GO SHOOT THE GUN!

[aaron_c]

I agree completely with the concept described in the original post. I had shot a rifle with a red dot before I got one and thought it was incredible and an absolute necessity. So I got one! My rifle also came with no forearm so I just went ahead and put a Troy rail on it. A flashlight, mount, and VFG followed. I ran an EBRv2 for a few months and took it off to make the rifle more simple, but found that I really used it a lot and put it back on. What I learned through actually owning these things is what I liked and didn't like, and some things I'm still undecided on. I also learned that weight is higher on my priority list than I thought it would be. Also, rifle parts hold resale value very well in my experience so I was able to fund almost my entire rebuild with just the money from selling the things I didn't keep.

My new setup that's being put together right now- DD Omega rail (saves about 4 ounces and free floats the rail among other things), LMT rear sight with irons only, Magpul MOE grip (I hate the A2 as well), Surefire G2X and VTAC mount saves several ounces over my previous light setup, Vltor EMOD to balance the weight with the middy gas system that has always felt a bit front heavy, and an EBRv2.

[Cold]

Rob,

I agree to a certain point. I would say that this advice REALLY applies to "newbies" that have very little to no AR experience who get caught up in the customization black hole. Even more importantly when people need to think before they start adding buffers, springs, etc...without having fired a shot to know whether or not their weapon even functions.

I can't believe people actually have to be told to "go shoot the gun" to figure out what they need or don't need. I thought that was standard procedure. What the hell has happened?

[JSantoro]

I can't remember of the top of my head who it was that authored the "Why does the gun culture attract so many retards?" thread from a while back, but it plays a huge role in answering the above question.

Only a vanishingly small portion of American society as a whole, and the gun community in particular, think that sweat-equity is fun and of greater value than the shallow, instant gratification that's so readily available.

[mike boufford]

I can't believe people actually have to be told to "go shoot the gun" to figure out what they need or don't need. I thought that was standard procedure. What the hell has happened?

You mean like those same people who go out and buy a 4x4 pickup and then add all sorts of crap like lift kits, super offroad tires, and air shocks that they don't really need because they are never going to be in an offroad situation beyond a bumpy dirt road??????

[aaron_c]

What happened is this: Our hobby is just like any other hobby. People buy Porsches that never touch the track, people put huge lifts and tires on trucks that never leave the pavement, people buy golf clubs that sit, nice and shiny, in a closet for their entire lifetime, the list is endless. People do the same thing with guns (disclaimer: I don't lump gun collectors into this category necessarily, as their hobby is primarily the collecting).

[dookie1481]

I can't remember of the top of my head who it was that authored the "Why does the gun culture attract so many retards?" thread from a while back, but it plays a huge role in answering the above question.

Only a vanishingly small portion of American society as a whole, and the gun community in particular, think that sweat-equity is fun and of greater value than the shallow, instant gratification that's so readily available.

Sounds like a markm special.

[BCmJUnKie]

[QUOTE=JSantoro;1042592]I can't remember of the top of my head who it was that authored the "Why does the gun culture attract so many retards?" thread from a while back, but it plays a huge role in answering the above question.QUOTE]

And lets not forget the amazing "Who left the idiot gate open"... I believe that was another Rob_s classic

[bcowarriorspm]

I am guilty of putting gadgets I thought I needed on my first AR before I had fired one single round. My only AR/M4 platform experience comes from the military. My original thought was to make my AR similar to the M4's I had been issued, minus the laser device PEQ2's, etc. As a civilian I realized I have no need for any of that, my rifle is a hobby gun I just shoot it whenever I have time. I do not plan on grabbing my AR-15 if some intruder breaks in my house, that is what my cell phone is for. I guess that's another argument in itself.

[Palmguy]

I am guilty of putting gadgets I thought I needed on my first AR before I had fired one single round. My only AR/M4 platform experience comes from the military. My original thought was to make my AR similar to the M4's I had been issued, minus the laser device PEQ2's, etc. As a civilian I realized I have no need for any of that, my rifle is a hobby gun I just shoot it whenever I have time. I do not plan on grabbing my AR-15 if some intruder breaks in my house, that is what my cell phone is for. I guess that's another argument in itself.

I suppose it is. I hope the cops in your neck of the woods can get to your house faster than your intruder can get from your front door to wherever in the house you are. Good luck with that.

[wolf_walker]

I think I managed to bypass the add-on crap bit by having my first "grownup" gun being an SKS about 12 or 15 years back(read: poor married 19yo). Which I immediately picked up a chaote drag-queen stock for, bipod, etc, etc.
It took about six months till I'd sold all that crap and refinished the beat up ole 1958 stock and learned to appreciate what the weapon did well, pretty much like it came from the factory. I needed more work than it did. While I do have a few things on my AR, it's nothing that isn't out of the box on half of them anyway now. I just wish I had more time to shoot and refine things, and all my old shooting spots that I put thousands or rounds through that SKS and AK's and MN's and Mausers have trailer parks and crap on them now. I envy the crap out of the videos I see of you gents out west with wide open desolate places to shoot.

But yes, shoot the gun, drive the car, then fiddle with it.