AR-somethin' question...considering purchase..

by Sarge, Thursday, April 05, 2012, 13:54 (4616 days ago) @ John Meeker

Here's the thing with the AR that does not apply to the 1911- parts is, pretty much, parts. Essentially ALL receivers, regardless of whose name on the side, are made by a very few outfits. They are Cavalry Arms, Continental Machine Tool, Essential Arms, JVP, LAR Manufacturing, Lewis Machine & Tool, Mega Machine Shop, Olympic, Sabre Defense, Sun Devil, and Superior. That list is about a year old so there may be others.

Most all of these makers have hope of military or LE contracts so their receivers are as mil-spec as they can make them. They also realize that a lot of cops will go out-of-pocket for a patrol carbine and they don't want a dogcrap reputation to ruin that for them.

If you're talking resale value, then get the big-name stuff. For a working rifle however, all that matters is that the receiver is of the proper dimensions, material and heat treating and that the holes are of the right size & in the right places. And that is one thing the platform shares with the 1911. The name on the side of a working gun don't mean squat, so long as it's right inside.

Keepsakes are something else altogether.