I've come across a chance to purchase a used black rifle.  It's listed as a PWA but from what I've read here PWA never made complete rifles (the lower is stamped PWA).  The original owner is decease and the rifle is being sold by one of his kids who isn't sure about round counts, etc.  The price seems right and I kind of figure that at the least it looks to be a good entry into the AR world.  

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v684/jmwhite73/th_P1010039.jpg

The asking price is $550.00, does that sound reasonable??    The way I am looking at it is I'll be accessorizing it anyway so if there' something about it I don't like I'll just change it.  

Any opinons would be appreciated.

buy it and dont look back

Sounds like good deal but let me warn you: no black rifle costs $550. By the time your disease has run its course you will have spent thousands.

if there is an inspection period than i would






if it was face to face then this thread would have been labeled "my new rifle w/pics"

Quoted: Sounds like good deal but let me warn you: no black rifle costs $550. By the time your disease has run its course you will have spent thousands.hr

Oh ya, I know.  Kinda like my $400 SA XD-40 Tactical, a "cheap" way to  just get started in in USPSA matches.  In less than 6 months I'd spent another $300 dollars on a trigger job, milled slide to accept bo-mar sights, and a refinish on all of the metal parts......  That doesn't include all of the extra mags and the....and the......  hanks
edit to add quote

Quoted: if there is an inspection period than i would if it was face to face then this thread would have been labeled "my new rifle w/pics"hr

It's not an FTF, so that's why I'm looking for a little reassurance that at least the price is right...    The rifle is in CO and I'm in WV, the guy selling it seems to have a good rep from what I've seen and has been quick to respond through email with any info he can provide.   Anything through the internet or not FTF has some risk to it but this seems low on the risk scale.  

Hmmm,
PWA lower, A1 upper, with a 16" barrel and telescoping stock.
Definately a home built franken rifle!!
But $550 sounds good to me. However, if you are having to pay to have it shipped and then pay FFL fees for the transfer, etc. It could end up running well over $600.

For that, you could always build your own from a kit bought from a repectable dealer here, and you would have a new rifle of the same or possibly better quality.

Something to think about. I guess it depends on whether you are willing to build it yourself or get something quick.

Not a bad price if it's got a lower round count, but you don't know that, so buy it if you want.

$550-$600 (which is what you'll end up paying with a transfer fee and shipping) will get you a chrome-lined kit from J&T, Del-Ton, and possibly even Model 1(not recommended, the first 2 have a better reputation) and a $85-$90 Mega, Superior Arms, or Stag lower from the dealers in the EE.

You probably won't be disappointed with the PWA, though.

WIZZO

To be honest I've looked around the DIY section before but hadn't really compared prices.  Looks like I'll be spending a little more time over at the build it yourself part of the forum after just seeing that I can build a flat-top (what I really want) for basically the same as the other rifle.  As you guys said this would be a rifle that I know all of it's history.  Also the fun of assembling it myself...  he

Thanks again

I don't know what PWA is....what their level of quality, etc is....never heard of em....what I can tell you is my friend bought a new Olympic arms K3B for about $550. But the internal parts and barrel were of much rougher machining than my CMMG, which cost about $1000 for the basic gun.

I concur with the fellas who said that you will probably end up spending about the amount you spent on the gun to "upgrade it." But the parts probably will be an imperfect match, and you will probably end up feeling disappointed. Plus, my own personal view is that I would never buy a used gun, especially one where you don't know how many rounds went through it, you could end up having to replayce the  barrel, firing pin, who knows.....there's nothing like having a brand new, only test fired ar in your hands, all shiny with the factory grease still on the bolt smelling wonderful!

For what it's worth, my personal philosophy is to NOT go low end when you are buying a gun. My friend has gotten burned using the "quantity over quality" strategy....he bought a Llama 1911 clone....it was $200, rock bottom for a 1911, and he got what he paid for, the metal felt like wrought iron, and the slide retaining lug broke off after about 100 rounds.... If you are looking to buy an Ak, get a GOOD top of the line AK. If you are going to buy an AR, get a good AR. Colt, LMT, CMMG. There may not be much of a functional/reliablity difference between RRA and CMMG/LMT, but the differences in finish and precision of the parts is quite noticeable. So if that's important to you......ya know....

My 2 cents.

You could sell off thge PWA lower to one of us in the banned states.Say a few hundred bucks,then you could get 2 new lowers of excellent quality...just a thought.So $550 is a good price especialy since you get more than half that money back in return for just the sale of the lower.Im lucky I had 3 ARs way before the ban came.Its still leagl here though for the sale and transfer of pre 94 rifles.Then you could have some money to rebuild the upper with a quality barrel assembly and any parts you might want to start and upgrade.