[BWilder]

Im getting an olympic arms ar-15 with an A2 upper and 20" barrel. Anyone familier with olympic arms?

[Dillinger]

I am familiar with them. Olympic is right down the road from us here in Washington. What are your questions?

JD

[BWilder]

I know they have chromoly barrels and other stuff. Just want to know if they're reliabe and worth the money

[Dillinger]

If you believe the interwbez, the answer is no.

Olympic went through a rough, ROUGH patch and their quality was Shi*ite! They have made a ton of changes and their quality is much better now than it was when they were producing more weapons than they should have been.

Their choice of parts isn't the best. They cut corners and it shows if you really open them up and compare them side by side.

Now having said that, I have a matching upper and lower from Olympic that I "built up" into a very reliable, very accurate and well running AR-15 that has seen a dozen years of shooting without any issues. I happen to shop rat in a good quality gun shop and had access to a lot of AR knowledge and reduced price on some quality parts.

I put in an RRA two stage trigger and lower parts kit. I put on a 6 position collapsible stock from Magpul. Having help, we trued up the upper receiver with the flats on the bull barrel I got and added a free float tube from Yankee Hill Machine to go with a low profile gas block from the same place. So, I don't really have an "Olympic Arms assembled" platform.

I have shot them. I have worked on them, changing parts and doing mods. They are not crap, but they are not on the caliber with LaRue or other "name brand" models.

Right now they are going for between $800-$900 MSRP. I just looked and Guns America has their base GI-16 for $800.

For that kind of money there are better constructed models out there.

I just read yesterday that Dick's Sporting goods is carrying a really nice Troy Industries AR for less than a grand. That is a screaming deal in my book!

If you are looking at a receiver to do work with, the Olympic is fine. If you are looking for an assembled product there are other choices in this ballpark.

JD

[BWilder]

Thanks for all that info. I plan on getting it duracoated and dipped in woodland camo. (the stuff they lay on top of water and dip the parts in it). Think its good to start if i wanted to kind of "tinker with"? Like if i get better parts down the road?

[Sniper03]

BWilder,

WHAT DILLINGER SAID! He as always is right on the money! A lot better choices available out there for the money!

Just a quick question! Is there a reason the Avatar is sideways? LOL!

03

[BWilder]

No lol, just turned out that way!

[Dillinger]

Originally Posted by BWilder

Thanks for all that info. I plan on getting it duracoated and dipped in woodland camo. (the stuff they lay on top of water and dip the parts in it). Think its good to start if i wanted to kind of "tinker with"? Like if i get better parts down the road?

It's a great first AR and it is definitely one that can be tinkered with and won't "hurt" the value.

The weapon will run, it's not junk. If you shoot a few hundred rounds a month, clean the thing and do some casual inspection for wear and tear, it will serve you well forever probably.

If you wanted to run some 3-gun courses or compete, well, you probably need to think about upgrading some parts.

With the 20" barrel it's more of a target/varmint rifle, so unless you plan on single handedly putting an end to prairie dogs in the Northern US, it will probably treat you just fine.

The factory trigger on the Olympics I have tried has been, actually, not that bad. It's not competition ready, but they haven't had a ton of slop in them. The same thing with the match between upper and lower receivers.

Do you have a deal on this specific weapon? From a buddy perhaps?

For an entry level piece to get familiar with the platform I think you are honing in on the perfect choice.

Hopefully you are getting a deal on it to give you some room for quality mags and some decent ammo to get a feel for it.

Happy to help if you have any further needs. Please feel free to PM me.

JD

[Sniper03]

BWilder,

I will try to assist with the Avatar rotation issue.
Go back to your picture file on your computer. Left Click on the picture. It should highlight the picture. Then Right Click. A screen should come up with selections. You should see Rotate on that screen. You should be able to rotate the picture how you want it. Then save it as it is what ever you want to rename it by. Then you can go back into the Avatar section of the Forum and transfer the picture. I am not computer whizz myself so if that doesn't work for you one Notdku, Dillinger or one of the other Moderators here are real good at helping with computer issues as they have helped me several times.
Good Luck on the Rifle selection!
03

[Quentin]

Sniper's right, that pic probably displays that way right off your local disk unless your picture viewer corrects it. Anyway, you want to get it to rotate right 90 degrees then save it then use that file as your avatar.

As far as Oly, JD gave you the straight scoop. If you can get a great price on one and it meets your needs, that's one thing. But if the price is getting into the PSA, Spikes, BCM range I wouldn't buy Oly.