Deals and steals

not the best upper, but, cheap. sale:
Ordered.
I'm finally going to do my first build. I'm comfortable making things but have zero experience with the AR platform, so my first is going to be a poverty pony. From the reviews it looks like I'll at least want to, or have to, disassemble it to clean it up, smooth it out and may be fix something. Low stress learning and fun[thumbsup]
 
Alright I wasn't going to reply because I believe you'd use this in the piece of shit enclosure.

They have 4.7 stars.

Those returns are wiseguys shucking the drives out (like myself and 99% of buyers) and putting whatever drive they want back inside. The GEEKSQUAD might not check it. Not worth the risk but that's pretty funny [rofl]

This is the drive inside, just labeled differently. Helium drive....


I have bought 3 of them.
My beef reading those reviews was with BB for repackaging and selling as new. And I've had experience with BB returning something that was the wrong item . . . it took some serious escalation to get my money back. It's BB that I don't trust, not the product itself.

It's been years since I played with the diagnostic stuff, but you should be able to get the true ID of the drive diagnostically without cracking the case and voiding the warranty. That way you should have some assurance that you received what you paid for and not a smaller drive or a used one. If the product isn't as advertised however, you'll have a battle on your hands with BB lack of customer service!!
 
Anyone see any Aimpoint PRO's on sale anywhere? Magpul Pro BUI's? BCM charging handles? Got an upper I need to dress up.

best price I can find on an aimpoint pro is $425 + tax, no shipping.


i own 2 aimpoint PROs. Great for what they are, although if you have plans to use a 3x magnifier at all I’d go for a holographic. despite eotech’s shifty history, I am a believer in their holographic technology. With a magnifier it absolutely smokes any red dot. When the vortex UH-1 prices come down closer to $400 I’ll buy one.

Eotech 512 can be had for $350 and an XPS2 is around $450 or less, which puts them in line with the aimpoint PRO. To me the PRO is the ultimate red dot for SHTF or my wife who won’t remember to turn on an optic. But the functionality of the PRO is very limited.
 
Get the cheapest BCG you can find. They're all the freggin same and they never break.

PrimaryArms has a Diamondback Firearms nitride BCG for $60

Holy smokes.
BCG is important.and the difference between a crap one and a good one isn’t much..
If I could get my hands on a Knights that would be my next one..
 
This thread constantly reminds me of the crap people buy…low price does not equal a deal. Would rather save and have one good rifle then two crappy ones made of el’cheapo specials from the interwebz
 
best price I can find on an aimpoint pro is $425 + tax, no shipping.


i own 2 aimpoint PROs. Great for what they are, although if you have plans to use a 3x magnifier at all I’d go for a holographic. despite eotech’s shifty history, I am a believer in their holographic technology. With a magnifier it absolutely smokes any red dot. When the vortex UH-1 prices come down closer to $400 I’ll buy one.

Eotech 512 can be had for $350 and an XPS2 is around $450 or less, which puts them in line with the aimpoint PRO. To me the PRO is the ultimate red dot for SHTF or my wife who won’t remember to turn on an optic. But the functionality of the PRO is very limited.
I dont think Ive ever heard of sportoptics. Are they reputable?
 
This thread constantly reminds me of the crap people buy…low price does not equal a deal.
Define "crap". Price is not necessarily parallel to quality. For example, Made In China does not always mean "low quality" (but most certainly "lowest price"). Unfortunately, China can manufacture the same item for less than the US can. Whether that savings is worth it is individually subjective but evidently Americans vote for chinese goods.
Personally, I love cheap guns. I'd rather focus on the shooting aspect of the gun rather than glossing at how sexy it looks with boutique parts (which can still be achieved on the cheap!). That's why I post a lot in this "Deals and Steals" thread. People are not looking to overspend here.
 
Ordered.
I'm finally going to do my first build. I'm comfortable making things but have zero experience with the AR platform, so my first is going to be a poverty pony. From the reviews it looks like I'll at least want to, or have to, disassemble it to clean it up, smooth it out and may be fix something. Low stress learning and fun[thumbsup]
I bet that is a Bear Creek upper. Clean it well and you'll be good to go. I bet you have zero hiccups.
 
Define "crap". Price is not necessarily parallel to quality. For example, Made In China does not always mean "low quality" (but most certainly "lowest price"). Unfortunately, China can manufacture the same item for less than the US can. Whether that savings is worth it is individually subjective but evidently Americans vote for chinese goods.
Personally, I love cheap guns. I'd rather focus on the shooting aspect of the gun rather than glossing at how sexy it looks with boutique parts (which can still be achieved on the cheap!). That's why I post a lot in this "Deals and Steals" thread. People are not looking to overspend here.
The thing is, skinflinting on a bcg is terminally f****** stupid..... particularly when a good one won't cost that much more. There are plenty of other places to cut corners but that's probably the absolute dumbest place to try to do it.

Not to mention most gun skinflinting is basically a fool's errand... you're chinsing out to maybe save a couple hundred bucks, the difference between a junk gun and a decent one usually isn't even a case of ammo. [rofl]
 
Define "crap". Price is not necessarily parallel to quality. For example, Made In China does not always mean "low quality" (but most certainly "lowest price"). Unfortunately, China can manufacture the same item for less than the US can. Whether that savings is worth it is individually subjective but evidently Americans vote for chinese goods.
Personally, I love cheap guns. I'd rather focus on the shooting aspect of the gun rather than glossing at how sexy it looks with boutique parts (which can still be achieved on the cheap!). That's why I post a lot in this "Deals and Steals" thread. People are not looking to overspend here.
This is a different statement than "they're all the same."

No, if every dimension is out of spec, it's not a deal. It's just cheap.
 
This is a different statement than "they're all the same."

No, if every dimension is out of spec, it's not a deal. It's just cheap.
The other thing people forget is the time cost value. If I build a rifle out of junk parts and it fails to work when I bring it to the range that represents a wasted trip plus whatever other time I have to waste to get the thing to work
right. Then again I am biased all I do is fix other people's broken s*** for 50 plus hours a week the last thing I want to do is intentionally buy broken s*** that I need to deal with myself. That's what we call "punching yourself in the dick" lol.
 
The thing is, skinflinting on a bcg is terminally f****** stupid..... particularly when a good one won't cost that much more. There are plenty of other places to cut corners but that's probably the absolute dumbest place to try to do it.

Not to mention most gun skinflinting is basically a fool's errand... you're chinsing out to maybe save a couple hundred bucks, the difference between a junk gun and a decent one usually isn't even a case of ammo. [rofl]
FWIW, Ive always felt the BCG, barrel and FCG need to be as good as one can afford. Everything else can be "good enough".
 
Like I said, I really don't give a f*** if a part isn't the "highest" quality in the world. If I can get a BCG for HALF of what I would pay for others, I'll give some leniency there for reliability. But that's a chance I'm willing to take. If it's not for you, no worries. In your own world, you're the king. This thread is about deals. If you're already in a position to afford $400 red dot sights, then this thread probably isn't appropriate for you.
 
Like I said, I really don't give a f*** if a part isn't the "highest" quality in the world. If I can get a BCG for HALF of what I would pay for others, I'll give some leniency there for reliability. But that's a chance I'm willing to take. If it's not for you, no worries. In your own world, you're the king. This thread is about deals. If you're already in a position to afford $400 red dot sights, then this thread probably isn't appropriate for you.
Just because you can afford a $400 red dot doesn’t mean that you like spending $400 on a red dot. I like to consider myself “frugal” (I said this in another thread about “skinflints”). I do like the challenge of building a reliable, low cost AR. I won’t put junk parts into a build, but I have used the “economy” versions (like the AR Stoner uppers) to good effect. Just because something is inexpensive doesn’t necessarily mean it is junk. Also, just because something is expensive doesn’t mean it isn’t junk.
 
Like I said, I really don't give a f*** if a part isn't the "highest" quality in the world. If I can get a BCG for HALF of what I would pay for others, I'll give some leniency there for reliability. But that's a chance I'm willing to take. If it's not for you, no worries. In your own world, you're the king. This thread is about deals. If you're already in a position to afford $400 red dot sights, then this thread probably isn't appropriate for you.
I disagree, just because people can afford $400 red dots it doesn’t mean that they aren’t looking for a deal for one. I think this thread is for deals not skinflint parts. No offense.
 
My beef reading those reviews was with BB for repackaging and selling as new. And I've had experience with BB returning something that was the wrong item . . . it took some serious escalation to get my money back. It's BB that I don't trust, not the product itself.

It's been years since I played with the diagnostic stuff, but you should be able to get the true ID of the drive diagnostically without cracking the case and voiding the warranty. That way you should have some assurance that you received what you paid for and not a smaller drive or a used one. If the product isn't as advertised however, you'll have a battle on your hands with BB lack of customer service!!
Opening it does not void the warranty at all. Many people have RMA'd shucked drives. I could give a f*** about BB, just give me my drives for that price and I'll keep smashing enclosures.




Like I said, I really don't give a f*** if a part isn't the "highest" quality in the world. If I can get a BCG for HALF of what I would pay for others, I'll give some leniency there for reliability. But that's a chance I'm willing to take. If it's not for you, no worries. In your own world, you're the king. This thread is about deals. If you're already in a position to afford $400 red dot sights, then this thread probably isn't appropriate for you.

Skinflint BCGs are a big miSTAKE. HEH.

But hey, if you're used to slapping your wife, you'd be good at slapping that AR to try and make it function correctly [rofl]


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnedkVrgFF0
 
Like I said, I really don't give a f*** if a part isn't the "highest" quality in the world. If I can get a BCG for HALF of what I would pay for others, I'll give some leniency there for reliability. But that's a chance I'm willing to take. If it's not for you, no worries. In your own world, you're the king. This thread is about deals. If you're already in a position to afford $400 red dot sights, then this thread probably isn't appropriate for you.
I have a package of scalpels for you, half price. Note, they may not all be sharp. Is that a deal?

I have a bottle of aspirin for you, cheapest on the market. They may or may actually be smarties. Still a deal?

Unlike a handguard the fit of the bolt to the barrel isn't just about comfort. It can also affect lockup during the firing cycle - that can be a safety issue. Fortunately, Stoner did a good job designing his rifle, so out of battery failures probably explode away from you (less so for lefties).

To be clear, I'm not saying to only buy boutique. I have three Pintys at home. For what they are, they're fine sights - at $6, a steal of a deal. I won't buy anything from Moriarty - they're shown to be the thieves in that deal. There's always a balance to be found. Claims of "they're all the same" to admitted newbies trying to learn is not being a good adult in the room.
 
This thread constantly reminds me of the crap people buy…low price does not equal a deal. Would rather save and have one good rifle then two crappy ones made of el’cheapo specials from the interwebz

My father in law does this and it dives me BANANAS. I’m a buy once, cry once guy, & he’s a made in China whore. When I buy something, he’ll sometimes do the same, and then every conversation goes like this “and I only paid $4 for my defibrillator, so I didn’t pay as much as you” implying I’m the retard.

Most recently did this with his lawn tractor. I sent him to the commercial dealer I use because they have awesome service, he refused and spent the next year fighting with Lowe’s to get the right bag attachment for the tractor he saved $200 buying while it sat unusable.

Also loves buying dogshit ski equipment bragging how cheap it is, so while I’m warm on the lift, he has to go into the lodge every 3 runs. Yeah, you got a great deal Hoss.
 
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My father in law does this and it dives me BANANAS. I’m a buy once, cry once guy, & he’s a made in China whore. When I buy something, he’ll sometimes do the same, and then every conversation goes like this “and I only paid $4 for my defibrillator, so I didn’t pay as much as you.”

Most recently did this with his lawn tractor. I sent him to the commercial dealer I use because they have awesome service, he refused and spent the next year fighting with Lowe’s to get the right bag attachment for the tractor he save $200 buying while it sat unusable.

Also loves buying dogshit ski equipment bragging how cheap it is, so while I’m warm on the lift, he has to go into the lodge every 3 runs. Yeah, you got a great deal Hoss.
Sounds like every old man ever haha
 
I have a package of scalpels for you, half price. Note, they may not all be sharp. Is that a deal?

I have a bottle of aspirin for you, cheapest on the market. They may or may actually be smarties. Still a deal?
[laugh] You missed the memo buddy. Low price is not directly correlated with low quality. We’ve already addressed that 10x. Try espresso. It’ll wake you up faster than coffee [coffee]
 
Just because something is inexpensive doesn’t necessarily mean it is junk. Also, just because something is expensive doesn’t mean it isn’t junk.
For some reason, people have a very difficult time understanding this!
If it’s low cost, that junk will break in 2 seconds so might as well buy 3 which will cost you more in the end! [rofl]Oh boy..
 
[laugh] You missed the memo buddy. Low price is not directly correlated with low quality. We’ve already addressed that 10x. Try espresso. It’ll wake you up faster than coffee [coffee]
You're the only one still saying that's debated.

I'm saying the claim that they're all the same is flatly bunk.

I actually manufacture with Chinese partners. Do you? Yes, you can get very good parts for a good price by going off shore.

You can also get parts where literally every dimension is out of spec, and they use the wrong materials. If you're not personally confirming spec on your parts, how do you know they're what you paid for?

The easiest way for a new builder to do this is to shop with a reputable manufacturer. The above example of AR-Stoner is a good one - their parts are fine, and built to a price point. And they're tied to a company with good customer service, who cares about their image.
 
Being raised by parents who grew up during the Great Depression, followed by being young adults during the shortages and rationing of WW-II leaves a mark.
I call bullsh*t on that. What leaves a mark is not saving and having to live on SS and very little retirement, that is why most are cheap. Add the retarded cost of health care and every prescription, most of the older folks are on like 17 different pills, and it makes sense they try to save money everywhere.

Most people don't learn, when life is good they forget what happened 5 years ago and make the same mistakes.
 
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