$600 to $800 AR

[Dirty_Harry]

Rock River Arms, Colt, build a PSA.

I wouldnt get anything from the freedom group, too wishy washy these days. (Bushmaster, DPMS) Though I had a Bushy before they changed hands and it was a great rifle.

[Fox84]

I received the Colt CSR 15 along with my Leopold Mark AR 3X9 scope and mounts. I also picked up a set of GG&G offset fixed sights. Put things together and went to the range today and was impressed. The scope was a inch low at 25 yds and windage was spot on. The GG&G sights took a little more ammo to zero in at 25yds. Moved to 50 yds and shot about 80 rds. Looking forward to some longer distance on the next trip.

[Boncrayon]

On my Colt CSR/CRX combo Competition AR I have the Nixon P-223 with lens retinal markings for up to 500 yards.

[boltomatic]

That's right at the low end of prices these days, you r best bet woudl be to build your own lower and look for a used upper in good condition.

Buy the cheapest stripped lower you can find, Anderson Mfg makes them and they sell for $70-$80. There's not really any functional differences between stripped lowers, its just a machined piece of aluminum so you can save a lot of money here.

For the parts kit and stock, spending more CAN make a difference especially on the trigger, but I recommend again finding the cheapest one available as long as it comes from a reputable AR-15 manufacturer like RRA, CCMG, etc...

With all that you saved on the lower, spend the rest on a good upper. The upper contains the critical parts that are going to affect accuracy and reliability and requires more precision to assemble.

You can find great deals on used uppers, but try to find a seller that will allow you to have a gunsmith examine it to make sure there are no problems before you buy, or at least have a return policy that would allow you to get a refund if there is a problem.

A lot of people bought more guns than they needed during the panic of 2012 and are now selling them, so you can get some pretty good deals on basically new firearms and parts, so keep an eye out on sites like gunbroker and local stores, you might be able to find a great deal on a complete rifle but a good deal on an upper is more likely.

[ART338WM]

Im a novice and I am going tobuild my own AR 15 carbine and according to everything I have read it will be as good if not a better AR than a $900++ Colt for around $300 less.

I bought all my components from PSA. Total W/S&H and FFL fee was about $660ish.

I bought a PSA premium upper with a FN CHF, CMV barrel made form machine gun steel. Same barrels FN puts in the Army's/USMC M249/M240 machine guns. It's high pressure tested and particle inspected.
Cost $319.99

Bought a PSA complete blemished lower. Cost $159.99

A PSA Nickle boron BCG cost $119.99

Charging handle for $25

S&H + FFL Fee: $40

Total cost to my door: $665

I simply don't see how you can buy any other AR OTC that even comes close to the above AR for the same money let alone less. My AR is costing a few bucks more than a M&P Sport, and even though a M&P sport is reguarded by many as the best entry level AR for the money, I would rather spend $25 bucks more and get what I ordered.

As it's been said 1000x the AR15 is the errector set of rifles.

But then again this is my opinion, and admittedly I'm a newbee to AR's

[Brotherbadger]

Im a novice and I am going tobuild my own AR 15 carbine and according to everything I have read it will be as good if not a better AR than a $900++ Colt for around $300 less.

I bought all my components from PSA. Total W/S&H and FFL fee was about $660ish.

I bought a PSA premium upper with a FN CHF, CMV barrel made form machine gun steel. Same barrels FN puts in the Army's/USMC M249/M240 machine guns. It's high pressure tested and particle inspected.
Cost $319.99

Bought a PSA complete blemished lower. Cost $159.99

A PSA Nickle boron BCG cost $119.99

Charging handle for $25

S&H + FFL Fee: $40

Total cost to my door: $665

I simply don't see how you can buy any other AR OTC that even comes close to the above AR for the same money let alone less. My AR is costing a few bucks more than a M&P Sport, and even though a M&P sport is reguarded by many as the best entry level AR for the money, I would rather spend $25 bucks more and get what I ordered.

As it's been said 1000x the AR15 is the errector set of rifles.

But then again this is my opinion, and admittedly I'm a newbee to AR's

1. That's a very nice rifle. It will treat you well. Did you pick up optics or a BUIS?

2. As far as being "better", that depends on what it is for. Depending on your usage, yea that thing is going to work just as well as the colt.