First AR

[wizzer368]

I'm looking for my first AR, I have it narrowed to a colt or a bushmaster. I have very little knowledge of them and differences.
Colt LE 6920 about 1000 dollars
Bushmaster Car 15 223 16 inch about 650 dollars.

Is there any benefit to paying the extra 350 bucks or am I just paying for a name. However if there is a better alternative in this price range I am open to suggestions. Thanks

 

[Darkemp]

Lots of better alternatives that can be had cheaper. Google is your friend.

 

[jimbobborg]

$600 gets you a complete Palmetto State AR, with much better specs than the Bushmaster.

 

[co26666]

I love my C-15 Bushmaster and have never had a problem with it. Its completely up to you. Almost every company out there makes an AR now so look around well before you decide on one. Colts are good but just remember they have their own pins.

 

[wilcam47]

I'm looking for my first AR, I have it narrowed to a colt or a bushmaster. I have very little knowledge of them and differences.
Colt LE 6920 about 1000 dollars
Bushmaster Car 15 223 16 inch about 650 dollars.

Is there any benefit to paying the extra 350 bucks or am I just paying for a name. However if there is a better alternative in this price range I am open to suggestions. Thanks

colt is the name...IMO...i have one but I notice no difference in shooting...it does however shoot any ammo i have put in it...bushmaster shoots great too..i like the breakdown of the bushmaster its tolerances are tighter than colt..MY DPMS 308 works great too..i cant speak for any others...

 

[Russ D]

I'm looking for my first AR, I have it narrowed to a colt or a bushmaster. I have very little knowledge of them and differences.
Colt LE 6920 about 1000 dollars
Bushmaster Car 15 223 16 inch about 650 dollars.

Is there any benefit to paying the extra 350 bucks or am I just paying for a name. However if there is a better alternative in this price range I am open to suggestions. Thanks

Buy the Colt and don't look back. Better QC and quality components.

 

[sailskidrive]

With Colt you get their guarantee via the branding, but there are others that meet the exact same spec for less money. I would probably buy a fully assembled Spikes carbine instead, although the Colts have come down in price enough where if you want the pony engraved on the receiver it's certainly not cost prohibitive.

ARs have got to hit a market saturation point soon, although the sales certainly don't seem to be waning. Any one remember the personal computer boom in the early 80s? Every gadget manufacturer in the world jumped in the game, the margins got thin and once the demand was met prices plummeted, inventory was dumped, and factory doors were shuttered. I believe the recent surge in popularity of low cost AR assemblers, i.e. Palmetto, relying on sales volume and selling mil spec parts at a much smaller profit margin, is a leading indicator that the AR market place is about to change significantly.

 

[Grrrr]

I love my C-15 Bushmaster and have never had a problem with it. Its completely up to you. Almost every company out there makes an AR now so look around well before you decide on one. Colts are good but just remember they have their own pins.

no they dont

 

[Indiana Jones]

Bushmaster is underrated. But look at the other brands too. Might find something with more "ooooohhhh" factor that tickles your fancy. Spikes Tactical seems popular lately. And they are well priced. I don't own one though but I'd buy one. I have a Colt HBAR and I love it except for the takedown pins and trigger pins.

 

[Grrrr]

Bushmaster is underrated. But look at the other brands too. Might find something with more "ooooohhhh" factor that tickles your fancy. Spikes Tactical seems popular lately. And they are well priced. I don't own one though but I'd buy one. I have a Colt HBAR and I love it except for the takedown pins and trigger pins.

if he were looking at any new colt or even one made over the last several yrs(i forget exactly how long) then all of the pins would be standard.

 

[Boom Boom]

Instead of Colt vs Bushmaster, better is Colt vs Stag.

 

[Semper Noctem]

Did this a few months back. If nothing else, there is some good info in there for you.

http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=64903&highlight=Advice

 

[haoleboy]

I love my C-15 Bushmaster and have never had a problem with it. Its completely up to you. Almost every company out there makes an AR now so look around well before you decide on one. Colts are good but just remember they have their own pins.

no they dont

The Colt uses different diameter Hammer and Trigger pins.
Colt pins are .174" and Everyone else seems to be .154"

 

[Grrrr]

The Colt uses different diameter Hammer and Trigger pins.
Colt pins are .174" and Everyone else seems to be .154"

takedown pins were changed about 12 yrs ago... trigger pins were changed around 09/10.

 

[BradMacc82]

IIRC, Colt is going to .154 pins and deleteing the Sear Block on newer production rifles, not 100% sure, but I do remember hearing that they were going to.

Boom Boom, that could be interesting, but Stag's prices have slowly been coming up over the 24 months. Still, great stuff though.

 

[jawn]

If you can afford a Colt and just want a vanilla rifle, you really can't go wrong with an LE6920.

There are of course manufacturers who make mil-spec-ish rifles for less (Spikes Tactical, Bravo Company, Palmetto State Armory, etc...) and they're generally fine for most purposes. Do you plan on running any courses or competitions with this rifle? Are you just going to be plinking? What's your shooting regimen like? These are things to consider when you buy a rifle. The QC on Colts tend to be higher and they have access to the full TDP. I built a rifle using a mixture of Palmetto State, VLTOR, Colt, and Spikes Tactical parts for around the same price as a new Colt 6920, but it's a configuration that no manufacturer really produces.

For 650, I'd recommend Palmetto State over Bushmaster. The overall QC on Palmetto State rifles are quite high for the price point and they have a lifetime warranty.

 

[FFMike]

Hogsniper, an Industry Partner here just advertised a Stag model 3 for $729 shipped to a Md. FFL He is High Rock Outfitters in PA) Great deal if you want a Stag...

 

[Af_catfish]

I have a Colt LE6920. I'm very happy with it. I'm a bit of a fanboy plus I've carried M-4s. That's why I got the Colt. You are paying a bit for the name, but that's with any product, even the Bushmasters. I think it's worth the extra 350 to me. Some of the lower cost ARs can be problematic. Don't get me wrong, some work fine. But for me I would have more confidence in my Colt than other makers. Wow, I sound like a commercial.

 

[haoleboy]

takedown pins were changed about 12 yrs ago... trigger pins were changed around 09/10.

correct, and a guy looking to buy a LE 6920 could easily be getting a NIB rifle that is 12+ years old.

 

[Grrrr]

correct, and a guy looking to buy a LE 6920 could easily be getting a NIB rifle that is 12+ years old.

if he's buying from someone that had it sitting in a safe then there is that chance. if that were the case with me i would ask for the serial #. if the number is after 70,XXX then its going to be all standard pins. 50,xxx-70,xxx has had reports of a mixture since that is when colt reportedly started the change over. if he's going to buy from any of the mainstream distributors then the odds are GREATLY in his favor that he is going to get the most recent variant. personally i would save the money and just buy the exact same rifle with a different roll mark... the SP6920 or get the CA model that says "M4Carbine" and have a standard mag release put in place of the bullet button. it seems that so many people now want the LE models because colt is no longer using that roll mark.