Looking to enter the M16 owners world. Who are the most reputable dealers out there?  I don't mind paying a bit more to get something that is accurately described and, most importantly, to buy from a person that isn't sleazy.

Nails it.  

Nm wrong forum

Lots of choices...does anyone have a personal recommendation that they would like to share?

 

Ruben at dealernfa.com

Tom at nfasales.com

David at davidspiwak.com

Frank on gun broker but a lot of time his guns are on consignment and take additional time to transfer.

The top three are highly regarded. Some might not say the same for Frank but I bought a Mac-10 from him and when it turned out to be a 9mm not the 45 that was advertised he included two new high dollar mags.

Websites to watch for good deals on machine guns:
http://www.sturmgewehr.com
http://www.shootersdepot.com
http://www.atfmachinegun.com
http://www.autoweapons.com
http://www.impactguns.com
http://www.subguns.com
http://www.onlythebestfirearms.com
http://www.davidspiwak.com
http://dealernfa.com
http://www.gunbroker.com
http://www.nfasales.com
http://www.classiiidealers.com/
http://www.westernfirearms.com/

Website that tracks machine gun values:
http://www.machinegunpriceguide.com/

I think "Who has what I want" is going to be the driving issue.

And I was just thinking about this ..... Thank you for the timely ask OP. The list is great, thank you guys .

True...a shooter grade Colt M16 is what I'm hunting, and it will be my first auto weapon. Is there typically any room for negotiations when going through a dealer or are the prices pretty firm?


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In my experience almost none of the dealers i talked with were willing to negotiate, and if they were it was like a few hundred off. Unfortunately because of the limited supply either you pay their price or someone else will. Another issue is the dealer may not own the MG, they may be brokering the deal for the real owner so they are not in power to negotiate, the owner said to sell it for $X and they have to do what the seller said and unless they have a very serious buyer they arent going to bug the seller every time they get a email offer. Im sure they get a lot of new buyers sending out offers just feeling out the market, i know i did this for a while before i realized yes machine guns really are that expensive and few people would work with me on price, either i paid it or wasnt going to own a MG.

With that being said there are still good deals out there, personal sales are a bit more of a hassle but you can save 20%+ on the purchase price if you know what youre looking for, have the cash in hand (well, in a checking account) and are patient enough to wait for the right deal. I spent well over a month looking for my M16, i checked forums like sturm and subgun multiple times a day and finally the exact gun i wanted popped up at the right price and i bought it within a few hours of being posted.

I know you said you want a Colt. But since youre looking for a "shooter" grade piece you might want to look at the non-colt RR as well. Obviously there are some spec and tolerance issues on some of them but almost all of those issues can be fixed by a gunsmith for a few hundred dollars while you are waiting on your Form 4 to be approved. Its a small hassle but i easily saved $5-15k by not buying a Colt RR, maybe for you thats pocket change but for me it was either a non-colt m16 or no m16 at all.  After being worked on it fits all mags, uppers and mil spec parts perfectly and it was re-anodized so it looks brand new and the black color matches modern uppers.

Post about my MG
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_23/442348_M16___MK18_Project___Finished_.html

Post i used for guidance on my project
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_23/434824_Frankford_Arsenal_Oly_conversion____my_experience_from_the_beginning_.html

if you have any questions just PM me.

~S