Can I Build an AR predator rifle for less than $1000

A

andersce100

New member
Title pretty much says it all. I would like a very accurate (less than 1 MOA) AR (rifle only). Can I build one from parts that will shoot that well?

I'm hoping a rifle like that will work real well on coyotes and allow a quick follow up shot.

Thanks
ChrisA
 
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Especially if you already have the tools. "Some assembly required"

and, a side benefit is a better understanding of how the thing works..
 
Ok, here is one recipe for building a sub MOA AR for under $1000.

First, spend your money on your barrel. Nothing is nearly as important as your barrel.

Secondly, a good trigger.

Third, good optics.

Just about everything else is negotiable. Such as hand guards, never seen a full floating hand guard that was $200 make ANYONE shoot better. That being said, it should be a full floater, but you don't have to break the bank.

Billet uppers and lowers are nice, but you can get a forged set to shoot just fine with a good barrel.

Grips make a rifle nicer, but again, they don't cause you to shoot better or worse. Same with stocks.

As Hellgate said, it's all useless without good ammunition. Throwing mil surplus JUNK downrange will do great at making noise and holes in the dirt, but that's about it.

And as Bob said, a bit of know how goes a long way. If you know how it works you can build quite a rifle for a fair amount of money. Some guys just chase the demon by throwing money at it.
 
My grand daughter bought her husband a new Mossberg AR with the Miculec trigger in it, the trigger is sweet and it does shoot well. We put a Atlon Argos 3-15 scope on it
 
I scrounged,auction/bid,clearance itemized my way on the last one. 329$ bare rifle finished. Easy sub moa, shoots even better suppressed---which tripled the total. But had to take an auction chance on the barrel, I've won the coin flip so far.
 
Agree with what most of SnowManMo said, but you can find uppers or used rifles on the cheap. Bought a PSA upper for my wife to get range time with and think I paid around $340 on a Black Friday deal. Surprised that it shot nearly as well as the high end one I had for predators! Bought a second one for the heck of it and paid about the same and it shoots just as well! Since uppers are not the controlled part of the rifle you can have them shipped direct without FFL. On the lower, build it. Get the stock you want (make sure to match buffer tube and stock diameters...milspec vs commercial) and put a good trigger in it. I've got Geissele and Hyperfire that are great, and a ALG Defense (tuned by Geissele) that is much better than milspec, but not as good as the others. Lots of great triggers for AR's out there. That should keep you well under $1k which then leaves $$ for optics, ammo, etc.
 
My recommendation would be to buy a complete upper from someplace like Bear Creek or Palmetto. I really don't use anything besides charging uppers now but in any event get one that has the handguard you want then get a quality barrel and swap it out. I don't think you can get away cheaper. Always leave money for a good trigger. You may even get lucky enough to get one that shoots to your liking with the barrel it comes with.
 
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I just assembled a pretty cheap prairie dog rifle with a nice Black Hole Weaponry barrel. If you are patient and wait for sales then you can do it easily. I think my barrel was 30% off back around Easter. Sometimes Surplus Ammo has BHW barrel sales and even has a free upper if you buy a barrel. BCG's are cheap there too.

A2 stock or even a B5 stock is cheap
Rock River Trigger or ALG
DPMS free float tube. You can then drill it or stud it with PRI rail.
 
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Originally Posted By: SnowmanMoOk, here is one recipe for building a sub MOA AR for under $1000.

First, spend your money on your barrel. Nothing is nearly as important as your barrel.

Secondly, a good trigger.

Third, good optics.

Just about everything else is negotiable. Such as hand guards, never seen a full floating hand guard that was $200 make ANYONE shoot better. That being said, it should be a full floater, but you don't have to break the bank.

Billet uppers and lowers are nice, but you can get a forged set to shoot just fine with a good barrel.

Grips make a rifle nicer, but again, they don't cause you to shoot better or worse. Same with stocks.

As Hellgate said, it's all useless without good ammunition. Throwing mil surplus JUNK downrange will do great at making noise and holes in the dirt, but that's about it.

And as Bob said, a bit of know how goes a long way. If you know how it works you can build quite a rifle for a fair amount of money. Some guys just chase the demon by throwing money at it.


i really dont have anything to add to this.

nailed it.
 
Originally Posted By: SoftpointRock River guarantees it's ATH and Predator rifles to shoot 3/4 moa. You still can get them for under $1000.


X2 Just buy a Rock River ATH and Predator rifles and be done with it. Best AR for the money.
Their trigger is just fine. Get some good 5 and 10 round magazines. Please, buy a good scope.
Zeiss makes some good ones, 4.5X14 They are good low light scopes or an EOTech.
 
I just got done helping a buddy build an 18in with exactly what he wanted for stock, trigger and hand guard for right at $1000.00. It shoots under MOA
 
Extremely happy with my 18" HBAR Luth-AR upper. Was around $550, an excellent lower can be had or built for $275-350...leaves alittle for optics.
 
You can buy complete rifles guaranteed to shoot sub MOA for under a G. The only way that I would tell you to put one together and build it as people would say. IMO i call it assembling pieces like legos...someone else built the pieces we bought. But it makes us sound so cool to say we built a rifle.lol. I would tell you If your wanting a certain calibered rifle that is expensive to buy then it’s probably worth piecing a rifle together. I just did a 243. I bought an A5 completely assembled lower minus buttstock for $200 shipped Direct from Aero last Black Friday and bought a complete A.R. stoner upper 22 inch heavy barrel chambered in 243 for $449 shipped. It’s WAY cheaper to buy a completely assembled upper and lower and then add parts to it then buying stripped lowers then assembling from scratch. So basically for $650 I’m into an AR/LR 10. All the little extras of course I’m going to still add onto it but 99% of the rifle is done I’m sure most people have scopes and mounts laying around and extra parts from other ARs to finish the project. I added a CMC trigger 2 1/2 pounds single stage even though the factory Aero broke nice and crisp it was just a little too heavy for me and I don’t like to stage triggers when I’m coyote hunting. I of course had to buy a couple of $20 mags and I power shopped and bought a warne 20 MOA scope mount for 46 dollars shipped when optics planet had a fake sale on them. Oh, and I also bought a factory R25/bushmaster discontinued stock setup for $53 from Remington that I had to retap one of the screws to make it fit. If you have the time and don’t care if it’s a big rush to put it together just buy parts when they’re on sale like idea or you can buy a complete DPMS oracle I just saw on sale for $619 shipped chambered in 308 and you’re all done. I’ve been buying parts since last October and just finished mine because I’m cheap and have been waiting for parts to go on sale. You can always buy another barrel for the Oracle or complete upper to swap with it and whatever chamber you want for a couple hundred bucks when on sale. So the answer to your question is yes, you can build just about anything you want in today’s market for a grand.

oJhGOQN.jpg

 
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Originally Posted By: DultimatpredatorYou can buy complete rifles guaranteed to shoot sub MOA for under a G. The only way that I would tell you to put one together and build it as people would say. IMO i call it assembling pieces like legos...someone else built the pieces we bought. But it makes us sound so cool to say we built a rifle.lol. I would tell you If your wanting a certain calibered rifle that is expensive to buy then it’s probably worth piecing a rifle together. I just did a 243. I bought an A5 completely assembled lower minus buttstock for $200 shipped Direct from Aero last Black Friday and bought a complete A.R. stoner upper 22 inch heavy barrel chambered in 243 for $449 shipped. It’s WAY cheaper to buy a completely assembled upper and lower and then add parts to it then buying stripped lowers then assembling from scratch. So basically for $650 I’m into an AR/LR 10. All the little extras of course I’m going to still add onto it but 99% of the rifle is done I’m sure most people have scopes and mounts laying around and extra parts from other ARs to finish the project. I added a CMC trigger 2 1/2 pounds single stage even though the factory Aero broke nice and crisp it was just a little too heavy for me and I don’t like to stage triggers when I’m coyote hunting. I of course had to buy a couple of $20 mags and I power shopped and bought a warne 20 MOA scope mount for 46 dollars shipped when optics planet had a fake sale on them. Oh, and I also bought a factory R25/bushmaster discontinued stock setup for $53 from Remington that I had to retap one of the screws to make it fit. If you have the time and don’t care if it’s a big rush to put it together just buy parts when they’re on sale like idea or you can buy a complete DPMS oracle I just saw on sale for $619 shipped chambered in 308 and you’re all done. I’ve been buying parts since last October and just finished mine because I’m cheap and have been waiting for parts to go on sale. You can always buy another barrel for the Oracle or complete upper to swap with it and whatever chamber you want for a couple hundred bucks when on sale. So the answer to your question is yes, you can build just about anything you want in today’s market for a grand.

oJhGOQN.jpg


Lol, "build" is a peeve of mine too. I try to say assemble. Some people act like it's some great feat to "build a rifle". It's stupid easy. I put 3 lowers together in about an hour a couple weeks ago. I only assemble rifles because it's fun and I can make it exactly how I want.
 
22-250 would be an AR10 platform which is larger and heavier. If you dont reload and you are a bit of an AR newbie I would stick with the 5.56 or .223 wylde. I would go with a 20 or 22" barrel vs. a shorter barrel to keep velocity up.
 
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