Why do some AR15's cost so much more than others?

For the record, I do not claim to be a firearms expert or industry insider. I am just an average Joe gun guy. That being said this information may or may not be current or accurate. It is just data I found during my own personal search for information to help myself understand what I was buying before I bought it. It’s really up to you to ensure your knowledge is accurate before you go shopping for a gun. Don’t just take my word for it because I am nobody in the grand scheme of things. Ok so here is what I learned before I bought my AR15. I highly recommend doing at least a months’ worth of homework before you buy.

100% in house manufacturing. Many manufacturers sub contract forging and machine work on their receivers to third party companies. Not having in house control can leave a part subject to a weak link in quality control. If the manufacturer forges and machines their own receivers in house, you can bet you will be paying a premium for that level of quality control.

Individual HPT (high pressure tested) & individual MPI (magnetic particle inspected) vs batch testing. Top tier manufacturers will HPT & MPI certain parts for metallurgical integrity. Less expensive AR’s will often batch test parts to save of costs. (for example 1 of a batch of 100 get tested and inspected vs each individually.)

7075 T-6 aluminum vs 6061 aluminum. Basically, without going into the technical intricacies, T-6 aluminum is stronger. 6061 aluminum is less expensive and is less damaging to the manufacturers tooling machines due to it being slightly softer than T-6 aluminum, but the 6061 final product is not as strong as the more expensive T-6 product.

Forged vs Cast. A cheap budget AR15 may use a “casting” process when manufacturing a lower receiver. This subject can get extremely technical. Just know that casting is less expensive for the manufacturer and in general is not as strong as forging because casting involves pouring hot liquid metal into a mold and can suffer from solidification issues such porosity (holes), shrinkage and cracks.

Forging involves shaping solid metal with great force to align the molecules in the same direction resulting in higher strength. I am no metallurgist expert but that’s how I understand it basically. Forging is expensive due to the massive equipment needed so expect to pay more if your gun has forged parts vs cast parts.

Wire EDM. Some manufacturers employ wire EDM (electronic discharge machining) techniques to machine parts such as a lower receiver. Basically it’s a $100k machine that uses high power electricity between two electrodes submerged in a dielectrode liquid to cut an extremely smooth and precise shape such as a true 90 degree angle inside of a magwell. This is even more expensive than broach cutting a magwell which is also considered a high quality technique. If it’s expensive for the company to do, you can bet it will drive the cost up at retail.

ISO 9000-2008 certification. The ISO 9000 (the International Standardization Organization) is basically a high level quality management system with extremely high standards a company must meet before qualifying for certification. Google it for more details.

TDP’s (technical data package). TDP’s are government owned information that specifies all the critical dimensions for every military firearm which are closely guarded for national security. I only know of 3 companies that have TPD’s to build M4 carbine’s and M16’s. Colt, FNH and most recently Sabre Defense.

Air Gauge. This is a measuring tool that uses pneumatic pressure and flow to measure and sort dimensional attributes. They provide a high degree of speed and accuracy in high-volume production environments

CMM. (coordinate measuring machine) This is a measuring device that is capable of measuring down to 4.5 microns. (fyi, a human hair is 100 microns wide.)

Shot peening. Shot peening is basically a technique used to relieve metal of stress obtained during the machining process. It involves impacting the surface with shot (round metallic, glass or ceramic particles) similar to a ball-peen hammer. I am sure there is a better explanation of this but that’s how I understand it.

ion-bond DLC. (diamond like coating) Some manufacturers feature this coating to give their product a Rockwell hardness of 70 and make it corrosion and carbon resistant.

Upper receiver. T-marked for military modularity and compatibility, Forged 7075 T-6 aluminum that has been hardcoat anodized: MIL-A-8625F, Type III, Class 2

Lower receiver. Forged 7075 T-6 that has been hardcoat anodized: MIL-A-8625F, Type III, Class 2

Tensioning screw. Some manufacturers offer a built in upper tensioning screw that eliminates any “slop” between the upper and lower receivers. This slop is often associated with a slight loss in accuracy. I have seen mid-tier AR’s that had zero slop and I have heard of top tier guns with slop so this issue is not just unique to less expensive manufacturers only. It’s probably more of a symptom of the AR design in general since its basically two halves pinned together.

Integrated trigger guard machined into the lower receiver. Some manufacturers offer lowers that have a trigger guard that is designed into the lower at the machining stage as one solid integrated piece. This is said to make the lower stronger compared to a pinned removable trigger guard. They are often enlarged or “winterized” to allow for a gloved finger to fit inside the trigger well.

Non-rotating hammer and trigger pins. Traditional steel hammer and trigger pins in an aluminum receiver can rotate over time and sometimes be related to subtle loose tolerances that result in slight trigger creep that may affect accuracy. Some manufacturers even offer stainless steel pins that ride on stainless steel receiver bushings threaded into the receiver so there is less steel on aluminum deformation.

M4 feed ramps cut into 7075 T-6 receiver extension. M4 feed ramps helps "select fire" and "full auto" rifles feed reliably. Less expensive AR’s will have rifle feed ramps. Semi-auto AR15’s cannot shoot fast enough to realize the true benefits of M4 feed ramps but if you are going to pay top dollar then your gun better have M4 feed ramps whether you need them or not.

Barrel that is cold hammer forged 4150 chromoly vanadium vs 4140 chromoly. Mil-spec 4150 CMV steel is mil-spec per MIL-B-11595E, it will be chromed lined bore, will be chambered in NATO 5.56, and finished in manganese phosphate even under the FSB. Vanadium withstands the heat build up from select fire burst or full auto. Less expensive AR’s often have barrels made of 4140 steel with no vanadium. They may also finish the barrel with the FSB already installed which leaves that area under the FSB uncoated and essentially unprotected.

Barrel with 1:7 twist rifling vs 1:9 twist. 1:7 twist rifling is often used to properly stabilize the heavier 75, 77, 80-or 90 grain bullets which are commonly used for longer distance shooting that the military often deals with. Less expensive AR’s often have 1:9 twist rifling which is common in the civilian market since civilians often use cheaper, lighter 50 to 69 grain ammo in general. There are several other twist rates but for now I am just focusing on these two since they are the most popular.

5.56 chamber. Mil-spec chambering is 5.56x45mm which allows the use of the higher power loads of mil-spec ammo usually M855 FMJ ball ammo in general. Less expensive AR’s are often chambered in the civilian .223 caliber which is basically slightly less powerful and has smaller subtle differences in chamber measurements. .223 ammo can be fired out of a 5.56 chamber but its not recommended to try the opposite.

Chrome lined bore and chamber. Chrome lining resists the corrosive properties of the residual carbon fouling left from the burnt gun powder. It also extends (some say doubles) the life of the barrel.

Bolt made of carpenter #158 steel, individual HPT & MPI, shot peened. Less expensive AR’s often batch test their bolts to save on costs.

Bolt carrier group made of carpenter #158 steel, chrome lined, shot peened, with a chrome lined gas key, mil-spec hardened, grade 8 hardened fasteners, mil-spec staked gas key, tool steel extractor, “black extractor insert and mil-spec O-rings.

H-buffer, USGI tungsten weight. Less expensive AR’s will often have a commercial buffer not mil-spec.

F marked front sight block, that is forged and is taper double pinned. F marked basically means it will be a certain height required by the military in general. Civilian AR’s that aren’t F marked may vary in height from company to company? Taper pins are stronger than straight pins and are less likely to drift out of position under heavy duty use.

Broach cut magwells will have sharp 90 degree angles in the inside corners of the magwell. Non mil-spec magwells may have round corners on the inside corners due to a round machine tool bit cutting the material away. As mentioned above, the wire EDM technique takes this process even further and is more expensive.

Properly staked gas key and castle nut to mil spec standards to prevent these parts from backing out of place under heavy duty/combat use. Commercial AR’s may not stake these parts exactly the same way the mil-spec standards require. This could lead to gas key screws and castle nuts to drift out under certain conditions.


Triggers. Some manufactures offer custom triggers such as two stage match or competition adjustable trigger packs. Of course they aren't cheap.

D.I. vs gas piston. Another factor that may influence the price is if the AR15 is a gas piston system vs the traditional direct impingement gas system? That is a whole other can of worms that deserves its own blog topic! Just know that currently (as of 2010) gas piston AR15’s are usually more expensive. We will talk about the pro’s & con’s of gas piston systems later.

So as you can see there are a lot of reasons why one AR15 may cost significantly more than another one that looks just like it. It’s what you don’t see that dictates the value and price of an AR15.


The hard part now is going to be how to figure out how many of these features your favorite AR15 on your wish list has? Keep in mind just because you gun doesnt have all these features, doesnt mean your rifle is crap and isnt fit for your level of intended use. 


Most shootouts only last just a few minutes so most mid tier AR15's can last a few minutes without breaking or failing. Know your abilities and limits. Although it seems like everyone on the internet is a SWAT cop or military operator...the truth is, most of the gun community are not as high speed-low drag as we think they are and in reality the average guy doesnt need a $2000 AR15. (key word is the average guy)

I hope this helps.

I wish I could remember exactly where I got every bit of information so I could give credit where credit is due. I can tell you that I did spend a lot of time reading posts on forums such as M4carbine.net, Lightfighter.net, weaponevolution.com, AR15.com, GlockTalk.com, Calguns.net, S&Wforums, firearmstalk.com, policelink, gun&ammo, guns & weapons for law enforcement, black guns, SWAT magazine, and I cant even count how many company websites? If you feel some of this info was borrowed from your source and I did not give you credit, I do apologize. I am not trying to plagiarize someone elses work. I am just trying to report the full picture of what I experienced in my search to understand the mysterious AR15.

Thanks for reading.