Just curious if anyone has any experience with them & are they worth the money.

Thanks!

For the price yes, good guns to plink with.

It all depends on who you ask.

Oh god.  Here's this months oly bashing thread.

Are they worth it?  You always get what you pay for.

Are they as nice as a KAC, no.  Do they work, yes...for the most part.

Will it get you hooked and force you to sell off your life insurance to buy more, absolutely.

I love mine! always shoots no matter the ammo. accurate as I am, I shot 5 shot groups that could be covered with a quarter.

My friend has one.  To me, the quality looks fine, and he's never had a problem shooting it.  

Although I do believe the magwell may be out of spec, some mags are very tight in there, and will not drop free, which will in my AR.  

The oly is the A1 with scope mounted.

Spend a little more and get a RRA or a Bushie.

I have 2 Olys... Both are fine.

great in it's price range.




you get what you pay for.

I like mine

Good for plinking, but for the same price you could probablt build something better. I had one for a while and was happy with it's performance, but then I didn't take it to any carbine classes or anything. I only sold it because it wasn't the config I really wanted.

And......enter MarkM......
any second now......

Of the major lower mfg's, I think that I've owned one of each
Oly is a good lower (PCR)  7 on  1 to 10 scale

Colt  9
Essential 6
PWA  8
Eagle (preban)8
RRA 8
Tromix 8
Sendra 6

I can't speak on the newer companies (Stag, J&T (DS), Ameetec) as I've not owned any of them.  I've also not included the CAV as it's in a class of it's own.

Just my .02

I say NO.  I bought a brand new OLY lower that would NOT drop most of my mags.  I sent it back to OLY and when I got it back I was told there was no problem with the lower and it was within spec.  All these mags work fine in my STAG & Bushmaster.

I have several Olys and all are just as reliable, at least as accurate, and look just as good as the other name brand ARs I have (Stag,LMT,ect...). But, as with any company you could get a lemon!

Quoted: It all depends on who you ask.

+1

Oly has a pretty impressive warranty if you are concerned about having problems. Also Clinton at http://www.carricozarmory.com has some very competative prices on Oly and RR. I am looking at a K8 Target Match, just can't beat the price. For what I save over a RR or Bushy I can put good glass on the rifle. IMHO

Oly is decent.  If it were a difference of $200-300, I would buy an Oly. $50-150, I would just spend a little extra cash and get what I want.

The Oly mag well is entirely within mil-spec. When I firest got it I had some cheap steel aftermarket mags that would not drop free. But since then all I use is 30rd USGI mags and they all drop free very easily. I just bought a whole bunch of black teflon USGI mags from 44MAG.com and they all drop free and the mags are awesome.

About Oly's now. I went thru the same thing before I decided to buy mine. I asked a lot of questions about them and decided to go ahead and try one even thought everyone told me to go with the bushmaster. I went and bought a Oly M4A3 profile 16" stainless barrel with collapsible stock. I was impressed when I got it and the thing is ACCURATE for not having a match barrel. Stainless or chrome lined it really doesn't matter unless you are in Iraq and stainless barrels are more accurate anyway. Besides the price is right for Oly's and they have great personnel customer service and a great warranty on their all their guns. Their match SUM barrels are some of the most accurate in the AR industry. My next hopeful buy will be a SUM upper or whole new gun for some long range varmit and predator shootin.

Reliability is never been an issue so far at all. The fit and finish is great and there is absolutely no play between the recievers. I have never had a malfunction shooting any type of ammo so far (Olympic 5.56, Wolf 55gr, PMC, Winchester 55gr and 45gr, Federal 55gr, Maine Cartridge Company 55gr, some reloaded 55gr off of Gunbroker.com and others) Not one malfunction at all with any part of the gun yet.

I have mine topped with a brand new Aimpoint M3 (2moa) with a promag cantiliver mount, YHM railed handguards with rail covers, 3pt tactical sling, Ergo rear grip and promag vertical grip, ARMS A2 BUIS, and a Pentagon X2HA flashlight with a Viking tactical mount and a bunch of black teflon D&H 30rd USGI mags.
I just started a LEO job so hopefully I can use this on duty now, otherwise I have to use a Mini-14, heaven forbid!!

I use my Oly for primarily varmit (jacks, skunks, prairie dogs) and predator hunting, I have shot a lot of coyotes this year with a cheap T168 scope and now my Aimpoint from 10yds to 300yds. This gun is definetly more accurate than I can be with it and I have shot some 1/2" groups with it a few times at 100yds with the Winchester 45gr Varmit stuff. Now I am releoding some 52gr SMK HPBT for coyotes and stuff and some 77gr SMK HPBT for long distance and self defense stuff.

I hope this helps you out, don't be afraid to go with OLY. Atlantic Firearms has some very good prices on Olys also. That is where I bought mine off of.

You get what you pay for.

I have had no problems with mine, and I beat the hell out of it.  It seems that Oly used to have some issues, but have since been corrected.  From what I can put together, the last year or so are great rifles.  Before that, I can not personaly vouch for.  My oly is my plinker, and eats wolf like there is not tomorrow.  It's suprisingly accurate (with the right ammo) and I have NEVER had a FTF, FTE problem with it.  I only use USGI teflon mags.  

no issues with my CAR97-M4

I have been perfectly happy with my Oly.  

You get what you pay for.  

They are great starter ARs. Or if you want the feel without spending a lot of money.

NO

I found this picture of mine

After careful thought and reading all your replies, I called up my local gun shop and this weekend I'm ordering this:

www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp

I'm one excited fellow, lemme tell ya!!

Quoted: After careful thought and reading all your replies, I called up my local gun shop and this weekend I'm ordering this: www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp I'm one excited fellow, lemme tell ya!!

I cannot get anything on your URL.  Check it OK.  We all wana know what you decided on>

It is the Bushmaster 16in M4 Type Rifle with Izzy Flash Suppressor. Let me see if I can fix his link...

www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp

There, try that.

On another note, to you Oly naysayers, could you please give reasons as to why you dislike them instead of just saying "You get what you pay for" or "NO!" For we AR beginners out there, that doens't really help.

With the Bushy you WILL be happier.  I had a Oly and I agre its a good starter rifle but its like getting a 125 dirt bike after the first week you ask yourself why didnt I get a 250?  You have for a while and then want to upgrade.  Let the flaming begin....

Quoted: It is the Bushmaster 16in M4 Type Rifle with Izzy Flash Suppressor. Let me see if I can fix his link... www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp

I have two of those.  They are very nice weapons but I think you will find that the barrel is really 14 1/2". That's why the suppressor is premanently attached to make it 16" legal.  With military spec ammo you are going to have a very loud weapon with a huge muzzle flash.  Just want to make you aware of that.  With the full 16" and the birdcage you get a little more muzzle velocity with less noise and no fireball.  I have two 14 1/2s, one 16" and one 20" Colt.  They are all great for their intended purpose.  Have fun.

Quoted: After careful thought and reading all your replies, I called up my local gun shop and this weekend I'm ordering this: www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp I'm one excited fellow, lemme tell ya!!

GOOD MAN!

DANG!  I don't get credit for this SAVE!

But any save from the OLY mistake is a good thing no matter who gets credit!

This is Olympic's Premium Ultramatch Rifle. It has a broached SS barrel, 2-stage trigger, Harris bipod, Maxxhard metal treatment and their premium matched receivers. Some gun magazine (SWAT, IIRC) called it “the most accurate AR target rifle ever made”, It's capable of <.5moa or they fix it.

It goes for $1,559. They are not a stock item, each one is custom built. They are sold mostly to competitors and demented long-range varmit shooters.

If you take the time to learn about what Oly does, you'll find some very nice rifles.

I own five of them, so I am speaking as a customer. I do help out at the Oly booth at gunshows once in a while, though I'm not on the payroll.

If I win big in the lotto, I'm buying the company. If I do, I'll probably drop their low end starter rifles completely so all these assholes can't go around comparing a $550 economy rifle to a $950 combat-ready rifle.

Quoted: It is the Bushmaster 16in M4 Type Rifle with Izzy Flash Suppressor. Let me see if I can fix his link... www.bushmaster.com/shopping/weapons/bcwa3f14m4iz.asp There, try that. On another note, to you Oly naysayers, could you please give reasons as to why you dislike them instead of just saying "You get what you pay for" or "NO!" For we AR beginners out there, that doens't really help.

Oly is not the best out there.  I think they are ok for the price. Some parts in the LPK are not blued or coated like my other ARs. The Grip screw and A2 buttstock screw are shiny silver Phillip's head not like the nice coated allenhead you get on my other ARs.  They do not offer chrome lined barrels.  They use 4140 steeland not 4150 like Colt and Bushmaster.  No good in the resale in my experience.  The lowers can be out of spec.  I have one that is good but I have freds that cant use some mags.  I have 6 ARs and have owned one Oly.  I sold off all but the lower and I put a Colt LPK in it. I have it under a .50 Beo AA upper only because I like their symbol they put on the lower.

Quoted: On another note, to you Oly naysayers, could you please give reasons as to why you dislike them instead of just saying "You get what you pay for" or "NO!" For we AR beginners out there, that doens't really help.

I always like to post this classic Oly SYNOPSIS!!

Quoted: I USED TO SELL OLYMPICS.   I also stock Colts, BM, RRA, and AR.   Wanna know what the #1 most repaired AR15 in my shop is?  OLYMPIC.   I don't sell them anymore.   Wanna know what the most repaired AR15 in my store is now?  Still the OLYMPIC.   Wanna know what I've had to send Olys back for?  You name it.   Wanna know how hard it is to get repair parts/replacement parts/financial reimbursement for shipping NEW guns back to OLY for warranty work as a gun dealer?  IMPOSSIBLE!!!!!! Several distributors have even stopped carrying Olympic rifles because of the high reject rate once they get to the dealers. They might, sometimes, take care of the individual owner, but as a dealer, I believe that they have a black list, and if you're on it, you're screwed.   I've actually had OLY on the phone with a customer in my shop, and they have actually told the guy that there was nothing wrong, and if he shipped it back, they would not fix it.  The rifle had a broken bolt.  Sheared off 2 lugs, broke at the cam pin hole, and damaged the bolt carrier. I fixed it, with BM parts that were available to me at the time.  I sent the bill to OLY, never got a response.  Sold the debt off to a collection agency, along with all the other repairs that I had to do on OLY guns.  Now, if an OLY comes in for repair, I advise the individual that it will cost them an open ended amount and get them to sign the estimate before I'll even touch it. SHOT show 2002 I took them a box of the parts that I had replaced from their guns that I could not get reimbursement for. I'll guarntee I've owned/handled/shot more OLYs since 1999 than you ever will, unless you work at Oly or a gun store. There is, at best 15% profit in retail guns.  Olys eat up my 15% on repair parts/shipping/gunsmith time almost as soon as they get unpacked.  No more! Now, about their issues, still "Pretty sure they have been resolved by now" ????? Or is my post worthless, too? Tom

Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal.

Quoted: Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal.

Solid facts are the LAST things you got from this thread.

Quoted: Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal.

I saw that.  Whats with the low price on the Plinker Plus?

A1 sights, fixed stock, etc. Just a very simplistic rifle. No frills whatsoever.

Fom the BM link:  "Carbine includes a permanently installed Bushmaster Izzy Flash Suppressor "

Just be aware that if that's what you ordered, your kind of stuck with that Izzy FS, which is not the most desirable one.  These are pinned and welded in place.  It's possible to remove them, but it typically isn't something that most users want to tackle.  

Quoted: Quoted: Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal. Solid facts are the LAST things you got from this thread.

Yup......I honestly believe 99% of the bashers have never owned one.

I had one for 4 years, never a problem with it, sold it to finance something else ( at a profit , no less )...while I have a Bushmaster now, I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Oly.

Now you guys are just going and getting me confused. The problem is, I can't do the arfcom thing and buy both, since I don't have the funds necessary to complete such a task with any speed.

Quoted: Now you guys are just going and getting me confused. The problem is, I can't do the arfcom thing and buy both, since I don't have the funds necessary to complete such a task with any speed.

Well, my thoughts on that is.....wait....just because you have enough to buy one at the low end of the spectrum ( price wise)...doesn't mean you should. I know what's it's like to have money burning a hole in your pocket, but instant gratification isn't allways the best course.
 Take some time to research, save up a couple of hundred more and get something that is EXACTLY what you want.

I do have until September to wait, as that is when I turn the big 18. Guess it won't hurt to keep on researching right up until the date I can go pick one up. That's the best advice I have gotten all day

Other than the lack of staking on a Oly M16 carrier I got...

They are pretty decent. I probably wouldn't use their standard barrels mainly because I am not a fan of chrome moly versus chrome lined(and they us 4140 steel vs 4150 which is mil spec), but the SS ones are very nice.

I've used an oly upper and lower, and can't tell the difference between them and the others.

I would go so far as to say its about on par as the CMT/Stag civie stuff, with the difference being the barrels on the stag uppers are chrome lined 4140.

Quoted: Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal.

I am no expert, but I was kind of in your shoes a few years ago. As a matter of fact, if the dealer you are talking about is Dick, then I was definitely in your shoes. Dick was a friend of a friend so I purchased an Oly. Never had any trouble and a year later purchased another Oly. Still no problems. I then found out about this website, did lots of reading and heard all the complaints about Oly. My last two rifles (BRD have
Anyway, my two cents...

Quoted: Quoted: Solid facts are the LAST things you got from this thread. Yup......I honestly believe 99% of the bashers have never owned one.

True!  We were smart enough to take note of the Junk we saw first hand and ask questions before making a foolish mistake!

Buy you go ahead and keep thinking it's a VAST conspiracy.  Face it!  You're just offering a childish reaction from finding out that you have a weapon that you CAN'T count on to go the distance.

Oh Snap!

Quoted: Quoted: Thank you, I do appreciate getting some solid facts on Olys. The reason I was looking at them is because the dealer is my friend, and Olys are all he sells. The Plinker Plus model appealed to me because of the price. I guess I will check out the ABCR's and try and find a deal. I am no expert, but I was kind of in your shoes a few years ago. As a matter of fact, if the dealer you are talking about is Dick, then I was definitely in your shoes. Dick was a friend of a friend so I purchased an Oly. Never had any trouble and a year later purchased another Oly. Still no problems. I then found out about this website, did lots of reading and heard all the complaints about Oly. My last two rifles (BRD have Anyway, my two cents...

Yep, Dick is the guy I was talking about. His shop is only about a mile away from where i am sitting right now. Thanks for the advice.

In addition to theie lifetime warranty they also have this

Satisfaction Guarantee Above and beyond that, we guarantee complete customer satisfaction. If you are not completely satisfied for any product or warranty related reason* with anything purchased directly from Olympic Arms, simply return it to us within 60 days along with a copy of the original invoice, and we will be happy to provide you with a replacement of equal value, in-house credit, or a refund** (S&H Charges are not refunded), your choice. This Satisfaction Guarantee also applies to all firearms purchased through an FFL dealer. If within 60 days from the date of the purchase of the firearm from your dealer you are dissatisfied with your purchase for any reason, your dealer may return it to us for a full refund of his entire purchase price (S&H charges are not refundable). No problem.

I thought that was kinda cool.

I just bought a Olympic Arms lower to do a build on, as it's darker color matches the LMT upper a bit better than RRA/Bushy.

Anyways, their new forged lowers are sweet, the magazines drop free no problem, and the lower is for the most part just as good as any name brand AR-15 lower. But that's just the lower.

I say build a rifle yourself.

Quoted: A1 sights, fixed stock, etc. Just a very simplistic rifle. No frills whatsoever.

Thanks   I didn't even look at the sights.  I didn't think anyone made a new ARs with A1 sights.