First AR type rifle, what to buy?

[smalljawguy]

I'm looking at purchasing my first AR type rifle and was hoping to get some ideas on what to buy. I'm not looking for anything exotic, just a rifle to shoot and have at the house. Somewhere in the $500-$700 range. Nothing set in stone, not brand loyal here, just want something simple and basic. As for building my own, well that probably isn't advisable since I'm mechanically challenged.

[Bassakwards]

I bought a Ruger AR556 last summer, it was my first AR. It shoots well, and I haven't had any issues with it, other than it can be a pain to get upper separated from the lower sometimes. I switched out the handgaurd for a quad rail, put a magpul CTR stock on it, and got a vortex strikefire red dot scope. It's a pretty sweet gun now for, how much I have in it. Now, the rifle, and all the accessories are way less than what I paid. If I was buying a new entry level AR now, I'd probably buy a Springfield Saint.

[NoCAL]

Just to get into them, I don't think you can go wrong with the M&P.

NoCAL

[TomzRanger]

Colt 6920

[Pokie Pa]

Just to get into them, I don't think you can go wrong with the M&P.

NoCAL

+! on the M&P

[R.D.]

There are a TON of possibilities you can do with the price range you are talking about. It all depends on the Direction you want to go & what your expectation are out of one.

Option 1) Get a fully assemble OTB entry level rifle. Figure out what you want to shoot & how 1st. Not all entry level rifles are built the same. For instance your DPMS & S&W will be standard MS stuff, come with 1:9 barrels and the fixed FSB. Ruger is aboutt he same but has a 1:8 barrel for stabilizing higher gr bullets, and if you fond a rifle with 1:7, that is typically the most ideal for what most shooters are looking for these days, as that is what the Mil/LE primarily uses today.There are other things out there as well, but IMHO I think this is the best way to guy a start up & learn to shoot Irons w/o all the fancy stuff on top.

Options 2) Do a half build.......this only requires 2 things. Buying a complete lower & a complete upper. All you need to do if figure out what you want in the upper & then try & get a matching lower.....this is only recommended as most manufacturers machine to there own specs & sometimes mis-matched stuff may not fit/line up as well as you might like.

Option 3) Do a ground up build......but this will involve you buying a few tools & getting yourself set-up for a completely different hobby other than fishing all together......next thing you'll know you will be making a bench to work on & then wanting to get into reloading......trust me, it can be VERY addictive


With all of that out of the way I will state that Colt is the Benchmark of the AR. If you can afford a Colt LE6920, or even ans OEM-1, get it!!! These are the true mil-spec rifles. You can always upgrade to an M16 Bolt carrier later if you want to.

From that, all the others have there good & bad points. Everyone has an opinion on them and I will leave it at that. Just keep in mind that not all the entry level rifle were intended to be sold & go into combat they are built for a certain market segment.....nothing more.


If you really want to step up & buy some of the BEST out there....look into Daniel Defense, BCM Recce, Sons of Liberty, Barret Rec-7.....then you can get into you true high end stuff......Noveske, KAC, Wilson. LWRC...and so on.


Brownells, PSA as well as Radical Firearms is a good source for buying uppers/lowers & putting them together. There are a lot of other places out there (Radical/Faxon) as well. Those are just a few other one's I have dealt with personally w/o any issues. I attempt to stay away from Cheaper Than Dirt (personal reasons) but every once in while you will find a smokin deal there that you just can't pass up (like 50% lower price than everyone else for exact same product) that is the ONLY time I buy from them.


Any questions just PM me if you want

[Gamblinman]

Colt 6920

Yep. You can buy less expensive, but none better for the price.

[Transom]

Buy a rifle kit from PSA and buil it from a stripped lower. It is easy to do and it will give you the knowledge to make repairs later.

[smalljawguy]

Great info. Thanks to all

[Transom]

Fwiw most folks shoot 55gr bullets exclusively because of cost. The industry pushes 1:7 barrels but those are not ideal for use with the 55gr bullets. I wish that more quality 1:9 or 1:8 barrels were offered.

[R.D.]

There are some very god quality 1:8 barrels out there, you just have to be willing to build your own or change it out. 1:9, not so much......custom makers have them, but not the mass produced.

I do agree on the 55 FMJ thing though, a 1:7 is not the most ideal for a 55 as that is on the lower end of the specs on it. they really like the 62's though.

IMHO, you don't truly need Chrome Vandium or any other high end plating/coatings if all your going to do is plink with it. Most of those barrel will last several thousand rounds anyway. Most average users will never spend that much $ on ammo to truly shoot out a decent barrel. Sure you can watch a youtube video on a guy doing a meltdown running it full auto.....but in reality, 99% of the people who buy them will never really do that. Excessive & accelerated heat & wear will happen on every one of them. Till you buy a full military grade rifle like a KAC, you will never truly reach its potential by shooting a few hundred rounds on a weekend outing to punch holes in paper or make a gong go off @ 100 yards.

[R.D.]

Figures I would pass this along.....this is a step up above "Entry Level" at a decent price. Just got posted this morning, was looking for a friend as well & saw this if interested. Doublestar makes decent stuff. That DS416 quad rail is a 2-piece alum T-mark, very good quality for what it is.


https://gun.deals/product/double-sta...ifle-556-72799

[smalljawguy]

Figures I would pass this along.....this is a step up above "Entry Level" at a decent price. Just got posted this morning, was looking for a friend as well & saw this if interested. Doublestar makes decent stuff. That DS416 quad rail is a 2-piece alum T-mark, very good quality for what it is.


https://gun.deals/product/double-sta...ifle-556-72799

I like it. A lot

[R.D.]

I saw that the Colt 6920 OEM-1 is going for under $800 most places (under $700 at a select few). If you buy that one all you have to do is choose the stock & handguard you want & your done.

Same as the Double Star Star15 OEM and Aero Precision OEM AC-15.


There are some really good deal all over the place right now. Way better than it was even a year or 2 ago.

[Spoons]

My first was a Colt LE6920. If I were looking today? A LE6940 would be at the top of the list.

[StratDude]

Colt. I have a few of them and they're my favorite. The one I use most is a 6731, Match Target Competition HBAR II. Shoots awesome. I also have a Colt SOCOM and it's pretty much the same gun with a different handguard. I picked up a 6920 a few months ago and haven't shot it much yet. But the few pills I have put through it hit right where they were supposed to.

[smalljawguy]

Thoughts on the Del-ton? Remember, this is the first AR type weapon for me so I don't want to go large until I get my feet wet. Really liked the Del-ton Sport light due to how light it is. Also like the Sport model with a heaver barrel and comes as is mil-spec. Little heavier but would probably last longer. Anyone have any experience? Oh yeah, both are 1X9 twist and both will come with an extra mag and 100 rds of ammo. Sport light $515, Sport $620

[Tarheel14]

Check buds gun shop online. Have some good deals.

[FlipSide]

Colt 6920

[belchfire]

DPMS what they are selling for now is incredible. Put flip up sites & red dot & still stay in your price range.
Out of all my ar's converted to full auto the DPMS lower is still tight like new.