I bought a Bushmaster now what

AR/M4 AR General Discussion
21

It’s not anti-Bushmaster Kool-Aid. When Bushmaster learns to assemble an AR let me know.

When you get to 15-20K let me know…and then tell me what failures of parts and functioning you’ve had. One particular instructor has have seen in excess of 900K rounds per year go down range and sees the deficiencies of Bushmaster time and again…this is a ‘clue’.

Things Bushmaster should know and use/do:

Should use MP tested bolts.
Should learn what barrel torque spec is and use Moly lube at the threads.
Should use the proper rate extractor spring, proper black extractor buffer and o-ring.
Should use H buffers (3.8oz).
Should learn what proper carrier key and castle nut staking is.
Should use mil-spec receiver extensions.
Should use M16 carriers.
Should use the proper F height FSBs.
Should use a proper sized 5.56mm NATO chamber (instead of just pretty close).
Should offer 1x7 barrel twist as a standard option (easily available ALL of the time).

BTW parkerizing under the FSB is a non-issue and for what they charge they are far from ‘fine rifles’ and aren’t ‘as good as’.

22

O.K., I have about 15K rounds thru my 2003 Bushmaster. Like you said this is not an anti Bushmaster post. Just stating my experience, based on my own purchase, when I did not know any better.

Corrective actions taken:

Heavy duty extractor spring and Arm Forte D Fender installed.

Gas Key properly staked.

I beleive the castle nut was properly staked when the stock was changed?

Still has the original buffer spring, bolt and bolt carrier.

The first time this was sent back to B-Master the barrel was improperly torqued/ front sight tower canted. Rear sight was maxed out on windage and still could not get a decent zero. I understand that this is a common problem.

Barrel was providing about an 8" group at 50 yds, with a variety of target ammo. This could not be duplicated by their armorer, his group was even worse.

Remedial action by armorer when sent back the first time, install new barrel and properly torque it. No charge.

Around 10K rounds the Lower was double firing and even though it was no longer in warranty, they repaired it, no charge.

In some ways, I feel that this gun has some of the common problems they are known for. In other ways, I feel that the bolt and bolt carrier are better than the avg. ones that they provide. Read, I got a good B.C.G… I am surprised that the bolt has not broken already.:eek:

Don’t forget to add shipping and insurance expense to your purchase price for the warranty work you will need, in addition to the parts and labor to swap parts out.

23

Not sure how you can say that as no one started an anti-BM thread. A guy bought a BM and has questions about it.

It is great that your BM has 3-4K through it and runs well. Have you taken it to a 3 carbine school yet?

C4

24

You are somewhat correct. Most people that buy a BM rarely take carbine training and don’t shoot a lot. So their chances of seeing something falter, is pretty low.

If people do buy their BM with thoughts of using it to defend themselves and their families, then they should “worry about” how the weapon was built and what parts were used.

C4

25

The things in red certainly aren’t reliability issues. The buffer could be argued too. It would be nice if they did all that, but for the average (90%+) user, none of it is going matter. How many AR users shoot their rifles more than a thousand rounds a year? He’s not heading to Iraq with it, it’s not a select fire rifle. It’s good enough for what it’s for in almost all cases.

I’m not a huge Bushmaster fan, like I said, I wouldn’t buy another complete rifle, I just don’t see throwing away brand new parts that will more than likely function just fine before you’ve ever fired the thing.

26

Mil-Spec RE’s tend to me be stronger than commercial RE’s. They also allow the consumer to have a much wider seleciton of collapsible stock.

M4C is not a “Hobbyists” forum. This is a professional forum geared towards LE, Military and Defensive minded civy shooters. “Just as good as” or “will do” mentality doesn’t fly around here.

The members of this forum are looking for reliable, quality fighting tools. Little else matters.

C4

27

I didn’t realize this was a HSLD board. In that case, I don’t belong here.

There was one thing that really stood out to me in the orginal post in this thread:

The carbine will be used for casual shooting

Doesn’t compute with:

M4C is not a “Hobbyists” forum. This is a professional forum geared towards LE, Military and Defensive minded civy shooters. “Just as good as” or “will do” mentality doesn’t fly around here.

My crappy Bushamster is used for casual shooting too, unless that TEOTWAKI thing that everyone talks about happens. In which case I have an LMT BCG, an O-Ring around the extractor spring, and a mil-spec buffer tube. I’ll keep my toes crossed. At least all my accessories are quality, nobody here would argue that.

28

+1

My Bushmaster has at least 4 or 5K through it and several carbine classes and I have not has malfunction one attributed to the gun(just bad mags)

I dont buy into the BM hate, never had an issue and neither have my friends who have them

29

Please do not read into what I said. No one said that this forum is ONLY for HSLD types. What I did say is that it is for serious minded shooters.

Of course any member that is only interested in AR’s for plinking is welcome, but they may feel out of place (especially if they wish to inform us that all AR’s are created equal).

C4

30

You got a good one! Congrats. Not everyone is as lucky as you and is why the BM weapons must be looked over to ensure that they were built right.

A spare bolt and parts that wear (no matter who made the weapon) is always a good idea as well.

C4

31

Have you read the chart? It’s pretty cut and dry. I takes the emotional knee jerk reaction out of the equation.

I mean… there’s even occasional reports of Olympic Arms rifles that will run pretty good. But that doesn’t mean you can refuse to accept the situation.

I’m not here to bash Bushmaster. I run some of their upper halves on my builds. But I can’t argue with the facts in the chart.

32

Just my $.02.

What I would do right away:
-Replace the extractor spring and add a Crane o-ring.
-Check to make sure the gas key and RE are staked properly.
-Check to make sure the barrel is torqued properly.
-Get the chamber reamed for 5.56.
-Shoot it. Are there reliability problems? If so then troubleshoot and fix the problem.

What I would replace later:
-I’d get a new stock/RE later on. Perhaps if you upgrade to a Magpul CTR, just go ahead and get the full kit including H-Buffer.
-I’d also get a spare bolt. I’d really start shopping around 1K rounds and would replace by 5K.

33

Check to make sure the barrel is torqued properly.

What does that mean and how would you check for it?

34

foxtrapper, I too live in NY and have the same rifle. Mine is anout 3 years old and I have (thus far) been quite pleased with it. It’s very accurate, the FSB is on straight, the finish is flawless, the trigger pull is quite nice and it has not had any malfunctions of any kind. I think an important point to keep in mind is that loose QC does not neccessarily mean that every rifle will suffer. If you have a “good one” it’s worth holding on to.

I have made a number of upgrades/improvements to mine including;

  1. Replaced the “Izzy brake” with the FSC556 compensator (not pictured below)
  2. Installed the Magpul enhanced trigger guard
  3. Installed the Sully entry stock
  4. Installed a Hogue grip

The rifle remains AWB compliant at this point;

When I move to NH in the next few months, I will be doing the following;

  1. Installing the Magpul CTR stock with milspec receiver extension
  2. Installing the Magpul MIAD grip
  3. Installing the BCM™ (MPI) BCG (that will address all of the bolt/bolt carrier group issues mentioned in previous posts)

Let me know if you are interested in the Sully stock as I plan on replacing that in the next month or so with the Magpul CTR. The Sully is one of the few decent options for post-ban rifles.

35

I probably should have said indexed properly. That would include the sight tower as well.

36

I still don’t know what a torqued barrel is or how to check if it’s done properly.

I think it’s time for me to use the search function.:smiley:

37

It is my understanding that if the barrel nut is over torqued it can bend the index pin on the barrel extension and cause the front sight tower to be misaligned. The most obvious indication of such a condition is excessive windage adjustment. The alternate explanation for excessive windage is that the front sight base was installed incorrectly. This can be a serious problem as the gas port probably isn’t aligned, which can cause malfunctions.

38

Don’t sweat it. I am sure other guys that know allot more about AR’s have already told you. I’ve heard bushies go down because of having an incorrectly stacked carrier as well as other quality control issues. I’ve also seen them run very well under a harsh conditions. Is it my first choice or even 3 or 4? No. But if it worries you take the gun to a good AR gunsmith and have him go over it. Also relax it won’t be the only AR you’ll own. Welcome to the club.

39

I agree with Kingc take that bushy for a nice long shooting session and see how she performs. If things start to go wrong get back on the forum and get some advice and start to build the rifle you want. Buy the way send some pics!

40

[quote="“Gun_Runner,post:25,topic:108217”]

The things in red certainly aren’t reliability issues. The buffer could be argued too. It would be nice if they did all that, but for the average (90%+) user, none of it is going matter. How many AR users shoot their rifles more than a thousand rounds a year? He’s not heading to Iraq with it, it’s not a select fire rifle. It’s good enough for what it’s for in almost all cases.

I’m not a huge Bushmaster fan, like I said, I wouldn’t buy another complete rifle, I just don’t see throwing away brand new parts that will more than likely function just fine before you’ve ever fired the thing.[/QUOTE]

So now you’re going to debate me in what I think Bushmaster should do to build better rifles?

Regardless of the end user nor the money spent on an AR all shooters should have the best parts available and a properly assembled rifle.

If someone was to whine/bitch about the cost of a properly built AR then maybe they should look at good used ones, if as you say the end user probably isn’t going to shoot 1K rounds per year nor take it to Iraq.

You simply don’t know what you don’t know…and that’s okay unless you are unwilling to accept it.