Hello 308AR Fans

[DocLarsen]

Hey .308 AR fans,

My screen name, DocLarsen, comes from the fact that I was a hospital corpsman in the Navy. I was a surgical ICU tech from '72-'74 and an aviation physiology tech from '74-'76. (That should give you a rough clue of how old I am.) I don't really consider myself a gun-a-holic, but I did start shooting when I was around 8 in the boy scouts and took my first NRA gun safety class then. I've been around hunting and fishing all of my life and really love the outdoors. Other than one deer taken with a 30-30 lever action, I have always carried a .308 when I was deer hunting. I have a Savage Arms .308 bolt action that I use now, so when I decided that I wanted to get an AR style rifle for self defense, fun shooting and just the hell of it, a .308 was just a natural choice for me. It just makes sense to me to have my rifles in the same caliber and I view the .308 as the best all around caliber out there.

In addition to the deer gun, I have a couple of 12 ga. pump shotguns: 30" full choke and 28" modified cyl., a Ruger 10/22 (which I am thinking about outfitting like an AR), and a Ruger Super Blackhawk 7½" in 44mag. But like I mentioned, I decided that I needed a couple of self defense type guns.  In addition to the AR, I am also looking to get a concealable semiautomatic pistol in .40 S&W with a barrel >3" and <4".  There are several that fit the bill, but I haven't decided which one yet.  Like I said in the Revolver thread, I love my Blackhawk and how accurate that it is for me, but its just to much iron (stainless actually) to conveniently carry a lot of the time.

I have always loved the look of the AR and the utility of the gun just can't be denied. At some point, I'd like to put a green laser on both the AR and .40  I have always been able to shoot well with iron sights and would like the AR to be configured so that I can use both open sights and a scope, but I am just no sure how usable that sort of set up would be. That is one of the many things I am hoping to learn by participating on this forum.  Another big thing for me is picking the good products from the junk. My brother in law who is into guns (just sold his pawn shop a little over a year ago) didn't exactly fill me with confidence when he said, "They're not noted for great accuracy without modifications. The ones I've shot gave me about an 8" pattern at 100yds. You could see the barrel bounce after it heated. I'd rather spend more and get a Sako TRG 21 or 22." Now, I am not looking for a match gun, but if I see 3 people coming at 4-500 yds who mean me or mine no good, I want to be able to make sure its one-on-one by the time they're where I am.

I think I've already got the answer to another question I had: I am an engineer and tinkerer and I've already built a car, so I am not afraid of building a rifle from components if that made economic sense.  But, from a post to another nubee, it sounds like one is better off to buy a basic gun close to what you want and then modify it to exactly what you want.  That sounds good to me, but which one to buy is now the question.  Its seems like DPMS and Armalite seem to the favorites here.  The one big difference I've noted between those to is that the DPMS upper is machined from extruded alum and the Armalite is a forged piece; is a forged upper important?  The other thing I noted was the DPMS had chrome moly barrels and Armalite had chrome lined barrels; which is better?  I know the chrome lining was the change they made so that the guns wouldn't jamb when dirty and hot.  Are these differences enough to justify the difference in cost?  I want to get a good gun, but sometimes you can spend stupid money for things that, while technically better, are just not that important to a regular guy who doesn't enter serious match shooting.  I'd really like to learn where that point of diminishing returns is with the AR.

Personally, I am good Lutheran like a lot of my fellow Norwegians.  I've worked for GTE, Lockheed-Martin and IBM (retired 1½ yrs ago) as a computer engineer (USF/Tampa class of '90.)  I grew up in northern California, yes I am an old hippie, and moved to Florida in '67 where, other than my stint in the Navy, I was in the citrus business until '87.  I'm married and we have got 3 grown sons (36-32) and a daughter who just started college this year.  I'll attach a picture of the GT40 that I built. (Ford 302, Porsche transaxle, Corvette brakes and hubs and a myriad of parts from other cars and the aftermarket.) I look forward to shootin' the bull with you all!

DocLarsen

[imschur]

Thanks for joining Doc, great intro.  <thumbsup>

[TacBlade]

Great looking car and would like to chat with you anytime!!!

[DocLarsen]

Tac,

PM or email me anytime.  Also check out www.gt40s.com a buddy of mine runs it and its been around a long time. You can find just about anything that's worth knowing about GT40s there.

DocLarsen

[98Z5V]

Oooooh, Doc...  Welcome to the circus, man!  <thumbsup>  <laughs>

We'll get into the .308 AR stuff in a little bit - I'm looking at the GT40s right now...  :o <munch>

[buc378]

welcome aboard Doc.nice car.

[Madhouse]

Welcome aboard sir!  Great to have you.  Outstanding car!  I'm a bit of a Ford performance buff myself.

<thumbsup>