I need a new handgun...lets talk guns today. :D

Step 1: Get the hell out of Maryland
Step 2: I'd suggest getting something that comes from the factory with a free floated rail. You may not care at first but there's a good chance down the road, you'll decide that's an upgrade you want to do. And changing the hand guard can be a bit of a pain in the dick. Everything else is pretty easy to upgrade later if you want, like trigger, stock, muzzle device, buffer spring, etc. Not to mention the rail/hand guard will require an armorer's wrench, which is not a bad thing to have, but still just one more thing to have to buy. If you're like most racers I've ever met, you likely will want to do more and more upgrades as you use it unless you just go full out and buy some top of the line shit right away, which I do not suggest.

 

I’m an ffl in MD. There are a lot of banned ARs but there are plenty of ARs that aren’t. If you need help sorting it out pm me with your cell and I’ll send you a link.

 

Agreed on step 1! Sucks because the S&W was a nice starting point for me. But I can work around that legally.

And, yes, having now fired a few more of a few friends' personalized rifles has me on the customize path already.

 

I put 300 rounds through the PC Charger this weekend and it is flawless. Very impressed.

 

I have an early M&PX, (chrome lined not nitride like the current ones). I free floated the barrel with a Troy rail. No wrench required just cut off the delta ring. The gun shoots 1 moa and that rail hasn't budged since the day I installed it. There are many rails like this which use the factory barrel nut like Centurion, Troy, Midwest Industries come to mind.

Unfortunately it it as the bottom of the Dan River after the canoe tipped over.

 

In that case, definitely buy something with a free floated rail out of the box. You're gonna spend the money eventually anyways. Save yourself the headache of changing it later. Also I think I mentioned it in your other thread, but don't be afraid to piece your rifle together. They are very simple machines. And you can build a lot nicer rifle that's more suited specifically to you for less money. Complete guns don't go on sale often and when they do, it's not by much. But deals can be found on the individual parts all day long.

Browse places like:
Opticsplanet
Dvor
MidwayUSA
Brownells
Cabela's/Bass Pro
Sportsman's Warehouse
Academy Sports
Big Daddy Unlimited (this one requires a membership, $10/month but I believe you can try your first month for $0.99 and it would be worth it just to see what's out there).

Your parts list would be:
Upper receiver (with rail, barrel, and muzzle device all assembled; can be bought with or without a bolt carrier group)
Stripped lower receiver
Bolt carrier group
Buffer assembly
Stock
Trigger
Lower parts kit (which may come with a trigger)
Magazines

If you bough the parts like this, you'd be able to assemble the whole thing minimal basic tools. You could also likely just buy a complete upper and complete lower separate for cheaper than a complete gun. At that point assembling the two is a matter of inserting two retaining pins and you have a complete rifle.

 

Indeed there are. I've just personally seen more that still require the wrench and it just seems easier to get one from the factory. Basically, all of my advice to him stems from things I found myself wishing I had done differently with my first AR

 

Good advice.

It's funny I've kept that particular upper in that config for a very long time and now I kinda want to put a delta ring back on it and make a Canada C8 clone with it.

Have to dive for it in the river first.

 

@redtailracing: thanks for this parts list. Much appreciated!

 

What's the pros of getting those fancy BCG's that cost like $200-$300? What do they do that a $60-70 which comes standard in many cheaper rifles doesn't do? The only thing I see that's noticeably different is usually the coatings since there are a few options for coatings. So I get that ones with nitride coating for example will last longer and have better wear resistance, but to me that's not worth triple or quadruple the price.

 

Hardened titanium nitride nikasil PVD matching your lower. Tacticool!

 

Better durability and reliability, tighter lockup in the chamber, stricter tolerances. For example, Knight's Armament has a redesigned extractor that includes a different pivot point, altered extractor shape, and dual springs. Extractors are a primary failure point in BCGs and I saw a test where supposedly their BCG was still fully functional after something like 50K rounds. Read below link about some of the stuff they do. Now I will say they are on the extreme end and I don't really believe going that far is completely necessary but this is an example of the extreme end. You can fill in everywhere in between in regards to cost versus upgrades.

https://www.knightarmco.com/12983/shop/rifle-partsaccessories/sr-15-e3-bolt-assembled

 

it’s worth It and I drive 45 mins every time. You Won’t believe the amount of nerding out on the numbers some of these guys do. There are some top shooters out there on the long range. I’ve gone almost every weekend the past couple months

 

How do they manage targets on long ranges like that? Electronic or everyone hops in a truck and grabs their targets?

 

It's always a bit odd replying to you since our name is pretty unique

Here in PDX, the 200/300/600 yard range targets have an area behind where you mount the targets, and then send them up.
You are actually below the level of the shooters when mounting the targets.
It's still kinda eerie having the shots go overhead.

 

golf carts and a 30 minute shooting timer. No one near the bench with the light is red and chamber flags in the guns etc. LR 600-1250 and short 100-500 all on the same timer. In between timers usually only is about 5-10 mins then once the carts are back, the keys from the carts go into the system and you can activate the timer again for 30 more minutes. Works well.

 

The range I go to, only the 100-yard range has paper targets that you put up and take off. Plus another bay that's for pistols only (20 yards I think). The rest is all steel and constantly a "hot" range, so nobody goes beyond the shooting line/deck ever, since you're just shooting steel plates that are permanently in place. It's nice because it saves a lot of time since there is no hot/cold periods and wasted time in walking hundreds of yards. Plus unless you have a really good spotting scope and you use those splatterburst targets, you can't see a bullet hole beyond like 400 yards anyway. I don't think I've ever seen a range that allows paper targets beyond 300 yards or so.

Only downside of the steel is that they don't get painted often enough. The owner goes out maybe once or twice a week to paint them, so if it's been a few days since they've been painted and have a whole bunch of bullet impacts on them, you're not going to be able to see exactly where your impacts are. I'd love to have my own land set up for shooting some day, cuz I'd paint that shit before every time I shoot.

 

Allow me to piggyback on this question... how about the Ruger AR-556 as well (looks like same price point)

 

I’ve had lots of rugers come through and they look and feel great. Unfortunately I’ve never shot one.

 

Good find. Quite a few are not banned in my state. I'm pretty sure a local gun store carries that brand.