Considering one of two carbines

[Echo40]

You've been here for less than a month and somehow you know the forum has stagnated? Give me a break.

Yes, there are viable alternatives to Colt, I own many examples.

But that really isn't the point of this thread. Sure, he can spend a lot more money for a lot more rifle, that wasn't his question. The point was to try to get him something demonstrably better than the choices he initially posted. After that post it literally went off the rails because he doesn't have a firm grasp on what he wants.

BTW: The forum has far less traffic than it used to, so in that aspect it has stagnated. However, the advice you get here is still leaps and bounds better than other forums.

Are you really incapable of fathoming so simple a concept that someone may have been lurking a forum for a very long time before ever registering and becoming an active member? Give me a break.

Okay, so let's revisit his question then, shall we? Which of the following two ARs would you recommend; a S&W Volunteer XV or a FN15 Basic Carbine?
The thread has derailed because everyone bombarded it with "just get a Colt" so he naturally started asking about Colt instead.

How is the advice here better when nobody actually even owns either of the ARs listed in the OP, nor a current production Colt 6920 to compare them to? For all you know, both of those rifles are better than a current production Colt. Remember the Colt Expanse? Let's assume that's what all Colts have become within the past few years, would you recommend a Colt Expanse over a Volunteer XV or a FN15 Basic, because for all you know, you might be doing just that.

My first Colt was a 6920 made in the 2020 timeframe. Marked just “Carbine.” It was identical to function/accuracy to the 2013 6920 I picked up from AIM… which was a NJ L/E surplus rifle.

Thank you for sharing. It is encouraging to hear that up until 2020 Colt 6920s were still being made to the same quality standards as they were seven years before.

However, is now 2024, four years have passed and much has happened in the past four years, your experience may not be accurate to current production models.