What makes a good AR?

[Hmac]

Some people are willing to spend more money in exchange for a higher quality firearm. The concept of "with Colt/Noveske/BCM etc you're only paying extra for the name" is mostly a technique used by some buyers/sellers to convince themselves/their customers that the consumer-grade price-point rifle that they're buying/selling is "just as good as" the more expensive Colts/Noveskes/BCM's. It is true, however, that those $600-$800 rifles may be "good enough" for many people's needs for that type of firearm. Think of them as the Jennings/Hi-Point/Bryco/Ravens of the the AR world.

Melonite is a cool idea for a gun barrel. I do note that many gunsmiths either won't do any drilling or pinning of nitrided barrels, or they charge extra.

[FJ540]

Because it takes carbide to cut through it.

[Hmac]

Because it takes carbide to cut through it.

Yeh, I figured it must be harder on the tooling.

[river_boater]

... what I’m wondering is what makes a good AR… a good AR?

A Colt rollmark.

[Scratch]

... what I’m wondering is what makes a good AR… a good AR?

A Colt rollmark.

I used to think so....now, not so much....

[cgrant26]

I would have to agree with the other poster who said that any upper and lower built to proper specs will be OK as long as the BCG and barrel are quality components. Those two components will be taking the lion's share of the abuse. If you really want to learn what makes a good AR, talk to instructors that run carbine courses oe people involved in 3-gun. They see lots of rifles going through severe abuse and can offer valuable insight as to what parts break the most and what works the best.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_118/360169_.html

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_118/5866 ... tml&page=1

Some of the most common failure points I've heard are, broken extractors, worn out extractor springs/inserts, broken bolt lugs, bolts breaking in two where the material is thinnest around the cam pin, broken cam pins, gas keys coming loose or breaking.

A couple other quality concerns: a poor barrel crown can effect accuracy, poor chamber finishing (sloppy tolerances or excessive machining marks) can cause FTFs and FTEs, loose FCG pin holes can allow the pins to walk out, a slightly-off hammer spring thickness can cause the spring "legs" not to lock the hammer pin into place. Basically, lots of little things that will not be obvious until they cause problems.

[grousemaster]

Some people are willing to spend more money in exchange for a higher quality firearm. The concept of "with Colt/Noveske/BCM etc you're only paying extra for the name" is mostly a technique used by some buyers/sellers to convince themselves/their customers that the consumer-grade price-point rifle that they're buying/selling is "just as good as" the more expensive Colts/Noveskes/BCM's. It is true, however, that those $600-$800 rifles may be "good enough" for many people's needs for that type of firearm. Think of them as the Jennings/Hi-Point/Bryco/Ravens of the the AR world.

Melonite is a cool idea for a gun barrel. I do note that many gunsmiths either won't do any drilling or pinning of nitrided barrels, or they charge extra.

Did you just compare Bushmaster, DPMS, PSA, etc. to Hi-Point? lol...Doh K!!!