First AR15, buy or build?

built my first. and built every one since. all from scratch. next project is a lightweight 308 because why not

 

I'm doing the same except I'm finding it hard to make the .308 lightweight

 

it takes some coin. but 2a armament receiver set and a proof research barrel are what im looking at

not aiming for super light. just something lighter than the norm

 

Suppose it's the same with me. I'd like to make it something I can hike and hunt with.

 

that's my goal. something more manageable to hike with when i do go hunt (its rare, but i do) ive come to appreciate light guns more and more. with proper muzzle devices the effects of light and recoil can be mitigated well

 

Definitely. I just built a 6.5 Grendel on an AR-15 platform that I plan to use for deer hunting. I could elk hunt with it, but I'd really rather carry a .308 for comfort. The AR-15 platform can keep pretty light.

 

Lightest ar I ever held was about 3.9 lbs. insanely light. It’s amazing how accurate it was too!

 

Yeah unfortunately if you're gonna hunt you're going to gain some weight with a good scope and comfortable cheek rest!

 

of course. thats part of the give and take. all about balancing the needs and where you can save weight.

 

Next step for me is the 80% lower now that I've built one that's constantly hitting at 250+ yards.

 

The first thing to do is go with a short barrel. 556 loses velocity rapidly when you shorten the barrel, .308 a lot less so.

Which is ironic as most AR-15s are 16" and most AR-10s are 20" even though that extra four inches adds very little velocity compared to if it was on the 556 instead.

 

16” is the plan.


I’ve also wondered what an ar10 pistol would be like! Lol but that serves no real purpose

 

I'm a fan of having at the very least, an OEM AR upper from a quality manufacturer. Then you can build a lower--with an after market trigger. Barnes, DD, LWRC off the top of my head. Not a fan of parts guns put together by people that may or may not understand what they are doing with parts that may or may not be quality...then you start stacking tolerances.

In the 1990s, it seems like the floodgates opened, which must have been when the x games came into vogue. Been a downhill roll since.