Why do people keep buying Sport IIs and then modifying them?

[WVSig]

I will go ahead and put on the flame suit now because I know what is coming but I have to ask. So many of the threads in this section of the forum are about how to modify a Sport II to replace the hand guard with a rail system, remove the A2 front post, swap the gas block, change out the stock, the grip etc...

Most of the time is seems to revolve around the A2 post and the handguards but if you have posted here long enough you know what I mean. So if all these people are going to rip the handguards off their basically NIB Sport II and remove the front A2 post, gas block and the handguards I have to ask.

Why are people buying the Sport II? Why not buy a optic ready carbine with a low profile gas block no handguards and simply install what they want. Once they have hacked it up the warranty is not going to be 100% in play. It doesn't save any money to pay for parts you are not going to use. Buying an OEM optic ready gun and installing the parts you want from day one makes economic and just plain common sense.

So educate me why are people still buying Sport IIs?

PS this is not directed at anyone specific. I own a Colt 6920 LEO which was the standard when I bought it and I modified it to suit my needs but when I did that there were a lot less options NIB.

 

[arnoob]

Because the Sport is cheap, so people pick it up due to the low cost of entry, then after a while they decide they want a handguard and it's easier to just modify the rifle you already have than sell it and buy a new "optic ready" rifle. And hey it was a cheap rifle so I'm not so worried about voiding the warranty as on a DD or LMT, right? Then it snowballs from there, because after all you already invested in a new handguard. Plus you can pay in small chunks, and you can buy whichever handguard you like, and it's fun to learn how to take an AR apart and fitting your own parts is satisfying above and beyond just buying a rifle already made how you want it. "This is my rifle, there are many like it, but this one is mine".

Mostly though, just because they can. Who doesn't like playing with adult Legos that go bang?

 

[fyimo]

My Sport II is stock and has a set of scope rings and a scope on it and that's all that will be done to it. Everyone one is different and the AR platform is modular so it's easy for people to swap out parts to make it the way they want it. It's their money and they get the satisfaction of making it the way they want it.

 

[DocB]

You all are right. I bought a Sport and threw it under the bed. Just a great gun to have and the floor won't hurt it. I've got a mil-spec Colt SOCOM that I could trip out, but it already is. Same gun my son used in the Middle East when he was deployed. I just like the Sport because it is cheap, functional, and dependable. . .sure wouldn't pour any money into it.

 

[Plazzman]

Did the same with my old generation Sport. The only thing that is still part of the Sport is the lower, barrel and buffer tube. What can I say I got bit by the AR Gods.

 

[WVSig]

So its cheap is the reason to buy but so are a lot of other rifles... which in the end would be cheaper. When the Sport II was $500 this was the same with better specs and if you are only going to change the furniture out later a better value.

OEM MID-LENGTH 16" RIFLE | Brownells

 

[cyphertext]

Low entry cost is the reason. Most folks get the Sport because it can be found at a low price and is a well recognized manufacturer. They don't think about paying a little more to get what they really want...

I am one of the few that has a mostly stock, first generation Sport. Removed the Magpul rear sight and added a Matech sight and a red dot. Still even have the crappy hand guards.

 

[WR Moore]

For the same reason people buy new cars and trucks and then spent big $$$ on new wheels and tires and other excessories. I spelled it that way for a reason.

Besides, the low entry price allowing more money to be spent on options.

 

[WVSig]

For the same reason people buy new cars and trucks and then spent big $$$ on new wheels and tires and other excessories. I spelled it that way for a reason.

Besides, the low entry price allowing more money to be spent on options.

But you can buy a better cheaper easier base to build on than the Sport II so it doesn't make any sense to me.

The Aero I linked to is an example. Mid length Gas on a 16" rifle, 1/7 twist, low profile gas block etc....

You can get the handguard you want, stock you want, BUIS you want and still come out ahead of what you would pay to buy the stock Sport II and modify it. Plus you would still have your warranty vs a hacked up Sport II which S&W might or might not take care of after you have "worked" on it yourself.

 

[Lightfoot4]

My Sport II is exactly the way it came out of the box. Haven't changed or added a single thing.

 

[speedyquad]

well, if you want to go as simply as the "stripped" aero that you posted, then why not just start with stripped lower and go from there? That's what I did.

I'd say one reason is the S&W name and reputation as well as athe warranty.

 

[WVSig]

My Sport II is exactly the way it came out of the box. Haven't changed or added a single thing.

Perfect that makes sense! Good purchase! I have on many occasions almost bought a Sport II for a truck gun. The A2 front post with the Magpul rear BUIS would fit that role perfectly! No modifications needed.

 

[WVSig]

well, if you want to go as simply as the "stripped" aero that you posted, then why not just start with stripped lower and go from there? That's what I did.

I'd say one reason is the S&W name and reputation as well as athe warranty.

I agree I have gone that route myself. That makes a lot of sense but still not an argument to buy a $600 Sport II and tear it down and turn it into a $800+ rifle without a warranty since you altered it especially when there are $800 rifled out of the box with the configuration you want and a warranty.

 

[flip flappy]

I had the same thoughts when I started my AR research and search. I knew I wanted an EOTech sight. I thought about buying a cheaper rifle and adding flip up front and rear sights for backup. Also then thought I might like to add a quad rail if I bought a gun that didn't have one. After finding the M&P 15T I ended my search because it had what I wanted on in without having to add to it.

 

[arnoob]

So its cheap is the reason to buy but so are a lot of other rifles... which in the end would be cheaper. When the Sport II was $500 this was the same with better specs and if you are only going to change the furniture out later a better value.

OEM MID-LENGTH 16" RIFLE | Brownells

Yeah but OEM rifles like that are for people that know what they want / are doing before they buy the rifle. The Sport is a nice complete rifle, from a well known and respected manufacturer, that feels like a safe and low cost entry into AR ownership.

It's only after you own it and shoot it for a while, and read about the all the configuration options online, that you start to realize you want to change things.

That Aero OEM to me is a great second rifle, and probably what people should buy if they already know they want to customize something to their liking, but you have to discover the unknown unknowns first.

I started with a Sport I, slowly customized it trying out different options, first a new stock then drop in handguard then free float until it there barely any original rifle left at all. So then I had a bunch of spare parts left over so figured I should use them to build my own rifle from scratch suplimenting with a BCM upper and other quality parts as I saw good prices in them until I had a second rifle this time with a 20" barrel and rifle length gas system, then I went the other way and registered an SBR and built an 8.5" 300BLK with a suppressor, and then started 80% lowers.

Then eventually just as I was running out of space in the safe I went full circle and bought a Colt 6720 and left it completely stock except swapping the BUIS for a carry handle iron sight because I decide that it was important to have at least one unfettled rifle with a pinned FSB for a raining day if I ever needed to do something serious.

I still love my original Sport'enstein though, it's a great shooting rifle and in my eyes it looks perfect, was it the best use of my money? Maybe not in rifle terms but heck I sure learnt a lot and had fun doing it, and to me that's a lot of what I love about the AR.

 

[sgtsandman]

Some people like to tinker or realize after the fact that their original purchase wasn't quite what they wanted.

As a some what relevant example, I bought a 2011 Ranger XLT 4.0 4X4 specifically knowing it didn't have everything I wanted but it was one heck of a price on a platform I could upgrade to what I really wanted. Especially since nothing out there had what I wanted anyway and would require upgrading anyway. And I like to tinker, so it was a good match and I haven't regretted the purchase.

 

[JayC_783]

I've sometimes wondered the same thing. I also wonder what it would be like to have such and such a part on my Sport II. Then I remember what I did with my Mossberg 500. I learned my lesson with that. As such, I am extremely hesitant to go down that road with an AR, especially since ARs have what seems like an infinite list of options compared to the Mossberg. I've also learned with the Mossberg that I don't like having unused parts sit around. In the end I took my Mossberg pretty much back to stock, except I switched the plastic furniture for wood.

I also like the basic M4 look that the Sport II has. It's got nice, clean lines. I'm perfectly happy with the standard A2 style parts that the Sport II has, that everybody seems to switch out. I looked at more expensive rifles, but in the end the Sport II does everything they do for a lot less. Even though the Sport doesn't have a heatshield in the handguard, I haven't found that to be a problem. Now that it's cold out, if I shoot it, I like the added warmth.

If I ever get to the point where I want to start modifying the Sport, I'll just build another AR. That's something I've always wanted to do anyway. Until then, the standard Sport II satisfies all my AR desires.

 

[Arm]

sgtsandman:
Some people like to tinker or realize after the fact that their original purchase wasn't quite what they wanted.

That right there. Yep

 

[Westie1]

Thought about getting an AR on and off for years. When I finally decided to get one, checked around and looked at several different ones at all price points. The Sport II was at the price I was willing to pay, and fit my needs.

Still have the Irons on it, even though it can wear a Red Dot or a 3x9 Optic. Been wearing bifocals for over 25 years. As far as mods, replaced the fore grip with a MOE-Sl. Fits my hand better, and gives a cleaner look. Recently replaced the butt stock, since we've got an Anti Gun State government, and I'm not about to register it as an "assault weapon". Still deciding on the rest so I don't have to register.

 

[Moe Mentum]

I bought a sport II to see if I liked the AR platform. Now that I have one, and decided I like the AR's, I am in the process of building a custom AR with all the bells and whistles that I like on an AR. I get your post, and I am in agreement with you, and entry level rifle is just that. Leave it alone, and shoot it.