I have 2 WW2 rifles in collection now aftewr seeing my cousins decked out AR15 I want one. Just not decked out I cant afford it. I have been looking and reading what's out there and it's all real nice. My problem is this. My budget allows me to spend about a max $600 no more. I was looking at the Olympic Arms in the Shotgun News for $499 I was like WOW! Perfect. Then I checked out the boards and some said "you get what you pay for". "It's cheap". Others praise it. So I turned to buying a complete lower and a complete upper. All I need is a sturdy rifle that will work when I want it to. Is Olympic Arms a good manufacturer? They offer a lifetime warranty. I don't need a Colt or a Rock River.

Here are a couple of options:

1) Buy a stripped lower (http://www.jobrelatedstuff.com/forums/topic.html?b=7&f=21&t=153544) for $89 and a kit from J&T for around 450-500.  That takes a  little work to put together, but in the end you have a good gun by all accounts.

2) Check out Adco firearms on the industry board.  There you can buy a complete lower for 210 and a complete upper for 370, and shipping is $4.  So, you just slap the upper on the lower and you have your 600 gun and it's all genuine RRA.  

Those are the options I'm considering for my next project.  Hope it helps.

Medic-1

The Oly has a life time warranty and is a good shooter.  However, many people here look down on it because it isn't as cool as their decked out M4s that have kitchen sinks bolted to them.  

RRA is a good name.  You might want to buy in pieces and pay the extra couple bones to get something that isn't a basic AR, or you might not.  Either way I think you would be happy, you jusy might be happier in the long term with RRA coolness factor.

I think catch223 really has all the answers, it looks like he has done his homework!

The best thing about assembling your own gun is the fact [b]you[/b] are assembling it.

You don't have to buy what is "standard".  You can make it your own.

In my experience (two rifles built) it was cheaper to put them together myself and I got exactly what I wanted.

Click on the Equipment Exchange thing above and search for Pete in New Hampshire.  He sells Rock River uppers and lowers.  As you aquire more funds you can buy more parts from him.  Once you get all the parts pile them up on your computer desk and we'll put it together together.

Ha ! Sounds like what I used to do with my Harley parts until the wife started to bitch at me for bouncing the mortgage check.

DPMS forged stripped lower = $100
OR RRA forged stripped lower = $125
RRA Lower Parts kit = $50
RRA A2 or Tac stock = $55
RRA upper M4A3 (called A4 by RRA) chrome-moly with 1x9 rifling = $368.89

Total $573.89.

And you can get it all from EE [:)]

Complete Eagle lower from Quantico Arms: $225
Standard 16" RRA A4 Upper from Adco or Norala Tactical Weaponry:                       $357

With Shipping and tranfer fee, you should be close enough to your $600 limit to make it worth while.  Those are quality manufacturers, and the pieces will go right together. (I've got 2 Eagle lowers, and one RRA...the RRA has an ATROCIOUS trigger, and the one in the Eagle is pretty nice for stock--the other is a match trigger--hence my recommendation to get the Eagle lower for a couple of $$ more).  

Or, Atlantic Arms has complete Cavalry Arms rifles for $599.  Once again, with transfer, you're barely over your budget.  

i was looking at a mega lower for 89 + ffl
a model 1 m4 kit for 525.00
3 30 round mag for 15.00 each
and a padded hard case for 80.00

for a grand total of $784.00  well under my $1000.00 budget  

also will by my first black riffle

My first AR started as cast Oly plinker lower for $87 and a Tapco M16 kit for $287 which included shipping. I ground down the M16 parts/bayo lug to make them into ar15 parts for a grand total of $374. It is a darn good shooter.

Another one was a fully assembled Cav Arms lower that I got through here on sale for $175. I found a used post ban 20" HBAR Bushmaster upper at a gunshow for $250 which included the bolt and handle. Total $425

I also built a rifle using a Continental Machine (generic) lower I bought for $100, plus a lower kit $50, plus a used stock/buffer $30, Colt M16 bolt/carrier ground down to AR15 specs used for $50, and a Colt SP1 large hole upper from ebay for $160 made into a post ban. Total was $390.

All are very functional and fun to shoot, if you look around you can buy used parts pretty cheaply.

Oh, in case you think I just have cheap beaters, I have also put together some pretty expensive guns, but don't tell my wife.

Someone emailed me about the generic Continental Machine machined lower. I bought two from a guy from assaultweb.net. They were marked as Century lowers. Apparently Continental makes the lowers for a number of well known manufacturers.

I can't remember who I got the Oly plinker lower from, but it was online and was new.  I have a close friend with an FFL so I didn't pay transfer fees or anything.

I've decided to go with a 2 piece build. A comp upper and a comp lower.

A DPMS BA-16TB Full length Free floating aluminum tube with M203 hand grip. The lower is yet to be chosen.

What kind of mags are you getting for $15? I've heard that anything other than USGI mags can cause problems.

This is my first as well if i did the math right with 2 30 round mags the total bill will be a little over $650 -FFL FEES. And it's the way I want it. I was going to buy an OLY arms $499 deal ,but after lots of advice rom this board I decided to do the half and half build thing. Spend a little more $$ but worth it for an upradeable rifle rather than a plain jane boring AR.
Would you rather have a V8 or a HEMI v8?