AR 556 or 308?

[twowheels]

Oh my, no, its condescending if it demonstrates patronizing superiority, which surely is the case with your two posts.

And just so you know, because I am not sure you otherwise would, this is sarcastic--you obviously have superior gun handling skills and experience to my own so I am going to bow out of further discussion with you on this topic.

 

[Sgt Nambu]

Wow! Five pages! Buy both!

 

[etrain16]

The idea of buying an AR is more political, Im no longer certain in say 10 years we will be able to buy them, I want to be grandfathered in. I dont need one, cant really afford one, can hardly justify buying one (hunting).... so it would be a long term project for me. Ill buy either a 100% lower (or build an 80%) and over time build the rifle the way I want it.

That is exactly why I bought my first AR. I didn't need one, in fact, I didn't really want one. But I have to thank President Obama for pushing me that direction. And now that I have one, I have to say I'm hooked. They really are great guns.

I'm putting money aside right now to get my second, in .308 this time. Again, I don't necessarily need it, but I've made a commitment to myself that as long as anti-gunners keep going after our rights, I'm going to keep supporting the industry by buying the things they hate the most. If they would shut their mouths about all this, and leave us and our rights alone, I could redirect my money elsewhere. Until then, I will continue to support the industry.

 

[mjbskwim]

Oh my, no, its condescending if it demonstrates patronizing superiority, which surely is the case with your two posts.

And just so you know, because I am not sure you otherwise would, this is sarcastic--you obviously have superior gun handling skills and experience to my own so I am going to bow out of further discussion with you on this topic.

'Bout time some one noticed.

 

[mjbskwim]

That is exactly why I bought my first AR. I didn't need one, in fact, I didn't really want one. But I have to thank President Obama for pushing me that direction. And now that I have one, I have to say I'm hooked. They really are great guns.

I'm putting money aside right now to get my second, in .308 this time. Again, I don't necessarily need it, but I've made a commitment to myself that as long as anti-gunners keep going after our rights, I'm going to keep supporting the industry by buying the things they hate the most. If they would shut their mouths about all this, and leave us and our rights alone, I could redirect my money elsewhere. Until then, I will continue to support the industry.

No kidding.I was set on saving up for a quad and then the BS started again.I'll get there by hunting season but I did the same.Spent moneys I had earmarked for other things on guns

 

[3MTA3]

the idea of the thread was for me to explore my options if I bought an AR rifle. If you go way back to the first page you will see that I dont need another hunting rifle, and the idea of it was more of a way to justify the purchase.

I hunt with a Rem700, I dont know how much it weighs but probably would not want to go any heavier...

I dont see myself getting the 308, and would never hunt elk with a 223/556. I would consider hunting deer with it though but would prefer 300blk or the 6.5 Grendel.... but I probably would just use the Remington.

The idea of buying an AR is more political, Im no longer certain in say 10 years we will be able to buy them, I want to be grandfathered in. I dont need one, cant really afford one, can hardly justify buying one (hunting).... so it would be a long term project for me. Ill buy either a 100% lower (or build an 80%) and over time build the rifle the way I want it.

so guys, lets not put too much into the idea of hunting elk with this thread....

Then the answer is AR-15 in 5.56 NATO. Get that lower while you still can before it gets Prozanskied trough via emergency legislation. Get a boat load of mags too, and don't forget the ammo. Building is smart because you will always be able to maintain and repair.

 

[Koda]

Get that lower while you still can before it gets Prozanskied trough via emergency legislation.

Yes, I had that in mind in lieu of the pending legislation this year, I became grandfathered in today.

 

[3MTA3]

Just remember, two is one, and one is none...

Edit: Also, the trigger guard installation is where its easy to lose your investment in the lower. I used a scrap piece of 3/4 plywood with some microfiber on top to support that part of the lower to keep from breaking it off when I installed the pins.

 

[Koda]

Just remember, two is one, and one is none...

Edit: Also, the trigger guard installation is where its easy to lose your investment in the lower. I used a scrap piece of 3/4 plywood with some microfiber on top to support that part of the lower to keep from breaking it off when I installed the pins.

I have to wait now until at least after taxes to start the build but Im all ears for tips and advice... (I'll probably start a build thread).

So I decided on a "15" lower, not to go 308... I decided this is a for fun project that no longer justification like hunting... although I'm still interested in the 6.5 Grendel caliber but I will decide on that later after the lower is complete.

I dont even know where to begin and am all ears... I'm assuming trigger? or maybe there is a lower parts kit worth looking at. Feel free to influence me as I know nothing about AR15's

 

[3MTA3]

If you live in the Portland area I strongly suggest checking out Curts Discount Shooter Supply on McLoughlin Blvd in Gladstone. I bought the parts for most of my builds there at about the same price as the online stores.

I suggest bypassing the standard trigger and using the ALg ACT. At about 60 bux its an outstanding single stage combat trigger and a terrific value - you would have to pay at least a hundred more to get a small improvement. You can get lower parts kits without the standard trigger.

 

[Koda]

unfortunately I dont live in the Portland area but I would be interested in opinion in triggers like the ACT. What does "single stage" mean?
http://algdefense.com/alg-combat-trigger-act.html

 

[3MTA3]

A single stage trigger as no take up before it breaks. Its the type of trigger you probably ave on most of you firearms. A double stage trigger as some take up before you feel resistance, then a small amount of additional pressure will cause the trigger to break. Look into the gieselle SSA-E as an example. Also there are pretty good youtube videos that show how they work.

 

[Brutus57]

If you live in the Portland area I strongly suggest checking out Curts Discount Shooter Supply on McLoughlin Blvd in Gladstone. I bought the parts for most of my builds there at about the same price as the online stores.

I suggest bypassing the trigger and using the ALg ACT. At about 60 bux its an outstanding single stage combat trigger and a terrific value - you would have to pay at least a hundred more to get a small improvement. You can get lower parts kits without the standard trigger.

I built my own AR and it was the first time I ever shot one....I read many things on the web, started collecting parts during the panic so it too me awhile. Having been born in Tacoma I thought having an Aero Precision lower with the Tacoma, WA. on the receiver would be cool and I wanted everything important in the build to be milspec. Took me over a year between the panic, dearth of parts and my budget....I ended up with a coupe of PLKs but settled on buying an ALG-ACT as the type I installed. Great trigger for the bucks, really as previously said. My upper is a BCM 14.5'' HBAR middie gas with a 1-7 twist. A little heavier but this build was a SHTF carbine if it comes to that, added some OD Magpul jewelry and she's mostly done. Saving for a good glass now.

I am reasonably handy but no mechanic, black smith, electrician, plumber or or rocket scientist though I can build accurate rockets.

Sure, I could have saved and bought a good off the shelf AR, but this is MY rifle and this is my gun, there are some like it but this one is MINE. I had a hoot building it.

Brutus Out

 

[3MTA3]

I built my own AR and it was the first time I ever shot one....I read many things on the web, started collecting parts during the panic so it too me awhile. Having been born in Tacoma I thought having an Aero Precision lower with the Tacoma, WA. on the receiver would be cool and I wanted everything important in the build to be milspec. Took me over a year between the panic, dearth of parts and my budget....I ended up with a coupe of PLKs but settled on buying an ALG-ACT as the type I installed. Great trigger for the bucks, really as previously said. My upper is a BCM 14.5'' HBAR middie gas with a 1-7 twist. A little heavier but this build was a SHTF carbine if it comes to that, added some OD Magpul jewelry and she's mostly done. Saving for a good glass now.

I am reasonably handy but no mechanic, black smith, electrician, plumber or or rocket scientist though I can build accurate rockets.

Sure, I could have saved and bought a good off the shelf AR, but this is MY rifle and this is my gun, there are some like it but this one is MINE. I had a hoot building it.

Brutus Out

Well stated and very informative to those considering their first build.

My experience was very similar - the first ARs I ever shot were the pair I built a few years ago. They both have ACT triggers, which are nice and crisp and have the perfect pull weight for combat. I also went as local/regional as possible and went with Aero Precision for upper and lower. Fully happy, fully satisfied. My Black hole barrels are made about 45 minutes from were I live and I'm impressed by them as well. I also sourced most of the parts locally except for a few killer deals.

 

[3MTA3]

A few lessons learned from my builds:

• I used a compensater that worked very, very well. The downside was the incredible amount of noise it made. I fired exactly one round without hearing protection and thought I might have permanently damaged my hearing. Bottom line - 5.56 doesn't really need compensation and during ShTF you likely wont ave the option to use protection. Use a great flash hider instead like the Smith Vortex.
• Anti-roll pins aren't really needed due to the way the trigger group is designed. Nothing really wrong with them, but it might be better to put that money elsewhere.
  
• Same goes for BAD levers.
• I went with a standard barrel profile. If I did it again Id have one one size smaller.

 

[mjbskwim]

There are a lot of builders on here now and you can go to AR15.com and the have a bunch of tutorials on building. And tons of links for parts,even if just to see what all's out there.
I would agree with getting a better trigger group right away as most standard triggers suck. I had one you could hear from 5 feet away
And spend more on a barrel. A little more will bring a lot better results.
Heck ,build a 556 upper and down the road either build the 6.5 or just change the barrel out.
Does the 6.5 take a different bolt like the 6.8spc?

 

[Boboclown]

I had one you could hear from 5 feet away
Does the 6.5 take a different bolt like the 6.8spc?

Two things. One, unless shooting suppressed with subsonic ammo, that trigger being loud won't matter. The action would be louder anyways.

Two, you do need a new bolt for the 6.5 Grendel.

 

[Koda]

thanks for the input everyone, it sounds overwhelmingly in support of starting out with a nice trigger Im going to bookmark the ALg ACT trigger 3MTA3 suggested. http://algdefense.com/alg-combat-trigger-act.html

Plenty of time to read up on things and its really cool there are plenty of forum members here willing to share info and tips. Whats interesting is I considered this a long term project but now that I hold the real deal I cant wait to get started, but I will take my time... mostly I cant afford to buy it all at once.

When the time comes the two calibers I'm interested in is the 556 and the 6.5 Grendel but I'm thinking I will start out with the 556 for ammo cost and availability but ballistically I like the Grendel better... for hunting this would make an excellent deer and antelope caliber. In a perfect world I will end up with two uppers...

 

[mjbskwim]

One, unless shooting suppressed with subsonic ammo, that trigger being loud won't matter

Noise wasn't the point. I could here the grittiness of the trigger.The parts grinding together
Almost as loud as the charging handle
I know I could polish it but a new trigger group is just better,IMO

 

[Boboclown]

Noise wasn't the point. I could here the grittiness of the trigger.The parts grinding together
Almost as loud as the charging handle
I know I could polish it but a new trigger group is just better,IMO

Learn to use grittiness. Make you tough and unfeeling, like Russian turnip.

Tbh I'd just polish it. Then again, I can shoot pretty good groups either way. YMMV.