I've been lurking for a while and I finally registered last week.  I'm about a month away from purchasing my first AR.  I stopped at the local firearms shop to do a little browsing and ask a few questions.  First off the guy at the shop told me I should only buy a Bushmaster because it's the only rifle made to mil-spec.  He said if I bought anything else I would have a hard time getting replacement parts.  Is this guy full of sheep dip?  

I've been looking around and am considering a 20" Heavy Barrel Target XME15-E2S BushMaster which AimSurplus is selling for $699.95  What are your opinions of this rifle?  Should I be considering something different?  I am interested in participating in the High Power matches held at my local range.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Chris

I'm by no means a pro here for sure, but you may want to wait for some of these guys on here to set this straight...that guy is feeding you crap..look at some of the other post under search, type in like 1st ar15, and read. Thats what I did and I found out that most on here will be honest with their experiences.....Trucker

Sounds like a great choice and a good price to me.  You really can't go wrong with a Bushmaster.

That said, my Rock River setup is perfect in finish, function and accuracy.  It eats all the crappy Wolf ammo I put through it without any problems too.  I've also had Olympic stuff that is nice as well.

I just really haven't seen all the problems with AR's that people complain about.  Personally, I think all the major brands are reliable, accurate, nicely finished and fun as heck to shoot.

Don't second guess yourself.  Get that AR and get out to the range!

BBURN

The local dealer is dealing in cheep sheep schit.

I'm not familar with the model Bushmaster you mention but B/M makes a very good "AR".  (Don't believe the mil-spec crap either.)

You might remember that the AR in AR-15 stands for ArmaLite - at least take a look at armalite.com for a competition AR.

Quoted: Sounds like a great choice and a good price to me.  You really can't go wrong with a Bushmaster. That said, my Rock River setup is perfect in finish, function and accuracy.  It eats all the crappy Wolf ammo I put through it without any problems too.  I've also had Olympic stuff that is nice as well. I just really haven't seen all the problems with AR's that people complain about.  Personally, I think all the major brands are reliable, accurate, nicely finished and fun as heck to shoot. Don't second guess yourself.  Get that AR and get out to the range! BBURN

Glad to hear your having good luck with the Rock River. I have one ordered..Trucker

Bushmaster is indeed an excellent brand, but there are many other equally good brands.  Colt, RRA, DPMS, Armalite, and Olympic Arms all build very good ARs.  When it comes to "oddness" the only real culprit is Colt, who produced a lot of things that will not interchange with other manufacturers, such as their large hole uppers/large pin lowers.  I wouldn't worry too much as "milspec-ness".  Buy one and go have fun!

BTW, welcome aboard.

The only time I've dealt with armalite was when I bought my AR-10.  The gun is sweet, but the service-length of time to get is was horrible.  I paid for it up front (not sure if everyone does this when ordering) and armalite raised the price on me during the year it took them to make it.  The only reason I got my rifle within a year was because the dealer was a friend of mine and checked up on it alot.  To say the least I was very disappointed with the customer service armalite provided.


That being said I'd suggest you check out DPMS.  Their rifles are very nice, have had some excellent reviews in magazines I've read, and are affordable.

Bushmaster is an excellent choice. What do you want to do with it? I ask because heavy barrels suck. They are just that,"heavy". If your buying a sport utility rifle (general purpose) stay away from the HBar if you can. For a standard length barrel, Govt. profile is the way to go. You wont lose accuracy for G.P. shooting.

Wow guys thanks for all the responses.  This is exactly what I was looking for.  I've shot two AR type rifles.  One was the 2001 LEGP and the other was one built up using one of Tapco's M16 kits from last year.  They were a ton of fun to shoot.  I primarily shoot C&R bolt action rifles but I do own a FAL and AK.  I was torn between getting a M1 Garand and a AR.  I decided to go with the AR.
Once again thanks everyone
Chris

You sound like me...lol...Waiting on the AR to be shipped and saving for the m1 garand. Both fun guns to shoot!

First off the guy at the shop told me I should only buy a Bushmaster because it's the only rifle made to mil-spec.

That's not entirely true, but at least he's hawking a good brand.

They are just that,"heavy". If your buying a sport utility rifle (general purpose) stay away from the HBar if you can. For a standard length barrel, Govt. profile is the way to go. You wont lose accuracy for G.P. shooting.

No one makes a 20 inch post-ban barrel in government profile yet. I'd say get the HBAR and send it to Kurt's Kustom and have hime turn down the diameter to government profile. Kurt charges $55 for this and it's a helluva lot cheaper than buying a pre-ban barrel and having it modified. Takes away about a pound of excess weight.

All that being said, I would only buy an AR for general plinking and informal target shooting with a chrome-lined bore and chamber. That knocks out DPMS, most Rock River products, most of the newer Colts, and leaves you with ArmaLite and Bushmaster. I prefer ArmaLite, but even with Bushmaster, you can't go wrong.

Welcome aboard.

As others have mentioned, the Bushmaster is a fine rifle – but there are many other manufacturers of good AR’s out there.  

Parts from these other manufacturers are also readily available.  However, that’s pretty much a non-issue anyway since MOST parts between AR’s of different manufacturers are interchangeable.  Just because you’ve got Bushmaster doesn’t mean you can only replace its bolt with a Bushmaster bolt.

Technically, there is no such-a-thing as a mil-spec semi-auto AR-15.  The military uses only full auto (or burst fire) rifles incorporating wicked devices such as bayonet lugs and flashhiders.  Admittedly the Bushmaster does come pretty close to mil-spec.

Incidentally, part of the fun - to me - of an AR over say an M-1 or FAL is that the ammo is so cheap – lets you shoot a lot more!

First off the guy at the shop told me I should only buy a Bushmaster because it's the only rifle made to mil-spec.  He said if I bought anything else I would have a hard time getting replacement parts.  Is this guy full of sheep dip?

The thing that is untrue here is that Bushmaster is the "only" Milspec rifle.

I've been looking around and am considering a 20" Heavy Barrel Target XME15-E2S BushMaster which AimSurplus is selling for $699.95  What are your opinions of this rifle?  Should I be considering something different?  I am interested in participating in the High Power matches held at my local range. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Chris

It is a fine rifle for what you want to use it for (I have the same one) The price you quote is also good. I paid about $50 more for mine about a year ago. Sukebe is right the HBAR does get a little heavy for general shooting but it will help you be more steady for your match shooting (at least it is for me)

One suggestion: Check you local range's rules on using A3 (removable carry handle) for their matches. Some don't allow it so you would need to get an A2 model.

Mike

The one thing that Bushmaster has that the rest doesn't, is a Mil-spec 5.56 chamber.  This is a little bigger than the .223 Rem SAMMI Spec chambers, so it tends to be more reliable, and will shoot mil-surplus ammo better.  Armalite was supposedly changing to the 5.56 chamber, but I haven't heard if they actually have or not.  Just for the 5.56 chamber alone I would choose Bushmaster over the others (at least a Bushy upper).

Just my $0.0002