Building the Parts Bin AR Part 2: Buy Gear Used and Abused

Ready to keep going with that parts bin gun? Buying gear used is a quick and easy way to build a hard use rifle without crying over scratches and bumps. One of my favorite pieces of gear is an ACOG I purchased as a used factory demo. If you are a person who must have everything new, then you need to get over it. Good gear can last decades during use and most of that hard use life is spent in someones gun safe until they grow tired of it.   

Let’s have a look at the savings we can get on buying used vs buying new. Let’s clone an M16A4 for this excersize. Each price reflects an average of 3 prices I found on forums and at retail shops. The blemished items are *not* averaged.

Used Components:

Acog TA31F average price used: $893

Acog TA31F Average price new:  $1239

Knights Armament M5 RAS blemished: $150

Knights Armament M5 RAS New: $383

Bravo Company blemished upper: $74

Bravo Company new upper: $119

A2 Buttstock assembly complete used: $48

A2 Buttstock assembly complete new: $89

New FN A2 Take Off Barrel Assembly: $175

New A4 20 inch Barrel: $275

New Parts:

Bolt Carrier Group new: $100

Lower Receiver (generic) $100

Lower Receiver Parts Kit: $65

Used Total: $1605

New Total: $2370

That’s a big difference. Again its a clone and this style of build wont be for everyone, but it goes to show how much you can save buying used.

Perhaps you only need a few bits to complete your build… that’s fine. I have zero complete factory rifles. Anything you see on my blog is a home-brew rifle. I have to piece meal my components together to create another AR15. I simply pick components as necessary to make sure I am obtaining a quality build. You can wiggle around a bit with the prices, obviously… but overall what are you gaining with new parts? Piece of mind? Hoping that you wont get scammed on the equipment exchange? I have used forum based ratings to decide who I buy from and I have never been burned. Those rating work. Don’t be scared.

Ready to start shopping? Visit the Equipment Exchange. 

Building the Parts Bin AR Part 1: Reliability