First AR on its way... would appreciate your thoughts and suggestions

[Taurahe]

I never really thought about owning an AR until recently. Well I was at my favorite gun store, and they had a super awesome rifle on the wall and I decided it should go home with me, once it is off layaway lol. I got a good deal on a yankee hill machine AR, sans sights or optics. I dont have a spec sheet but it is a Vltor barreled upper on a yankee hill billet lower.... the rest of the doodads are unknown to me. I ordered a set of Diamond back polymer flip up sights, and I am going to equip it with a 1-4x scope for distance work, since I dont plan on this being a HD weapon, but more for plinking and critter gitting.

Since it is my first, I decided to buy a high quality gun and enjoy it, rather than cheaping out. Is their anything that I should know or that i shoud consider adding to this gun? Thanks for the input.

 

[Sling10mm]

What you described sounds like a good start, but it's hard to make suggestions without knowing the rest.

Anyway, congratulations, and post some pics when you bring it home.

 

[Mgderf]

Welcome to the "Dark Side"

 

[prescut]

a good chamber brush should be first on the list. In Nam, m16 was said not to need cleaning or lube. Huge mistake, corrected over time after many deaths.

So now comes new AR15 and I believe the same story. Keep it clean and lubed and all will go well. Dirty and dry and you could have a jamomatic.
I would shoot it before you get the scope. These are not long distance tack drivers. They are made to put lots of lead downline. That keeps the bad guys heads down. Get used to it before you spend the extra cash. I have never really bonded with my AR's. Now my russian Mosin, SKS, and AK are another story. I'm an old fart so take all this with a grain of salt. My son loves his new AR's and doesn't get why I like the old military weapons. You are starting down a path led by Legoland. This is the ultimate in hang the kitchen sink off it kind of rifle. I saw an AR last year's shot show in Vegas that had a functioning chain saw on the end rather than bayonet. The guy called it the Zombie Killer. I don't think it made it to production, but the line for a picture with it was around the hall.
Keep that good attitude about learning and it will be a joy for years.

Lost

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Let these two principles govern your approach:

1. Never put anything on the gun that does not solve a problem for you.

2. Remember the stripper's creed: tis better to take off than to put on.

 

[rmasters744]

Sounds like you have a good rifle on the way. Now get out there and practice, practice, practice...

 

[mvician]

Who put this together? What barrel did they use?

 

[stern1]

Congrats on the first one. Didn't take me long to get a second .

 

[rvb]

Run good mags (eg Good GI mags or Magpul 30s) and good ammo.
Keep the bolt/carrier well lubed.

Do that, clean occasionally, and it'll give you years of good service.

anything else you might need/want is personal preference depending on how you intend to use it.

-rvb

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

The AK is a wartime design, rough and ready, sloppy as hell, tolerant of anything, the whore you pick up on the street. She'll keep minute of man at 100m. The AR is a peacetime design, precise, beautifully machined, and a hard mistress. She'll keep MOA at 100m, but you'd better treat her well. She likes her jewelry, but she doesn't really need much. Resist the temptation to hang a bunch of crap on her. I'm down to a tritium/fiberoptic ACOG. Can't think of anything else I'd want on a 5.56.

 

[Vespid_Wasp]

These are not long distance tack drivers. They are made to put lots of lead downline. That keeps the bad guys heads down.

Respectfully disagree. Two of my ARs are indeed tack drivers, and will shoot circles around most factory bolt actions. A third, my first AR, has never produced anything impressive as far as group size, but it is accurate enough for what I use it for.

I have shot 10 inch round steel plates with my 3-gun rifle at 630 yards on a windless day with about a 70% hit rate. I have shot the same on a very windy day with a MUCH lower hit rate.
ARs are capable of very good accuracy.

 

[Vespid_Wasp]

I never really thought about owning an AR until recently. Well I was at my favorite gun store, and they had a super awesome rifle on the wall and I decided it should go home with me, once it is off layaway lol. I got a good deal on a yankee hill machine AR, sans sights or optics. I dont have a spec sheet but it is a Vltor barreled upper on a yankee hill billet lower.... the rest of the doodads are unknown to me. I ordered a set of Diamond back polymer flip up sights, and I am going to equip it with a 1-4x scope for distance work, since I dont plan on this being a HD weapon, but more for plinking and critter gitting.

Since it is my first, I decided to buy a high quality gun and enjoy it, rather than cheaping out. Is their anything that I should know or that i shoud consider adding to this gun? Thanks for the input.

Enjoy your new rifle! If it is for plinking as you say, I would call and cancel the backup sights if you still can. Or sell them as new. Select a good scope like a Vortex or Leupold and you will never need backup sights.

Try your rifle first with the factory trigger, it may come with a great one. If it is a typical factory 'mil-spec' type AR-15 trigger it will probably exhibit some hammer camming and the associated trigger creep. I have one standard AR trigger that just by luck of the draw happened to be pretty good. My other two were atrocious and I have a JP and a Geissele in those rifles and they are simply superb.

I agree that some people can go overboard with bolting doodads to their rifles, but you can't shoot a rifle in the dark that doesn't have a light on it.

There are a ton of good 1-4x options. What is your price range for the optic?

 

[Txlur]

Irons, mags, light, sling.

 

[prescut]

The AK is a wartime design, rough and ready, sloppy as hell, tolerant of anything, the whore you pick up on the street. She'll keep minute of man at 100m. The AR is a peacetime design, precise, beautifully machined, and a hard mistress. She'll keep MOA at 100m, but you'd better treat her well. She likes her jewelry, but she doesn't really need much. Resist the temptation to hang a bunch of crap on her. I'm down to a tritium/fiberoptic ACOG. Can't think of anything else I'd want on a 5.56.

beautifully written and I couldn't agree more.
Lost
Vespid_wasp - what kind of scope you got on there?

 

[Vespid_Wasp]

Vespid_wasp - what kind of scope you got on there?

It is a Vortex Razor 1-6.

 

[stern1]

I have a Bushmaster varmiter, picking coyotes off at 200 yards is a chip shot. would to get out to a range and see what king of groups i could get out of it.

 

[stern1]

And feed it good ammo if your shooting for good groups.

 

[Zjhagens]

You'll find there are a LOT of gimmicky parts out there for ARs. TONS of cheap crap. Stay with well known, and respected brands of lights (Surefire, Streamlight...), Optics (AimPoint, Eotech, Leupold, Vortex, Nikon, etc..) and furniture (Magpul, BCM, Vltor, B5). Of course it can be expensive to get the good stuff, but it is worth it in the end, even if it takes longer to acquire. Also avoid overloading it with "tacticool" accessories. I facepalm every time I see someone with a Magpul AFG, with a vert grip behind it, and a magwell grip behind that...

 

[sloughfoot]

The charging handle should find a home in your nostrel if you want consistant results downrange.

 

[Leo]

Let these two principles govern your approach:

1. Never put anything on the gun that does not solve a problem for you.

2. Remember the stripper's creed: tis better to take off than to put on.

+1 In modern trim, they are amazing little rifles. The best things you can add are good ammo and discipline. Once you get some sights on it, work on your riflemanship skills. most will return very good results. Many people get so excited anout clamping a bunch of tacticool stuff on and they never learn to shoot the rifle to its potential. (or they can only shoot from a bench) Once you have a decent rifle, the best thing to work on is you.