Interesting thread I'll say. Was looking at getting one of these through sfrc's iop for retired cf members, would like to hear more about these good or bad before pulling the trigger so to speak. Keep the comments coming
BCL 102:
I have one from the 1350 serial number range. A buddy also bought one at the same time. Personally I think we lucked out and got them at the right time. Another friend received his a month before and while almost the same, the BCG had the regular cotter pin style firing pin retainer. Ours had a slightly nicer pin system that won't get mangled. Of the three I've looked over, the finish looked good on them. The ambi features were good and they were nice rifles. Non restricted and the price was right with the IOP. I won't be selling mine. I might change out the barrel and go heavier but that's it. Or maybe heavy 6.5 CM. The negatives are the aluminum material, lack of anodizing (could be soft) and some fit/finish concerns by some. Some have had parts issues as well. Although they seem to be very quick to change things that they find are problems. The firearm does seem to keep getting better. Some will like the Gen 1 better, but I actually like the gen 2 and newer. I haven't shot it yet, so no accuracy etc impressions. The trigger sucks, but I have managed to make it workable with the paracord trick. So I'll see if I can shoot it as close to stock as possible. Plus as I mentioned, if I find the barrel heats up too fast or it's not as accurate as I like, then I will do a barrel change. With the IOP, you have room to change some things. Oh also the stock it comes with is garbage. Bottom line, good features, the price is right, non restricted, I like the looks and you can change it up with AR308 expected results. The real negative is it's hobby grade so specs could be mixed, possibly too soft for the upper/lower receivers.
You can also run into issues finding the right parts for this rifle if you want to change it up. It uses a mix of DPMS AR308 style parts and AR10. I personally like the stock handguard but many will want lighter or different. On the gen 2+ this can cause some issues matching up a decent handguard. Due to the consumer grade of this firearm it will be relegated to a heavier DM style rifle rather than something I would carry. So the stock handguard stays. It's not the lightest, but I like the look with the rifle.
The Stag 10. These are another level up. They are very nice. Forged 7075 anodized upper/lowers. Very nice. DPMS style AR308 parts compatibility (the most common for aftermarket parts). There have been a few issues with some and the magwell not locking in mags. The fix is apparently a Norgon ambi mag release. Also some have had a very small chip in the anodizing at the bottom of the magwell. I'm building one so it's based off the upper/lower set and not the complete rifle. I wanted 308 and didn't like their barrel choices. Unfortunately my barrel arrived (Criterion 20" 308 1:11.25 twist) but it was the Stainless version and not the Nitride version which I ordered. So back it went and now I'm looking at January. Oh well.
From what I have put together so far and I did have the barrel loosely put in place after getting it. This is going to be a very nice AR308. Price varies depedning on which way you go. But it's reasonable for what you are getting. The build option is fantastic. I bought the upper/lower (note that it's not stripped), Stag 10 BCG, buffer and spring, MI 12" handguard MLok, a generic buffer tube I had in the parts bin, Black B5 sopmod stock from the parts bin and an ergo suregrip I also had as an extra. I ordered the Criterion barrel , SLR nitride adjustable gas block and a nitride rifle length gas tube. Plus I had a Gieselle trigger from a sale a year back. Cost for the Stag 10 parts was Just over $1000 to my door. The rest, adds up and this will no doubt cost more than a full Stag 10 rifle, but I get all the parts I want and I had some already.
Given the choice between a BCL 102 and a Stag 10, the Stag 10 is the clear winner. Unless you get one heck of a smoking deal on the BCL 102, even then the Stag is at the Aramalite level and not the DPMS lower level that the BCL 102 competes with.
My ghost barreled Stag 10 so far:
I like the contours on the Stag 10 upper/lower. It's a sleek AR308 rifle.
If looking to buy right now, I would go with the Stag 10. I do like my BCL 102 and I'm not selling it. But... it's not the quality of rifle that the Stag 10 is. Is the BCL 102 complete junk? Not from the ones I have seen. But they are hobby grade and compete with the DPMS LR308 for that style of rifle. They do so fairly well and the price reflects this. Plus you get some nice options such as ambi bolt release etc. When I finish my Stag 10 I'll look at doing a side by side comparison. But for now, I will again advise to go for the Stag 10 if the price is even close and you want something a little nicer. The next level up from the Stag is the KAC/LMT, HK etc. The next level up from the BCL 102 is the Stag 10, Armalite AR10 etc.
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