Hi everyone, Been reading on this site for a while now. Tuesday I put down the cash for a Stag Arms 2T. Will be in my hands Thursday (obviously). I have some extremely "noob" questions.... so bare with me please.

This is my first AR and from everything I have read, it seems like a great gun. I am prior service, and have experience with guns, but never a gun like this.  I was a heavy equipment mechanic in the USAF (tsgt)

Anyway, I will be taking this to the range, as Rhode Island to damn small to really shoot anywhere open. What is the best ammo choice....best meaning cost vs. performance ?  

What should I get for a cleaning kit? I am pretty obsessive about cleaning my weapons. My brother and I shoot quite a bit and got thru a lot of ammo. Seems like I am always cleaning something or other.

If you were do buy one mod for this gun, what would it be and why?  I know I won't be able to leave this alone

Thanks for any/all advice. I am searching for threads on this gun and will continue to read up on it. I can wait to get it and hit the range.  

BTW, as of 10 minutes ago.....it's officially SPRING!

Thanks,
Jon

First of all welcome to the site. You bought one heck of a gun. There was a good write up on Stag's in one of my AR magazines. Can't remember which one.

I'm assuming since it's a 2T that it has a Quad Rail and the flip up iron sights. Do you plan on putting a scope on it?

Hi Fresh2Salt,
Thanks for the kind welcome.

Yes it is the quad rail (I assume you mean the square rail ... I have yet to learn allt he terms I see on this site).

I plan on getting a scope when I save up some more cash saved up.  I wanted a gun that was "good to go" as I felt it was an investment over all. The way things are going, it seemed logical to spend a little more now, and save in the long run.

I have been sitting here (sick with Flu), reading the FAQ and I am realizing, I don;t know crap about guns lol. I mean, I grew up with firearms, and was taught the respect and practices..... and the military taught me "some" stuff.... but I don't understand half of what I read on here.  All the acronyms, part names, terms,...... I feel a bit retarded.( not that there's anything wrong with that lol)

I guess it's like anything else....the more you do the more you learn. (like engine building for me)

Thanks again,
Jon

You got that right. This is a great site with a wealth of information. Use the search feature as often as possible and remember to sift through as much info as possible to help you make a better decision.

I'm fairly new to the BRD myself and am ready to buy another one...lol

If you can, post up a pic of your gun.

i got a 2t as my first. im keeping it the way it is, maybe a vertical grip and a sling. ill use it for shooting under 300 yards

im in the process of collecting parts so i can build my next. i will have a 20 inch barrel on my next for shooting 300 yards plus. this one will have a scope.

my 2t chewed up wolf mc, xm193, and black hills blue box (69 grain i think).

ive had no Failure to Fires, No Failure to extracts, and one double feed which im pretty sure is the result of loading the mags with stripper clips (bullets didnt seat right in the mag.

its a bitch to put the rail covers on that came with the rifle. i suggest using a pair of needle nose pliers to pull the lip up some. the rail cover is also too long for one side ( i think the bottom) you might want to cut it before you put it on cause its a bitch to take them off too.

if you have specific questions feel free to IM me ill try to help.

Good luck with your 2T. Its a really well made rifle. You made an excellent choice. Check out the Stag section for a good picture thread.

Hello fellow New Englander

Your new Stag is a great piece of gear. You done good!

Once you pick her up, it's mandatory that you post a pic.

In fact, I'm fairly certain it's a forum rule

Nice choice!  Lot of value for the $$ IMHO. I'm fairly new the the AR world as well, this site has a lot of info.  I have a Stag 3TL (lefty) and have been very happy with it.  I think the only difference is that yours have the fixed front sight, where I have a low profile gas block.  Anyway, as mentioned above, a red dot optic is great.  I put an EoTech 512 on mine and could not be happier.  Not great for long range work, but for under 200 yards it's very effective, probably will add the flip out of the way magnifier when funds free up.  Target aquisition with the EoTech is immediate, almost like cheating.  The EoTech and a sling are all I'm doing ti mine, kinda keeping it simple.  

Mine came really dry, so a quick field strip and good lube before your first outing may be a good idea, Breakfree CLP mentioned above works well.  

Ammo wise, the only thing mine has not liked was PMC Bronze, had some fail to fire's (about 10 out of 100 rounds) with what looked like good primer strikes.  So not sure if it was ammo (hard primers maybe) or what.  It eats Remington UMC (.223) well, American Eagle (red box .223) well and XM193 (5.56) well.  Zero issues with any of the ammo other than PMC.  Have not tried steel cased stuff, probably will stay away from it.  The trajectory difference between the .223 and 5.56 ammo seems significant, so you may want to choose one or the other as your go to ammo.  

Enjoy!

I can only say what I would do. It's not necessarily what you should do.

Ammo choice depends on purpose.  Personally, I go in for accuracy.  My Stag 2 has a 1/9 twist barrel and I get good results from 62gr and 69gr hollowpoints.  I prefer Black Hills ammo.  Remington UMC works well though.  Even the cheap Federal American Eagle and Winchester stuff shoots good.

Standard stuff for cleaning a rifle will work fine for an AR-15.  If you already clean your other weapons frequently, then you've got the equipment.  One note: a lot of people will lubricate the bolt carrier with moly grease.  I've started doing this recently.  Unlike regular gun oil, heat won't dry it out and you get more reliable operation.  Other than that, the normal sort of cleaning steps on any other rifle works fine for an AR-15.

As for mods....the best single thing, IMO, is to put a free float forearm on it.  The 2T already has a free float on it, however.  My Model 2 was not a free float, so I added a Yankee Hill Machin customizable free float tube.  It's a nice piece of equipment, too.  A bit heavier than I'd like, but sturdy, not outrageously priced, and the rifle is now scary accurate.

I might consider a bipod or vertical foregrip if you like them.  I replaced the eggplate on my AR (this is a small piece of metal that fits over the buttstock tube and is flush with the receiver) with one that had a loop for a sling so I could use a three point sling attached to the side of the rifle instead of the bottom sling loops.

Other than that, you might consider an optic.  If you want non-magnifying optics, EOTech and Aimpoint make the best.  I find holographic and red dot sights are more precise than iron sights, and they're easier to use both eyes open.

Ther was an article in one of the gun mags ayear or two ago where David Fortier and Patrick Sweeney took a week long emercency medical course. During this course they each shot around 5000+ rounds of wolf ammo through Stag carbines with, if I remember right, only 5 or6 misfires. Pretty good performance with both ammo and weapons. I also think I remember reading that Stag has been making quality parts for 10-20 years. Enjoy your new tool and happy shooting. Mike

Stag is a brand name for Continental Machine and Tool (CMT).  They make a lot of the parts the other manufacturers use.  Stag/CMT is good stuff.

Thanks for the information and the welcome.

I can see a vertical grip and red dot in my future. Ammo will have to be a trial an error thing, I think.

There will be many pictures when I pick it up. It's dead sexy!!

Now I have to go get some rest, The flu is kicking my ass :(  

Thanks again,
Jon

I just wanted to clarify. You'll want to pick up some accurate consistant ammo. Steel cased Wolf is not it. But once you've sighted in your rifle, and you know what works best, steel cased ammo can be a cheap alternative. I bring friends down to the range to blow off rounds and they have no clue about accuracy. They just like the thrill of shooting. A $150 half case of wolf works well for this.

Great choice - I've got the 2LT - nice little tack driver - no problems.

great choice.

i had to "settle" for the plain old model 2 and i love it.

get whatever ammo you can find for reasonable prices.

make sure you post some pics.

The Stag 2T is a great rilfe.  It's the first firearm I ever owned and is responsible for my BRD.  I wasn't a fan of the stock or grip, so swapped them out for a Voltor Emod and a Magpul MIAD and added a Tango Down VFG up front. I found the Samson Star-C rails to be a little sharp so they got some XTM rail covers.  These add-ons were strictly for aesthetics and ergonomics.  If  had to say what was the one mod that I did which made the biggest difference it would be sending my trigger in to get worked on by Bill Springfield.  I had that done with the 3# JP spring option.  It's only a week turn around time and I live n Hawaii.  Best $45 I ever spent on my rifle.  The second best mod would have to be replacing the carbine buffer with an RRA 9mm buffer.  That only cost $25.  The 2T will eat almost any ammo you throw at it.  For cheap and accurate plinking I like 62gr Silver Bear.

Thats the gun I want!

I want to thank everyone for their input. It is all valuable to me and I will take it under consideration when I get some seat time on this rifle.

I was already eyeing The Magpul grip and magazines. I love the storage idea.

Thanks again,
Jon

Bolt rebuild FTW!

Get a BCM bolt upgrade kit.  It comes with an upgraded extractor spring, o ring, and black insert.  Throw in a H Buffer and stake your carrier key better, and you have significantly upgraded your Stag for under $20.  Thats what I did with my Stag, and it has run like a champ...

I'm over 6000 flawless rounds, carrier key screws have never moved.

Picked it up today. Such a nice gun.

They threw in a cleaning kit to boot. Considering I payed a few over MSRP....it eased the pain a little. They had zero ammo in stock but I found some at another shop. 50 rounds for $25. I am going to have to find a case somewhere.

Anyone else having issues finding .223 ammo?  

Also, does anyone know where I can get a couple Pmags ?   They seem to all be sold out......

Here are a few quick pictures. I have since stripped it down and clean/oiled it. I feel right at home with this gun. ....Warm fuzzy type of feeling LOL






Thanks,
Jon

ive got one and it runs flawlusly. Next to my colt its my favorite ar.

Very nice rifle!

My Stag 2T with mods

Both rifles pictured in this thread have lots of win!

Oh what the heck... can't resist.