My first purchase was a Remington 870 Express Super Magnum for use with quail and dove hunting. I got the Magnum for the option of being able to shoot 3.5-inch shells for turkey hunting. I got it in black synthetic and have been extremely happy with it. At some point, I would like to upgrade to an over-under or semi-auto. Since it was my first gun and I wasn't sure if I would like shooting and hunting I started with a solid budget model. I did a lot of research and it was between a Mossberg 500 and the Remington 870. I heard great things about both but ended up choosing the Remington.
After that, I acquired a .357 Ruger Vaquero Blued Single-Action Revolver and a Remington 770 .30/06 scoped in camo.
In February I decided to try out buying and building my first AR-15. As a point of clarification, "AR" does not stand for "assult rifle". It stands for "ArmaLite Rifle" after the original manufacturer or this style of sporting rifle in 1956. I was mostly concerned that with all of the regulation in-work to ban sporting rifles that I might not have a chance. I learned a whole lot and found out that piecemealing together cheap parts wasn't necessarily the cheapest way to go. Palmetto State Armory has some great deals on kits that you can still assemble for a great price. As of the time of this writing, they had kits ready for assembly starting at $299.99. My build cost me roughly $500. This is still a great deal on an AR-15 but if I was going for cheapest there were definitely some other options.
I started by assembling my Anderson lower receiver with the lower parts kit. I had a small issue with the magazine release not fitting but I was able to return it to the store and got a new one. Next, I got the stock and buffer tube kit which I installed onto the back of the lower receiver. The upper receiver and the upper receiver parts kit was next.
The final assembly took place after I attached the barrel to the front of the upper receiver and installed the gas block/gas tube, floating handguard, and muzzle brake/compensator.
In February I decided to try out buying and building my first AR-15. As a point of clarification, "AR" does not stand for "assult rifle". It stands for "ArmaLite Rifle" after the original manufacturer or this style of sporting rifle in 1956. I was mostly concerned that with all of the regulation in-work to ban sporting rifles that I might not have a chance. I learned a whole lot and found out that piecemealing together cheap parts wasn't necessarily the cheapest way to go. Palmetto State Armory has some great deals on kits that you can still assemble for a great price. As of the time of this writing, they had kits ready for assembly starting at $299.99. My build cost me roughly $500. This is still a great deal on an AR-15 but if I was going for cheapest there were definitely some other options.
I started by assembling my Anderson lower receiver with the lower parts kit. I had a small issue with the magazine release not fitting but I was able to return it to the store and got a new one. Next, I got the stock and buffer tube kit which I installed onto the back of the lower receiver. The upper receiver and the upper receiver parts kit was next.
The final assembly took place after I attached the barrel to the front of the upper receiver and installed the gas block/gas tube, floating handguard, and muzzle brake/compensator.
I will be receiving the front and back pop-up sites in a couple of days. Once I do I will take it to the range and see how it shoots. I will provide updates as I get them.
Please let me know if you have any questions to get you started building your own rifle.
