Defensive AR-15 Setup for Regular People
BY Herschel Smith
2 years, 8 months ago
It’s his video so he gets to say what he wants to. I would add the following. I like the BCM, but I wouldn’t recommend Colt.
I would recommend against a low tier AR and steer you towards: Rock River Arms, BCM, LaRue, Aeroprecision, or Daniel Defense. Those are all going to cost in the upper tier price range, but it will be worth it in the long run.
As for hand guards, I have both KeyMod and MLok. They both work. I like KeyMod better, but that’s just me.
On March 3, 2022 at 1:27 am, George 1 said:
I like to roll my own. But don’t think if you do you will save a lot of money. If you use good parts they will cost as much as a good factory AR15.
On March 3, 2022 at 4:20 am, Ratus said:
I’m closer to Chris on this one but I’d suggest an Ruger MPR either the 16″ or 18″ version at their normal $800-ish price as a first AR.
With the higher priced ARs you have to know what you want vs a mid-tier entry level rifle that leaves some room in your budget to get the necessary accessories like an optic, magazines, ammunition, a sling.
A good enough rifle with the stuff you need to use it is better than the a perfect rifle with nothing.
https://youtu.be/R4dqmmG3XA4
On March 3, 2022 at 4:35 am, Ratus said:
Also, my go to recommendation about 4-5 years ago was a S&W Sport 2 at around $450-500+/- with a suggestion of just a Magpul handguard for an upgrade, a case of ammunition and a minimum 10+magazines.
Along with the advice to shoot that case of ammunition before they even thought about changing anything else.
Because, you don’t and can’t know what you like if you haven’t used it.
For most people an entry level rifle is more than enough for what they are going to use it for.
Oh and of the people who took that advice, most just swapped out the grip and added a Red Dot of some kind. The others bought or assembled a better rifle with their original one as a spare.
On March 3, 2022 at 9:34 am, xtphreak said:
a decent entry level rifle that you have now is better than the DD, LaRue, RRA that you’re saving up to have.
$2000 on a rifle is tough for a whole lot of people.
plus optics, mags, ammo.
Perfect is the enemy of good.
On March 3, 2022 at 9:39 am, Herschel Smith said:
@xtphreak,
A lot of people feel that way. If the money for a good AR gets in the way of having ammo for practice, then go with a lower tier AR.
Having said that, there is one exception I insist on. Get a VERY GOOD replacement BCG. Don’t go cheap on that.
On March 3, 2022 at 11:10 am, Ohio Guy said:
@Herschel: Good advice on the BCG. I went with BCM on two PSA builds. The two I speak of are my main battle rifles. The uppers are 18″ CHF heavies with lower recievers I milled out myself for a little “extra trigger room”, beefy buffer and spring. One with a 3.5x ACOG, the other has a red dot with a Steiner A3 towards the business end.
Like I’ve said here before, I’ve an AR for nearly every occasion. I love that platform as I know many here do as well. The versatility, I believe, is unmatched in the rifle world.
With warmer weather approaching, I’m sure all of “us” will be keeping our markmanship skills sharpened as far as our wallets will allow.
I don’t know about youse guys, but my rifles get really hungry:)
Thanks for the opportunity to toot my horn here!
Ohio Guy
On March 3, 2022 at 3:04 pm, RHT447 said:
Once you have your AR up and running, the next step is to zero it. Here is an excellent video–
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFbpjNh4DBA
(Likely I have posted this before, but the are always new folks coming on board.)
On March 4, 2022 at 1:06 pm, Matt said:
Nice thing about the AR platform, is that even with an “entry level” AR, it can be an outstanding weapon. And improvements can be piecemeal if you are like me-extremely budget conscious.
On March 4, 2022 at 1:08 pm, Herschel Smith said:
Right. A lower is just a lower. Make it Milspec and move on.
The real improvements would be a new barrel, a BCG, and if you really want to take the next step, get a cheaper lower and a BCM, RRA, DD or LaRue lower.
Check that. I think LaRue has some oddball dimension/tolerance issues that make compatibility between their uppers a little problematic with other brands.
Someone could correct me if I’m wrong about that.
On March 4, 2022 at 4:51 pm, Ken said:
If I was a young stud planning on running and gunning, a high dollar BCM would fit the bill. However, older than dirt can’t see squat and cannot run a block (heart disease), a lower tier will do just fine. PSA and S&W fit the bill for us (me and the housemouse). Where we spend is optics for us. And lots of ammo & mags (housemouse also makes home made MREs). I figure we would fill the post of supply and guard duty. Those young studs need to rest at some point. I wonder if a lawyer could sue the BATboys for not making provisions for elderly and/or disabled to allow a SBR without the tax stamp crap. Seems everybody else must comply with disability laws why not the fedgov?
On March 4, 2022 at 5:28 pm, Herschel Smith said:
@Ken,
Given the range of an AR, I’d think that a LPVO would be sufficient.
Then again, in classes that Rex has published over YouTube I’ve seen boys lay in 5.56mm rounds on target shooting downhill at 600 yards.
On March 6, 2022 at 2:00 am, Georgiaboy61 said:
@ Herschel Smith
Re: “Given the range of an AR, I’d think that a LPVO would be sufficient. Then again, in classes that Rex has published over YouTube I’ve seen boys lay in 5.56mm rounds on target shooting downhill at 600 yards.”
Thanks to the good folks at Primary Arms, and their chief reticle designer, Dmitri M. – you can do both. That is – have the size and convenience of an LPVO and also lay in longer medium-range shots that test the limits of the AR15 as chambered in .224-caliber cartridges such as 5.56×45 NATO and .223 Remington.
Primary Arms, who are out of Houston, Texas, offer moderate, mid-level and upper-tier lines of optics ranging in price from around $250 all the way up to $1,000 plus. The ACSS line of reticles is designed specifically to minimize the math necessary for making range determinations and also correcting for wind.
The ACSS is a paradigm changer in that – to my knowledge – no one else in the sport/tactical/hunting optics field is offering anything comparable to it, regardless of price. Trijicon, long a leader in tactical optics, and the long-time holder of contracts to supply military and LE with ACOG 3.5x and 4x fixed power illuminated optics, could not develop something as good in house, and licensed the ACSS for their ACOGs – which is not something they are accustomed to doing.
The SLx 1-6x SFP low-power variable optic with ACSS is listed $289.99 MSRP, but is on sale fairly often. It is optimized for .308/5.56×45/5.45×39, and there is also a version for 7.62×39/300 Blackout. Dmitri has really done his homework concerning the features and doping out the best zeroing for different loads and environmental conditions.
If you watch Rex on You Tube, he often features PA products and thinks highly of them.
High-angle shooting is a specific skill, which is why even the finest military sharpshooters, snipers and SDMs receive specialized training at suitable mountainous locations. It’s a trigonometry problem, since the greater the angle varies from horizontal, the greater the correction needed and the effect isn’t linear.
Contrary to popular opinion that shooting uphill or downhill requires aiming high, it does not in either direction, since the distance gravity is acting upon the projectile is less regardless of whether the shot is uphill or downhill. A lot of pros have an angle-cosine indicator or some other means of determining the angle and the appropriate correction.
Slinging .224-caliber pills at long range is challenging because of how the wind blows those little guys around. Even the heavier loads of 75-80+ grains still get displaced quite a bit. It’s one of the reasons .224 Valkyrie was developed, i.e., to use very heavy-for-caliber bullets the .223 Remington and 5.56×45 simply couldn’t quite handle. Consequently, .224 Valkyrie loads range upwards to 90-105 grains, which is firmly in .243 Winchester territory weight-wise, but in a .224-caliber rifle.
On March 6, 2022 at 1:18 pm, Ken said:
We both have LPVOs on our defense rifles, otherwise we would never see a target. I use to shoot high power and was quite good. However, age caught up with me. I just cannot shoot as well as when I was 40 (both vision and muscle trigger control). Not even close really. I am afraid trying 600 yard shots now would just be wasting a valuable resource. So supply/guard duty it is, hopefully not needing more than a 100 meter shot (well, hopefully not ever needing a shot, period). I use to shoot a case of ammo over a Saturday. Now a mag or two and I’m done. That is why a S&W or PSA rifle will do just fine. Ours have about a thousand rounds through each and are reliable and shoot better than we can. I don’t expect we will make it to 5K rounds before things get bad (or we get worse health wise).