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Do I need to get an AR or AK?


Rye Miles #13621

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With all this talk about an "Assault Weapon ban, do I need to go get one? I've had a couple and also a Ruger mini-14 but sold them all, I have really no where to shoot 'em except at an indoor range at 75 FEET! Should I get one because of all this talk??

 

I do have a Mosin Nagant in 7.62x54 that I can't shoot anywhere but I got it for $100.00 years ago and it's just really cool!!;)

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Can't be a gun totin God fearin deplorable without one.:P:FlagAm:

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I purchased an AR back when Hillery was running. Just because.

I purchased a .40cal and got a concealed carry renewed when the Nashville nut job mayor was cranking down on guns and my job required to pass on through Nashville all too often. Just because.

Then my neighbor got me shooting SASS. Now it resides in my safe.

I own one because "everyone" should own one. It's like voting, everyone should be engaged of you feel strongly about the subject. I don't need one (today), but it took six cops 56 rounds to put down the shooter in Dayton and I don't have that capacity with any of my other guns! You must have the right tools for the job at hand...

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Just like Blast Masterson, my wife and I both got AR's back in 2015 after the mass shooting occurred in San Bernardino, California.

There was extensive talk of banning these weapons, so I quickly purchased them to by-pass any potential ban.

Haven't had any reason to use them; however, if our squirrel problem doesn't get resolved with air rifles, maybe we'll have to resort to....:o

 

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Get an AR - you will  have MUCH greater flexibility.  First and foremost there is an almost bottomless pit of trinkets you can attach to an AR-15 and parts are easier to find. 

 

You can buy one and then build a collection of uppers that will allow you to change calibers as needed.

-Want to shoot AK ammo because you found a great deal on cheap AK ammo?  Buy a complete upper chambered in 7.62x39 and off you go - you don't even need new magazines.

-Want to go out and shoot feral hogs?   Buy a complete upper chambered in 300 Blackout or .458 SOCOM and whack away - endless bacon and both calibers can be loaded into standard AR15 magazines

-Want to see how small you can make your shot groups at 600 yards - buy a complete upper chambered for 6.5 Grendel - again, same magazines

-Want to take it into the woods and shoot Bambi's mom?  Get an upper in 6.8 SPC... and again, you can use the same magazines.

-Just want to plInk away at rabbits and squirrels?  No problem - there are all sorts of .AR15/22 LR conversions on the market

 

Hell, there is even a single shot bolt action upper for the AR15 that will shoot .50 BMG if you need to be the first kid on your block with a 50-Cal.

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No. No you don't.

 

This whole they're probably going to outlaw them so I need to buy one while they're still legal thing is one of the stupidest things I've heard of lately.

 

Do you want an Evil Black Rifle? If so, and you can afford one, by all means get one.

 

But if you do not have the desire to own one, buying one because they're going to outlaw them is dumb.

 

I don't own an AR. Why? The same reason that I don't own a Glock, or a Hi Point, or a Mossberg shotgun. I don't like them.

 

I've got a Mini 14. And yes, there are many more accessories available for an AR. Magazines are much cheaper for an AR. Don't care. I've shot an AR a few times. I did not like it. If they ban them or if they do not ban them is irrelevant. I will not buy an AR. I did not buy one because Hillary Clinton was going to outlaw them. I did not buy one because the Kenyan was going to outlaw them. And I see no reason to buy one now.

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Both are fun at the range and economical to shoot.  The AK47 is better suited for medium game.  The AR15 is better suited for small game or varmint in the standard 5.56 nato chambering.  It is much easier to change the cartridge (two pins) on the AR platform than on the AK.

 

Then you can start looking at AR10 and Saiga 12ga.  Or a post ban compliant KelTec KSG pump action bullpup shotgun.  Talk about fun on a texas star.

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33 minutes ago, Alpo said:

No. No you don't.

 

This whole they're probably going to outlaw them so I need to buy one while they're still legal thing is one of the stupidest things I've heard of lately.

 

Do you want an Evil Black Rifle? If so, and you can afford one, by all means get one.

 

But if you do not have the desire to own one, buying one because they're going to outlaw them is dumb.

 

I don't own an AR. Why? The same reason that I don't own a Glock, or a Hi Point, or a Mossberg shotgun. I don't like them.

 

I've got a Mini 14. And yes, there are many more accessories available for an AR. Magazines are much cheaper for an AR. Don't care. I've shot an AR a few times. I did not like it. If they ban them or if they do not ban them is irrelevant. I will not buy an AR. I did not buy one because Hillary Clinton was going to outlaw them. I did not buy one because the Kenyan was going to outlaw them. And I see no reason to buy one now.

You make a lot of sense and you're reminding me of why I sold 2 different AR's and also a Mini-14. Nowhere to shoot 'em and I hate safe queens unless they're really worth something and it's a collectible, which I do not have. Thanks pard! ;)

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Part of the Heller decision mentioned number of people who own a type of gun,  since then gun companies made lower  cost ones to increase ownership so that the courts would overturn the ban that might get passed. Besides,  they are a good investment when Democrats are in power as they go up in price you can sell them for every time there is a shooting 

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I would rather have one than not.

I would rather have one because I can.

I do not like it when bureaucrats tell me what I can and cannot do.

I am an American and I do what I want within the law, unless the law is unjust.

If you do not want one then do not buy one. Simple. 

I think I will buy another. Because I can.

 

Yes, you can have ARs in California. You just have to make them look funny.

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4 hours ago, Rye Miles #13621 said:

With all this talk about an "Assault Weapon ban, do I need to go get one? I've had a couple and also a Ruger mini-14 but sold them all, I have really no where to shoot 'em except at an indoor range at 75 FEET! Should I get one because of all this talk??

 

I do have a Mosin Nagant in 7.62x54 that I can't shoot anywhere but I got it for $100.00 years ago and it's just really cool!!;)

 

The issue should be whether you decide you want one, not the government deciding you can't have one.

 

I  have a Mosin Nagant that was captured by the Finns.  I grew up in an area of northeast Ohio with a lot of people of Finnish heritage.  I started studying Finnish history and acquired a captured piece in homage to the stand the Finns took during the Winter War and Continuation War.

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While Alpo makes a valid point about panic buying, and I agree that it's highly unlikely that the Feds will make ARs, AKs, and the other evil looking rifles illegal, I have to point out that you can never tell what your state legislature might do.

10 years ago I never would have guessed that Clorado would pass more restrictive background checks and high cap magazine bans. But liberals got in contrtol of the State House and that happened.:angry: And if a lib gets in the White House and they control Congress, all bets are off.

I say if you can get them at a decent price go ahead (and almost any AR or AK right now is a decent price due to the plethora of manufacturers). Even if they become safe queens for now.

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I only bought an AR because I wanted to carry a patrol rifle, and, well, the only expediently-available certification classes were for those of us with AR15 rifles. (One other rifle, the Mini-14, was approved.) I would have gladly carried a lever rifle on patrol, had it been allowed. (I worked for Houston PD, in Texas, 1984 to 2018, and we buy our own duty firearms.) Being a big-city LEO does not mean that I am any kind of expert, of course.

 

As for the weapon, itself, the AR15 is lefty-friendly, which I like, but when the selector is set for semi-auto fire, the “dingus is down.” If y’all don’t remember reading Jeff Cooper, a “dingus” is a slide-mounted safety, on an auto-loading pistol, such as a 3rd-Generation S&W, or Beretta 92/M9. Jeff Copper admonished those adopting such pistols, “Don’t get caught with your dingus down,” meaning, remember to off-safe before trying to shoot. When training myself to remember to off-safe my S&W autos, after having first learned to use 1911 pistols, with safety levers that operated in the opposing direction, I remembered to make sure the safety is aligned with the opponent/target, regardless of system. 1911, BHP, 3rd-Gen S&W; no problem, align safety lever with the enemy, to shoot.

 

Well, then, along comes the AR15, into my life, that is ready to shoot, when the dingus is down. I think the relevant term is “cognitive dissonance.” During a stressful moment, that moment of cognitive dissonance can be very distracting. After a while, when plenty more of the young bucks, with younger knees and younger eyes, had completed their patrol rifle cert classes, I let my patrol rifle certification lapse. (The annual qual was timed, and not easy if one had bad knees.) There are still times that a shotgun serves a vital role, such as breaching, and penetrating vehicles with hardened slugs, and, moreover, I worked straight nights, when a shotgun was usually the logical long weapon, anyway.

 

To be clear, I am not anti-AR15; my point is that adopting a totally new weapon system system can have its drawbacks, especially if something about the new system clashes with one’s prior training. As I said, in my first paragraph, above, I would have gladly carried a lever rifle, on patrol, had it been OK with the command staff. Other rifle systems have a safety lever that is aligned with the enemy when ready to fire, so, it would have been nice, for me, to be able to choose one of them.

 

I have kept my AR15 weapons, seeing no reason to switch,  or change anything, after having gone to the trouble to train with them. If nothing else, it seems “right” to have a working knowledge of our military’s rifle.

 

As for the AK system, I have never used an AK, so have not formed an opinion. If I am toting a rifle, during a critical incident, and am not readily identifiable as a “good guy,” an AK-looking rifle just might prejudice some folks, including first responders, to be more likely to see me as a bad guy. Keep in mind that I am saying this as a recently-retired first responder.

 

My usual go-to defensive long firearm, of choice, is the Benelli M2. I have two, one with the open sights, that work well for my aging eyes, when shooting from either shoulder, and one with a rear aperture sight, which is best used on the side corresponding to my dominant eye. I started policin’ with pump guns, then used a Benelli M1 Super 90, mid-career, as a duty shotgun, then reverted to pump guns, and, then, when my pumping arm started feeling its age, finished my career with the Benelli M2, with the Comfort-Tech stock. In hindsight, I wish I had tried, and adopted, the M2/Comfort-Tech stock as soon as it was available.

 

 

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13 minutes ago, punxsutawneypete said:

 

The issue should be whether you decide you want one, not the government deciding you can't have one.

 

I  have a Mosin Nagant that was captured by the Finns.  I grew up in an area of northeast Ohio with a lot of people of Finnish heritage.  I started studying Finnish history and acquired a captured piece in homage to the stand the Finns took during the Winter War and Continuation War.

Did you live in  Fairport Harbor? Big Finnish community there!

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The obvious answer is yes - both. And don't forget about 10 standard magazines per rifle and a few thousand rounds of ammo. 

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I love my AK and my model D SKS, but I'm thinking  about an AR10 in  .308!

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41 minutes ago, Pat Riot, SASS #13748 said:

Yes, you can have ARs in California. You just have to make them look funny.

 

Believe it or not you can still buy AR-15s in England. The difference is that the gas system is removed so that they have to be manually cycled after every shot. Also I believe magazines cannot hold more than three rounds. But technically you can still own one there.

 

The fact that the AR is so adaptable is why they will never be able to ban them completely. Even with the bans in CA, NJ and elsewhere it's still possible to modify an AR for compliance, even if they do end up looking silly as you have noted.

 

Heck, one day we may even see a muzzleloading AR, if they don't exist already.

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Brownells has bare lowers on sale for $36.  Might be worth getting a few to have around while you decide what you want to build.  

 

As others have mentioned the AR platform is sort of like legos.  Can be built into most anything, many choices of calibers and ballistics.  Get one of each a 15 and a 10, then you can build more options.

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1 hour ago, Still hand Bill said:

Brownells has bare lowers on sale for $36.  Might be worth getting a few to have around while you decide what you want to build.  

 

As others have mentioned the AR platform is sort of like legos.  Can be built into most anything, many choices of calibers and ballistics.  Get one of each a 15 and a 10, then you can build more options.

Check with your FFL before ordering, they may be in stock for the same price.

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7 hours ago, Rye Miles #13621 said:

Did you live in  Fairport Harbor? Big Finnish community there!

 

I didn't live in Fairport Harbor but my dad worked there at Diamond Alkali, later Diamond Shamrock.    My dad and stepmother moved there after my dad retired and got remarried after my mom's passing and built a palace looking out over Lake Erie.

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Only reason I have one is a few years back I wanted to try shooting 3-gun matches at the club in the area where I lived. Was a fairly fun game , but I got into it way to late in life to be good at it. When I gave up the game , I sold my shotgun and hi-cap pistol , but kept the AR.  It is easy to shoot , plenty accurate , and if I didn't have one I might not be able to replace it (financially) now. 

I would say , if you are thinking about it , you probably should get one. Or two.

Rex :D

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  Definition of an "assault rifle": A weapon having a magazine, capable of a higher rate of fire than the standard military firearm of the day.  I have two Civil War assault rifles: A Henry and a Spencer.  Anybody comes at me with a standard issue muzzleloading riflemusket, I'll have 'em cold! :rolleyes:

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So a Garand (8-round semi faster than 5-round bolt Springfield) is an assault rifle?

 

A British Enfield (with its 10-round box, and Tommies that were taught to work the bolt so rapidly that the Kaiser's men thought they had machine guns) is an assault rifle?

 

Nonsense.

 

And so is your statement about the Spencer and the Henry.

 

An assault rifle is a medium-sized, full-caliber medium-powered  rifle with a large capacity detachable magazine capable of firing in both semi- and fully-sutomatic mode.

 

This is the definition of one because this is the description of the first one. The Sturmgewehr 44. It was smaller than the standard infantry rifle. The cartridge, although still 8mm, was much shorter and less powerful. It came with a 30-round magazine, which was astounding, as most rifles only had a 5-round magazine.

 

The StG44 is an assault rifle. The AK47 is an assault rifle. The M16 is not - the caliber is too small.

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On 8/9/2019 at 7:35 AM, Alpo said:

I don't own an AR. Why? The same reason that I don't own a Glock, or a Hi Point, or a Mossberg shotgun. I don't like them.


AR-style rifles will become illegal.
Of this, I am absolutely 100% certain.
I live in California.

However, ARs will not be the match that ignites civil war.
That match will be gun confiscation for all semi-autos (shotguns, pistols, 22 plinkers, some deer rifles).

IMO, firearm owners won't make their stand over ARs.. it will be over semi-autos.
If somebody storms my house, I want them to meet Mr. Remington and #1 buck, not a varmint cartridge.

The DROS is the gun-registry the gov't will use to collect guns.

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