Bushmaster AR's
- Thread starter Slater
- Start date
- Status
2ndtimer
Member
Wasn't Bushmaster acquired by Remington? If so, hard to imagine their quality control would be improved, given what I read on various shooting forums.
Tommygunn
Member
Bushmaster today produces a pretty decent base gun. Over the years their rep has varied and during certain years the quality was spotty. They're not top quality today but like some people say, if you take it out twice a year to the range or plink it will do what it's supposed to do.
It might not do so good in an intense carbine course.
But a lot of the important internal parts are easily replaceable by better mil spec or superior quality parts when the time comes.
I have two, a 2006 purchase and a 2018. The later is much the same, but has M4 Ramps and the M-16 style bolt carrier.
Both have been trouble free, but the newer one hasn't a very high round count.
Edited to correct the meaning of the statement concerning carbine courses above.
It might not do so good in an intense carbine course.
But a lot of the important internal parts are easily replaceable by better mil spec or superior quality parts when the time comes.
I have two, a 2006 purchase and a 2018. The later is much the same, but has M4 Ramps and the M-16 style bolt carrier.
Both have been trouble free, but the newer one hasn't a very high round count.
Edited to correct the meaning of the statement concerning carbine courses above.
Last edited:
They were bought by The Freedom Group. Same company that bought Remington,marlin, H&R, dpms, etc.
mcb
Member
Freedom group, aka Cerberus, no longer has any involvement in the Remington Outdoor Company and any of the associate brands. ie Bushmaster, DPMS, Marlin etc since the bankruptcy.
I bought a 450 Bushmaster upper kit from Bushmaster two years ago and it has been great. Zero functional issues and the accuracy had been pretty good though 450 Bushmaster is never going to be a serious sub-minute of angle gun. 1.5 MOA at 100 yards with my handloads pretty consistently.
I bought a 450 Bushmaster upper kit from Bushmaster two years ago and it has been great. Zero functional issues and the accuracy had been pretty good though 450 Bushmaster is never going to be a serious sub-minute of angle gun. 1.5 MOA at 100 yards with my handloads pretty consistently.
TexasPatriot.308
Member
If you want a Bushmaster, get Wyndham Arms, they are the old Bushmaster people with a new name. Quality, great price.
imashooter
Member
Windham Weaponry.
The BMs are manufactured in the same plant as is the DPMS in Huntsville, Alabama. I purchased one of the first DPMS Oracles (Huntsville) a few years back. Of all my ARs, though not a biggie, The upper / lower fitment is perfect. I see zero light at the joint yet the pins are easy in and out. Damn thing has been surprisingly accurate and reliable. Admittedly surprised. Individual DPMS parts are still highly regarded and sold through assorted online vendors. I would assume the BM "brand" is similar these days.
I have a government model WW. Superb rifle. I think they're a little bit high but the primary reason I purchased it, aside from good feedback, was the story behind the start-up of WW.
tark
Member
OK, I have a Bushmaster I bought two and a half years ago at GM. It is marked B.F.I above Illion N.Y. I have put around 2000 rounds through it with zero problems Nothing! Including 500 rounds without cleaning.. No complaints
Varminterror
Member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2016
- Messages
- 14,888
In the day before the boom of fly by night AR builders, Bushmaster was really the alternative to Colt and Armalite, with DPMS being the budget version. A lot has changed since then. I have two pre-windham split Bushy’s, fantastic rifles, and I built over a hundred AR’s on Bushmaster receiver sets until the Windham/Remington transition(s). I have built on a dozen or so Bushmaster lowers after the split, and have about as many of their NM 2 stage triggers. I’d be lying to say I saw any change in product quality from ~22yrs ago when I bought my first Bushy receivers versus those I bought a year and a half ago. I will always say good things about the Windham guys, as I got to know them a bit through sponsorship when I was riding bulls in the PRCA - they crank out good rifles, but I also can’t say I think there’s anything bad about the current BM rifles. I handled a friend’s Varmint Special Stainless a few months ago at the beginning of prime fur season and beside mine, more than a decade older, only the extra scratches on mine were the only give away.
The DPMS rifles take a lot of flack, but only because a lot of these new AR builders had to drag them through the mud to be able to sell their “no better rifle” at a higher price than DPMS because they didn’t have the volume to meet DPMS’s prices. Something I always find interesting - on predatormastersforums.com, there was an informal competition several years ago, after a long run of the contest, a DPMS Sweet 16, allegedly bone stock, held the smallest group. But hey, my buddy who builds AR’s says DPMS’s are junk, so I’m gonna buy a Spikes/Aero/PSA/whatever instead...
My only complaint about Bushmaster rifles, and their lowers, which is largely trivial, is the high volume of rollstamp and text on the receiver. Everything about the manufacture is great, but there’s a lot on their magwell billboard. Not so uncommon for many brands these days, I suppose though, and I don’t like it when anyone does it, not just Bushmaster.
The DPMS rifles take a lot of flack, but only because a lot of these new AR builders had to drag them through the mud to be able to sell their “no better rifle” at a higher price than DPMS because they didn’t have the volume to meet DPMS’s prices. Something I always find interesting - on predatormastersforums.com, there was an informal competition several years ago, after a long run of the contest, a DPMS Sweet 16, allegedly bone stock, held the smallest group. But hey, my buddy who builds AR’s says DPMS’s are junk, so I’m gonna buy a Spikes/Aero/PSA/whatever instead...
My only complaint about Bushmaster rifles, and their lowers, which is largely trivial, is the high volume of rollstamp and text on the receiver. Everything about the manufacture is great, but there’s a lot on their magwell billboard. Not so uncommon for many brands these days, I suppose though, and I don’t like it when anyone does it, not just Bushmaster.
I can't speak of current day, or decade for that matter, Bushmaster products as the newest I have is from about 2004- 2005 or so. I do have examples of some of the not so common ones from then in one of my wall panels. Thought maybe you might appreciate a peek as they were the beginnings of some of the standard variations today.
The top one is a regular A2 20inch with an A3 carry handle. Nothing to add to it by way of the unusual.
The upper below it is a .22 LR with desert camo hand guards (I have the original guards). When they came out with it, almost everyone was using the Cieneer conversions for 22LR. This one had the proper bore and twist rate for the rimfires and propriatorey mags that fit the mag well. It's extremely accurate. They later came out with a 20" version prior to discontinuing them.
Below that is a BAR-10 (modified) in 308. It has an A2 type upper receiver, 20" barrel and Ace skeleton stock. There were a few variations by way of stocks and barrel lengths. It accepts FAL-FN magazines (both inch and meteric) which were plentiful at the time and inexpensive, new steel ones were about $5.00 for 20 rounders. If that sounds familiar it is because it's the grandaddy to RRA 308 AR. It got a bad reputation on the first run of them as the tail end of the bolt would break off due to improper annealing. It didn't effect the rifles operation but rumors spread that it was breaking bolts. The later productions cured the issue (hence the modified stamping). It was discontinued in 2005 due to poor sales, more then likely due to a $1400 price tag then anything, and the rights were given back to RRA.
The bottom one is a factory produced XM in an M4(orgery) configuration in desert camo. They also produced a variation in woodland and arctic. The furniture itself couldn't be purchased from them, even as a replacement part say for a broken hand guard. In order to receive a replacement, you had to return the broken one to get it replaced. The camo models cost another $300 over the standard black versions. I can't remember the year off hand it was discontinued, 2004 or 2005 but a few years later they sold off the rest of the inventory and I picked up a set of guards for the .22 upper which I usually use on this one when I do use it.
The top one is a regular A2 20inch with an A3 carry handle. Nothing to add to it by way of the unusual.
The upper below it is a .22 LR with desert camo hand guards (I have the original guards). When they came out with it, almost everyone was using the Cieneer conversions for 22LR. This one had the proper bore and twist rate for the rimfires and propriatorey mags that fit the mag well. It's extremely accurate. They later came out with a 20" version prior to discontinuing them.
Below that is a BAR-10 (modified) in 308. It has an A2 type upper receiver, 20" barrel and Ace skeleton stock. There were a few variations by way of stocks and barrel lengths. It accepts FAL-FN magazines (both inch and meteric) which were plentiful at the time and inexpensive, new steel ones were about $5.00 for 20 rounders. If that sounds familiar it is because it's the grandaddy to RRA 308 AR. It got a bad reputation on the first run of them as the tail end of the bolt would break off due to improper annealing. It didn't effect the rifles operation but rumors spread that it was breaking bolts. The later productions cured the issue (hence the modified stamping). It was discontinued in 2005 due to poor sales, more then likely due to a $1400 price tag then anything, and the rights were given back to RRA.
The bottom one is a factory produced XM in an M4(orgery) configuration in desert camo. They also produced a variation in woodland and arctic. The furniture itself couldn't be purchased from them, even as a replacement part say for a broken hand guard. In order to receive a replacement, you had to return the broken one to get it replaced. The camo models cost another $300 over the standard black versions. I can't remember the year off hand it was discontinued, 2004 or 2005 but a few years later they sold off the rest of the inventory and I picked up a set of guards for the .22 upper which I usually use on this one when I do use it.
- Status