Buy or Build????

[maddhunter]

Looking to either build or buy my first AR soon. Have limited knowledge about buying upgraded parts or kits vs buying assembled off of the shelf. Would appreciate any pros or cons . Thanks

[Sigfan220]

Edit: depend on you goal , plinker, tack driver, zombie slayer. can you tell us more?

[maddhunter]

I would of course like to become proficient with the weapon which will mean spending time at the range. I don' t believe I would need it to be a tack driver at this stage of the game. I think the biggest problem is that I see adds from suppliers for uppers, lowers , trigger kits etc. that lead me to believe I can build a weapon for less money than I can purchase it off of the shelf but I don't know if the parts they are selling are as good as the ones on the shelf and if they are all compatible with each other.

[Countryfried Frank]

IMHO build. I like time tinker as much as I like to shoot. YMMV.

[rugersol]

build!

[TTS]

Both!

Buy an assembled upper and build the lower.

[TH3180]

Both!

Buy an assembled upper and build the lower.

That's what I did and I couldn't be happier.

[rugersol]

i always thought building the upper was far more interesting!

[scout]

Both!

Buy an assembled upper and build the lower.

Picked up my Spikes stripped lower Saturday, got my BCM upper today and I'm just waiting for my lower parts kit and magpul furniture from PSA later this week hopefully...

[scout]

I am just about to finish building my first AR so hopefully I can share a couple things I learned and also why I chose to build vs. buy.

If you buy a complete rifle you're going to pay an extra 11% excise tax (Pittman-Robertson Act) right off the bat which is built into the price of the rifle vs. if you bought the same rifle upper and lower and simply ''clicked" them together. Now don't get me wrong this excise tax money does good things and goes into the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, but if you're on a budget like me then every dollar counts... On a $1,000 rifle that's $110 bucks you could be spending on something else like optics or new furniture.

If you buy a complete rifle you're likely going to want to change somethings about it like the grip, stock, charging handle, hand guards or sights/optics... so plan that into your overall budget.

I ran the numbers and I think it's worthwhile to buy a stripped lower receiver and assemble it yourself, there seems to be a definite cost savings from my research.

The upper is where it gets tricky, I wanted some specific things in my upper. I had a hard-on for a cold hammer forged barrel (CHF), I wanted mid-length gas system and I wanted a government profile and I really couldn't find much in stock anywhere matching what I wanted. I found a couple complete uppers that were close (CHF barrel w/ mid-length gas but lightweight profile barrel). So I ran the number on buying a stripped or even completed upper receiver, a barrel, bcg, etc and building it myself and it just didn't make sense financially to build my own as I didn't appear to be saving much if anything at all. Plus on top of a break-even or maybe paying a bit more for what I actually wanted I'd have to assemble it and I was kinda worried I'd end up going to a gun smith anyways if I needed a special tool or if I jacked something up. In the end I found a complete upper from BCM that fit what I wanted but it was about $100 more than I was hoping to spend, however it wasn't any more expensive than if I tried built it myself so... Also as stated on BCM's product page "Prior to shipping, all BCM® upper receiver groups are test fired for function, laser bore sighted with a Milspec carry handle for sight alignment within Mil-Specs, and then batch samples are test fired for accuracy." Now I'm not saying buy this brand or buy that brand but what I am saying is I personally think there is a piece of mind in buying a completed upper that's been test fired and laser bore sighted prior to shipping it to you, at least there was to me.

So was it really cheaper to build vs. buy? As it stands my AR15 when complete should come in at just under/over $1,000 (last two things I need to buy are hand guards and a rear sight). Now there are obviously lots of good options out there for complete rifles for under $1,000 but I'd like to think for that for my $1,000 I got real top notch quality parts and also everything on my wish list - CHF barrel, FDE magpul moe furniture, BCM gunfighter charging handle and a lower receiver with the the punisher skull on it I ran the numbers and if I were to buy a complete rifle with everything I wanted I think I'd be looking at about $250-500 more than what I spent building mine. So I do think there was some cost savings for me personally, however for me building vs. buying was really more about getting what I wanted.

[snlit3]

The key to it is building what you want the first time. Buying things over 2 or 3 times won't be factored into the initial cost but it will cost you in the long run!

[Sigfan220]

I would say if you are just going to have one rifle and it is just going to be used at the range to go ahead and buy. Maybe if you had a bunch of time on your hands but if you are like me time is in short supply. If you think you might do more than one in the future then look into building.

[rugersol]

Another option a lotta guys seem to overlook is jest buyin' a complete lower, and a complete upper ... the only thing holdin' the two together is two pins ya gotta learn to push out/in to clean it, anyhow! ... my 4yr-old could swing by to show ya how it's done! If ya buy a complete lower, and a complete upper, all else ya need to shoot is a magazine, ammo, and sights/scope!

That way, if Spikes has got a Punisher, Zombie, Pirate, 'er Hope 'n Change complete lower in-stock, ya can get that! ... and then get a 20in bull upper ... if that's what ya want!

It'd be purdy much impossible to otherwise buy such a combination ... unless Spikes sells it, complete! ... and it's in-stock! ... for a price ya can live with!

Get a collapsible stock, and ya can swap on a MOE, CTR, STR, ? Magpul with almost no effort! ... grip, too! ... even a new trigger ain't a big deal!

Some guys trash-talk DPMS 'er Del-ton ... I've got a couple DPMS bbl's ... I ain't in a hurry to replace 'em!

Here's some in-stock complete uppers ... http://www.midwayusa.com/find?dimensionids=4294845718&dimensionids=4294846290&statuses=In+Stock&itemsPerPage=100&sortBy=3&userSearchQuery=ar-15+upper+assembly+twist ... ya can check "backorder", but bear in mind, jest 'cause it says "due 8/26" don't mean it'll be in, on 8/26 ... it also don't mean that 8/26 won't change to 9/26 ... 10/26 ... and so on!

Midway ain't the only place to order ... but they're reliable ... they're often competitive ... if it's "in-stock", it's in-stock! ... and the reviews are usually purdy accurate!

[yuppiejr]

Don't forget to shop your local options like Atomic Tactical, Element Arms, etc.. that stock and can advise/assemble exactly what you want in an AR platform rifle. Prices are usually competitive when you factor in shipping and being able to compare options in person and walk out the door with your complete rifle is pretty damn convenient.

[Punisher102]

I went with the build for the first one. Well my only one at this time. Ive been told that it wont be my first one.

I built it for a couple reasons. The main reason is the cost. Yeah I could have plopped down the plastic and walked away with a fully assembled unit, but I didnt want to pay the extra 3% and of course the interest. Building seemed to be the way to go. Plus I wanted to build a replica of what I carried for 6 years.

I saved enough to but the McKey stripped lower, then later bought the lower receiver kit. Next came new take offs stock and all the innerds. Bottom done!!

A coworker had an upper with the handle (and adjustable sight) that I was looking for. He wanted a flat top so I bought a complete flat top, and swapped that out.

One of my drivers showed up with a stripped 16" gave it to me FREE!!! it has the preban font sight post (what I wanted) He is also getting me grips.
I picked up the rest of the upper cheaply this weekend.

Now all I need is a complete bolt carrier and its ready to fire. (once a smith gives it a good inspection including the head spacing)

My goal however is to buy a complete upper in 20" and swap out its flat top with the handle. This will give me a 20" handle with triangle grips and 16" flat top with round grips. I even plan on buying a Nodak spuds upper without that crappy brass deflector Just like the one I carried.

The overall cost? who knows, but im not dropping a big chunk of change at once. I can live with that.