kar45 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 will be used primarily for carbine school and matches, mostly close in stuff. I will add the SOPMOD stock to the Firebird or STI, so the price will work out pretty close for all of them. Trijicon TR-24 will ride on top. Some of you AR wizards please chime in with your preference. Which one should a man buy? Thanks, Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlmiller1 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Here is a thought for you. Out of those 3 guns, if you were to ever have trouble with or questions about, which one can you call the guy that built the gun & assembled it for help & advice? If you don't know, it is the Firebird. The phone number is on the website & that is Jim's personal number in his house/shop. Does that mean anything to you? It does to me. That is why I have a Firebird. MLM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeFoley Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Since I have one of each, and sell two of the three, I have to say Firebird and STI because the features for the price make sense, they both support the sport, and you can talk to the guy who built either one every day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlmiller1 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 you can talk to the guy who built either one every day. Please don't mistake my response as being smartalec, I'm really curious as I never knew that about STI. Who would it be that builds the STI AR-15s & how can someone call him? Having the resource of availability is worth a lot to me, not that I would buy anything but a firebird, however, a good company with good service is very important. Guess I'll never be able to make a statement like the one above again. MLM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AWLAZS Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 I just received a Firebird. Awesome gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken hebert Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Firebird. Hands down. Built for a 3-gunner by a 3-gunner. Incidentally, Jim used one if his M4's this past year at USPSA Multi-Gun Nationals. Worked very well for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-Ho Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 STI makes nice stuff but Firebird is definitely tops. Innovative, highest quality, great people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACKAL Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I run a LMT MRP CQB but that's what I have. I would also use a Firebird if I had one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeFoley Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 (edited) you can talk to the guy who built either one every day. Please don't mistake my response as being smartalec, I'm really curious as I never knew that about STI. Who would it be that builds the STI AR-15s & how can someone call him? Having the resource of availability is worth a lot to me, not that I would buy anything but a firebird, however, a good company with good service is very important. Guess I'll never be able to make a statement like the one above again. MLM Look, I love Jim too, and his rifles are awesome. I guess since I am on a first name basis with the guys at STI, I take it for granted a little. I recommend them to my friends/customers a lot, and they always get total satisfaction. It isn't the type of company where you can't talk to the folks that work there. That said, Jim and Nanci always answer their own phone. I suppose I should have been more specific. You cannot go wrong with any of the 3 rifles you mentioned. If I were buying a fighting gun, the LMT is pretty damn tough. If I wanted to compete and use it as a protection gun, Jim's M4LE is hard to beat, and I keep them in stock at SC. If you want a few more features for competition like mid-length gas, free-float handguard, JP trigger, and Nordic Comp, then the STI is competition ready at a pretty low price, and I have those too. Edited February 11, 2010 by fomeister Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentlemanJim Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Any of the three listed firearms will serve you well Pick what you like and rock on! Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 I run a LMT MRP CQB but that's what I have. I would also use a Firebird if I had one. How many rounds through it? Would you buy another one? Thanks, Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 Here is a thought for you. Out of those 3 guns, if you were to ever have trouble with or questions about, which one can you call the guy that built the gun & assembled it for help & advice? If you don't know, it is the Firebird. The phone number is on the website & that is Jim's personal number in his house/shop. Does that mean anything to you? It does to me. That is why I have a Firebird. MLM I concur that service after the sale is important. I want the one least likely to NEED the service dept...least likely to go tits up in the middle of a carbine school. Regards, Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeFoley Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 (edited) Firebird M4-LE specs, looks just about perfect for your application.Lothar Walther premium barrel with true M4 ramps with IonBond Diamond Black finish Firebird Upper and Lower Receiver, Firebird 6 Position M4 buttstock, Firebird Thin-line narrow profile Quad rail handguard, Advanced Armament Bolt Carrier Group, All premium US made internal parts, Firebird adjustable gas block w/ rail, Ergo Grip with Gapper, Extended tactical latch on charging handle, ALSO INCLUDES 1 MagPul 30 rd. P-Maghttp://shootersconnectionstore.com/Firebird-FPX-15-M4-LE-P1127.aspx Edited February 11, 2010 by fomeister Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokshwn Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I concur that service after the sale is important. I want the one least likely to NEED the service dept...least likely to go tits up in the middle of a carbine school. Regards, Kirby Simply put all three guns will fulfill your needs. While I understand the motivation behind your question, in general it is probably the most asked yet completely useless question asked on gun forums. We all want to know is x brand better than y brand of gun/scope/magazine/car/truck/computer etc etc. However there are so very few examples of individuals who have the opportunity to: 1) Use an example of each gun listed 2) Spend enough time using it for the comparison to be relevant. In this case even if someone had run each of the three examples for 1000 rds each it really doesn't give enough info to differentiate the platforms. 3) If they have actually had the opportunity to run each example enough (lets say 10k rds) then they are in such a small population of experience that their results will simply be anecdotal. Most of the replies you may at best offer a biased view of one owners experience mixed with a huge amount of anecdotal opinion gained by word of mouth. Secondly, what is your definition of "tits up"??? Is it an extractor hook that breaks off, and needs to be replaced? In that case I can't think of anyone claiming that this can be prevented. It happens. Or are you talking a catastrophic bolt failure? In that case you are most likely looking at a manufacturing problem at the parts level and not a problem at any of the above mentioned builder's level. Each of the three gun listed is built from quality parts by reputable manufacturers. There may be a feature that has a pro/con for your particular needs, but from a quality/reliability standpoint all three should easily be up to the task of completing a class. Personally, I like being able to have an easy line to service of the guns I choose. My bias is definitely towards Jim as I have been lucky enough to spend time with the man and I know his every effort will be to produce a quality product out of the gate. If service should be needed I also know that his response will be more than prompt and far and above what it would take to remedy the situation. Good luck, Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-Ho Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Here is a thought for you. Out of those 3 guns, if you were to ever have trouble with or questions about, which one can you call the guy that built the gun & assembled it for help & advice? If you don't know, it is the Firebird. The phone number is on the website & that is Jim's personal number in his house/shop. Does that mean anything to you? It does to me. That is why I have a Firebird. MLM I concur that service after the sale is important. I want the one least likely to NEED the service dept...least likely to go tits up in the middle of a carbine school. Regards, Kirby You're talking about quality guns from good companies. Faliures of man made objects will happen, less so when you have a company that uses good parts. Fomeister's post sums it up. He has the STI because he knows those guys personally. STI is a great Texas company and they are huge supporters of our game. I would gladly do business with them. Jim is a great guy and a good friend and he and Nanci are huge supporters of our game. I buy Jim's stuff because of the quality, he has cutting edge stuff and also the personal friendship. Will any of these guns work and work well? Yes. But take a look at the number of people on the forum who rave about Firebird products and Jim and Nanci. The only thing wrong with Firebird is that Jim has the misfortune of not being a Texan, but hey, not everyone can be so blessed. J-Ho Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeFoley Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I concur that service after the sale is important. I want the one least likely to NEED the service dept...least likely to go tits up in the middle of a carbine school. Regards, Kirby Simply put all three guns will fulfill your needs. While I understand the motivation behind your question, in general it is probably the most asked yet completely useless question asked on gun forums. We all want to know is x brand better than y brand of gun/scope/magazine/car/truck/computer etc etc. However there are so very few examples of individuals who have the opportunity to: 1) Use an example of each gun listed 2) Spend enough time using it for the comparison to be relevant. In this case even if someone had run each of the three examples for 1000 rds each it really doesn't give enough info to differentiate the platforms. 3) If they have actually had the opportunity to run each example enough (lets say 10k rds) then they are in such a small population of experience that their results will simply be anecdotal. Most of the replies you may at best offer a biased view of one owners experience mixed with a huge amount of anecdotal opinion gained by word of mouth. Secondly, what is your definition of "tits up"??? Is it an extractor hook that breaks off, and needs to be replaced? In that case I can't think of anyone claiming that this can be prevented. It happens. Or are you talking a catastrophic bolt failure? In that case you are most likely looking at a manufacturing problem at the parts level and not a problem at any of the above mentioned builder's level. Each of the three gun listed is built from quality parts by reputable manufacturers. There may be a feature that has a pro/con for your particular needs, but from a quality/reliability standpoint all three should easily be up to the task of completing a class. Personally, I like being able to have an easy line to service of the guns I choose. My bias is definitely towards Jim as I have been lucky enough to spend time with the man and I know his every effort will be to produce a quality product out of the gate. If service should be needed I also know that his response will be more than prompt and far and above what it would take to remedy the situation. Good luck, Craig Well said Craig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-Ho Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 Wait a sec. You are talking about 1 AR. Why limit yourself to just 1? Buy all three and have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alwaystryin Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I have 2 LMT MRPs the 14.5 is not as reliable as the 16. The 14.5 likes to sometimes rip the case rim off leaving the empty hopelessly stuck. Obviously over gassed. Also one of my MRPs turned purple over time. Clearly the anodizing wasn't up to par. Customer service was non existent they said screw you purple is fine. At least that's the way I heard it. LMT is obviously hit or miss. Kind of an expensive roll of the dice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JACKAL Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I run a LMT MRP CQB but that's what I have. I would also use a Firebird if I had one. How many rounds through it? Would you buy another one? Thanks, Kirby I have about 1k rnds thru it. It is a 10.5" setup. I would get another one but I'm wanting the 7.62 version that is coming out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 I have 2 LMT MRPs the 14.5 is not as reliable as the 16. The 14.5 likes to sometimes rip the case rim off leaving the empty hopelessly stuck. Obviously over gassed. Also one of my MRPs turned purple over time. Clearly the anodizing wasn't up to par. Customer service was non existent they said screw you purple is fine. At least that's the way I heard it. LMT is obviously hit or miss. Kind of an expensive roll of the dice. thanks for your candor...Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 11, 2010 Author Share Posted February 11, 2010 Wait a sec. You are talking about 1 AR. Why limit yourself to just 1? Buy all three and have fun! I've heard worse ideas...Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kellyn Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 While all 3 are well made guns, why are you limiting your choices to these 3 in particular? No Noveske? No JP? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 12, 2010 Author Share Posted February 12, 2010 While all 3 are well made guns, why are you limiting your choices to these 3 in particular? No Noveske? No JP? Noveske and JP will run $1000 more...I'm trying to end up around $2500 or so including the TR-24. Regards, Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
00bullitt Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 I have 2 LMT MRPs the 14.5 is not as reliable as the 16. The 14.5 likes to sometimes rip the case rim off leaving the empty hopelessly stuck. Obviously over gassed. Also one of my MRPs turned purple over time. Clearly the anodizing wasn't up to par. Customer service was non existent they said screw you purple is fine. At least that's the way I heard it. LMT is obviously hit or miss. Kind of an expensive roll of the dice. I had one of the MRP platforms early on when they were first released. I had a 16" barrel for it to start and then when my first Form 1 was approved....on went the 10.5" barrel. I had some reliability issues with the 16". It ended up being a bolt issue. It was the enhanced bolt form LMT. I replaced it with a Colt MP bolt and never again had a problem. for giggles....I put the enhanced bolt back in with the 10.5" barrel and FTE problems resurfaced. Changed back to the Colt bolt for the remaining duration I owned it and it ran perfectly. It was a great upper. It did turn purple and and after a few complaints they replaced it with their newest version. The model they replaced had close to 20k rounds through it. I sold the replacement upper when I got it to await the arrival of their piston version.By the time their piston version had been released the fad had sorta worn off to me and I was becoming less and less a fan of the piston guns. Sooo....my only complaint was with their enhanced bolt. And I've heard that to be a widespread problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar45 Posted February 14, 2010 Author Share Posted February 14, 2010 Since I have one of each, and sell two of the three, I have to say Firebird and STI because the features for the price make sense, they both support the sport, and you can talk to the guy who built either one every day. Fomeister, do I need to order the SOPMOD complete kit or just the buttstock to go on the Firebird...thx, Kirby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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