The whole build was suspect- I wouldn't have been surprised if the upper was warped from being installed with a pipe wrench or if the crown got fucked up by a steel cleaning rod or the godawful muzzle brake that was installed. The group was with some sort of brass case, factory loaded. I wasn't about to ask for a turn behind the rifle, but I probably could have been able to shoot a bit better than the owner- he was just bitching loudly about his sub-par groups, lol.
The 6.5 grendel forum has had some sub-moa BCA barrels posted, but the overall reputation is meh from my research. Also, my only stainless barrels have been made by PSA. I think that the stainless isn't as reliable as chrome or nitiride shooting steel-case even when clean for me.
I'd go red-dot, then an MBUSSET. Holosun or Primary Arms should be under $150, I'd pick a color/reticle from the manufacturer's website, then search the product code on gun.deals
C_DOES on youtube does the best videos on views through an optic, which has helped me choose.
https://media.midwayusa.com/productimages/880x660/Primary/776/776862.jpg This complex bit is the receiver extension- the bolt itself would be even more impossible to make at home even with a full machine shop. I doubt a homebuilder could properly heat treat such crucial, high-pressure bearing parts, as well. Threading or button-rifling a barrel is actually pretty easy.
Look up the mechanics of a Sten gun or similar- it's just a cylinder of metal backed by a large spring inside a tube. No need to machine locking lugs, ect. Simple/easy to machine and very durable/reliable with quality mags. There exist plans on several forums for home-built versions that don't truly require anything other than a welder for the receiver. A smaller lathe would do the rest if a parts kit wasn't available. If a home-built gun had to be semi-auto it would actually be more complicated/fragile than a subgun's simple lever fcg, due to having to include a disconnector for the semi's fire control group.
Shorter rifles are easier to maneuver- an 11.5" AR would handle similarly to an AUG coming out of a vehicle or inside buildings, but the short barrel leaves a lot of ballistic performance on the table. Bullpups do have a less ergonomic reload, though, with the magwell being by the operator's torso instead of naturally in the 'working space' directly in front of your, which is also where pistol reloads should occur.
AR is definitely not a bullpup, no.
While a lower can be roughed out of nearly anything, the upper is much more difficult (if not impossible) without machining equipment. The barrel extension would also be nearly impossible to do at home. Anything else is fairly simple. Reliable home-builds are the domain of open-bolt, tube-receiver sub machine guns imo.
Totally agree. Now that we're equipping grunts with LPVO's and maybe a better cartridge, I wonder if engagements will be pushed in or out. It seems foolhardy for unarmored Chinese or hajis to go close-in with our armored boys, but I dunno. They were fine with charging up mountain sides in Korea- all I can see is a need to carry ALOT of ammo.
At least 10 per rifle. 10 is a combat load. Have another 10 in reserve (per rifle) to replace bad mags as you train with the first 10. Number your mags so you know exactly which one is fucked up when it starts inducing malfunctions. If you do competitions, it is handy to have 2 Pmags coupled together to monopod off of, or in open division 40 or 60rd Pmags are useful to get through a stage without reloading.
Youtube Vids:
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School of the American Rifle
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Small Arms Solutions
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Midway & Brownells for assembly guides
The only gun-specific tool that you absolutely need to have is an armorer's/castle-nut wrench.
Learning the entire cycle of operations, i.e. exactly how the gas system works in relation to the BCG, ect. will help you diagnose any specific issues and may guide your part choices.
The most important thing for accuracy is the barrel, but even cheap rack-grade stuff is serviceable if free-floated, about 2-3" moa from a $89 BCA is the worst I've seen from an AR. Unacceptable imo, but if its a red-dot close range gun? up to you.
I don't actually own an armorer's guide, but having one may be worthwhile if you want to learn quickly. AR's are basically legos, especially if you aren't doing a barrel/gas block install. The BA Hanson barrels are probably to easiest to build an upper with imo, since they come with a gas black pre-dimpled and pinned. If you're just assembling a lower, you just need to follow a video and it'll be hard to screw anything up beyond loosing springs and detents. Try assembling inside a clear freezer bag if you don't have spares!
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Barrel: I'd go Nitrited>Chrome>Stainless until you get up to the $250 range, where I'd go for a chrome-lined Criterion.
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Bolt Carrier Group: Most important part of the rifle. Nitrided is my favorite finish due to how easy it is to clean. My first rifle has a Toolcraft nitrided 9310 bolt in it, which I now avoid in favor of C158 bolts. Nitriding is surface hardening process, and 9310 is already challenging to temper correctly to avoid being too brittle. Nearly all failed AR bolts are nitrided 9310. Phosphate isn't much harder to clean, and may be all that is available right now anyway. One common source of malfunctions are bad extractor springs- replacing the springs/o-rings/inserts with a BCM/Springco/Colt kit is never a bad thing. Extractors are a wear item if you manage to shoot several thousand rounds.
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Trigger: The best deal in triggers is the Larue MBT-2s. It's all I can justify beyond a decent mil-spec trigger. Giessle G2S is worse imo, and my SSA just 'feels' different and isn't better in any way.
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Optics: I'm a big fan of rifle-length iron sights. If you're building a 16" mid-length I prefer a red dot or LPVO. Primary Arms is my preferred value LPVO/prism scopes, the Holosun's dot-in-circle are a bit sharper for my astigmatism. Aero Precision makes the lightest/cheapest mounts, but you really need an Arisaka-style scope leveler to install, since scopes tend to rotate in the rings as you tighten down.
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Muzzle Device: I'd start with an A2. By far the best value, and a break isn't worth the blast/flash aside from competition.
https://www.eurooptic.com/Vortex-Viper-PST-3-15x44-EBR-2D-MRAD-FFP-PST-3157.aspx
Price just dropped another $30 a week after I ordered one, as is tradition. Definitely the best under $1k imo, plus I prefer the EBR-2D over the newer EBR-7C reticle. This is cheaper than used Viper PSTs
Side-gate loading Henry would be choice, imo. For a bolt action with a threaded barrel, you can't go wrong with a T/C Compass II. The Mauser M18 also looks good. Caliber wise, anything offered for those rifles should be fine for deer, but I'd definitely step it up from .243. As seen elsewhere, I'm partial to the ole .30-06
The .30-06 is the most versatile cartridge made, imo. Brass case plinking ammo is cheaper, about on par with .308. If you hunt anything bigger than mule deer, a .30-06 would do better. If you want to hunt varmits, there's 110gr loads. There are factory reduced recoil loads available if you take a kid out shooting. If you reload, 208gr .30-06 will give .308 or 6.5meme a run for their money at 1000+ yds. Stainless guns look cool, plus they're super functional. Lastly, how else are you going to launch M2AP?
I haven't dropped $ on a precision bolt gun yet and have no experience, but I would instinctively gravitate towards steel vs. aluminum. For mounts I like Larue alot. The rest of the forum is kinda elitist, but the Snipers Hide buy and sell has some crazy good deals on accessories/mounts like that.