*Some minor rounding is involved.
So there I was, surprised that I was even considering building an AR-15.
For a (very) long time, I have been either hostile to the AR-15 on my worst days, or non-committal on my best days. The .223 is too small, the plastic rifle itself seemed insufficient in some vague way, and then there was the mall ninja tacticool element to it.
Eventually, though, (mostly for reasons related to the SPR variants), my heart slowly warmed up to it as a platform. Plus, the ability to totally mod it became a huge interest point for me. (A .308 AR-10 variant is on the wish list.)
Recently, I did some work for a friend who is super-knowledgeable about guns generally, and the AR specifically. In exchange for the work, he offered to do a high-end build for me. (That'll be for another thread.) That was to be my first AR.
But it got me thinking about doing my own build. Now, I'm still not "into" ARs, so I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on it. I've read about other people trying for under-$500 builds, but it never seemed like they could contain the costs. So, they ended up with an inexpensive rifle, but not necessarily under $500. Also, this is a soft market. I know that the same $500 for a build would get pretty close to getting a decent complete rifle. (For instance, as of this writing, the classified has a $600 Spikes lower that looks like a good rifle and it has been up for awhile.) Part of the reason for keeping it under $500 was because if it got to be more than that, I was probably spending too much.
I started researching. I may make bad choices, but they'll at least be informed.
I decided that if I can get a completed set of something for less than 10% more than what the individual parts cost, I would do that. That 10% is going to be worth it not to have to spend the time figuring it out myself.
Other than the expense, my other criteria was that I had to be able to find at least some credible reviews of the parts. So, PSA was on the list. But, that proved somewhat more difficult than I thought. There are a HUGE numbers of players in this market on the distribution side. I understand there are much fewer on the manufacturing side, but sorting that out isn't always easy. My 2 main resources were here at INGO and ar15.com (although the signal-to-noise ratio there is sometimes bad). At arfcom, this is a particularly useful thread.
Also, I suffer from a lack of patience. Once I got this idea in my head, it was hard to pass up what I thought was a deal. So, there may be room for others to come in lower if they are patient. Particularly if they stake out the classifieds here. (It seems like there is a usually a premium in the arfcom equipment exchange or on auction sites.) Here's how I came in (obligatory crappy cellphone pics):
PSA complete blemished lower $135 + $17 shipping (from PSA) like this one with 10% off discount code and you can't find the blemish
Hardened Arms complete upper $202 + $35 shipping (through Gun Broker) like this one
Ares Armor complete BCG $79 + $10 shipping (from Ares Armor site) like this one
Colt Charging handle $10 + $4 shipping (from INGO classifieds)
Magazine $6 + $1 shipping (from INGO classifieds - I bought several, but this ended up the per-unit rate basically)
Total: $499 including shipping, $432 without.
And, here she is:
Now, I haven't shot it yet, but the fit and finish seem solid. It is certainly a parts gun, and that's ok. It may not be a beauty, but for me - form follows function. Assuming it shoots straight, I can put a spare optic on it and have a knockaround rifle that fills a particular role in my small collection. Plus, I may paint/cerakote it something funky because... well... its a parts gun.
One thing I already know I would do different is the handguard/upper. I'd hold out or try to sneak out with a full top rail (at least) or quad rail for the $200, even if it is a UTG rail. I may end up doing some sort of bubba gunsmithing on it to get a rail on the front for an iron sight.
I would love to hear input from others on "budget builds."
Edit: haha - I just noticed in the first pic, I have the bolt facing the wrong way. Don't worry, I actually have it assembled correctly. 
ETA: Because of friendly connection to an FFL, I avoided a transfer fee.
So there I was, surprised that I was even considering building an AR-15.
For a (very) long time, I have been either hostile to the AR-15 on my worst days, or non-committal on my best days. The .223 is too small, the plastic rifle itself seemed insufficient in some vague way, and then there was the mall ninja tacticool element to it.
Eventually, though, (mostly for reasons related to the SPR variants), my heart slowly warmed up to it as a platform. Plus, the ability to totally mod it became a huge interest point for me. (A .308 AR-10 variant is on the wish list.)
Recently, I did some work for a friend who is super-knowledgeable about guns generally, and the AR specifically. In exchange for the work, he offered to do a high-end build for me. (That'll be for another thread.) That was to be my first AR.
But it got me thinking about doing my own build. Now, I'm still not "into" ARs, so I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on it. I've read about other people trying for under-$500 builds, but it never seemed like they could contain the costs. So, they ended up with an inexpensive rifle, but not necessarily under $500. Also, this is a soft market. I know that the same $500 for a build would get pretty close to getting a decent complete rifle. (For instance, as of this writing, the classified has a $600 Spikes lower that looks like a good rifle and it has been up for awhile.) Part of the reason for keeping it under $500 was because if it got to be more than that, I was probably spending too much.
I started researching. I may make bad choices, but they'll at least be informed.
I decided that if I can get a completed set of something for less than 10% more than what the individual parts cost, I would do that. That 10% is going to be worth it not to have to spend the time figuring it out myself.
Other than the expense, my other criteria was that I had to be able to find at least some credible reviews of the parts. So, PSA was on the list. But, that proved somewhat more difficult than I thought. There are a HUGE numbers of players in this market on the distribution side. I understand there are much fewer on the manufacturing side, but sorting that out isn't always easy. My 2 main resources were here at INGO and ar15.com (although the signal-to-noise ratio there is sometimes bad). At arfcom, this is a particularly useful thread.
Also, I suffer from a lack of patience. Once I got this idea in my head, it was hard to pass up what I thought was a deal. So, there may be room for others to come in lower if they are patient. Particularly if they stake out the classifieds here. (It seems like there is a usually a premium in the arfcom equipment exchange or on auction sites.) Here's how I came in (obligatory crappy cellphone pics):
PSA complete blemished lower $135 + $17 shipping (from PSA) like this one with 10% off discount code and you can't find the blemish
Hardened Arms complete upper $202 + $35 shipping (through Gun Broker) like this one
Ares Armor complete BCG $79 + $10 shipping (from Ares Armor site) like this one
Colt Charging handle $10 + $4 shipping (from INGO classifieds)
Magazine $6 + $1 shipping (from INGO classifieds - I bought several, but this ended up the per-unit rate basically)
Total: $499 including shipping, $432 without.
And, here she is:
Now, I haven't shot it yet, but the fit and finish seem solid. It is certainly a parts gun, and that's ok. It may not be a beauty, but for me - form follows function. Assuming it shoots straight, I can put a spare optic on it and have a knockaround rifle that fills a particular role in my small collection. Plus, I may paint/cerakote it something funky because... well... its a parts gun.
One thing I already know I would do different is the handguard/upper. I'd hold out or try to sneak out with a full top rail (at least) or quad rail for the $200, even if it is a UTG rail. I may end up doing some sort of bubba gunsmithing on it to get a rail on the front for an iron sight.
I would love to hear input from others on "budget builds."
Edit: haha - I just noticed in the first pic, I have the bolt facing the wrong way.
Don't worry, I actually have it assembled correctly. ETA: Because of friendly connection to an FFL, I avoided a transfer fee.
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So, I didn't pay one.
