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Bear Creek Arsenal

wmg1299

wmg1299

Professional
Due to fact that I can still find ammo for $0.30-$0.35 per round, I've been considering an AR platform rifle chambered in 7.62x39. I like Palmetto State, but their offerings are always sold out. Bear Creek has the components available at what I would consider to be a good price. I have read a few reviews, and it is clear that high-end AR guys are not Bear Creek fans. I've always found the members of this forum to be more open minded toward lesser known brands, and have found that Springfield owners tend to appreciate quality firearms at a reasonable price. Do any of you guys have any experience with Bear Creek? If so, would you recommend their components, or would you advise people to avoid them?
 
wmg1299 said:
Due to fact that I can still find ammo for $0.30-$0.35 per round, I've been considering an AR platform rifle chambered in 7.62x39. I like Palmetto State, but their offerings are always sold out. Bear Creek has the components available at what I would consider to be a good price. I have read a few reviews, and it is clear that high-end AR guys are not Bear Creek fans. I've always found the members of this forum to be more open minded toward lesser known brands, and have found that Springfield owners tend to appreciate quality firearms at a reasonable price. Do any of you guys have any experience with Bear Creek? If so, would you recommend their components, or would you advise people to avoid them?
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I have a 243win barrel I purchased from Primary Arms and the throat is to short. I haven't been able to check accuracy yet. The 100gr soft point winchester ammo will chamber, but does so against the lands. I have an adjustable gb, but still needs more tuning.
 
wmg1299 said:
Due to fact that I can still find ammo for $0.30-$0.35 per round, I've been considering an AR platform rifle chambered in 7.62x39. I like Palmetto State, but their offerings are always sold out. Bear Creek has the components available at what I would consider to be a good price. I have read a few reviews, and it is clear that high-end AR guys are not Bear Creek fans. I've always found the members of this forum to be more open minded toward lesser known brands, and have found that Springfield owners tend to appreciate quality firearms at a reasonable price. Do any of you guys have any experience with Bear Creek? If so, would you recommend their components, or would you advise people to avoid them?
Click to expand...
I personally know a couple people who have had issues with Bear Creek barrels; one was miscut feed ramps, the other had a bad crown.

Now, given, BC did replace the barrels with functional ones, so they stood by their product...but I wouldn’t buy from them if I didn't have to, just to avoid hassle.
 
HansGruber said:
I personally know a couple people who have had issues with Bear Creek barrels; one was miscut feed ramps, the other had a bad crown.

Now, given, BC did replace the barrels with functional ones, so they stood by their product...but I wouldn’t buy from them if I didn't have to, just to avoid hassle.
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I've heard of similar bad quality control issues from a friend who ordered an upper from them.

The take down pin hole in the Bear Creek complete upper did not align with a PSA lower he used for a budget build.

I personally would avoid them and maybe stick with a better quality budget brand like Anderson if you can find what you are looking for.
 
Here's an AR Stoner 7.62x39 complete side charger upper that even includes the BCG for a decent price.

Have you looked at .350 legend as an option? .350 legend is still pretty easy to find and you can get a box of 20 starting at $9.00 a box.

www.midwayusa.com

AR-STONER AR-15 Side Charging Upper Receiver Assembly 7.62x39mm 16

The AR-STONER AR-15 Side Charging Upper Receiver assembly chambered in 7.62x39mm delivers precision accuracy at an affordable price. The machined billet...
www.midwayusa.com www.midwayusa.com
 
10mmLife said:
Here's an AR Stoner 7.62x39 complete side charger upper that even includes the BCG for a decent price.

Have you looked at .350 legend as an option? .350 legend is still pretty easy to find and you can get a box of 20 starting at $9.00 a box.

www.midwayusa.com

AR-STONER AR-15 Side Charging Upper Receiver Assembly 7.62x39mm 16

The AR-STONER AR-15 Side Charging Upper Receiver assembly chambered in 7.62x39mm delivers precision accuracy at an affordable price. The machined billet...
www.midwayusa.com www.midwayusa.com
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I'm not familiar with AR Stoner either, but the Bear Creek versions are selling for about 2/3 of the price for this one. Unfortunately, I'm finding too many shooters reporting problems with Bear Creek products. Most of the customers are happy with the customer service, like Hans pointed out, but there are more stories of problems than I am comfortable with.

As far as .350 Legend, I'm just not interested in adding another caliber to my collection. I have two AK's, so I always have 7.62x39 on hand. The main draw of the Bear Creek was the ability to assemble a complete rifle from an American supplier for just over $500. I appreciate the feedback, but I'll probably stick with what I have for now.
 
wmg1299 said:
I'm not familiar with AR Stoner either, but the Bear Creek versions are selling for about 2/3 of the price for this one. Unfortunately, I'm finding too many shooters reporting problems with Bear Creek products. Most of the customers are happy with the customer service, like Hans pointed out, but there are more stories of problems than I am comfortable with.

As far as .350 Legend, I'm just not interested in adding another caliber to my collection. I have two AK's, so I always have 7.62x39 on hand. The main draw of the Bear Creek was the ability to assemble a complete rifle from an American supplier for just over $500. I appreciate the feedback, but I'll probably stick with what I have for now.
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I'm pretty sure AR Stoner is Midway USA's house brand and I've only heard good things about their products from the few people I know that bought that brand.
 
Because of the current state-of-things whomever thinks they can produce product will be coming out of the wood work with potentially questionable quality stuff. I even think more well known sources may have QC issues because they're pushing production so much.

With only a limited number of companies that are capable of producing the more critical components like receivers and barrels then QC issues may come up.

New folks should consult with more experenced folks when looking to buy stuff, or just hope that they don't have issues because they think all ARs/pistols are the same quality.
 
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10mmLife said:
I'm pretty sure AR Stoner is Midway USA's house brand and I've only heard good things about their products from the few people I know that bought that brand.
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Going by AR STONER reviews I'm not sure about them also? I think some are hit and miss? I didn't have any reviews when I bought the 243win barrel, but so far descent accuracy. After I get the throat lengthened then I can give an update on precision.
 
wmg1299 said:
Due to fact that I can still find ammo for $0.30-$0.35 per round, I've been considering an AR platform rifle chambered in 7.62x39. I like Palmetto State, but their offerings are always sold out. Bear Creek has the components available at what I would consider to be a good price. I have read a few reviews, and it is clear that high-end AR guys are not Bear Creek fans. I've always found the members of this forum to be more open minded toward lesser known brands, and have found that Springfield owners tend to appreciate quality firearms at a reasonable price. Do any of you guys have any experience with Bear Creek? If so, would you recommend their components, or would you advise people to avoid them?
Click to expand...
Have you checked any other manufacturers for availability?
 
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