A few weeks ago I wrote about Remington‘s entry into the AR-15 market. In that post I asked the question, “Who is going to market a cheaper AR-15?” I still don’t have an answer at this point, but I know that the market is ready for a value priced AR.
Recent entries into the 1911 market may support this. Rock Island Armory has mastered this with a gun that is getting good reviews right now. Along with Rock Island, TAURUS has started making a 1911 with all the bells and whistles. Both of these guns allow shooters to get a fine introduction to 1911 pistols without putting their shooting on hold because of cash flow problems.
Before you start telling me how cheap and inferior these guns are, let me say a few things. Yes they may be inferior to the $800-$1,000 gun that you own or have seen advertised by the gun writers. But, let’s once again ask ourselves, “Who really needs that type of gun?” This question is very similar to the accuracy question that we looked at earlier. Do most shooters really need that type of gun? No. Most shooters are content with a gun that will shoot straight a few times a year.
Hence my argument for the cheaper AR. What many people fail to realize is that the cheaper gun that introduces a shooter to a genre may actually lead to other purchases down the road. My first 1911 was a Sistema Colt. To most people total junk, but I still have that gun today. It actually led me to some of the higher end guns I own, but at the time I couldn’t shell out $1,000, and nobody was offering anything like Rock Island or TAURUS. By offering a cheaper AR, a company will find that they will receive more business in the long run.
Perhaps you have heard that Colt has a new product out called the New Agent. It is part of the Defender line. Made to rival Kimber’s entry into no sight, micro pistol group, it looks good and is competitively priced. As a huge Colt fan you have to be pleased; almost. When will they ever realize that they can’t keep up by making rattle traps that are poorly put together? It would be a huge improvement if they would just add an up swept beavertail safety, but alas they leave things the same even on their latest gun. You have to wonder who does their marketing, and if they ever taken notice to see how the 1911 is radically different now from when it first came out in 1911. If you are like us, die hard Colt fans, you just keep holding on wondering, “When will they produce something worth their asking price?” Until then, I guess Colt fans are left to fight over used Colt’s at gunshows.
Mossy Creek Custom has been a work in progress for many years. It started with my first job dealing with guns. I was fortunate enough to work for a great guy who was willing to take a chance on me. From that point until now I have been blessed to work with some incredible individuals, all of whom have contributed to make Mossy Creek Custom what it is today.
What separates MCC from other shops is that we are interested in your success as a shooter, competitor, hunter or COP. It’s not just about a sale. Many times we will talk a customer out of sale because we know it won’t be good for him/her in the long run. We want our clients to be well informed and comfortable with all of their purchases and completely satisfied with our gunsmithing.
Some of our services include, L/E contracts for web gear, guns and knives. We have a certified Glock armorer, an AR armorer, and a 1911 armorer ready to customize or repair your weapon. We also do general gun repair, and because we believe in good relationships, if you have a problem we can’t fix, we know someone who can.
Good relationships make all the difference in the world. We know most of our customers on a first name basis, and this helps tremendously when they have a problem. They know they are going to get solid service from someone who cares about their hobby or profession, not someone who is interested in making a sale. If you have any questions, shoot us an email; info@mossycreekcustom.com. We would love to get to know you.
If you haven’t paid much attention to the tactical market lately you may have missed some new names that are manufacturing AR’s. One of the most famous is Remington.
They now own Cobb, DPMS, and Olympic Arms. This makes them the largest manufacturing group of the AR platform, and this is their new R-15. Last year Dave Sams told me that anyone not doing something with AR’s was going to be left behind. I didn’t know what he meant at the time, but seeing the latest add by Remington for their new R-15 rifle may prove his point.
There may be several reasons that everyone from Remington to Charles Daly is now offering AR’s, but certainly one of them is that they are probably the hottest item in long guns right now. Our customers love them for their ability to be customized. It can be a fun process to get a rifle they way you want it, much like a 1911. I have never met two guys at the range the same AR. They all put their own unique style into their rifles.
It will be interesting to see if the latest entries into the AR market by these manufacturers offers anything new, or if they are simply copies. It is possible that this will be push the AR platform to new innovations. The next push before innovation may actually be a price break. It will be interesting to see who takes that route.
**Update** Check out this great valued AR from CMMG.
I am going to spend some more time with this thought later, but I want to ask the question, “How accurate do you need to be?” For some people this is the most important question they ask when they buy a new gun. If you are a competitive bullseye or benchrest shooter it is the difference between first and second place. For most of my readers, they say they want an accurate gun, but they really don’t know what they mean by that. I am always asked, “Is this gun accurate?” The answer is yes and no most of the time. How accurate do you think a Glock should be? Check out How Accurate Do You Need to Be? in the articles section.
