M&P-15 and other ARs: What's the difference?

[sgtsandman]

One thing to keep in mind with all of this, generally speaking, unless you make a living shooting, a high end rifle is not for you and won't make a difference. Buying a mid-range over a low end may. It all depends on the user and how well they shoot and how far they shoot, of course. For the average shooter, going higher than mid-grade is a waste of money.


Of course, in the end it is the buyer's money. Owning a high end rifle would be nice but the benefit, other than bragging rights, will be minimal.

An example would be my Kimber Ultra Carry II compared to my Taurus PT145. The Taurus hits well enough for a compact 45. It will do the job. The Kimber hits where you point it but for $1,300 it damn well better!

 

[rojodiablo]

On an unrelated side note... Funny... there was exactly zero revolver ads.

That's the one with the round thingy that holds all the bullets, right? I remember when they wanted to ban speedloaders except for LEO because they could be reloaded too fast and make criminals more deadly.

A shame, because a good revolver is a thing of beauty to behold, and to hold.

Few things in this world FEEL like a 686 with a 6" barrel. Very few.

 

[superbeast1098]

The way I look at it is like this.... Get an AR from a decent manufacturer that is within your budget.

Milspec is truly irrelevant to the average civilian who is going to use the gun for fun at the range or for home defense. 4140 vs 4150 steel barrels is not important...

As SGTSandman said, getting all the options and such with the more expensive guns is more about bragging rights than anything else. Its keeping up with the Jonses....

Its like buying a 7 series BMW because your buddy got a 3 series BMW and you had to one up him.... lol...

 

[rojodiablo]

OK, so the AR is a pretty generic gun. What makes the group 3 rifles worth the extra coin? The only one I'm familiar with out of that group is the Christensen and I haven't shot one. I have seen them with $3K price tags though. A local gun store has about 10 of them on the wall. What makes them better?

The things that really set some of them apart is definitely the attention to detail.
Headspace checks which are very much more consistent across the board, and throat distances on the barrels are much more tightly adhered to. Some, like Christiansen, are using high-falutin barrels wrapped in carbon fibre, and the LWRC are mostly spiral fluted, etc. Mag wells on these rifles tend to lock up like a Swiss watch; click and perfect. The gas systems are mostly piston, and really adjustable. Triggers tend to be 2 stage, and break cleanly as a well massaged deer rifle. They tend to add on top shelf grips, stocks, sights, etc......
And as anyone who has started with a Sport and modded it to the moon, they realize their $600 rifle is now $1095, and climbing!! Some of these things do make for a better potential for very tight accuracy, they tend to be better than the shooter behind them.

Considering how many times I have dropped a rifle, fallen down a hill with it, bounced them around in the truck/ buggy while hunting- I am really reluctant to buy one of these rifles, as I don't want to damage such a valuable rifle. And I like to hunt my rifles, so it creates a barrier for me.

I can see the point you are making; parts aside..... what makes ANY rifle without a rock-star switch worth $3000???!!! IMO.... there are none.

 

[moe smith]

Its like buying a 7 series BMW because your buddy got a 3 series BMW and you had to one up him....

or you could just buy a 5 series, use the savings to buy gas for the next 10 years and still give your buddy a case of car envy.

 

[WR Moore]

I'll make a brief contribution to try to summarize the rabbit hole with respect to the OP.

We have used industrial quantities of AR pattern rifles by various makers. Our use would constitute abuse by many defininitions. We have weapons by 2 manufacturers in current and recent past use: Colt & S&W MP15. The only significant difference is that the S&W warranty is lifetime. If you break something on the Colt after one year, you get to keep all the pieces, no extra charge. [And Colt is reeeaaally proud of their parts!]

Yes, we've seen a few cracked bolt lugs, one bolt cracked at the cam pin hole (not sure which maker), but considering our usage, not really an issue. Pretty much normal wear and tear. Please look at the comments on warranty.

Those that commented on parts are correct. The previous analogy to cars is very apt, no one makes all the parts and there are a limited number of sources for many major parts. The major difference is the QA/QC standards the various firearm manufacturers independently enforce for parts they accept.

Quality of finish is another way to cut costs. As I type this, I'm carrying a Colt Law Enforcement Carbine. The forging die seam on the lower receiver above the pistol grip is obvious and badly dressed (Yes, it is a Colt forging, the upper is Cerro Forge-the particular forge mark means it wasn't produced under exclusive contract to Colt, but a standard product of Cerro.). Oddly enough, you can't find the similar seam on the front of the mag well. I find this a strange priority, but apparently, Colt doesn't.

In short, find an M&P 15 that you think meets your needs.