I'm not an expert but I hear a lot of bushmaster and dpms etc... are junk. Txdps issues the bushmaster "Texas M4" to road troops and I'm pretty sure that they issue the same rifles to the state swat team, and a lot of police departments issue dpms.
I have a stag upper on a bcm lower and have only have only had problems with steel cased ammo getting stuck and not ejecting after firing. And that was only a few times with herters from cabelas haven't tried the tula steel cased yet.
I guess I should have worded that better. Yes I'm saying that if they were junk they would probably not be in service with law enforcement. I know that dps torture tested the bushmaster.Your post confuses me, first you call Bushmaster junk, then tell how DPS, & Police departments use it, which at least I would take to mean they shouldn't be all that bad (hopefully)?
FEW folks have any idea of what Mil Spec really is. Mil-Spec is a complex world, but lets focus on the AR platform as there is a mil-spec for everything you can imagine from hot dogs to guns. I have written many mil-spec and have sat on boards where we had to review them for contract award.This is not directed at anybody here but is more of a general observation.
There always seems to be 2 types of folks involved in every mil-spec discussion (argument?) I have ever read:
1) those who shoot primarily for entertainment.
2) those looking at a worst case scenario.
It does get pretty old hearing that everything sucks that isn't mil-spec. The only flawed thinking I can see on behalf of group #2 is whether one possesses and shoots enough ammo to actually encounter an issue with products associated with group #1. Every firearm will eventually give out, regardless of which group you belong to.
For SHTF, I will stick with my raggedy ass AK until it breaks and then use it for close quarters bayonet work if my non mil-spec stuff can't keep the bad guy at bay. On the other hand, you won't see my AK at the range too frequently since I also appreciate something more than minute of bad guy accuracy.
Having said this, I am not willing to step out on a limb and declare that a mil-spec rifle can't be accurate but I also wouldn't go so far to say that you can't protect yourself adequately and are doomed for immediate rifle failure without a mil-spec weapon.
concur, I just posted for educational purposesOC- I don't disagree with anything that you stated.
My point was simply that people have been known to insist that anything that isn't mil-spec is junk, which I can't agree with.
Again, it goes back to the primary use of the weapon.
If I only had $700 I would wait till I had at least $1000 and buy a BCM or Daniel Defense
Quoted for the truth!These posts are great! It's a very informative thread!
My focus is on accuracy, reliability and durability. Snob appeal means nothing to me.
Larue. I saw one recently and had a chance to look it over. NICE stuff! They have all kinds of extra stuff to secure the pins, etc and it looked like durability would improve but none of that seemed like it improved accuracy. Still, it was a terrific rifle and probably worth the money. Even so, good marksmanship practices will overcome technology. Throwing money into the rifle will not improve your marksmanship. Practice does that.
The scores are already in the rifle. It is your job to bring them out.
The AR-15 is a pretty unique beast! The bolt locks directly into the rear of the chamber, it's all in line and sights are integral into that "upper" package. It's inherently an accurate design. Unfortunately, it does poop where it eats.
I tried like Hell to beat the black rifles with classic and customized rifles and match ammo. Sorry, it can't be done without massive amounts of cash shoveled into the rifle. That includes M1 Garand, M1A1, 1903A3 and a host of others. I spent a friggin' fortune to dispute that and finally gave up and joined the black rifle shooters.
I posted this before but will bore you again with it. I spent tons of money trying to beat the black rifles. I had custom built M1's and an M1A that had every option except the rear receiver lug. None of that worked. The friggin' black rifles right out of the box would beat the crap out of those custom rifles.
I had many very fine AR's but never took them seriously. Finally, I bought an old dog AR off of a gun show table. The rifle is a 20" heavy, 1:9 twist no name barrel on an Olympic lower. It was not full floated and there is absolutely nothing upscale or fancy, custom or aftermarket about that rifle!
It was cheap and ugly as sin but it shot great. The black painted barrel and fake "ban" style suppressor got a few laughs until the firing began. That ugly thing is a veteran of many 200 yard matches and never failed once. That rifle became my main competition rifle for years! If I sold everything, that old dog of an AR will still be here.
Lesson learned? Get a decent, well made rifle that you have confidence in. Learn to use a sling. Use decent ammo and shoot the living crap out of that rifle! Spend your money on ammo and stop throwing money away on trinkets and do-dads to dress up the rifle!
It cost me many thousands of Dollars to learn that. You just learned it for free!
Flash