AR15 Primer - A Beginner's Guide

[Agent Tikki]

A small suggestion! Try remounting your rear sight as far back as possible, the longer your sight radius is (the distance between your front and rear sights) the better!

Peep sights take a little getting used to, I really like Diamondheads because to me they are much easier to be more consistant with. (they like up better kind of like how the HK style sights are but with 90 degree corners)

[badogg]

Originally Posted by Agent Tikki

A small suggestion! Try remounting your rear sight as far back as possible, the longer your sight radius is (the distance between your front and rear sights) the better!

Peep sights take a little getting used to, I really like Diamondheads because to me they are much easier to be more consistant with. (they like up better kind of like how the HK style sights are but with 90 degree corners)

Oh yeah, I just threw those on the day I got it and snapped the pics. I had the rear sight all the way back by the time I got out to the range. It is off bad right now. Plus the pin that it pivots on when you flip it up popped out at one point and whole rear sight fell apart. I need to push that pin in all the way. Was kind of surprised it wasn't a screw to be honest. Like I said, not sure I like these sights yet. Get what you pay for though.

[ostaF]

Great read! I'm researching for my first rifle and this was helpful.

[HermanH]

That is a really good post for the beginners. Vote for it to be a sticky. I did like the cover of twist rate and bullet weights. I have two barrels: 1/12 twist single shot (Thompson) and 1/7 twist on my Colt LE6920 and I do reload my own cartridges so the info is good to have and IMO, is an important factor for beginners.

[me109g4]

As someone just approaching my first build this was very helpful,,I would also throw in a vote to make it a sticky as i will be coming back to it for help. Many thanks for the info. JT

[tm_jones123]

Good read, & I agree with a fair bit - Do you have any qualifications to back up you & your findings?

[HermanH]

I'm surprised this isn't a sticky! I've owned my first AR15 in March of this year but didn't stumble upon this until 'after' the purchase. Still, it's a great write up for a beginner to start with.

I'm glad you included twist rate of barrels. I did more research on that end since I reload so my understanding from a reloading standpoint, along with your observations/experience, just confirms what I load on the brass. I'm already contemplating a second upper for a longer distance type gun (hoping to one day make it out to SacValley). Gotta love the modular platform of an AR15.

[wsmc27]

bumped again as many newbs are still looking for such good info...

[bomb_on_bus]

Can the Mods please sticky this pretty please

[JimmyFrmCa]

Agent Tiki thank you so much for this now I have a good idea of where to start and what to look for.
I will use this advise to getting my 1st AR

[MossbergMan]

Thanks for the info. Learned some, especially re: BCG AR15 v. M16. Just bought an M16 BCG for a AR15 build because the shop was out of AR BCGs. Sounds like I did just fine.
I vote sticky too. You did all the work for us, again thank you. Job well done.

[wsmc27]

And bumped again for the newer people...

Hth

[Agent Tikki]

Thanks man, and here I thought this thread was all but forgotten......

[wsmc27]

lol...NEVER FORGET!


Bumped again for this weekends newbies!

[Agent Tikki]

thanks for the bumps.

I just wanna say in this day and age with all the inflated prices, that it is even more important to know what you are buying so that you don't get somthing way overpriced. Just remember that things are still being sold for more than double what they went for pre panic.

If you are patient and opt to build, you can still expect to pay about 20% in total, more than what you would have normally paid for it before the panic.

Take your time guys!

[LCpl Kutches]

All in all, a simple write up that targets new inexperienced users.

If I were you, I would go back and reference your information to ensure that even highly experienced users and operators like myself can't nitpick it for incorrect information. (There are some incorrect points like the M16 18" Barrel, Its 14.5 for the M4 Carbine or 20" for the M16.)

[Agent Tikki]

Originally Posted by LCpl Kutches

All in all, a simple write up that targets new inexperienced users.

If I were you, I would go back and reference your information to ensure that even highly experienced users and operators like myself can't nitpick it for incorrect information. (There are some incorrect points like the M16 18" Barrel, Its 14.5 for the M4 Carbine or 20" for the M16.)

Thx for the headsup.

I do believe that I mentioned that the M4 is a 14.5". I believe that there is a M16 variant for some Canadian issued units commissioned a while back that were 18". I will try and dig up my source for you.

But you are correct. Most M16 are 20" which is why I said that M16 are 18" and longer.

[wsmc27]

ttt

again

have a great weekend

[Nirrad]

Informative! Bump!

[tomcody]

Thanks for reviving this thread. I'm looking into getting a stripped lower but not gonna pay some outrageous price. Also I'm new to the AR format so I'm taking my time and looking around and trying to learn while I wait.
I have a loaded question but I'm gonna go for it anyway
Is there seriously a difference between the different manufacturers like DPMS, Spike, RRA, Olympic, PSA, Bushmaster, etc.. and are they actually inferior to Colt or DD?

[Agent Tikki]

Yes, there is.

[BOOGIEMAN]

Thanks Agent Tikki! But what about the "shoulder thing that goes up" how come it was not included?

[Agent Tikki]

Barrel Shrouds? o.O Click Me!



Definitely worth the money.

[BushcraftToday]

Tagged for reference!

Sent from my Tactical Communication Device

[Agent Tikki]

Bump, added some useful information and links. Enjoi!

[Big Ragu]

Thanks Agent Tikki for re-posting this thread. It was a great read the second time through just like the first when I was researching this very topic. I have learned a lot from your posts (new to this platform) and have used the information to shop for and purchase the parts for my assembly. I can't wait for my baby to be completed. All parts (minus the upper which will be on layaway for a while) will be in hand next week. The lower will be all done waiting for the complete upper. Food for her is being collected while I finish paying off the upper. Thanks again for the awesome and thorough information.

[Chefantone]

I recently became interested in the AR platform but had no idea of what to look for. There are so many options and I found it very confusing. I found this thread and found it to be extremely informative. I can now make sense of what all the specs mean when I visit sites on AR's and AR parts. Now I just need to decide on whether to build or buy a complete AR. Thanks for the great write up!

[Tok36]

Originally Posted by bomb_on_bus

Can the Mods please sticky this pretty please

^^^

[Germz]

sticky?

tagged for reference.

[axhoaxho]

Excellent post, I don't know why I've missed it until now. Definitely a good candidate for sticky.

[totus44]

Looking forward to the advanced section on tuning your AR; gas port, adjustable gas block, tube length, FA vs SA carrier, buffer/spring and/or captive spring components.

[DirtyRussianAmmo]

Excellent! Would've loved to have had this information when I began my search for an AR. Thank you!

[Hendlefe]

Props to OP! Very good read for a newbie building his first rifle (like myself)

[tal3nt]

The rifle lube points illustration was a little excessive.. Enjoyed the read tho, thanks

[Agent Tikki]

Thank you all the kind words!

[wsmc27]

TTT yet again.

[BuckshotBob]

Great info on this thread, much appreciated.

[perpetual otter]

Nice post.

[kdruff2]

MODS....Sticky this Wiki!!!

[Fireguy]

Thanks for the effort I'm just start the trek to be an AR owner builder.