Colt or Bushmaster

[Tank]

I plan on buying a 5.56mm (.223) for duty use. I carried a Colt CAR-15, which never failed me, for years while running Recon teams. My choice is between the COlt and the Bushmaster and I cannot find any kind of a study, or consumer rating that compares the two. Obviously there will be loyal fans of both. Any recommendations or good data that I can use in my decision?

Tank

[JSavage]

It really depends on what your looking for. If you want a standard CAR, just like uncle sam gave us, Colt is the original manufacturer of the AR line. If you want a flat top, or a shorty barrel or a floating grip, integral sight rail... these are some of the factory modifications that made Bushmaster a recognized name in AR manufacturing. It's impossible to make a price comparison without knowing all of the options you want but, unlike colt, who makes many different types of rifle and pistol, Bushmaster and Armalite ar nearlly exclusive when it comes to AR's and may be able to offer a better deal.

[kennethm3]

Buy the Bushmaster. The Colt cannot be easily broken into two halves; upper and lower receiver and Colt uppers and lowers are not interchangable anymore with any other "clone"(for lack of a better term) M-16. Another thing to remember is that Colt was never more than a contactor for the M-16. In the Marines I carried a M-16A1 built buy the Turbo-Hydromatic Division of General Motors and a "Colt" M1911A1 .45Cal, built by Remington Rand, a company known for typewriters and electric razors. Both functioned flawlessly. As I left the Corps the M16A2 I carried was made by Fabrique Nacional (FN) of Belgium in Columbia, SC. I owned a Bushmaster once too and found it to be as close to my "service" rifle as I could get without the three round burst. Anyway, thats my two cents, goodluck.

Ken

[Bonk]

Can't speak for duty use, but I have owned a 20" Bushmaster for two years and it has been absolutely flawless. The company's quality control and customer service are beyond reproach, and there are plenty of goodies to tack on and gunsmiths to work on it if you so desire. If I am ever permitted to use it for duty use, I would buy a 16" Dissipator upper half to keep the full length sight radius and handguards but still be a little more handy than the 20". Whatever you do, make sure to buy good magazines - new US GI or Thermold/Orlite, although Bushmasters can be a little finicky with regards to seating the Orlites.

[kels]

I like my 16 inch Bushmaster.

The only two things I would change are-

I would get the lightest weight setup they make.
I looked at a lightweight colt sporter at a gun
show a while back. It had to be at least 2 lbs
lighter. If you ever have to carry one for a while
the lighter weight would be NICE.

Get the removable carrying handle. Makes mounting a
scope a whole lot easier.

[tcsd1236]

Go with Bushmaster. I own a Dissipator myself. Colt has reportedly been having quality/ control and supply problems.

[Olympiccop2002]

Why not DPMS? They are good. Some of the Departments around here have them.

www.dpmsinc.com

Bjorn

[Switchback]

tcsd1236 is right. I have heard the same thing about Colt's QC for several years.

The Bushmaster is mil spec. The chromed parts are great for cleaning and the supposed loss in accuracy is minimal (unless you plan on using it for competition). I have a flat-top shorty with the collapsible stock. I slapped an EOTech sight on the flat-top, along with an Arms#40.

It has served me great for SRT/Duty use. I have put ~3000 rounds through it without 1 malfunction.

Also, I hear, if you order from Colt, you may have quite a wait until you get your new rifle. You can get a new Bushmaster from distributors all over... it'll ship as soon as you get them a letterhead.

I bought mine from http://www.impactguns.com/. Great guys with very fast service.

Regards.

[Tank]

Impact guns has very reasonable prices... i may well order from them. Thanks for the info.

Tank

[Codeman]

I have the Bushmaster shorty version AR-15. I have mounted a 4x20 scope and this gun is the funnest and most reliable I've ever owned. I have nothing bad to say about Bushmaster, EXCEPT- don't buy cheap mags. The only time the gun has jammed on me was when I was using a cheap $5 30 round mag. Bushmaster AR's are finicky when it comes to their extra mags.