Upgrading a Relatively Cheap AR15

FannyBayR1

FannyBayR1

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One regret I had after the first OIC was that I hadn't purchased a higher end AR15, all I currently have in a DPMS Panther 14.5" and a shorter barrelled NEA 10". I have a level of confidence that these OIC's will be overturned in 2025 but just as a hedge (in case the Cons bring in some form of grandfathering of AR15s instead) is it worth upgrading my DPMS with some better components, I was thinking a BCM BCG, barrel and a nice BCM hand guard and perhaps a BCM lower parts kit as all these parts are still readily available but of course I can't buy an upper.

For those who have a better understanding of these builds than I do would I end up with a near BCM quality rifle by doing this and using the DPMS stripped upper and lower or would this just be a waste of money?

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What do you want to do with it when it's done? Mag dump? Precise shots? Short range, long range?

So many ways to build an AR. Your DPMS receiver is probably good for whatever you want to do.

Upgrading from a standard trigger is nice, matching your barrel to your ammo is nice. Anything else you change is probably mostly just personal preference, like aftermarket controls/furniture/etc.

Lego.

As for your question about it being a waste of money, that's the million dollar question. I just put a rifle together tonight with 1k worth of new parts, no idea if I'll ever get to try it out. So take my opinion with a handful of salt.
 
Just looking to have a reasonable quality AR that will last, not concerned about high precision shooting with it. If it’s near the quality of what a BCM rifle would have been I’ll be happy and like you hope to get to shoot it legally in the near future.
 
You have a good rifle with your dpms as is. If you are happy with how it shoots, you are good.

I've had trigger springs break (original 60's Colt parts) and I've had a gas key fall off when the screws broke. Other than that I've never had a problem with the platform.
 
DPMS - depends on when it is made.

The DPMS under the old Remington mothership is OK, there is no need to do anything with it. it is basically just a different brand of Bushmaster.

Back then DPMS's focus was on their 308 platform, and they spent quite a bit of money on making it a sound sporting rifle platform.

Judging by the looking of that Panther, it is not anything made Mid 2000 'sor early 2000's, so there is no need to waste any money to swap things out if they do not break, and I do not think they will break either

Instead use the money to get rid of that NEA and buy a nice 10" upper like Colt can noveske BCM or even colt USA in the 2nd market from people who want to get rid of excess when the door is open again.
 
Do as minimal as an upgrade (except the trigger). Reason being is if you change up the parts you'll end up with a whole rifle.... that whole new rifle is what you should have bought. The parts swapped become your old rifle.... The idea is just to buy a whole high end rifle right from the get go.
 
I was in an identical situation. My only AR is a really low end Radical. It worked totally fine but it was the basic of the basic. I swapped the BCG, handguard, charging handle and safety with Aero Precision. Trigger changed to a BCM PNT. Magpul furniture.

Now the question is whether it was worth it vs buying a fully assembled higher end AR. No it really wasn't. You'd be better off just buying a better AR.

I did it because I only want to own a single AR and because of the 2020 OIC I couldn't buy another one so I upgraded what I had.
 
The other thing to consider is if you start replacing major components on the DPMS including barrel, bcg, handguard and LPK, you might have enough left over DPMS parts to assemble another AR by just purchasing a stripped receiver set hopefully in the future and a few parts like furniture and a receiver extension kit.
 
I like the idea of upgrading parts that could go on a new rifle. Yours looks well put together and is perfectly fine. Keymod and all. Maybe muzzle brake, better trigger, 45° ambi safety, raptor charging handle. Gun might still never make it out to the range but it's still fun swapping parts if money isn't an issue.
 
If the rifle is doing everything you want then I would not bother upgrading anything. If there is an issue with reliability or if the accuracy is not good enough for you then you may want to upgrade.

If the OIC is overturned everything will hopefully go back to the way it was prior to the OIC with regard to part availability so you would likely have more options for parts should you choose to upgrade later.

If the OIC is not overturned and the Cons classify ARs as prohibited with some sort of grandfathering then it may be even more difficult to get any parts for upgrading. Currently, you cannot import parts classified as prohibited devices such as pistol barrels less than 105mm or parts exclusively for fully automatic firearms. If legislation was changed to include ARs part availability might disappear. I think this scenario is highly unlikely.
 
I have a very old school AR. Original Colt, pencil barrel, three prong flash hider, triangle handguards etc.
I’m not in the business of kicking doors and arresting bad guys, nor do I want to act like one so this thing fits my needs of burning up cheap ammo plinking just fine. If I wanted a bench gun, varmint gun, or door kicking gun I would probably go a different route.
 
It looks like you've got a pretty decent rig as is but considering all the parts that you intend on changing and the distinct probably of the OIC being rescinded why not wait and get something like a complete (1 in 7) 16 inch (or 18 inch) BCM m-lock upper and keep the 14.5 inch as a complete upper spare. You could also upgrade the trigger to a Trigger Tech or Geissele and that would be a nice rig.

There's really nothing to go wrong with the lower receiver if it has been machined correct from the start.
 
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PSE said:
It looks like you've got a pretty decent rig as is but considering all the parts that you intend on changing and the distinct probably of the OIC being rescinded why not wait and get something like a complete (1 in 7) 16 inch (or 18 inch) BCM m-lock upper and keep the 14.5 inch as a complete lower spare. You could also upgrade the trigger to a Trigger Tech or Geissele and that would be a nice rig.

There's really nothing to go wrong with the lower receiver if it has been machined correct from the start.
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Excellent point!!
 
If it functions well, don't bother with changing the BCG.
A good trigger is worthwhile.
How accurate is it? Would a barrel upgrade make a difference for what you intend to use it for?
 
tiriaq said:
If it functions well, don't bother with changing the BCG.
A good trigger is worthwhile.
How accurate is it? Would a barrel upgrade make a difference for what you intend to use it for?
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Yep I’m going to drop a new trigger in it and a nice muzzle device and leave it at that. It’s actually a pretty nice little rifle and I sure wish I could shoot it!!
 
Whatever you do, DO NOT start reading Glen Zediker’s books on the platform and how to shoot, compete, reload and customize it. That opens up the rabbit hole, and once you start falling down that sum’bich, there’s no crawling back out of it. But damn, you sure do end up having fun and building/upgrading some damn fine rifles :)
 
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