700-900 to spend on a upper, which would be the smartest choice for the money and why?
Use:
Plinker, little competition, home protection, not looking to shoot over 500yds with it
Spec:
16" chrome lined, thread, 1x7 twist, fluted or standard (no m4 cuts), SS/410/4150, m4 feedramps, flat top receiver, standard bolt or chrome lined, FF rail system.
After looking around a while on the net and doing some searching i found these top three i listed for the thread name were the best choices for a upper under a grand. I heard good things about all and im really having a hard time picking one.
I really want to go Noveske, but the features that come with the uppers iv been looking at for the BCM and Sabre are also great deals. Pkfirearms- http://www.pkfirearms.com/ has a great selection of railed Sabres at decent prices and Rainier Arms- http://www.rainierarms.com/ has a Basic Noveske Recce for 865 bone stock. BCM offers great uppers too, but for the BCG plus uppers you could get a decent piston upper or decent Noveske railed upper. Ill see what people have to say, id still like to hear some more info and experinces with Sabre uppers.
Sabre Defence makes a fine product. It really comes down to the differences in the barrels–everything else is pretty much stock product that everybody uses. I own Noveske, Sabre, BCM, and Centurion barrels and, for my offhand shooting ability, the differences are very small. For most practical purposes, aside from pride of ownership, Sabre would do just fine. Having said that, I just bought a KAC SR-15 so WTF do I know about practical purpose? I do love it though.
Oh…BCM makes a fine bolt carrier group, better than whatever Noveske uses.
I own Noveske, BCM/standard, and BCM/BFH mid-length uppers. All are great. My recently acquired BCM/BFH is ‘stupid-accurate’. Seriously, for the money this UR has really impressed.
The only thing about the complete Larue upper is they do not come with m4 feedramps, that I am aware of. I would go Noveske. I have 5 of them and they are awesome.
Ok well ill have to start looking more into the Noveske. I was really leaning towards the Railed Sabre with 16" ss fluted barrel for 850, seemed more ideal then the basic 870 stock Noveske Recce.
Some interesting facts i found about the weight of these uppers. Not a big difference between the Sabre 16" fluted, 16" standard 4150 steel, and the Noveske standard.
Weight factors i found:
Sabre Defence 16 Inch Mid Length 4150 grade Mil-Spec per MIL-B-1159E ( CMV ) chrome moly vanadium barrel with Daniel Defense 10.0 Lite Rail- 4lbs 3oz (2.37lbs for just the barrel gas block listed on the Sabre website)
Noveske 16.1″ Cold Hammer Forged Barrel, 1 in 7″ twist, 5.56mm Made of Mil Spec M249 Machine Gun barrel steel, with heavy M249 Chrome Lining, (appx. 2 times as thick as an M4 or M16)- 4lbs 8oz ( pulled from the Noveske website, im guessing this is the weight for the full complete barreled upper)
Only thing i found on the SS 16" and 18" fluted Sabre barrels- 16’‘= 2.61lbs 18’'=2.80lbs. Thats also something Sabre offers for the 700-900 price range that i dont see with Noveske unless your willing to drop 1200 on it.
And just to confuse the issue - Sabre also makes an 18" fluted chrome lined barrel (1x7). A buddy has one on his 3-Gun rifle and swears by it - accuracy wise. I’ve held it, and with a JP/VTAC free-float tube, it feels lighter than my N4 Light Reece Basic + 9" Omega rail.
I’ve not been able to verify his accuracy claims on the 18" Sabre, so take it with a grain of salt. I do know that my 16" Noveske N4 Light (chrome lined) barrel is outstanding in the accuracy department with quality 75 grain bullets.
I have no real desire for the shorter life of 16" stainless barrel for that reason. (Of course if someone offered me a super deal on a SS Noveske, I would jump on it!)
Ok well i think im going to have to add a few hundred dollars or so to my $900 upper limit.
Noveske 16 Inch Recon With DD 10.0 Lite and A2 flash hider- $997
Noveske N4 Recce basic- $865
Sabre Defence 16 Inch SS Fluted Midlength with Daniel Defense 10.0 Lite Quad Rail- $799
" " 16 inch SS Fluted Mid w/DD 14 Lite Rail and Piggy Brake- $915
" " 16 inch SS Fluted Mid w/DD 14 Lite Rail and Vortex- $839
All come with Rails, except the Recce basic(only one to come with buis). All come with BCG and charging handle.
I have been in this situation too, and when I’m researching thought on two or more items there always seems to be 1 or 2 itmes that some people like, some people hate…That being said there always seems to be 1 that always has good reviews. When I began my search NOVESKE always had good reviews. I never ever heard of anyone who regretted their purchase of a Noveske rifle. Choice was easy for me.
What’re you looking to get for your “under a grand”? You mention rail system, but are you wanting to get the BCG and charging handle in under that price too? and about that rail system, what is your preference on length?
One of the nice things about the BCMs is that they offer a whole slew of options, from rails that stop at the FSB to rails that run right out over the gas block, and at least three different brands of rails to choose from as well.
None of those, however, include the BCG or CH, so if you’re looking to get those parts too at the price you will have to go with something more like the first.
As to Sabre… Last time I checked they don’t HPT & MPI their barrels. Not the end of the world by any means, but their prices have always seemed to be up around the prices of those that do, and IMHO if you’re going to sacrifice features you should also be paying less.
If you increase your limit by a few hundred, you can also get the Noveske/VTAC upper ($1200 w/ BCG), or the Noveske Recce FSR ($1285 w/ BCG)…oh, and look at Rainier Arms, they sell Noveske for a few bucks less, and their shipping is only $7.95.
