AR system OTHER than LWRC

[Ares]

which is the best? REALLY.

Bushmaster? Stag? S&W?

I need to be educated

[Firehead]

Gas piston, or a normal gas operated upper? I like my bushmaster alot, eats even the nasty ammo like Wolf, just needs a cleaning afterwards. I've heard nothing but good stuff about the POF gas piston uppers, so you may want to look into that if you want that kind of upper.

[Ares]

I got no problem with cleaning my rifle after each use. I clean my M1A after every shoot, even though i don't have to! haha

I've heard great things about Stag and Bushmaster. Stag is cheaper though, a bad sign maybe?

[Sneaky_Bush]

Gas piston, or a normal gas operated upper? I like my bushmaster alot, eats even the nasty ammo like Wolf, just needs a cleaning afterwards. I've heard nothing but good stuff about the POF gas piston uppers, so you may want to look into that if you want that kind of upper.

Wow, i wouldnt ever recomend running wolf ammo in any gun i cared about. My Bushy handled a few rounds of it but the ammo is consitently underpowered, ie big problems in cycling. I have good luck with Magtech.

As far as the which AR is right for you? you need to figure out what you want to use it for, target, plinking, hunting, competition, defense etc. there are several variations of them from each company. i am partial to Larue (sp) tacticals setups. But Mine i started of with your avereage collapsable ar15, and customized the hell out it, and absolutly love it.


Check out the blow for a wealth of info
ar15.com
gunbroker.com
look up the various ar 15 and tacticle rifle periodicls
rainierarms.com for parts
brownells.com
if you need a good gunsmith:
Accuracy Speaks
- located at usery mountian shooting range and rio salado sportsmans club
- Specializes in AR15's - custom barrels, custom uppers, can instal fix most problems, .22 conversion, good people affordable prices, nationally know in the private AR world
-Specializes in custom 1911's as well

Mine is pictured & here is a list of the mods i did
Bushmaster AR15 collapsable stock carbine"
Bushmaster upper
Bushmaster Lower
Bushmaster 16" barell
MAKO Ergonomic Pistol Grip
Primary Weapons FSC556 Flash Suppressing Compensator
Magpul Enhanced Trigger Guard
Timney Single Stage Match Trigger 4lbs skelotonized
Custom Painted selector switch
Custom Painted "Fire" "Safe"
Custom Painted forward sight
LMT Bolt Carrier Assembly Enhanced
M16 firing pin retainer
locking upper lower rear take down pin
Buffer Tech Tactical Latch (charging handle latch)
MI 2 Piece Free Floating Carbine Rail System
Magpul CTR Stock w/ rubber butt pad
Vltor Mil Spec Tube
Mag Grip - Dual Magazine Holder
2 stamp iron bushmaster 30 rnd mags
1 Magpul PMAG 30rnd
1 Windowed Magpul PMAG 30rnd
Aimpoint adjustable magnifacation scope, green light or black cross hairs, flip lense covers

[Ares]

I've done a good amount of research on my own, the only thing i don't have a lot of is user experience, and opinion. I'm more or less trying to be sold on one company by a majority of people telling me "company 'x' is the my favorite"

thus far, I've heard nothing negative about Bushmaster. And little to nothing at all about Smith or Stag

[Raith]

http://www.tacticalyellowvisor.net/

I echo the thoughts posted herein about AR15s.

ETA - What I've said lately to some people - The way I see it, well known "good" AR15s are not terribly much greater in price than the well known "crappy" ones.  

I suspect with proper care that just about any AR15 you'd get would likely exceed your performance envelope.  My personal philosophy in terms of such things is that I'm paying the same or perhaps just a bit more for a good known part rather than something that may or may not

I don't know anybody who was ever sad they bought something "too nice."

As with anything else, the more you know going in, the more likely you are to end up with something good that you'll like.

[Sneaky_Bush]

Its hard to say, for me i went Bushmaster, my bro went S&W. They are ultimatley the same, quality is comprible, accuracy, etc. cleaning is something that is critical with any AR. I personally would recomend Bushy to you, i am a very happy owner (appx 3k rounds through it), and there is a wealth of bushmaster factory upgrades that are very reasonably priced. Try not to get sucked into the hype on Colt, theres nothing that seperates them IMO till you get into the higher end AR's 2k plus. Go with Bushy, youll be happy. My bro went S&W because at the time they were given away a free MP with purchase of an AR and hes been happy. If you can go with a ORC, Optics Ready Carbine with a freefloat rail forearm, if you find one with a full hard chromed bolt get that one.

If you can, go someplace like SGC and handle the various diferent models to find the one that calls out to you.

[Firehead]

Kinda funny, I've run about 500 rounds of Wolf .223 through my Bushy, and I've only had 1 malfunction. Yep, you heard right, just one.

[VanillaGuerrilla]

I've never encountered any major problems with wolf ammo cycling, and I've been shooting it for years (mostly just 7.62 x 39, .223, & .45 acp). Most people don't like wolf because they believe it is detrimental to firearms due to the lacquered steel casings (instead of nice, smooth, shiny brass).

To throw in my 2 cents, I own(ed) a stag (lefty), bushy, and a few self-builds. I've never really noticed a difference between any of them.
I highly recommend building one. It's a learning experience, and isn't very difficult. Average build price is around $600-650. (kits about $450-500 and stripped lower receivers are about $100-200 for a reputable make)

http://www.mapartsinc.com offers some pretty sweet kits. The uppers they sell come pre-assembled.

 http://www.ar15.com has an awesome build it yourself section that pretty much walks you through the process.

[Zectron2348]

Never have understood why anyone would spend large amounts of money for a nice AR ( or any gun) and then put cheap WOLF steel cased ammo through it. Great for the sloppy low tolerance actions of the SKS & AK , but not the AR-15.  You are just asking for extraction problems so might want to stock up on new extractor parts cause it's a coming. The shooting industry has some valid reasons for using brass, ..........

But, back to the original question, recommendation of an AR.

My recommendation:     Bushmaster!  

I have had a number of Bushmaster, DPMS, & Colt, AR-15 rifles. Son currently has a S&W & Colt. All are fine rifles.  

Colt, you pay too much for the name.

DPMS, great rifles for the money but don't buy their bargin basement models you often see at gun shows.
 
S&W beautiful rifle but again you are paying extra for the name S&W.

Bushmaster, little more money than a DPMS but better foverall fit & finish. Good solid performing rifles and the company stands behind them.

Bottom line, all have their positives and some negatives, and all will work for the average shooter just fine, .............................. if properly maintained. Maintenance is a key to the proper operation of any AR-15 rifle.

Had a friend who boasted he never cleaned his Colt AR and it functioned just fine, ........... till one day it flat would not extract after firing. Cleaned, Wire brushed, and polished  the chamber, ... no extraction. Replaced everything on the bolt, still would not extract. Replaced bolt and carrier with brand new.......... no change. Make a long story short the tiny hole in the barrel which bleeds off gas into the gas tube was almost completely sealed shut with hard carbon build up, as was part of the gas tube itself. Nice trip to the shop and a $145 later he had a functioning gun again, ............ he cleans his AR after each outing now.

[Maestro]

I don't know anybody who was ever sad they bought something "too nice."

My EOtech is too nice.  It makes me lazy  

I've abused all makes and models of AR's.  Each has it's benefits and downfalls.  The point is, if it's your first AR, get a decent one, and that will probably be the brand that you like best from now until eternity.  I personally currently have a Stag Arms, but I love Vltor and LMT for fit, finish, performance and reliability.  I just didn't want to spend the money.
Try jtacsupply. com

[Pheonix 797]

Well since we're bringing up brands...

I always wondered about PoF guns ( http://www.pof-usa.com/p415/p415.htm ). I like the idea of an alternative more reliable gas system although for the type of shooting most of us do we clean the gun immediately after and don't use them very heavily so it really doesn't matter.

Just any thoughts or opinions on the brand, price etc.

[VanillaGuerrilla]

I can tell you, the PoF uppers are VERY sweet. I've never tortured one, but they cycle very smoothly. I sold mine a while back, and have been regretting it since. The piston set-up is very similiar to a FAL. I must note, the upper alone costs more than most rifles.

Sneaky Bush: Looks like you have a pretty nice rifle there, but what's with the tan ris cover? just wondering.

[airsofting4god]

Go for Bushmaster i have owned these brands in m4's DMPS Panther arms, Colt,olimpic arms and the one i currently have Bushmaster and out of all of the i would say over all Bushmaster has been the best in every way.

[Seedy]

Stag Arms make excellent AR-15s and depending on who you talk to they'll tell you they're better than Bushmasters. Bushmasters just cost a little more cuz the name.
Colt make excellent but expensive guns too. atleast when you get a Colt your upper matches your lower  
I personally own a Bushmaster because it was the easiest and highest quality rifle I could get my hands on at the time (and Sportsman's Warehouse takes AMEX).
I've since ditched every piece of the rifle except for the single stage trigger (which will be changed to a two stage at some point) and the lower receiver.
If I could do it all over again I'd probably piece one together with a bunch of VLTOR, Noveske and Magpul parts but I'm happy with the way it is now unless I feel like starting another AR build. hmmm...