TexasCHLforum.com

The beauty of the AR system is its modularity. Buy a quality lower from almost anyone, then you can put on whatever upper floats your boat. And if you're floating your boat in a different body of water on a particular day, you can swap the upper in less than 30 seconds.

The gas piston uppers are definitely better for combat conditions. For ordinary use, they're probably not worth the extra money (but if you've got it, go for it!)

You can have one "firearm" (the lower), and as many uppers as you'd like. With a quick upper switch-out, you can have a varmint gun, a target gun, a close-quarters carbine, or a thousand yard Palma rifle.

The buttstock isn't going to be the same on various purpose-built rifles, and it isn't a quick-swap item. But a good six-position collapsible stock with a cheek rest will serve almost everyone except the specialized target shooters.

Kevin