a Parts AR15?

[FlyboyAZ]

I am still looking into procuring an AR15 of the carbine type with a flat top upper. Most carbines come with the built in sight/handle upper which I don't want. I can order a bushmaster with what I want for around $850 new. I have seen DPMS? flat top uppers in the $350 range and colt parts lowers cheaply as well. Does anyone have experience with this sort of a matchup? Will I be satisfied with the fit of the parts? Is there a better/cheaper way to get the end product. Other's experience is good to learn from

[yorec]

No silver bullet in a parts gun - Your skill at putting things together will play a lot in it and individual parts from different companies may vary in quality. DPMS stuff is usuall pretty good and you can end up with an excellent gun from them. I have one built on a Hess lower, Model 1 parts and a Bushmaster upper. Good gun except the lower which is a tad tight because Hesse parts suck!

Remember to buy an assembled upper - that's the most important part because it is where all the accuracy and strength to control the firing process is at. And read carefully 'cause some assembled upper prices do not include the bolt assemble and some do.

If you stick with all DPMS parts, you should be all right. A more sure option is to buy used if you can find one. Some used guns can fall below the lowest cost possible to build from, but then you're faced with the possbility of buying someone's cast off lemon or faulty parts gun, but you may also get a proven gun that is still under warranty...

Shop around.

[USMCsilver]

IMHO, the cheapest way you can go on a home built budget gun is Ebay and www.ar15.com. Just find the stuff you need and be patient when buying.

You should have no problem building a rifle in the $525-$550 price range if you take your time and look for the right parts and get them at the right time.

[Redlg155]

$350 is awfully cheap for an upper. Perhaps with one minus the bolt and carrier, but not a complete one. Some of the best prices I've seen on AR uppers are from JT Dist (http://www.jtdistributing.com/). Be prepared to pay approx $400 plus for a new complete upper reciever. Sable Co (http://www.sableco.net/) Also has really good prices. Also try picking up a copy of The Shotgun News or Gun List papers and do some browsing. They are excellent sources for parts and prices.

I've built plenty of ARs from JT Kits. They run $435..might as well round it out to $450 shipped and contains everything you need except the stripped lower reciever. A good Rock River Arms lower reciever will run you about $110. Figure $150 after shipping and your FFL tacking on his fees. So that's about $600 for a new AR15 if you build it up yourself. It takes about an hour the first time. Excellent instructions can be found on AR15.com Lower Assy Inst (http://old.ar15.com/docs/assembly/lower/)

Or you can buy a used factory built rifle for about the same price.

Good Shooting
RED