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A friend is looking to get his first AR.
I recommended

1) Free floated barrel AR with M-lok or similar hand guard.
2) Flat top with drop down down back up sight.
3) Decent tigger
4) Reputable manufacturer and good quality build

Price: $700 level

Suggest your favorite AR

A Ruger MPR fits your requirements.

Ruger MPR or Colt 6920 Trooper.

Tell him to build it....

I keep seeing Radical Firearms from just southwest of Houston. Anyone have any experience? Price point and features are right.

When I was buying my first, several people suggested I build my own. That was outside the scope of what I wanted at the time. I would not recommend pushing that idea on a first time buyer. I didn't build my first car, computer, or house either.

Acronym 11/12/2017 09:20:29

Acronym Esq,

I couldn't agree more.

Yes, some folks like to build their AR's and I admire them for doing so, but doing so isn't for me and plenty of others...

Some have aptitudes for building this or that. They actually like diddling with little pieces of this or that and puzzling them together.

Great!

Me, I'd rather buy something already built of good to perhaps even great quality.

Why?

I don't like messing with mechanical stuff of any kind. Yup, I'm a guy whose wife has better mechanical aptitude than me. She can fix anything. However, when it comes to garden variety common sense: She's adrift...I have common sense. Which is why I recognize my limitations...

Famous last sayings: "It's easy, even I can do it"!

I am not mechanically inept, but one reason I haven't built one I don't find the choices that easy to make. One of the reasons I suggested a Ruger is not just because the price was in range, but because of the Reputation of the gun. Making choices of stocks and bolts, rifle barrel uppers and even sighting systems is a minefield of making expencive wrong decisions. If it's not right Ruger and other manufacturers will make it right.

I'm not saying that people shouldn't build their own guns. Just saying its not always the best way to get most value for your dollar when you're trying to buy into the lower end and doing it as your first AR.

+1 on the Ruger MPR. Two stage trigger, free float rail, rifle length low profile gas block. Upgrades alone would almost be the price point Beruity's friend is looking for.

Jusme wrote:+1 on the Ruger MPR. Two stage trigger, free float rail, rifle length low profile gas block. Upgrades alone would almost be the price point Beruity's friend is looking for.

He is shying away from 18". Colt, he likes more. It may cost more too.

If he wants the Colt name then he should buy the Colt.

Acronym Esq wrote:I keep seeing Radical Firearms from just southwest of Houston. Anyone have any experience? Price point and features are right.

When I was buying my first, several people suggested I build my own. That was outside the scope of what I wanted at the time. I would not recommend pushing that idea on a first time buyer. I didn't build my first car, computer, or house either.

Acronym 11/12/2017 09:20:29

I've read some not so good things about Radical Firearms. Thats a shame too, since I really like supporting Texas companies.

https://primaryandsecondary.com/candid-and-unbiased/

If building a rifle is out of the question, then for that price, I would probably go with Palmetto State Armory and buy a complete upper and complete lower seperately.

Complete lower with polished trigger - $190
http://palmettostatearmory.com/psa-ar15 ... black.html

Complete upper 5.56 mid-length 13.5 KEYMOD w/BCG and CH - $300
http://palmettostatearmory.com/psa-16-s ... 45152.html

That's $490 for a complete rifle.

Depending on shipping and FFL fees, you should still have around $200 to spend on sights and mags.

I agree with comp73. Heard rough things about radical, and palmetto is about the best safe bet. Probably won’t be shooting better than 1.5 moa but that is plenty for a basic defense gun.

There are some good suggestion here, but nobody mentioned Stag Arms. Their prices are in your range and they have the M4 on sale right now for $649. I own a Stag. It's probably had 2,500 rounds through it, and yesterday I was shooting tight groups at 300 yds. Well, at least tight for my old eyes.

https://www.stagarms.com/stag-15-m4/

Academy has the Bushy 223 on sale this week for $599, before a $150 mail-in rebate. - Net $449.99+tax Rebate ends on the 18th (Saturday).
They also have the DPMS Sporticle for $479.99+tax, no rebate required.