What are the best AR brands?

[jgradyc]

Once the current market corrects, I'll probably buy an AR, AK, or Mini-14.

 

I can't find it now, but on another board, I saw a list that said basically, "These brands are generally better than these other brands."  For example, the Bushmaster was ranked low and so was... I think... Olympus, S&W? Can anyone help me out here?

 

I've heard that the Yugoslavia AKs have problems with some vacuum thingy (?) and to check it out first.  I'd rather avoid the hassle and just get one without whatever that part was. I want something that is reliable since the primary role would be home defense. I don't plan to shoot thousands of rounds.

[Trekbike]

Not sure about S&W AR's being ranked on the low side.  Something doesn't sound right, everything I've heard has always been positive.   Can't go wrong with a BCM (Bravo Company) from what I've heard.   

[Guest MilitiaMan]

As far as AR's, I personally like Sig Sauer and Core 15. If I had to choose, Core 15.

[Smith]

As far as AR's go any of the name brands will serve you well. Stay away from Olympic, Hess/Blackthorne, and deal thats sound too good to be true.

 

As far as the AK "vacuum thingy", that is only the sound of 7.62 bullets being sucked from the magazine and down the barrel. ;)

Edited March 12, 2013 by Smith

[1pointofview]

the ones that go bang when you pull the trigger.. not the ones that go kablewwwee

[Guest Victor9er]

S&W are good to go, not what I'd call "top tier" but they are good, solid, reliable rifles. I'd rank S&W higher than a Bushmaster.

 

Daniel Defense, LaRue, Noveske, BCM are all excellent high quality ARs. I'd consider those brands at the top of the class. Next you'd have brands like Colt, Remmington, S&W in that sort of middle group. (Colt would be a little higher in quality than the S&W but I personally wouldn't put them in the top group. You'll get a lot of Colt fanboys who'll say Colt is the best just because they had the military contract for so long. Just remember, "milspec" means it meets the bare minimum military requirements for the cheapest price they can get it at.) Then Bushmaster, DPMS and such would be in a lower category.

 

These are all just opinions of course, and everyone has their own opinion of what's good and whats bad. As long as it doesn't fall apart on you and goes bang everytime you pull the trigger, that's what counts.

[Jonnin]

This is like asking what the best 1911 is.   You will get fanboys for whatever brands, and snobbery (if it does not cost at least X and been on the market since 1980 it is no good) and a wide variety of nonsense.

 

Take S&W.   A lot of AR snobs will say the gun is inferior, because it is inexpensive.   Yet I have 2 of them, and they have been 100% across the board.   One is a higher end model, and it can hit a quarter at 200 yards with my handloads, shot after shot.   The other is bumpfire and has taken 5 30 round mags in under 10 min without any damage from the heat etc.   There is not a thing wrong with either of these rifles, nothing breaks (and trust me, if it is fragile, I will break it), they hold accuracy, they function.   They could be improved with target barrels and triggers, yes.  The cheaper model could use a dust cover if I suddenly have a need to bury myself in mud, which is not gonna happen, I am too old for that nonsense.  

 

What I am saying here is "better" is subjective.  To me, if it works, is reasonably accurate, is reliable, and inexpensive, its the best.   To the next guy, if it isnt a colt, its garbage.  To the third guy, if it cant make 750 yard headshots, it is junk.   The fourth will tell you that so and so uses cast instead of milled parts so their stuff breaks all the time or some other outrageous claim.   What do YOU want the gun to DO?

 

 

 

For home defense, an inexpensive and functional rifle is ideal.   The S&W sport would serve this and cost 1/2 as much as others, from a trusted brand.  An AK would do the same, for even less money you can get a modern "AK".    Home defense with such rifles ---- consider well.   If the gun is too big to manuver well inside your home (depends on your home, of course!) it is useless.  If it is too loud indoors, it may hurt you.  The muzzle flash may be excessive at night.   The pistol variations of these rifles may serve better, or a regular handgun, or whatever.   Just be sure to consider all the stuff that is specific to YOUR home.   The AK is more manuverable than the AR, "in general", IMHO.  You might also look at the calibers, the AK is a better short range round, the 300 blackout is the AR version of that, I am not a fan of 223 for actual "combat", that is just personal opinion. 

Edited March 12, 2013 by Jonnin

[Bigiron]

Ranier Arms is top tier.

[bigwakes]

I buy Spikes when I can, but S&W did an awesome job with customer support for an AR that had some issues.

[xRUSTYx]

Top Tier:  BCM, Daniel Defense (DD), Larue, Noveske

Mid Tier:  Colt, S&W, Spikes

Lower Tier:  DPMS, Double star, Bushmaster, "off" brands.

 

In my opinion, a S&W M&P15 will cover 99% of hobbyists.  Excellent value for the platform, and I rarely have seen anyone talk bad about them. 

 

I stick with Daniel Defense for my AR platforms -- As they were my first -- And will likely be my last :) 

[charlessummers]

Whaddahout Windham Weaponry? Lifetime/transferrable warranty! (At least as long as the company is around)

[Guest 6.8 AR]

It's all good. I like the ones I put together myself, just fine. You can find good and bad in most "brands".

Just a few to stay away from, like mentioned above.

[Lumber_Jack]

Whaddahout Windham Weaponry? Lifetime/transferrable warranty! (At least as long as the company is around)

Just fine. Basically a low tier like bushmaster or DPMS. Which all low tier ARs will serve any one who is shooting for fun. Maybe not if you shoot 12,000 rnds a year

[sigrug17]

the 'best' is very subjective.  But  I do agree, 'olympus' doesn't make the best AR.... one heck of a digital camera, but not a good AR at all. :)

[~48_South~]

TOP TIER- LEWIS MACHINE AND TOOL(LMT),BCM,DD,LWRC,NOVESKE,KNIGHTS ARMAMENT(KAC),POF,BARRETT,and last I can think of but not least LARUE. Im adding the RUGER SR-556c to the top tier list as well, was going to use it as a mid tier, but it has out performed 2 rifles I own on my top tier list so I guess it deserves a spot there.

 

 

But LOWER TIER IMO- DPMS,DOUBLESTAR,BUSHMASTER,RED JACKET,STAG ARMS,ROCK RIVER,SMITH AND WESSON,and random other AR manufacturers. Just because I listed them in low tier does not mean I think it is a bad rifle, lower tier is just what I consider to be more on the realm of entry level rifle for the average person.

 

7.62x39 for Home Defense is a bad idea imo, that thing penetrates pretty well and will no doubt go through a few walls, if you want a rifle for home defense stick to 5.56 or a pistol caliber carbine.

Edited March 12, 2013 by ~48_South~

[Troutburger]

In my safe Colt vs Delton vs BCM vs RRA...they all lean in the rack equally...$1.00 a round ammo....aint nobody got times fo that.

[Johnny Rotten]

Top Tier:  BCM, Daniel Defense (DD), Larue, Noveske

Mid Tier:  Colt, S&W, Spikes

Lower Tier:  DPMS, Double star, Bushmaster, "off" brands.

 

In my opinion, a S&W M&P15 will cover 99% of hobbyists.  Excellent value for the platform, and I rarely have seen anyone talk bad about them. 

 

I stick with Daniel Defense for my AR platforms -- As they were my first -- And will likely be my last :)

That hurts calling Colt Mid Tier

[xRUSTYx]

That hurts calling Colt Mid Tier

 

Only truth exits these lips (errr... fingers)  LOL

 

Everyone has their opinion.

 

Mid Tier IMO = Perfect Entry Level AR's.  Colt's and S&W's seem to run like tops.  They tend to not have many bell's and whistles, but do get the job done and do it well :)

[Danger Rane]

From personal experience I would avoid Roggio......hit or miss on quality and their customer service is deplorable.

 

In my humble opinion Seekins, Noveske, and LaRue are the cream of the crop, but they are priced accordingly.....and for casual users would probably be overkill unless you just have money to blow.

 

As others have stated there is some serious snobbery out there in regards to what is good what is bad.....often times this can be related back to someone seeing or hearing about someone with a beard and multi-cam pants using brand x and not liking brand y.

 

If you only plan to shoot a couple thousand a year and are not competing then you should be fine with a $800-$1000 gun (pre-CT pricing). In fact I've seen some guys run some $800 Bushmasters really hard without issue.  If you are wanting it for primarily home defense then just make sure you get enough time in at the range to ensure it is reliable and that you know how to operate it effectively.

 

Two things always make me scratch my head at the range.....

 

1. A guy with a $2,500 high end AR with a $100 optic on it.....If you have an overall budget, don't blow the whole thing on your gun and piece together a lame optics package. There are some relatively inexpensive optics out there ($300-$500) that are suitable for most shooters. Whatever you get ensure you pair it with a quality mount.....it won't matter how much you spent on the gun and optic if the mount won't stay tight and in place.

 

2. A guy who spends $3K on a tricked out gun but has no clue how to shoot it effectively. There is no shame in taking a class, even a basic one, to establish good fundamentals. This is something that new shooters often overlook and should budget for.

 

All that being said....this is America, and for now you can still buy whatever you want just because you want to! So whichever route you choose, enjoy it and welcome to the community.

[Johnny Rotten]

Only truth exits these lips (errr... fingers)  LOL

 

Everyone has their opinion.

 

Mid Tier IMO = Perfect Entry Level AR's.  Colt's and S&W's seem to run like tops.  They tend to not have many bell's and whistles, but do get the job done and do it well :)

I'll take a pre 1986 Colt any day of the week :dirty:

[orientalexpress]

I don't know how you can rank a colt mid tier. They do everything that your "top tier" guns do. HP Mpi, they use better steel than someone like SW or BM. Also I don't put companies like Larue, Noveske or LWRC (for the most part) in the tier system. I consider these boutique rifles. Most of their line of rifles is not the same class (as in tupe of rifle) as a Colt, BM, SW, etc. They have features unique to their line of rifles so I cannot rank then on the same scale.

[E4 No More]

CMMG, to put it as Bart Simpson once said, both sucks and blows! I bought one from Outpost Armory and had to drift the sight all the way to the left stop to get it to print a very large group on the paper at 100 yards. Man! Did it suck!

 

I currently have a S&W lower, and I think it's just fine. It has a very good trigger on it.

[Lumber_Jack]

This could go in circles for days, so I'll perpetuate the circular regurgitation.

I don't think Rock River is a 'low tier' manufacturer to be lumped in with DPMS or similar. I'd buy a RRA any day over a Bushmaster

[RichardR]

Meh.

For the most part AR's & AK's will all typically shoot & function the same, the real difference between the "tiers" is in features & the fit/finish department.

Best advice I can give is to avoid getting yourself bogged down in all of unimportant minutia that "entarweb operators" on online firearm forums argue over & just buy which ever rifle catches your eye at which ever price point you have budgeted, then buy a lot of ammo & go have some fun at the range.

You'll be able to tell quickly enough if the rifle that you bought was worth the price you paid.

[xRUSTYx]

I'll take a pre 1986 Colt any day of the week :dirty:

 

So would I .... Assuming I didn't have to pay $20k for it! LOL

 

I don't know how you can rank a colt mid tier. They do everything that your "top tier" guns do. HP Mpi, they use better steel than someone like SW or BM. Also I don't put companies like Larue, Noveske or LWRC (for the most part) in the tier system. I consider these boutique rifles. Most of their line of rifles is not the same class (as in tupe of rifle) as a Colt, BM, SW, etc. They have features unique to their line of rifles so I cannot rank then on the same scale.

 

How about "Average" tier?  Again -- My top tier's were listed because of their rep & all the bell's and whistles.  Colts and S&W's tend not to have all those.  That's all I'm saying .... Mid/Average Tier Up = you're getting a quality rifle. 

 

Its like asking for High, Mid, Lower Tier Car's.  They ALL perform the same function, some just seem to be built better (in the eyes of their owners) and a price tag that tends to reflect that.  That's not to say Kia's aren't great cars - they are just on the lower end of the spectrum while an Aventador is at the higher end ;)

Edited March 12, 2013 by xRUSTYx