The Perfect AR-15 For Your Budget

[00:00:00] Hey everyone, this is Captain Steve Roger from Into the Blue TV. And as soon as I feel a little break from this heat, I know that hunting season is upon us.

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[00:01:01] Hello, Rye. Welcome back to the Survival and Basic Badass Podcast with Kevin and Chuck.

[00:01:08] Today, we're going to talk about the infamous AR-15. I don't know. You guys know that I like to play with guns.

[00:01:17] It's one of the big things and one of the reasons we started this channel. Early on, I really started digging into them and getting into guns.

[00:01:30] It's funny. You'd think that you acquire that habit in the military, but not in the military I was in.

[00:01:37] Maybe in the Navy, unless you're the badass special forces. We didn't do a whole lot of playing with guns.

[00:01:47] I stood a lot of watches where I stood there and held one, but it's not quite the same, I guess.

[00:01:54] Yeah.

[00:01:54] They had me hold one on watch several times, which I had no experience with that particular firearm.

[00:02:03] Right.

[00:02:04] Right.

[00:02:04] They're just like, yeah.

[00:02:05] They never have you shoot it.

[00:02:07] Right.

[00:02:07] That is kind of weird.

[00:02:09] You know, and they just assume.

[00:02:10] But anyway, no, I wanted to talk about the different budgets, where you should be with buying an AR-15, because it's overwhelming when you look at it and you're like, well, what's going to work?

[00:02:23] What's right for me?

[00:02:25] Do I need to spend $2,000 or is it going to jam when I go and try and shoot the bad guy?

[00:02:30] Or is it going to, the bullets are going to shoot off, you know, mile away instead of, because, you know, the praying spray, is that all that's going to work for me?

[00:02:41] You know?

[00:02:41] So there's a lot of going on and a lot of questions.

[00:02:44] And I do have hands-on experience with, I think, almost every brand I'm going to mention today.

[00:02:55] Yeah, I'd say every brand I'm going to mention, I have, you know, firsthand shot these guns and know exactly what you're dealing with.

[00:03:05] One of the big things is I go to an event called The Gathering.

[00:03:10] You can look up where it's kind of like SHOT Show, except even better because they have like 50 ranges and you can go in and shoot all these different ones.

[00:03:20] If you look up The Gathering and you'll see it, it's in South Carolina.

[00:03:26] It's coming up in March, might be something you guys want to look into.

[00:03:30] I'll be there.

[00:03:31] So that's the highlight.

[00:03:32] And if you're going to show up, you should send me an email and we'll hang out.

[00:03:37] But anyway, so all kinds of different guns.

[00:03:40] I actually own, say, well, I don't want to give away how many guns I own.

[00:03:47] Yeah, maybe you don't use this.

[00:03:49] I own quite a few.

[00:03:50] Well, I was going to say of these brands.

[00:03:52] I'm telling you how many different brands I own gives away more guns than I would care to admit, you know.

[00:04:00] All right.

[00:04:01] So basically, I break it down into about four levels of guns, and we're going to talk about why.

[00:04:07] The big thing is the average person when you're buying an AR-15, your typical purpose.

[00:04:14] I mean, I would think of it as more of a self-defense weapon, home protection, that kind of thing.

[00:04:21] Most people know they own them.

[00:04:23] Right.

[00:04:23] I mean, that's really its purpose.

[00:04:25] They're just super easy and fun to shoot, though, to be honest.

[00:04:29] And that may be your other reason.

[00:04:32] You know, I mean, that may even be your number one because they are.

[00:04:35] They're just fun.

[00:04:36] You go out and have a good time, and it is a skill.

[00:04:38] You know, it's like, you know, kids shoot bow and arrows.

[00:04:42] Adults shoot bow and arrows.

[00:04:43] But even without hunting, right?

[00:04:45] You just kind of master a skill.

[00:04:47] Right, right.

[00:04:48] I can't think of any firearm.

[00:04:50] All right.

[00:04:51] People play golf, right?

[00:04:52] You want to go and get better and better.

[00:04:54] And that's how it is for shooting with me, okay?

[00:04:58] I guess that's what it is.

[00:04:59] So what is it they say?

[00:05:01] It's like golf, but for men.

[00:05:03] So I don't know.

[00:05:05] I'm sure that probably wasn't the right answer.

[00:05:08] But anyway, with that.

[00:05:11] So I have it about four different levels of guns.

[00:05:16] And basically, my intent is an AR-15 is really a hundred yard or less kind of weapon.

[00:05:26] That's the way that I see that.

[00:05:29] And so I always set mine up for a hundred yards because you'll find that it turns out

[00:05:35] the way the bullet drop is and stuff, you're going to be accurate all the way through.

[00:05:39] Um, we'll talk about that a little bit, but the price point, as far as the bullet getting

[00:05:47] to the target at a hundred yards, I think you can buy any mil spec AR-15 and it will work

[00:05:55] just fine.

[00:05:56] Um, that is, that is my answer for as far as the bullet going in the right direction.

[00:06:03] Now, will the bullet fire is a different question, but as far as it getting on target at a hundred

[00:06:11] yards, I don't think you could make a bad enough barrel.

[00:06:15] Like I would be taking that gun back and saying, no, this one's broken.

[00:06:19] Like it not work.

[00:06:21] Now, will the gun cycle right out of the box or things like that?

[00:06:26] I've even had high end guns that, you know, need adjustment when I get them, which is kind of,

[00:06:31] kind of crappy for quality control, to be honest.

[00:06:35] But let's kind of dig into it.

[00:06:38] So four levels.

[00:06:39] Um, I think my first level, I kind of want to put at don't buy as a don't buy and really

[00:06:50] the only two AR-15s that are kind of major brands that I would put into this category would be

[00:06:57] Anderson.

[00:06:59] And I would also, and, and this one's iffy is, is radical, um, radical firearms.

[00:07:08] Uh, radical does like a, uh, 300 blackout that comes with an integrated barrel that's already

[00:07:17] suppressed upper.

[00:07:20] And I got to say, I'm kind of tempted to buy that.

[00:07:22] So, cause again, in my mind, how bad could they mess it up?

[00:07:26] It's still going to go straight, but that's not buying the trigger and everything else from

[00:07:30] them.

[00:07:31] That's just buying the, um, now at no point am I going to tell you what store to buy a

[00:07:37] gun app?

[00:07:38] Because that would be against YouTube's rules.

[00:07:41] I'm just putting that out there.

[00:07:42] I'm just saying these are brands that in general, I've had bad experiences with.

[00:07:46] All right.

[00:07:47] So those two are really it.

[00:07:49] I've had Anderson guns where I buy their parts and they actually don't even fit together.

[00:07:56] And it's mil spec.

[00:07:57] It's supposed to be like a Ford, you know, where everything matches, you know, any part

[00:08:02] to the next one and the next one and the next one.

[00:08:05] And I've had their guns so far off that they don't even go together.

[00:08:10] And that's a problem for me.

[00:08:11] And I, I have seen that personally with ones I've purchased and I, I don't even think I

[00:08:17] brought it back.

[00:08:17] I just threw it in the garbage.

[00:08:19] I was like, this is ridiculous.

[00:08:21] Um, so just keep that in mind.

[00:08:24] Um, and, and believe me, I've put together quite a few guns that I am aware of what should

[00:08:30] or shouldn't happen.

[00:08:31] And yeah, it was a no go.

[00:08:33] All right.

[00:08:34] So you're saying that Anderson is not going to sponsor this podcast.

[00:08:38] That's what I'm saying.

[00:08:40] All right.

[00:08:41] So next I would talk about the budget where I want to buy a gun to put in the closet and

[00:08:48] I'm never going to really touch it.

[00:08:50] I'm not going shooting every weekend.

[00:08:52] I don't know if AR-15s are right for me, but I want one that's going to work and that's

[00:08:59] going to, you know, do its thing.

[00:09:02] And I can kind of count on it.

[00:09:04] Right now, obviously your level of counting on, you know, it varies.

[00:09:09] But it's going to work and it's going to function properly.

[00:09:13] And especially if I had somebody check it out, odds are I can get a really good one.

[00:09:18] These are your Palmetto State Armory, uh, your Bear Creek Arsenal, your Ruger, your Smith

[00:09:27] and Wesson, uh, at the bottom of that list, somewhere between Anderson and Smith and Wesson,

[00:09:33] I'd kind of put Diamondback Firearms there, like right on the bottom edge.

[00:09:38] But I think PSA, you're safe.

[00:09:40] Uh, I think Bear Creek, which are made in North Carolina, kind of cool.

[00:09:45] Um, Ruger are going to be a little bit more expensive, but they, they aren't really that

[00:09:51] quality when they come down to it.

[00:09:53] Um, these are your entry level where you can get something in the like $430 range.

[00:10:01] And if you wait for like a Black Friday sale or something, you could get for like $399.

[00:10:07] Um, I checked, I mean, you could buy one for $430.

[00:10:10] I checked yesterday.

[00:10:12] Um, yeah.

[00:10:13] Yeah.

[00:10:14] Uh, for PSA and I did, but I think you probably, I know where to go.

[00:10:19] Um, again, we're not allowed to recommend places.

[00:10:22] I do know, uh, that we've had some sponsors that, that can do good and, and do good on

[00:10:30] prices, but you have to just pay attention to get there.

[00:10:33] Um, I would say Smith and Wesson, I saw around 700 and I think Ruger is kind of in that neighborhood.

[00:10:42] Um, I, I don't know that I like it now.

[00:10:45] Now the next level, now I think these are all going to function.

[00:10:49] I think they're all going to cycle.

[00:10:51] They're going to do their thing kind of properly out of the box.

[00:10:54] A lot of times I get them and I find they need to be oiled and cleaned up.

[00:10:58] Now, obviously this is a gun without sites, without anything, just your stock.

[00:11:04] Uh, sometimes they'll come with a flip up sites.

[00:11:09] If you, uh, you know, if you, you know, find the right deal,

[00:11:15] but that's about how they are.

[00:11:17] It's just a standard gun, usually one magazine, that kind of thing.

[00:11:22] Now, next level, I would say DPMS, which are a lot of times going to cost you a thousand dollars,

[00:11:31] but they're not really better in my mind.

[00:11:34] Um, Stag and Arrow.

[00:11:36] Now Stag is actually owned by Arrow Precision.

[00:11:40] Uh, they're in my mind, the next level up,

[00:11:44] they're above PSA and that kind of thing.

[00:11:47] Now, obviously you can buy a cheaper base and upgrade certain parts.

[00:11:53] We're going to kind of get into that and what parts you might want to upgrade and why,

[00:11:58] um, in just a minute.

[00:12:00] Uh, after, I guess it's level two is that DPMS Stag Arrow Precision.

[00:12:08] Um, next would be, I would say, and this is upper, but not top tier.

[00:12:14] Uh, upper tier would be Sons of Liberty Gunworks, uh, Bravo Company, um, manufacturing.

[00:12:23] I know there's some guys out there that would say Bravo Company are, uh, top tier.

[00:12:27] I think they're just below top tier.

[00:12:29] I really like Sons of Liberty Gunworks, but it's funny because in my mind and anything I purchased

[00:12:36] through them was, uh, in the thousand dollar range.

[00:12:40] And now when I looked them all up, they're all about 1700.

[00:12:46] Um, so, and Bravo Company, I think in that neighborhood, maybe even slightly higher.

[00:12:53] I think I've seen them for 14 within the year, 1400 for a complete Bravo Company rifle.

[00:13:00] Um, Daniel Defense is like that top tier.

[00:13:05] Uh, to me, that's the premium firearm, but you're looking at like 22 to 2400.

[00:13:12] I mean, I think 2195 is like usually the neighborhood you see them.

[00:13:17] And it's very rare.

[00:13:18] You see a like sale or deal on that.

[00:13:21] Um, Wilson, uh, arms makes a decent one for very high end.

[00:13:28] Novesc makes it a very good high end, uh, firearm.

[00:13:31] Uh, but again, those are in that two and a half K range and that's significant.

[00:13:39] Now the first question is why would I spend two and a half K versus 500, right?

[00:13:47] What's the difference?

[00:13:48] What's that going to do for me?

[00:13:50] Well, one, one of the big things is fitment.

[00:13:53] When you, when you have the gun, the way the upper and lower come together, the fitment

[00:14:00] on a Daniel Defense versus a PSA is going to be notable on where it kind of like is sloppy.

[00:14:09] Like you have a little wiggle to it and you're going to hear kind of a little creaking between

[00:14:13] the two.

[00:14:15] And I know, you know, you're saying, well, good gun.

[00:14:17] You shouldn't hear that.

[00:14:18] That's true.

[00:14:19] You get what you pay for.

[00:14:20] You know, again, it's all fitment and, and how smooth and nice.

[00:14:24] Now, is it possible to pick up a PSA and have one that fits perfect?

[00:14:28] Yes.

[00:14:29] And I work very hard with every gun I own to set them up just properly.

[00:14:35] And there's little tricks and even little things.

[00:14:38] They sell like little shims that you can put in to adjust and, and work on that fitment

[00:14:44] and make it, you know, work together properly.

[00:14:47] So that's something you might want to look into.

[00:14:52] Also, when you get into that top tier, I would say the, the upper to top, the difference is

[00:15:01] the, the minute of angle with the shooting.

[00:15:05] And the difference, believe it or not, is you're talking about very spending $2,500.

[00:15:12] You'd have a one inch minute of angle, which means that a hundred yards, when you shoot at

[00:15:18] a target, it's going to be accurate within one inch every time.

[00:15:23] Okay.

[00:15:24] Whereas I think if you're down in the PSA $430 budget, you might have a one and a half

[00:15:31] inch.

[00:15:32] All right.

[00:15:32] So is a thousand or $1,500 worth it to you?

[00:15:39] Maybe even $2,000 worth that half inch.

[00:15:44] You know what I'm saying?

[00:15:46] That's right.

[00:15:47] That that's, that's really the difference there.

[00:15:50] Now you're saying, well, you know, that matters out over time, but why are you out over distance?

[00:15:55] But why are you shooting a five, five, six round more than, I mean, 200 yards is reasonable.

[00:16:02] But after that, really, why, why are you doing that?

[00:16:07] You got the wrong, the wrong gun.

[00:16:09] You grabbed the wrong gun.

[00:16:10] You know, that's the, the thing there.

[00:16:12] So, and the problem is I would tell you that buying quality ammo versus buying crap ammo would

[00:16:20] give you a one inch minute of angle versus a three and a half inch minute of angle.

[00:16:27] So buying better ammo is going to, you know, do more for you than now shooting better ammo

[00:16:35] all the time does add up.

[00:16:38] If you're playing rounds down there, you know, so that, you know, that's something to consider.

[00:16:44] Another thing, like for me, I would rather see somebody get a 400.

[00:16:52] Well, to be honest, I would like to see somebody start out with something that like arrow or

[00:16:58] stag in that neighborhood.

[00:17:01] But again, whatever gets you in there, but then put in like a $150 trigger.

[00:17:08] There's companies like Timney trigger.

[00:17:10] You look for the right sale.

[00:17:13] Rise Armament makes decent triggers.

[00:17:16] We actually did a trigger episode on selecting the perfect AR-15 trigger.

[00:17:25] And, you know, it, uh, that would be the, uh, yeah, that was a little while back.

[00:17:30] I don't remember.

[00:17:31] Uh, it was in 2022.

[00:17:33] It was a long time ago.

[00:17:34] Um, so that, that would, you know, help you narrow down what one is the right one, but

[00:17:40] these little upgrades, upgrades and getting it set up, you know, it's kind of like, if

[00:17:45] you think about like when you go buy a good suit, if you buy a cheaper suit, but have a tailor

[00:17:50] who really knows what he's doing, you can end up with a way better result than buying a high

[00:17:57] end suit that is not tailored properly.

[00:18:00] You know what I'm saying?

[00:18:01] Like, it's all about fit, right?

[00:18:04] Right.

[00:18:04] And, and that's about the same thing with your gun.

[00:18:07] It's just, I think it's one of those, you're going to get something that may be put together

[00:18:13] perfect or just maybe put together good.

[00:18:16] You know what I'm saying?

[00:18:17] And that's right out of the box.

[00:18:19] And you just kind of hope you're getting the right one.

[00:18:22] And, and that's something you want to look at.

[00:18:26] Um, the, uh, you know, something to consider there when you buy an AR-15, the, uh, I said

[00:18:35] barrel makes a big thing.

[00:18:37] So let's go back to minute of angle for a second.

[00:18:40] Now minute of angle is actually the, so in a hundred yards, you know, you're looking at

[00:18:48] a one inch deviation at 200 yards.

[00:18:52] You're looking at a two inch deviation.

[00:18:54] Obviously you can make that adjustment in your mind.

[00:18:57] You know, you're like, Oh, that guy's about 200 yards away.

[00:18:59] I want to aim two inches higher than, but two inches isn't that far.

[00:19:04] And depending on the optic you have, you know, I can't even isolate two inches on, you know,

[00:19:11] a red dot or something, you know, that's just, you know, standard.

[00:19:14] So that, that's not even really significant.

[00:19:19] Um, something to keep in mind.

[00:19:22] Basically the way it is, is you're looking at a one 60th, one to 60, uh, drop is what

[00:19:29] gives you that one inch at a hundred yards that, that perception.

[00:19:34] And so again, that's something that, you know, you set up your gun, you sight it in properly.

[00:19:42] It should be pretty consistent, you know, but that's, you're paying for the consistency when

[00:19:50] you buy these upper tier, you know, high-end guns.

[00:19:53] Um, another thing to think about is the gas adjustment.

[00:19:57] Um, they have all these like gas charts and most guns do not come with a, uh, a, uh, adjustable

[00:20:08] gas block.

[00:20:09] That's something that you could buy where basically it's like a little Allen screw.

[00:20:14] That's you're moving in and out to adjust the air that travels through it.

[00:20:18] And if you're going to put the time in to set it up for the ammo that you're shooting,

[00:20:24] you can set up a gun perfectly.

[00:20:26] Right.

[00:20:27] And that'll adjust like, and that's the thing, like you can buy a high-end gun, but if you

[00:20:33] don't have the air adjusted properly for the ammo that you're using, it won't be as awesome.

[00:20:40] Like you're not getting the full benefit, right?

[00:20:42] Cause a high-end gun, they're probably assuming you're using high-end ammo, right?

[00:20:46] Like they set it up for a certain thing and you can actually, you know, email these people

[00:20:51] and look in and find the specs of what they're, what they're looking for and, and, you know,

[00:20:57] trying to use.

[00:20:58] And, and that way you're using the correct ammo for your gun.

[00:21:04] You know, that's something you want to think about again.

[00:21:07] How much are you nerding out about it?

[00:21:09] Right.

[00:21:09] I mean, this is like guys nerding out about, you know, the perfect golf ball or the perfect

[00:21:14] club, you know, I mean, can you do it with anything?

[00:21:17] You know, if, if I go play baseball, I don't know, maybe golf clubs really matter.

[00:21:22] They probably do.

[00:21:23] I think they do.

[00:21:23] Yeah.

[00:21:24] I don't, I don't play golf myself, but I know people spend a lot of money in my mind.

[00:21:28] Right.

[00:21:28] If I have a, a wood bat and I have a really expensive wooden bat or a cheap wooden bat, I

[00:21:35] feel like I can still get the job done.

[00:21:37] Right.

[00:21:37] Right.

[00:21:37] I would feel like, but maybe, I don't know, maybe I don't even know how any of these other

[00:21:42] sports work.

[00:21:43] What I do.

[00:21:44] It's all about the gloves.

[00:21:45] Right.

[00:21:45] That's where the new.

[00:21:46] What I do know is how, and the sunglasses.

[00:21:49] What I do know is the, how an AR-15 works.

[00:21:53] And I can tell you that for sure.

[00:21:56] So having a gas adjustment, I actually bought an AR-15 that most ammo would not cycle properly

[00:22:05] through it.

[00:22:06] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:07] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:07] Um, I had actually, I had upgraded.

[00:22:10] So I'd made an upgrade.

[00:22:12] Well, I say I had, I made an upgrade, but technically I bought all the parts and built

[00:22:17] the gun.

[00:22:18] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:18] So I didn't upgrade something.

[00:22:19] I put a gun together with everything that's supposed to be mil spec.

[00:22:24] Mm-hmm.

[00:22:24] And there's a company, Adams Arms, I think, who make a piston.

[00:22:31] They actually don't have a gas block.

[00:22:33] They use a piston to cycle it.

[00:22:35] Well, it does technically have a gas block.

[00:22:38] It's just that the gas, it doesn't have a gas tube that goes down into the gun.

[00:22:43] So the way, the way it typically works, I wish I had a graphic here, but the, the gas,

[00:22:49] when you shoot a gun, goes out the barrel and there's a little hole drilled in the barrel

[00:22:54] that goes up into a block.

[00:22:56] That block then puts it into a tube that brings it back to the upper receiver.

[00:23:02] And that pushes the bolt carrier group back to cycle it.

[00:23:06] Right?

[00:23:06] So that, that gas going out is what, you know, cycles the next round.

[00:23:11] Cycles the next round.

[00:23:12] Right.

[00:23:12] So there's, um, one of the reasons people really like AK-47s is because they're piston

[00:23:20] driven.

[00:23:20] So the gas is shooting out basically, I don't want to say the end of the barrel, but where

[00:23:27] that hole is, the gas is shooting out instead of back into where the bullets are, right?

[00:23:33] Into the upper receiver and into your trigger.

[00:23:36] So with a tube gas tube, you're blowing all that carbon down into the upper receiver, into

[00:23:45] your bolt carrier group, into your trigger.

[00:23:48] And whereas the other one, it's kind of putting it out into the air.

[00:23:52] Right.

[00:23:53] Okay.

[00:23:53] So that's, that's why people kind of say, oh, well, you know, you can't kill an AK-47 and

[00:24:01] that's because it's the gas isn't even going in there.

[00:24:04] It's not getting as dirty as it normally would.

[00:24:06] Right.

[00:24:07] So they actually, you know, people are like, well, we can solve that problem.

[00:24:11] We can make a piston kit for an AR-15 and consider a high end.

[00:24:16] That's what they do.

[00:24:18] So there's a company, Adams Arms.

[00:24:20] There's a couple other ones that will make a piston system, but you have to set that up.

[00:24:25] So I had bought this piston system and put it on a, it was a, I hate to mention a brand

[00:24:33] because I hate to, you know, dime somebody, but Sons of Liberty Gunworks barrel, which

[00:24:39] again, I just mentioned our upper to high end, you know, barrels and that it would not

[00:24:46] cycle properly.

[00:24:47] And I'm like, oh, you sent me a crappy piston system and, and I don't like it.

[00:24:52] And I was emailing back and the company was actually great.

[00:24:55] Like I talked to the same guy every time and he's like, let me figure out your problem for

[00:25:01] you, you know?

[00:25:02] And we were going through it and he's like, oh, you're not getting enough air to cycle

[00:25:08] it.

[00:25:08] And I was like, yeah, but the air adjustment is on your piston system.

[00:25:12] How could it not be enough air?

[00:25:14] I max it out and it doesn't do it.

[00:25:16] And he's like, all right.

[00:25:17] The problem is the hole in the barrel is not the right size.

[00:25:21] And he's like, it's supposed to be exactly this.

[00:25:24] And honestly, I don't even know if I was over in my shop.

[00:25:27] I know I have like five of these drill bits because of course you had to buy like a

[00:25:31] five pack to get the right size.

[00:25:33] Right.

[00:25:34] Cause it was like something like 1730 seconds or something that just is like, you're not

[00:25:40] going to have.

[00:25:41] Right.

[00:25:41] And, and the thing was like, when I went to Amazon and everywhere, nobody had it.

[00:25:45] Like, they're like, what do you drive there?

[00:25:47] Finally, I found somebody who's like, yeah, if you buy a 10 pack, we have it.

[00:25:50] You know, and it was like $30 for these little, so you buy the right size hole.

[00:25:57] And then, but that's the quality that you're talking about.

[00:26:01] You know what I'm saying?

[00:26:03] That those are the things that matter.

[00:26:05] Am I going to get it right out of the gate?

[00:26:08] Right.

[00:26:08] Where it works.

[00:26:09] Now, had Sons of Liberty gun works, put that gun together.

[00:26:13] I know for a fact they test them and shoot them before they send them out.

[00:26:18] And that problem would have been corrected.

[00:26:22] But when you're putting the pieces together, you know, nobody gets to test it because how

[00:26:27] are you going to, I mean, maybe they shot the barrel with something, but it obviously wasn't

[00:26:32] going to work with my system.

[00:26:33] And that's the thing.

[00:26:34] It could have been close enough with somebody else, but maybe not close enough, you know,

[00:26:40] with this one.

[00:26:40] And I got to say, when I spent a ton of money on that barrel that I had been like saving

[00:26:45] up for us, like, I don't want to drill through that and make that hole, you know?

[00:26:50] Right.

[00:26:50] Now, another trick, if you want to cheat, right.

[00:26:53] And, and be like, Oh, is you can buy the really cheap firearm, like a, a PSA, uh, $430

[00:27:02] AR-15.

[00:27:03] And then you wait and you find like a, a Wilson combat, uh, lower, like they have just the

[00:27:10] lower receiver.

[00:27:11] That's where your serial number and your name plate are all on.

[00:27:14] And you can buy that part and just upgrade that.

[00:27:17] And so you won't have the barrel, but you'll have that.

[00:27:21] So anything, anybody can see and check, they're going to be like, Oh, now technically the barrel

[00:27:27] will have a maker's mark stamped into it.

[00:27:31] Right.

[00:27:31] And they, they do, but your average person is going to look at it and be like, Oh, you

[00:27:36] have a $2,000 gun.

[00:27:38] And you're like, well, really a minute for like six 50, but yeah, you know, cause it,

[00:27:42] you know, you bought the upgraded lower and you just watch for when they're on sale and

[00:27:47] stuff like that.

[00:27:48] Um, you can do that.

[00:27:51] That's, but again, are you, you're just kind of paying for the name, but, um, they do

[00:27:57] like arrow actually, they were big when I first got into guns.

[00:28:02] I didn't understand why they sold it this way in the store.

[00:28:05] And I didn't get it because it's kind of a pain in the ass to put together the barrel

[00:28:12] and an upper receiver.

[00:28:13] If you can buy the gas block, the barrel and the whatever all together, if you're not handy

[00:28:21] and good at the fitment and in and doing the blacksmithing and putting it together, it's

[00:28:27] nice to buy it all as one piece.

[00:28:28] Right.

[00:28:29] But what they used to sell.

[00:28:30] And I was like, why would I do that?

[00:28:32] I have to do all that extra work instead of just buying an upper.

[00:28:36] Plus if you buy the parts individually, it's usually a lot more expensive than if you buy

[00:28:41] it all together.

[00:28:41] Um, so what it is, is they sell a lower and upper receiver together and they sell it as

[00:28:50] they call it a match set.

[00:28:51] And remember I was talking about the fitment of the two coming together.

[00:28:55] These will be ones that come together nicely.

[00:28:59] And you can even kind of like open the boxes at, at your gun store kind of thing.

[00:29:04] And, you know, check them out and be like, how tight is this?

[00:29:07] And how nice is it going together?

[00:29:09] And you could kind of find the perfect one.

[00:29:11] I mean, I assume, I don't know.

[00:29:13] I had like sit down and drink coffee privileges at all my gun stores.

[00:29:18] I don't know how you, you know, maybe walking in off the street and going into Gander Mountain,

[00:29:24] they're not going to let you go through all the fire.

[00:29:26] Right.

[00:29:27] But if, uh, you know, if you're a regular there, you probably get that kind of thing.

[00:29:32] And honestly, it doesn't hurt to ask, right?

[00:29:34] Be like, Hey, I want to spend some money, but let me check it out.

[00:29:38] Right.

[00:29:38] And, you know, usually that kind of thing works.

[00:29:42] I, uh, I don't know.

[00:29:44] I mean, it's all about also how it feels, how it looks right.

[00:29:48] You want to find something that's comfortable to you.

[00:29:50] Now, the next thing like quality iron sites, um, or I say iron sites, a lot of times they're

[00:29:58] plastic, right?

[00:30:00] They make, uh, you know, there, there's companies like Magpul that make pretty decent, like hardened

[00:30:06] plastic sites that, you know, there there's metal parts in there, but it's, it's plastic

[00:30:12] and they, they're pretty cool.

[00:30:15] Uh, I would mean, honestly, yes.

[00:30:19] If you were using it for home defense, that would be what you would be enough.

[00:30:24] I like a red dot site.

[00:30:27] Um, I, if money was no object, um, I, I would probably do, they call it a reflex site.

[00:30:36] Um, they, uh, a reflex site basically it's weird.

[00:30:44] If you're at a weird angle looking through your scope, a red dot can kind of be misleading.

[00:30:50] Um, and it can angle a little funny, whereas a reflex site, you kind of have to look at it

[00:30:57] straight on, or it's going to be accurate from any angle you look at.

[00:31:01] If you can see it, it's going to be accurate.

[00:31:03] That that's the answer, I guess that the way I could have worded that better that that's

[00:31:09] the way I'd approach that.

[00:31:11] That's kind of cool.

[00:31:13] Um, there are companies like EOTech.

[00:31:17] Um, I thought, I mean, they were kind of the name in, in non-distance, uh, scopes.

[00:31:25] Right.

[00:31:25] And you see a lot of the like seals and, and cool guys, whenever I see pictures of them,

[00:31:31] maybe it's, maybe it's just mocked up pictures.

[00:31:33] Right.

[00:31:33] But whenever you see a bad-ass guy, you see them with like EOTech sites and you're like,

[00:31:38] Ooh, that's kind of cool.

[00:31:39] Um, and I, I look through and I got to say the quality really wasn't there.

[00:31:47] Um, and, and cause they're starting at like $500 and you're like, Ooh, that's, you know,

[00:31:53] that's significant.

[00:31:54] Right.

[00:31:54] Right.

[00:31:54] And then if the quality is not there, that kind of hurts.

[00:31:57] And what I mean by quality is not there.

[00:31:59] The red dot isn't like a sharp, tight little, like, you know, ball kind of thing that you're

[00:32:08] looking at.

[00:32:09] And that matters.

[00:32:11] Um, so yeah, I don't know.

[00:32:17] I, I, I find that disturbing.

[00:32:19] Um, I, I want it to be sharp and tight and perfect.

[00:32:22] Uh, there were companies like Vortex.

[00:32:25] They're not made.

[00:32:26] It's weird.

[00:32:27] Their high-end stuff is made in America, but their cheaper stuff is not.

[00:32:31] Um, I put for my cheap red dots to go on things.

[00:32:36] Uh, I think there's like the Vortex.

[00:32:39] I don't even know what it's called, but they just have a simple red dot.

[00:32:42] That's pretty awesome.

[00:32:44] And I put on like everything that's cheap for my low grade entry level, you know?

[00:32:50] And the thing is with Vortex is I've gotten crappy ones, but they have a lifetime guarantee.

[00:32:56] And I actually even bought a used one for like 50 bucks one time.

[00:33:00] And it was all crappy and the thing was like out, but I just sent it back and said, Hey,

[00:33:06] this is crappy.

[00:33:07] Send me a good one.

[00:33:08] And they sent me the newer model cause they didn't make the old crappy model anymore.

[00:33:13] And they were like, here you go.

[00:33:15] And no problem, hassle free.

[00:33:17] So to me, that's worth something, right?

[00:33:21] Right.

[00:33:21] That, that buys you some, you know, having a good warranty is worth something.

[00:33:27] Obviously I would want American made.

[00:33:29] That's where I want to be.

[00:33:32] I have a lot of good American made sites.

[00:33:34] I have Vortex that are American made.

[00:33:38] I have Leupold.

[00:33:40] My buddy swears by Leupold.

[00:33:42] How dare you buy anything other than you need American.

[00:33:45] The quality's there.

[00:33:47] It's that much better.

[00:33:48] And I got to say, I wasn't really impressed.

[00:33:51] Again, it was a red dot.

[00:33:53] So I think it was like the Leupold freedom, which is their cheaper end.

[00:33:56] They do do an awesome veteran deal where if you're a veteran or active duty military, they give you a discount.

[00:34:04] That's like dramatic.

[00:34:06] And you can use it like twice a year or once a year.

[00:34:09] I don't know what it is.

[00:34:11] But it's weird because you have to reapply.

[00:34:14] Like you're not a veteran all of a sudden, like every, every two years, which is kind of annoying because you have to do like that ID me or whatever.

[00:34:24] Um, that's something to, you know, to look into.

[00:34:28] But again, does Leupold make some great sites?

[00:34:33] Yes.

[00:34:33] It doesn't mean they don't make quality.

[00:34:35] It just is a matter of, you know, can you, yeah, can you, you know, do better?

[00:34:40] I guess it's really what it comes down to.

[00:34:43] There are the different optics.

[00:34:44] Uh, like I said, uh, 300 blackout.

[00:34:47] I have a, uh, one to six like vortex strike Eagle on an AR that's the 300 blackout.

[00:34:54] And I use that for hunting.

[00:34:55] Um, it's just simple and easy.

[00:34:58] Um, I keep waiting to buy a, uh, Henry 30, 30 and, you know, I want like a lever gun.

[00:35:04] Cause that's cool.

[00:35:05] And, you know, how manly are you with your lever cowboy gun when you're out hunting as opposed to the, you know, the other,

[00:35:13] but the other does just fine drop a deer all day long.

[00:35:16] And so that's the option.

[00:35:19] Um, but you can look at, you know, the right thing for you, the right thing that, you know, works for your family and, you know, the defense,

[00:35:27] but that's basically, so the bottom line is it depends on your budget, what you're willing to spend.

[00:35:34] Um, I think if I was just getting into it, I still would be like reasonable with like a PSA gun,

[00:35:42] uh, Palmetto state armory.

[00:35:44] Uh, to me, that's reasonable.

[00:35:46] I would think about getting something like that to get me in the door.

[00:35:50] Uh, if you're like, you know what, I'd rather have something quality right out of the gate.

[00:35:54] I plan to only buy one forever.

[00:35:57] And why would I buy junk?

[00:35:59] I would probably, but I'm not like a big shooter and a lifetime guy.

[00:36:03] I would probably be at the arrow and stag kind of arrow precision or stag arms.

[00:36:10] Um, again, both the same company.

[00:36:12] It's just kind of the models that you like stag makes left-handed versions.

[00:36:16] If that's a thing for you to say, you know, they're the only ones.

[00:36:20] I really know that, you know, do a good job with that of, of the left-handed firearms.

[00:36:25] Like they make it just matter of fact, like all their other stuff.

[00:36:29] Um, so that's something to consider.

[00:36:33] Uh, yeah.

[00:36:35] Otherwise, I think that's about the gist.

[00:36:38] I just, yeah, I know we haven't touched on, you know, gun stuff in a while.

[00:36:41] And I know you guys are always looking for the right information, but that's what I got.

[00:36:47] Kevin, any thoughts, concerns?

[00:36:50] Nope.

[00:36:51] Nope.

[00:36:51] That sounds pretty, uh, straightforward.

[00:36:53] I think, um, I think we know, uh, ready to go buy some new AR-15s.

[00:36:57] I think we know what to get.

[00:36:58] Yeah.

[00:36:59] All right.

[00:37:00] So questions, concerns, ideas, recommendations.

[00:37:04] Maybe, you know, something, put it in the comments.

[00:37:06] I'm happy to hear it.

[00:37:08] We're happy to hear your opinions and, uh, yeah.

[00:37:11] Questions, stuff, email us at preppingbadass at gmail.com.

[00:37:16] Otherwise I would say stay safe and we will talk to you guys next week.

[00:37:23] Bye.

[00:37:23] Bye.

[00:37:24] Bye.

[00:37:24] Bye.