can anyone explain why BCM is good?

[rukwikenuf]

i'm serious here. i was thinking i should get a bigger latch for my charging handle when i FINALLY put a scope on my rifle. so, i came home, jumped on MidwayUSA, and searched some charging handles and latches and such.

what the hell makes a Bravo Company charging handle worth $45?! a friggin DPMS unit is $15 and the stupid latch is like $10!!! now i realize that the DMPS unit doesn't have Bravo Company USA laser etched on the top of the handle, but who cares, it's inside the upper receiver where NOBODY is going to see it!!!! this is just beyond stupid to me.

if someone can give me an honest to GOD reason that Bravo Company is so excellent that they deserve a disproportionately large sum of money for the product, i'll buy the damn thing. however, it's got to be a logical explanation, not "ARFCOM loves 'em" or even that it has the coveted "Shippy Seal of Approval"



this can also be used to discuss various other AR15 parts and accessories. what's so ******** special about the LaRue Tactical optic mounts?! SERIOUSLY! ya know, i could almost understand if they were painstakingly made on a manual machine to these exacting standards, but damn! and those Spuhr mounts?! $450 for a damn block of aluminum! if it were titanium, i could understand Spuhr wanting so damn munch, but they're **** ALUMINUM!

and VLTOR, taking a part from BCM and laser etching THEIR name doesn't make it quality! or BCM taking sights from Troy and etching THEIR name. or RUGER using the EXACT SAME TROY SIGHTS! hell, i saw an ad on ARFCOM a while back where the seller was catching some **** from someone because the Troy BUIS set he had was labeled RUGER (like the quality was any less)

[Lunchbox]

Weren't we having a discussion like this the other weekend in your garage? Or just about anytime we get talking gun(parts).

[rukwikenuf]

Weren't we having a discussion like this the other weekend in your garage? Or just about anytime we get talking gun(parts).

we were. however, no logical explanation was offered, so here i am asking the InterwebZ

[AutomaticAron]

This seems to be an issue that comes along with the propagation of the AR15 as a more common and accessible rifle with regards to the average "fun gunner". Everyone and their mom is scrambling to get that "Name Brand Quality" and are totally okay with taking the price hike that comes with it.

It happens with just about ANY product once it becomes more accessible to the general public. Look at computers for example, whereas someone who's in the know, or has experience could easily tell when a product is jive (do we use that word around here?) or not really anything stellar or unique, someone who knows next to nothing is ripe to be plucked and fed to the marketing machine. Same logic applies to the experienced shooter.

It's always been around, from name brand shoes and backpacks from when we were school kids that ripped and tore just the same as the cheapo stuff I lugged around, to that shiny new Samsung flatscreen that, aside from the logo, looks exactly the same as my Phillips that lights my TV room. Both show me the same damn boobs and gore and I'll be damned if I could tell one from the other. But some people find comfort in those name brands, and they're willing to pay for it. Not me mind you. But some people.

I suppose you could say it's almost a good thing though. By that logic that means there are more people getting into firearms than just those who know how to piece together a good, respectable AR15 without destroying the bank. Bravo Company is there for the experienced shooter, as well as the experienced shooter's mom who wants to go wild in her golden years with an equally expensive case of Hornady .223.

I dont buy from BCM and dont ever plan on doing so, because I know that for me, there are always comparable products out there for less. I can live without my AR looking like a BCM sponsored NASCAR car.

[FJ540]

DPMS is sourcing parts from china. Do you want china quality or US made?

This isn't a made up claim - See where it says made in USA? Oops, it doesn't.
Cheap aluminum one:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1751 ... ING-HANDLE
Expensive steel one:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=1838 ... ING-HANDLE

Neither is made here. Brownells is keen on promoting things which are made here as such.

Double Star's cheap one is made here, but 6061 aluminum is not milspec as they claim:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=3193 ... E-ASSEMBLY

Then we'll go to the BCM listing, which is made in USA and 7075 (a more expensive, and superior material to 6061):
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=3207 ... ING-HANDLE

True milspec is forged 7075. You'll see in the customer reviews, those who bought the cheaper ones complain about them being flimsy.

[Erik_Pakieser]

The design of the BCM Gunfighter charging handle is different from the standard one, more durable.

Explanation here:
http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/BCM-GUNF ... %20556.htm

[Paul]

I haven't compared part for part Bravo Company with any other specific manufacturer, but here is my general comment regarding buying stuff. I've spent years trying to save a buck buying stuff that I either was told or believed was 'just as good' as the high end name brand. At the end of the day I've wasted a ton of money and now am of the buy once cry once mentality. This applies to everything from gun parts, gun accessories, guitar parts, flashlights, cigars, clothing, knives and so on.
I
So is the Bravo Company part better? Yes. While you do pay more for the name stamped on it, the part is higher quality. The posts above show that. The real question you should be asking isn't is the part better, but rather do I need that better part for my application? Or better yet, is the cheaper part good enough for my application?

If I'm buying a plinking range rifle, or even a training rifle, its not the end of the world if something fails. I can always fix it later or go to a different weapon. If I am buying a rifle for a duty rifle, obviously I want a higher quality rifle. Expensive parts doesn't mean the rifle won't fail, but higher quality parts tend to help push the odds a little closer in your favor. They say nobody ever walks away from a gun fight wishing they brought less ammo. Nobody also ever complains that their pistol or rifle functioned too well.

With all that being said, it's likely that none of us, myself included, need a special forces quality weapon. No matter how tactical I think of myself in my own mind, I'm fortunately never going to have to run my rifle in extreme conditions or prolonged combat.

At the end of the day after having Colt, DPMS, custom built, home built, and other rifles, I go with Bravo Company complete rifles. For a number of reasons, I choose not to build my own and for the price, they are comparable to other brands, including those thought of as lesser quality, and I know what to expect in regards to function and consistent quality.

My two cents.

[Hmac]

Is a Mercedes or Lexus a better car than a Kia or Yugo? Or is one just paying for the name? Do you buy your power tools from Milwaukee or DeWalt, or do you pick them up at Harbor Freight or you local Unclaimed Freight store? I mean, a cheap drill from Unclaimed Freight will drill holes just like a Milwaukee, right?

Yeh, I'm pretty confident that some component of what you pay for Colt, Noveske, or BCM is name brand, just like Lexus cars or Milwaukee drills. But you're also paying for the design, the R&D, the materials, and especially the QA.

For many shooters, a consumer-grade price-point rifle like DPMS/Bushmaster/RRA, or cheap parts or components for those rifles, will be just fine. The concept of "good enough" applies. They'll never push it hard enough to uncover its weak points, and if it does fail, all it does is cut short a day of plinking. For people who take pride in owning high quality firearms or building their rifles from quality parts, or whose life might depend on that firearm, or who just wants the best rifle they can get so that it doesn't fail and make them into "that guy" at a 2000-round carbine course, then yes...you're better off getting a BCM, Colt, Noveske, DD...all rifles that have proven themselves to be reliable and well-made by people who do push them hard.

If you're willing to accept the decreased quality and reliability that comes with consumer-grade equipment in favor of cost-efficiency then yes...a Chinese-made charging handle from DPMS will likely work just fine. Some of us, even though we may not be "professionals", still aspire to professional-grade equipment. Not as cost-efficient in the short run perhaps, but clearly better, especially over the long run.

[rukwikenuf]

well i'm not sold that i have to drop $45 on a charging handle. is it steel?! that's news to me, i thought they were aluminum like most every other AR part.

[Stradawhovious]

well i'm not sold that i have to drop $45 on a charging handle.

You don't. Is this a range toy, or is it going to be your right hand when you're tooling around the world being a HSLD operator?

Thought so. Buy whatever you want, and if it breaks (Which it likely wont with normal range use) replace it with something better, and lesson learned.

People have all sorts of reasons for buying what they do.... Quality, bragging rights,recommendations, etc. etc. In this case I think it would just boil down to personal preference. But then again, I'm just some guy on the internetz.

[Erik_Pakieser]

Regarding the charging handle, I would say that the price is justified because it's a completely different design from the OEM.

Overall, I find that the quality of BCM products is far superior to other brands, and when you do the math it's not that more expensive. For example, a BCM bolt carrier group is $140 vs. a DPMS/DelTon/etc bolt carrier group average price of $100.

A BCM upper, minus the bolt carrier group, is around $450 with shipping, whereas a recreational-quality rifle upper is going to be around $500 with the bolt carrier group.

I personally believe that the most important components of an AR15 (barrel, bolt carrier group, gas system) are in the upper receiver assembly. While I've never seen any lower parts fail, most malfunctions seem to live in the upper receiver (the exception to this is buffer and spring, but those parts are pretty robust). I build my lowers on a reasonable budget and top them off with a BCM or other high quality upper assembly and bolt carrier group. In the end I get a pretty nice rifle for around $800 when all is said and done.

[yuppiejr]

I do like the BCM charging handle, if you watch sale prices they come up for $35 every once in a while. For $20 more than a stock charging handle it's a legitimate ergonomic improvement allowing added flexibility to manipulate the charging handle without removing your hand from the pistol grip. It's engineered to avoid the single roll pin point of failure that can come from other latch-only upgrades to stock charging handles being used the same way.

BCM not only produces great components that meet or exceed military specifications but they stand behind their product and offer world class service and support if and when you need it. In it's performance/quality class, BCM seems to be among the most competitively priced as well.

If I'm doing a budget build I usually go with Palmetto which is at the high end of the mid-tier (though their delivery times are terrible lately), if I need something to take a licking and keep on ticking I'd spend the extra for BCM.

[Hmac]

well i'm not sold that i have to drop $45 on a charging handle. is it steel?! that's news to me, i thought they were aluminum like most every other AR part.

I suspect that there is no way than you would need a $45 BCM charging handle. I'd bet that a $15 DPMS charging handle will be "good enough" for you. Look at it this way...you could buy three DPMS charging handles for the cost of a BCM charging handle.

[Hmac]

well i'm not sold that i have to drop $45 on a charging handle.

You don't. Is this a range toy, or is it going to be your right hand when you're tooling around the world being a HSLD operator?

Those are the two choices? Range toy or hard charger? Nothing in between? No provision for those who simply prefer to own a high quality firearm instead of a Saturday Night Special?

[Doc Harvey]

Hey Ruk! If you get one, let me know how you like it. I was thinking about getting the Mod3 for my AR.