My M4gery journey

[Singlestack]

This is in two parts: How I figured out what I wanted (1), and How I plan to get what I needed (2).

Part 1: What I wanted

After tons of reading, studying, and asking questions, it seems to me there are ar least these variants of gun owners:

- Collectors
- Target shooters
- Hunters
- Self-defense types (Home defense, mostly)
- SHTF/survivalists

I classify myself as a self-defense type primarily, with enough need for target shooting to have a basic level of proficiency. Although I'm by no means a survivalist and prepare to the extent those folks do, if the SHTF I want a small group of serviceable weapons to defend my home, myself, and my family. In the SHTF scenario, I have decided to purchase and maintain firearms in 3 calibres: 9mm for handguns, 5.56 Nato/223 in rifle, and 12 guage in Shotgun. I realize many advocate (for good reason) a 22lr platform of some type, I wanted to eliminate another type of ammo purchase and since I'm really not a "plinker" I don't see a lot of value in 22. One of the big benefits I see in 9mm, 223, and 12g is all 3 are used in large numbers by civilians, law enforcement, and military - so ammo should at least be common, if not plentiful.

I looked at 223 platforms a lot, and was ALMOST settled on a Mini-14, but I have two concerrns there: the rifling and the magazines. I have decided I want a rifle that will shoot 75/77 grain ammo well, and from my research that seems to point to a 1:7 barrel. Minis are 1:9 in 223, only. Certainly, 55 grain is great in 1:9s (perhaps better than in 1:7s too) and the most available ammo weight. But, I want something primarily for HD and the 75/77 gr seems to have an edge there. The other problems with minis are the proprietary and expensive mags - and other parts. I realize that PROMAG and others make mini-14 mags, but I'm not hearing many good things about them. So, after all Gun stores have gone away it might be tough finding mini spare parts if needed. So that pretty much pushed me to the AR platform.

So the next question was what my needs were, and what constituted quality. "The chart" on M4carbine.net was pretty helpful, as well as posts/opinions on this form, AR15.com, and M4carbine. I think what I am looking for includes:
- Keep it simple. High quality ("good enough") over fancy configurations
- Lightweight
- Good performance out to 100 yds. I really don't see myself shooting beyond 100 yds in self-defense, and almost certainly within 25 yds. So no need for the awesome Leopold scopes, match triggers, etc
- Low cost. From my research it appears I can achieve these goals for $800 - $850

So that leads me to the next post

Singlestack

[SA Friday]

I've never seen a mini-14 at would hold MOA at any range without dropping enough cash on it to make it more expensive than an average AR. I have seen very very few ARs that wouldn't hold MOA even with crap ammo.

RRA parts kit is Around $700 for an M4.

[Singlestack]

OK, this is Part 2: How I figured out how to get what I needed

From looking at the chart, and a ton of reading I figured out who made what and what was viewed as higher vs lower quality by actual AR owners. I first looked for complete rifles, and of course found tons at the $1000-$1200 mark, lots at $1500, and many at $1800+. It initially sounded like I wanted a gas piston system, but I quickly realized that cost would be the main obstacle there. To date, I have found no way to buy a new quality gas-piston AR for $800-$850. So that pretty much led me to DI rifles, which as I'm reading is nothing to be ashamed of - in fact many experienced owners strongly prefer DI over gas piston ARs. One benefit of DI ARs seems to be - all other things equal, they seem to weigh a little less (a good thing), so a DI AR for me.

Next came barrel length. Although I have no particular feeling any which way about the A2 birdcage, I might like to try out other flash suppressors/muzzle breaks - and possibly a sound suppressor in the future. It seems that 14.5" and shorter barrels require the flash suppressor to be pinned to the barrel to avoid the SBR classification and $200 tax stamp - so that seems to rule out the shorter barrel route. Longer barrel I just don't think I need - especially at the ranges I am planning for - so this seems to lead me to a 16" barrel.

I started looking for complete carbines and found two that appeared to be pretty close to what I wanted:
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/36_763/products_id/53496
The S&W M&P 15OR (optics ready)
The ONLY thing I didn't care for about this rifle is the barrel: 4140 steel (instead of 4150, etc) and 1:9 twist - but the rest of this seems to meet my needs well. The thing I really like about it is no A2 FSB - my pref is to put on flip-up iron sights like Troys or MBUS and eventually a red dot optic. However, I had a hard time getting over the barrel.

So that next led me to Spikes Tactical:
http://www.spikestactical.com/new/z/st15-midlength-le-carbine-p-443.html
Has the barrel I want, cost, and quality. Not crazy about the A2 FSB, but probably workable even for my bad eyes if I set the optic up for lower 1/3 co-witness. This seems to be the best "complete rifle" from my research/parameters - even though I'm not crazy about the A2 FSB, at least the Spikes gives a front iron sight for about the same cost as the M&P.

Next I wanted to see if I could put together possibly a better carbine for the same cash as the M&P/Spikes. First I went looking at BCM due to lots of owner recommendations. I think a 16" mid-length gas system may be the way to go for me. I don't think I want/need the cost/weight of a free floating handguard setup, especially with the HD focus I have. This thing isn't for me a 500 yard sniper rifle, so I don't care of the better accuracy a free float system can give. But, I do want light weight. This appeared to be the best compromise for me - the 16" mid-length lightweight assembled upper without handguard:
http://www.bravocompanyusa.com/BCM-16-Mid-Length-LIGHT-WEIGHT-Upper-Receiver-p/bcm-urg-mid-16lw.htm
$399 for the upper receiver and $135 for the BCG/charging handle ($534)

I forgot to mention this, but fairly early on I decided I wan't going to build my own upper due to tools I didn't have and expertise, so the assembled route I was settled on.

The lower seems to be a lot less critical than the upper, but I still wanted quality. I was originally considering a Blemished BCM lower at $270 with standard M4 stock and $299 with VLTOR modstock - both exceptional deals. However, I found I could get a little more bang for the buck my assembling my own lower. Requires tools I already have and quite simple to do.

From AIM tactical I found a great price on a Spikes tactical stripped lower and Spikes lower parts kit (LPK):
http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=F1STSL&name=Spike's+Tactical+AR15+Lower+Receiver&groupid=53
Stripped lower receiver - $79.95

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=XSTLPK&name=Spike's+Tactical+AR15+Lower+Receiver+Parts+Ki t&groupid=53
Spikes LPK - $63.60

From DSG Arms I found a fantastic value Magpul kit that gives me the midlength handguard I need, the MOE stock/grip/triggerguard, and the received extension/spring/buffer:
http://dsgarms.com/ProductInfo/MGMIDMOEBLK.aspx
Lower accessories and handguard - $119.95

I can also get an MBUS folding rear sight from DSG:
http://dsgarms.com/ProductInfo/MAG246-BLK.aspx
Rear sight - $55.05

So the upper is $534 + shipping and the lower is $318.55 (incl handguard) + FFL + shipping. So figure about $852 for the parts and $900 for everything (FFL+shipping), before mags, sling, optic, training, and ammo.

Whew! So I guess this does come out a bit more than the Spikes midlength, but less than the M&P since the M&P lacks iron sights (Spikes uses A2 carry handle for rear sight).

Anyway, I'm still in reading/learning mode and if anyone has additional recommendations in the direction I described I'd love to hear them....

Thanks!
Singlestack

[Fromk]

Wow...that's quite a post. It sounds like you know what you want. If you're going for a 16" barrel one thing you need to note is the twist. I have a 1/9 (Stag) and it cranks out 55gr bulk ammo pretty well. I can hit pretty consistantly to 400yds with a 4x optic. I've had nothing but poor, inconsistant results with better 62gr and above. A 1/7 twist will handle those heavier weights. Now, the 1/9 works fine for me. I have no problem shooting a rifle that likes cheap ammo.

If you're building a lower it seems like you're looking in the right places. As long as it's built to spec it doesn't really need to do much else. It's also really easy to build it without any special tools. I've put together two myself and the only "AR" tool I used was to tighten the castle nut for the buffer tube but a second set of hands certainly helps. I don't know how knowlegable you are but I thought the best part of building my own is that I know exactly how my gun works and I'm not afraid to take it apart.

After you get the basic gun up it's really easy to change out most of the furniture and flash hiders/breaks, etc. I'm a huge fan of Magpul stuff myself. Lots of good stuff for very good prices.

Good luck on the build! I'm sure you'll get a lot of advice here.

[Singlestack]

Friday,

Took a look at the RRA kit - cost is $689, but doesn't include the stripped lower and rear sight. Adding the Spikes lower from AIM and the Magpul MBUS from DSG gets the price to $824. While that is a bit lower than the $852 hardware cost I came up with, the RRA is a 1:9 barrel and carbine-length gas system (both negatives to me).

Singlestack