Stupidity Strikes Again, and One's Gotta Go.

[Dionysusigma]

I'll cut out the gory details, and say that I need to get rid of one of the above... probably by tomorrow morning.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages...

Mauser Pros:
- It's a complete, working gun
- I have a millionty rounds for it
- It's in as perfect condition as it'll ever be
- It's a friggin Mauser with bona fide trench art

Mauser Cons:
- Slow rate of fire (unless I completely forego aiming)
- All my ammo is corrosive
- Redundant role, as I pretty much own my dad's M1903A3
- More recoil than any new shooter will like

AR Pros:
- It's a modern(ish), autoloading design
- It'll be light and handy
- Fills a long-empty niche
- Easy to teach new shooters on

AR Cons:
- It's nothing more than a stripped lower, and three mags with rebuild kits
- As an autoloader, it can eat a lot more than the Mauser
- Relatively useless against hogs (if I ever go hog-hunting)
- Direct-gas-impingement system

So, what do y'all recommend? One or the other, not both, and not neither.

 

[Roadwild17]

Which do you think would be easier to replace?

 

[Harry Paget Flashman]

"It's a complete, working gun" clinched it for me.

 

[Alphazulu6]

"It's a complete, working gun"

Yeah exactly.

 

[Jadecristal]

There IS little that is LESS useful than an unloaded gun.

... and I'd presume doubly so for an unloaded, not-put-together gun.

 

[BusMaster007]

I'm thinkin' "TRENCH ART" vs. "NICHE FILLER" ...

Got any trenches close by?

Fill the NICHE!!! Fill it, I say!

 

[Coronach]

How soon until you can replace it? If short term, I'd say ditch the lower. If long term (like, after November 2008), you might not want to.

Or

How much can you get from the two? If you can only sell one at a loss, but can sell the other for a good price...

Mike

 

[Dionysusigma]

Purchasing anything over $30.00 is a major investment for me. Seriously.

Buying a gun, for me, is like anyone else buying a new car. If I see something I like, I research the heck out of it, hold it, hem and haw over it, but most of the time never actually get it. The rare times I do, it's monumental (emphasis on the "mental").

After the sale of one of these, I doubt I'll be able to buy another gun for at least a couple of years. School is fast approaching, and I've got to buy about $1500 worth of tools. My paycheck... well, it helps, but it's never much to speak of after filling my horrible car with gas and other necessary expenses.

After this, my collection will be down to three... whichever one stays, my 1911, and my grandfather's Remington Model 12.

Edit:
Whenever I sell off a firearm, I sell off everything that goes with it (ammo, holsters, boresnakes, slings, magazines, manuals, and so forth). For the Mauser, that's whatever range ammo that I have, about seven SHTF bandoleers of Yugo 8mm, the boresnake, the empty stripper clips, and whatever else I find that's solely related to it.

For the AR, it'd include the 3 mags (heavily used condition) of Guat surplus, the mag pouch, the mag rebuild kits, three boxes of S&B 5.56, a cheap NcStar AR-handle-mount scope, etc.

Not sure what the values of each pile are. Thing is, there's a gun show tomorrow down the street, my pocket's empty (I can find $10 for the entry fee), my gas tank is dry, and I've got about half a pack of cigarettes left. Don't get paid 'till Friday.

 

[skinnyguy]

I voted to get rid of the lower, well I for the lower, provided the high vote count means the one you lose. The question wasn't clear as to whether we vote for the keeper or the goner.

The complete, working gun makes it the keeper, all the other stuff on it is just icing, SWEET icing, btw.

 

[aaronrkelly]

Keep the GUN and sell the receiver.....you can shoot receivers....they dont go bang. They are fairly useless until assembled.

That Mauser is a gun....working gun.

 

[Dionysusigma]

Voting is for which one should get sold off.

 

[rangerruck]

i'm wondering, what cart. does the stripped lower fire, and hows the recoil?
also , can you put a surpressor on it? It seems pretty reliable, in that , it has few moving parts, though.

 

[Dionysusigma]

 

[nwilliams]

I agree with many others on here, keep the Mauser. You can never have too many milsurps!

 

[BusMaster007]

Are you guys helping 'build' enthusiasm?
It isn't the ONLY gun in the closet for this guy...

Mauser Cons:
- Slow rate of fire (unless I completely forego aiming)
- All my ammo is corrosive
- Redundant role, as I pretty much own my dad's M1903A3
- More recoil than any new shooter will like

AR Pros:
- It's a modern(ish), autoloading design
- It'll be light and handy
- Fills a long-empty niche
- Easy to teach new shooters on

Sorry to be 'snippy', but it looks like the niche outweighs the need to keep a working firearm.
Then there's the fun of putting something together for 'new shooters'.

 

[Regolith]

I'm going with the AR-15. Should the SHTF in 2008/09, then you'll probably still be able to replace the Mauser with a similar gun. Can't say the same about the AR.

 

[Radagast]

If you are that broke, you can't afford to build the AR15, so sell it off and be done with it. Keep the gun you can shoot and shoot it, if you run out of cash again then you can sell that off when the ammo is gone and you can't afford to buy more.

Look on the bright side. If you go to school, later in life you will be able to afford a lot more guns.

 

[dfaugh]

Keep the Mauser-ditch the mousegun.

 

[jkingrph]

Keep the Mauser, the Yugo's are fine as '98's go. AS far as corrosive ammo, that's ok as long as you clean it good after shooting. Use water, preferably hot to rinse the salts out of the barrel, then oil. Remember there is plenty of non corrosive ammo out there.

If you want to hunt anything bigger than coyotes( some folks will say 223 is good for larger game) the 8mm will do fine for anything on this continent.

Put one of the better slip on recoil pads on, one of the leather ones, a good brand I think is Kick eze. It adds a little length and the leather wraps around giving a larger surface area, both of which reduce perceived recoil.

I have both , my two AR types are competition, varmit models and I would keep the Mauser any day vs the AR.

 

[DMK]

Ditch the Mauser.

So... BTW, how much would you sell it for?

 

[glockman19]

"It's a complete, working gun" clinched it for me.

+2 Simple decision...Get rid of the part keep the functioning rifle.

 

[JTW Jr.]

Purchasing anything over $30.00 is a major investment for me. Seriously.

as was mentioned is $30 is major , then the AR will take you a while to complete.

If that is the case , dump the reciever , stick with the Mauser , though surplus ammo ( 8mm ) aint plentiful and cheap like it used to be.

 

[txgolfer45]

Keep both and quit smoking! How much do you spend on cigs a week?

 

[Ohio Rifleman]

Another vote to dump the AR-15 lower. Your Mauser is a one-of-a kind with the trench art. How many thousands of identical AR-15 lowers are there? And it seems there's always someone here on THR who will sell you one if you want to buy another in the future.

 

[woof]

Since you seem about equally attached to both, I'd sell the one you can get more money for.