AR Upper advice

[tombogan03884]

As some of you know I recently acquired an AR lower receiver  
I have decided that I will go with a 5.56/223 upper,16 inch barrel, I'm still up in the air between carrying handle or flat top, but I have plenty of time to make up my mind while I save up money.
I have been searching on line for prices of complete uppers, I have found there is generally no difference in price between A2 and A4 styles, but prics range from $450 at Model 1 sales to around $575 for CMMG
I'm leaning toward the Bushmaster gas piston system but I would like to hear feed back on this and get an opinion from you guys on which brand has the best value for the money.
I don't know if comparability is an issue but it is a Spikes Tactical Receiver with DPMS parts .
Thanks in advance for the input, and YES I will post pics when it's done  

[Big Frank]

If I only had one AR I would get a flat top and put some optics on it. I don't know how different brands compare but forgings are better than extrusions IMO, and I like GI suppliers better than me too brands. I wish I could be of more help.

[billt]

tombogan03884 
 
As you most likely know I'm a big Bushmaster fan. I've got 5.



With that said I haven't been hearing good things since Dick Dyke sold Bushmaster to Cerberus Capital Management a few years back. They are the multi million dollar group that bought Bushmaster, Remington, Marlin, and a host of others I'm forgetting at the moment. As you know Remington "came out with" the R-25, which is nothing more than a Bushmaster Varminter with a camo paint job. All sorts of this stuff has been going on lately. Dick Dyke was a quality guy, and the Bushmasters I own were built when he owned the joint. Now, I'm just not so sure. Add all of this on to the fact these companies have been pumping out product to meet the demand since Hussein slid into the White House, and you can see where I'm coming from. Melanie and I are going to invest in several AK-47 models in the near future because of what we all see coming. There quality is easy to judge. AR-15's are a bit more difficult. I do have to say the Rock River Arms 9 MM I bought Mel the other day is a quality gun.

My point in all of this is to just be sure you look over everything you buy before you put your money on the table and drive it off the lot. As Boz Scaggs said!   Bill T.

[fightingquaker13]

The boys on the AR-15 forum  (www.ar15armory.com) seem to like a company called addax (sp?). I'd not heard of them before, but its a small custom shop that does GP uppers. It sounds like Spike's Tactical. I know nothing about them, but I'd take a look.
FQ13

[GUNS-R-US]

I've got 4 builds in the works currently buying parts for. I'm not sure about any particular manufacture but the biggest and most important part of any upper is the barrel. So above anything else I'll be looking at that part first. Also I would mostly stick with flat top uppers for the versatility you get, you can always add a carry handle to it!

[Sponsor]

[GUNS-R-US]

And please post what you learn in your research! Might save me sometime or give me some Ideas. I know one of mine is going to be a standard A2 build to practice with, another will be in something like .243 WSSM for hunting. The other two I'm thinking of maybe 6.8SPC or 6.5 for one and the last one is pistol only lower so something like a 7.5 - 10in bbl chambered for 5.56 or something else?

[tombogan03884]

I like what I have heard about the 6.5 and 6.8 but I am going to go 5.56 due to ammo availability and cost.
Do I remember correctly that the 1in 9 twist is the one that is most versatile as far as bullet weights go ?

[blackwolfe]

Tom, Check this thread:
http://www.downrange.tv/forum/index.php?topic=5285.0

I can't find it right now, but I think one of the barrel manufacturers has a chart for twist and bullet weight also.

[Pathfinder]

Good idea with sticking to 5.56 for now - you can always change uppers later as time and money and availability improve. 1:9 is fine for the 5.56, gives you a range of 52gr through upper 60 grains, like 67 or something like that. You just can't use the "heavy" 70 gr and higher weight bullets.

I have a Stag upper, and it is very nice. Can't go wrong with Stag. I remember MB talking a couple years ago about shooting a Stag rifle out of the box, no cleaning or anything, and was shooting tight groups, and the gun ran flawlessly.

Go with a flat top, Tom, you can always get a removable carry handle if you decide you want one. I have a DPMS with the handle permanently mounted, wish I had the flattop. The handle screws with optics mounts rather badly. Even with a Z-mount for the optics on the handle, they are way high for me.

[blackwolfe]

Might try this  page also:
http://www.stevespages.com/page8e.htm