I'm pretty sure I want to go with a Colt. They seem to be the standard for the industry, and I must admit that I am a bit of a Colt fanboy (that darn stainless 1991 hooked me good). The gun would most likely be used for occasional plinking and possibly carry around the woods/swamp. I'm sure that a $600 el-cheapo AR would probably serve my needs just fine, but while it stretches my budget pretty thin, I enjoy buying a quality piece if I can. In this case the Colt is at the very upper limit of my budget, but I know that it's a very high quality piece and that if I ever choose to sell it it will hold it's value.

Right now I'm stuck between the two most common models, the LE 6920 and the 6940 (not sure if it's LE version is still available). I haven't had the pleasure to handle either of them yet as the local gun shops don't typically carry too many assault type weapons. I know that the 6920 offers the greatest base for customization, but apart from a quad rail, a flip up rear sight, and maybe a Magpul stock there isn't really anything I would want to change. While I like the idea of having a rifle with no proprietary parts that can be customized I realize that I will probably never customize it to the level where it actually benefits me. The 6940 has the integral quad rail, which does limit customization options, but since I'm not planning on buying multiple handguard assemblies it doesn't seem like that much of an issue for me. If anything, it seems like it would save me the $250 for a DD omega rail on the 6920.

I'm still undecided though. I'm in a bit of a time crunch though since the Louisiana Second Amendment tax free holiday is this weekend, and if I do decide to get one of the two I need to order this weekend for the tax savings. So please, enlighten me with your experiences and thoughts on the subject. Pictures don't hurt either.
 
No problems with my S&W Sport, but those get brushed aside as "cheap" before anyone can really spend some time with one. That's ok, I like knowing all the stuff not needed was eliminated and what's important is left in the design.

I'm sure the Colt is just fine though, can't go wrong with one.
 
That's ok, I like knowing all the stuff not needed was eliminated and what's important is left in the design.
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With in reason.... but also depends on what you do with it. Yes I rarely ever use my forward assist... I could live with out it, but other features I'd rather have. Generally though... 98% of people buying AR's will never run them hard enough.

I have no problems with SW Sportline, or the Bushy Carbon-15... in fact I usually tell my customers to buy them.. or a Stag for the money... because for what they want it for... there really is no need for much anything else.

Personally though for the money.. I would pick up a Stag before I would a Sportline or Carbon 15... They can be had at almost the same cost if you shop around... have the extra features... and their parent company CMT makes AR parts for 70% of the industry almost.

I had a Stag.... and upgraded to a BCM... but I shoot my AR ALOT. It gets a few hundred rounds through it per week... if not more... and I generally run it pretty dry, and a lot of times it lives in my trunk.:rolleyes:
 
If you dont want to build one (which takes no real skills or tools) then buy the colt from G&RTactical in the link above.

I prefer a mid-length gas system and a different stock and handguard/rail so I slaped mine together from parts and saved a little money and got what I wanted.

But the current deal on the Colt is almost impossible to beat, as long as you are fine with carbine length gas system/M4 cut barrel/ standard handguards and stock.
The quality of the colt is the gold standard in ARs

BCM/Daniel Defense/Spikes/PSA are the best bang for the buck right now in my opinion, if you want to build one.(Stripped lower/LPK/Stock assembly/Complete upper/BCG, slap all those together easily and have your custom rifle)
 
I'm not really interested in building one, since this is my first AR. I've never even disassembled an AR, so while building one may be no great challenge, I'd rather just buy the complete package and get a warranty. I'm also pretty set on getting a Colt, I just can't make up my mind between the 6940 or the 6920.

I also don't want to turn this into a thread about the merits of the lower end guns versus the higher end guns. I'm looking for feedback from people that have experience with these guns, particularly the 6940. In the end, the price for both guns would likely be the same since I would end up adding a Daniel Defense Omega 7.0 rail and some sort of flip up rear sight to the 6920, which cancels any price difference between the two, and might actually make the 6940 cheaper.
 
You pay well for that raging pony. I have at least 3 Colt uppers but can't see any difference in performance betyween those and some others that cost much less. If you feel the need for a status logo on the side, go for it.
 
I suggest that you be patient in your search for your AR. There are a gazillion differences in stocks, grips, triggers, handguards, carbine / vs / midlength / vs rifle length gas, DI vs. piston, barrels, sights, etc.

It took me a long time to find the perfect rifle for me. Keep in mind it is probably not the perfect rifle for anyone else. We all have different applications and desires and intended use .. and that is ok :D

FWIW - I own and operate an LMT CQB16, I spent a lot of time learning about the AR platform and after living with the rifle for almost a year, I would not trade it for anything else on planet earth.
 
Like most things, what you really should do is define what your mission is goal, obujective etc. Then start looking for the item that fills that.

Mine was:

I want to target shoot, so I want an accurate gun, so I wanted a sub MOA and a lifetime warranty.

I having nohtign agianst 22s, but they do not do it for me (just not serious enough or some such and 22s are fine wonderull guns, i.e. I am not anti 22)

I want an AR for a number of reasons. I have the press and dies, its a good caliber, it has self defense capability or untoward events.

Ego I am looking for a 16 inch barrel, but no shorter as I still want accuray and maintain velocity.

I hoped to get something around $1000

Once you leaf through the ARs that meet that criteria (and no I don't want to build myself)

In no given order I found guns in DPMS (Mini SASS), Noveske, LeRue, RRA.

Of those two fell into claims of MOA (not just reputation though Noveske seems to be solid) were the DPMS and RRA (in their Predator Pursuit, Coyote and ATH stainless steel barrel line which guarnates 3/4 MOA).

DPMS had some great features, but would not guarantee the accuracy and a bit too much to sniper (nice stock though and a good trigger included, keeping in mind standard AR triggers simply are awful).

RRA with the ATH did, and they would sub in a 16 inch barrel vs the standard 18 inch (still stialess).

A real plus was the ATH comes with the match trigger, upgraded to the stainless steel match for a small price. Its been great.

It may not be for you, but that's a good idea of selection process.

I know people will claim all day long that you can build an equal or better for less, but I contend you give up someplace, you need some tools and you are going to have some failures. You aren't going to get first class receiver, trigger, bolt group, barrel and upper for less than a package)
 
I went into the gunshop intent on buying an AR 15 they all ran around $990 to $1085.

Looked in another case and they had Spike uppers for $525 and a CMMG Lower for $250. Purchased those and had myself a mighty fine AR 15 for $775.00 all I had to do once I purchased them is attach the upper to the lower and purchase a Burris XTS 135. Heh! I had a very nice AR 15 and a red dot optic for the price of the full rifles setting in the rack. Some of which only came with the front sight.:D

I do love that Spikes upper!

So look around for deals like that. If you spot a quality maker upper for a good price snag it... then search for a quality lower. Save yourseld a couple of hundred dollars in the process to put on a quality optic.
 
I having nohtign agianst 22s, but they do not do it for me (just not serious enough or some such and 22s are fine wonderull guns, i.e. I am not anti 22)
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I feel much the same way, which is one reason I am still having doubts about whether or not I even want an AR. To be honest I've always been more interested in the M14/M1A. However, the prices for those just seem crazy to me, and .308's aren't exactly cheap to plunk with either.

I'll probably just be taking a trip to the LGS this weekend and try to get my hands on one of the two. I believe my local dealer usually keeps a 6920 in stock, and if I'm extremely lucky he might have a 6940. I'm still sort of leaning towards the 6940 though because it has many of the features I want out of the box, but it would be really hard for me to turn down a 6920 if the price is right.
 
It sounds like you have your heart set on the Colts, go for it.

I got the XCR and think its a great gun, just not accurate enough for what I like to do (it out shoots most ARs though). Probably will move it on. Have had a great time with it and learned a lot.

The ATH I will keep.

I inherited the AK47 and will keep that and probably upgrade it.

If the Colt is not what you wanted, then its not a loss as it gets you where you want to go (advice is great but it never replace how something feels and works for you).

If you are fortunate, then it suits you to a T.

I did a blind purchase on a Sig SP2022 (9mm semi auto pistol) and its proven to be exactly what I wanted. Have to love it when it works.
 
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Good Luck - it's crowded out there:

Alexander Arms www.alexander arms.com
Armalite www.armalite.com
Bushmaster www.bushmaster.com
CMMG www.cmmginc.com
Colt www.colt.com
Daniel Defense www.danieldefense.com
Del-Ton http://www.del-ton.com
DPMS www.dpmsinc.com
DSA www.dsarms.com
Double Star http://star15.com/basic_rifles.html
FNH USA http://www.fnhusa.com
H&K USA http://www.hk-usa.com/civilian_products/civ_rifles.asp
LaRue www.laruetatical.homestead.com
Les Baer www.lesbaer.com
Lewis Machine & Tools www.lewis-machine.net
LWRCI www.lwrci.com
Mossberg www.mossberg.com
Noveske www.noveskerifleworks.com
Olympic Arms www.olyarms.com
Para USA www.paraord.com
Patriot Ordnance www.pof-usa.com
Rock River Arms www.rockriverarms.com
Remington www.remington.com
Ruger www.ruger.com
Sabre Defence www.sabredefence.com
Smith & Wesson www.smith-wesson.com
Stag Arms www.stagarms.com
 
I really had no interest in AR's since I collect WW2 battle bolt action rifles but decided I should own and modern shooter and an AR suites the need.
I shopped and shopped and asked all kinds of questions and shopped some more.
I ran cost comparisons and asked more question of AR owners / builders.
What I determined is you can build one including a few needed tools as cheap or cheaper than you can buy one.
I build my AR and got exactly what I wanted the 1st and did not have to "upgrade" Anything.
Total cost with shipping and tools was less than $800.00 and it is custom made to me.
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You pay well for that raging pony. I have at least 3 Colt uppers but can't see any difference in performance betyween those and some others that cost much less. If you feel the need for a status logo on the side, go for it.
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Respectfully, I see no need to put down anyone's preference for a brand as a "status logo". It's nearly snobbery in my opinion

If it is doubted that a name can help a product retain value, look at the popular Corvette. Some are truly awful cars with terrible build quality. The standing joke used to be that a new Vette owner would wait weeks after he picked up his new car to have his dealer make it right

But that same Vette sells for a higher price as a used car later. The OP clearly pointed out that yes, he likes Colts, and yes, he realizes that they hold value. Perhaps to you, both of those things are irrelevant. To the OP, they are not.

In my own experience, every Colt I have purchased has been a champ. But I have only ever bought one new firearm, a Ruger; all my Colts are second hand, twenty, thirty, 90 year old firearms. That Pony makes the price go up, and I can get back every cent I paid for each of them- but I wouldn't sell because they all work right. I can't account for other people's poor purchases of new or used firearms; your mileage may vary. Regardless, deriding Colt as a 'status logo' may be de riguer but I don't see how it adds to the discussion, along the lines of how any blanket statement really adds little

My Colt Sporter target is a great rifle; I am not a big AR fan, I like vintage firearms. My Colt is accurate, easy to operate, rugged, reliable. Many ARs or firearms in general can meet that description but I can't take anything away from the way I find my own Colt AR just because its a Colt. Anybody who thinks I bought it because of the brand name alone is a fool or is selling something
 
Thanks Chris B. When researching some of the various AR's out there, it seemed pretty clear to me that just about all the guns that sell in the $900-$1200 range featured a pretty similar level of quality. Typically anything below that contains a few shortcuts to meet a price a price point, hence the "el cheapo". There's nothing wrong with that, because not everyone (including me) me a full on government spec AR. However, I was raised surrounded by cheapskates who often bought the cheapest things they could find regardless of quality, and paid the price for it. That left me with a real respect for true quality goods and services, and if I can afford them I will try to purchase them first.

I choose Colt because it's a familiar name that I trust in a sea of AR producers that I have never heard of. I repeatedly read that Colt is the industry standard building their guns with high quality and thoroughly inspected parts, many of them the same parts that go into the guns ours troops use. I don't want to build my own gun since I honestly have no idea what I'm doing and I don't want to screw something up and be left with an expensive pile of parts. There's also the warranty factor, which to me is worth something. Last but not least is resale value, which the Colts seem to keep pretty well. Since I'm not even sure I will like AR's, being able to get almost what I paid for the gun is an important consideration.
 
I picked up My Doublestar AR 15 brand new for $560.00 runs smooth as my Spike Upper and others I use to own. I used to own a Pre- Ban Colt Match H Bar but that thing was just too heavy to tote around.
 
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