Hello all. I, like many others, am going to sink my hard earned tax rebate into a nice new AR. I have shot since I was 8 years old  but mainly only pistols and .22 lr. This will be my first center fire rifle. I plan on going into the army (infantry) within a couple of months and want a nice plinking / self defence weapon so I though hey, kill two birds and get what i am going to train with. I know I want a rail on top for some cqb optics later on. Was thinking about a EO tech. Do I need to get a removable front sight on this rifle? If I want to mount a regular scope at some point will I need to replace the front gas block/front sight? I have seen a lot of red dots mounted with the iron sights so not sure about that. I want it to be something good for close in to medium distances. I have looked at a lot of different manufacturers and have pretty much come down to DPMS, RRA, and Bushmaster. I have held examples of all of them and liked the polish of the RRA entry tac, but am not sure about the usfullness of the removable tac cary handle. I can get it for around $860. The DPMS AP4 is nice too. It's not as clean but feels nice and the good people who work at my gun store (Whittakers Guns, the greatest gun store ever...) say it shoots very well and the price is right at around $750. The only reason I include Bushmaster is because so many people here love them but i am not sure why. It didn't seem any different than any of the other rifles I picked up except maybe it was a little looser. I will get a 6.8 spc upper at some point because I have serious doubts about the ability of the 5.56 to stop someone quickly. And since it will most likely be a DPMS upper it makes sense to me to have the DPMS lower. Better fit and all. I apologize for the length of the post but this is a large amount of money and it's my first real rifle so I want to get it right. Thanks in advance for the help.

Joshua

broke it up to make it easier on the eyes.

Quoted: Hello all. I, like many others, am going to sink my hard earned tax rebate into a nice new AR. I have shot since I was 8 years old  but mainly only pistols and .22 lr. This will be my first center fire rifle. I plan on going into the army (infantry) within a couple of months and want a nice plinking / self defence weapon so I though hey, kill two birds and get what i am going to train with. I know I want a rail on top for some cqb optics later on. Was thinking about a EO tech. Do I need to get a removable front sight on this rifle? usually, redots are co-witnessed with irons If I want to mount a regular scope at some point will I need to replace the front gas block/front sight? with about 3x and up you dont see the front sight even if its right in front of it I have seen a lot of red dots mounted with the iron sights so not sure about that. I want it to be something good for close in to medium distances. again, co-witnessed I have looked at a lot of different manufacturers and have pretty much come down to DPMS, RRA, and Bushmaster. I have held examples of all of them and liked the polish of the RRA entry tac, but am not sure about the usfullness of the removable tac cary handle. I can get it for around $860. polish? do you mean the stainless barrels? the tac carry handle is crap and was designed for the aimpoint mounted in the cheap low mount since that is the only thing that works on it and the battery compartment is for the aimpoint The DPMS AP4 is nice too. It's not as clean but feels nice and the good people who work at my gun store (Whittakers Guns, the greatest gun store ever...) say it shoots very well and the price is right at around $750. personal preference The only reason I include Bushmaster is because so many people here love them but i am not sure why. It didn't seem any different than any of the other rifles I picked up except maybe it was a little looser. the fitment varies regardless of who it came from, all of my bushmasters' have a nice fit and they offer better quality parts in my opinion I will get a 6.8 spc upper at some point because I have serious doubts about the ability of the 5.56 to stop someone quickly. i'd rather have an upper that is slow on stopping bad guys than a 6.8 club with a clean bore And since it will most likely be a DPMS upper it makes sense to me to have the DPMS lower. Better fit and all. again fitment and finish will vary I apologize for the length of the post but this is a large amount of money and it's my first real rifle so I want to get it right. Thanks in advance for the help. Joshua

keep reading the boards there is lots of info here