AR-15 Mil-Spec Vs After Market

[REDHEAD]

I have had 2 Bushmasters , M4 and Varmint special 24". I have well over a 1K through the Varmint with no problems. The M4 was not as accurate , but I did like the shorter barrel. I personally feel happiness is some where around 20" barrel. If your not going para-military( storing it in a sewer for doomsday) , most brand names will not let you down. Colt is way over rated. Just send it back to the factory and have them finsih building it. A lot of Colt parts are not universal. Stag Arms has a very impressive web page. I like Bushmaster for the use of 4150 chrome moly barrel steel- 4160 is considered machine gun steel. I dought RRA builds crap. Great if you can afford LMT, Daniels Defense & ect. You can buy a lot of extras for the money difference. Enjoy the venture.

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

I have had 2 Bushmasters , M4 and Varmint special 24". I have well over a 1K through the Varmint with no problems. The M4 was not as accurate , but I did like the shorter barrel. I personally feel happiness is some where around 20" barrel. If your not going para-military( storing it in a sewer for doomsday) , most brand names will not let you down. Colt is way over rated. Just send it back to the factory and have them finsih building it. A lot of Colt parts are not universal. Stag Arms has a very impressive web page. I like Bushmaster for the use of 4150 chrome moly barrel steel- 4160 is considered machine gun steel. I dought RRA builds crap. Great if you can afford LMT, Daniels Defense & ect. You can buy a lot of extras for the money difference. Enjoy the venture.

I respect your personal experience but colt is not "over rated" it the standard! And what parts are not universal? My service isuued M4 would hit a man sized target at 800M and it was well used.

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

Well all I can say is trying to figure out what M4 to buy is no easy feat. I have been researching trying to buy once and be done. I am more lost now than ever. Colt, DPMS, Sig,Spikes,LMT, how in the heck do I choose. Local guy that pushes Bushmaster one visit at this fellows place and I am told not to expect an accurate gun past 150 yards. What the heck I am not trying to be a hero but if I want to blast a coyote at 250 yards I ought to be able to do that. Stupid me.

Pic a rifle based on your needs. If you get BCM, Colt, LMT, DD or Larue you are anot going to be let down at all. 250 yards is a chump shot.

 

[tigguy]

Good Lord! The 2 words that come to my mind to sum up a response to the OP's post and to what's been said already is subjectivity and relevence. By listening to some of it, sounds as if I'll need to try to get rid of my "toy" and "hobby" fodder because they just aint gonna do it for me. Yep. I spose I'll be in the shat, and still remain a nobody in the range circle or gun club(*** are those) until I upgrade to the level of a SCAR, SOCOM, Barrett, FNH, M249, Mark19, etc. Geeeez. Just when I thought I had a nice upper price, mid level semi-auto black rifle that functions flawlessly, did all of my proper and thorough barrel break-in, got all of my load development done, had a weapon that can shoot the nads off a flea at 287 yards and still group MOC guts at 600, I find out that just because I don't have a full auto BCG that's been dipped in nitrides, a chrome-lined barrel that, by the way, can and does chip/flake off and has a tendency to hamper accuracy, a FIRSH with 6 rails that's loaded down with 40-11 gadgets, verifiers, angled holo sight, 2 BUIS's in case the first set goes down, lights, lasers, and a triple-edged bayonet duct taped to my can for backup, I'm toast. All drama aside, a RRA PP will kill a coyote just as dead at 500 yards as it will an intruder in your dwelling at 7. As will many other variations and makes of non classIII ARs. My first choice for a battle rifle wouldn't be a Carbon15 and I wouldn't need to choose a Colt to shoot coyotes with.

MOC guts=minute of coyote guts

40-11=an old figure of speech meaning alot, excessive, etc.

flea nads at 287 yards is anything but chump

 

[Standbanger]

Pic a rifle based on your needs. If you get BCM, Colt, LMT, DD or Larue you are anot going to be let down at all. 250 yards is a chump shot.

Exactly what I was thinking 250 yards not epic by any means, just trying to get a gun to slam on the 4 wheeler but didn't want a piece of crap, something enjoyable to tinker with.

 

[REDHEAD]

Well, we certainly warmed each other up on this. ICANHITHIMMAN has some very good points, thank you. Just texted my son, his duty weapon is a Colt. He said it is noticebly heavier than his own Bushmaster (ORC) conversions added. Us Walter Mitty's must remember that Mil Spec is for combat standards. I guess I need to do more research. My Bushmaster will have to guard against the four legged insurgents threatening our beef & deer herds and friday nite BBQ's.

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

Well, we certainly warmed each other up on this. ICANHITHIMMAN has some very good points, thank you. Just texted my son, his duty weapon is a Colt. He said it is noticebly heavier than his own Bushmaster (ORC) conversions added. Us Walter Mitty's must remember that Mil Spec is for combat standards. I guess I need to do more research. My Bushmaster will have to guard against the four legged insurgents threatening our beef & deer herds and friday nite BBQ's.

I personal see milspec as a manfacturing standard, not a combat one. Its nice to know when I buy is mil spec, its at least good enough to take in to combat.

When I spend my money on a rifle I want it to last a long time, I dont want to dick with all the short commings I see in the hobby guns. I dont want to buy something that some company has cut corners in the name of profits and have it cost the same ammount at a milspec weapon from a manufacture of know quality. I have been down that road, it cost more and its ****es me off. When I come home from the store with a new rifle that cost a thousand dollars and it only last 500 rounds before it brakes it makes me mad. I dont want to be mad so I buy quality.

If the guns cost about the same why would you not opt for the one of higher quality?

 

[beakus33]

So you're saying there is a difference between the Colt you get at the gun shop, and the one the mil issues beside the fire control group? I would like to know what it is. Milspec is not just about tolerances, the materials used and the certifications of the manufacturing facility are a factor as well. Colt and LMT for instance are ISO 9000 certified and hold government contracts.

lot me throw a little in on the subject,milspec is "built to a military standard" that is,they said thats how its gonna be like it or not.everything has a spec from coatings,lubes,springs,clips,pins ect. the company i work for is a aerospace company building parts for boeing, they use milspecs on some things. as for iso9000 and iso9100,goverment contracts, 99.99% of the aholes that say you get it or not have no freaking idea what you do,your paper work is just all in order. bottom line is if you buy from a good company you get good ****,if not they will make it right.

 

[captacademy]

This post has some really great info, as I am in the market for a new duty AR. I really like the DD and PWS at this point because they're right at 7lbs with the T-1 miro which I plan to run on the rifle.

 

[threejones]

I trust my life to a mil spec gun, as it's tested to work at least X % of the time. I trust my sport shooting to what ever I can put togather that suits me best, and I test it to my own specs. These are two different creatures, and I treat them as such. But I find that most of the parts on my "sporting rig" end up being mil spec anyway.
Cody