I'm <25 years old and have been doing a lot of research on 50s over the last few months. I'd really like to purchase one before they are completely unable to be found anywhere. I have a loose $6K budget for system and optic. The one I have been looking at the most is the Armalite ar-50a1; however, I am definitely open to suggestions and tips on doing more dd. I'm only looking for a field-ready system that is resilient to non-preferable conditions. I'm also a bit nervous about buying one and having it pipe-bomb my face. Let me know what you old-timers think. Maybe 6K isn't even enough at this point to buy a quality system.
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Potential young .50BMG owner
- Thread starter RedReddington
- Start date
I have the Armalite AR50A1 and have been very impressed. Does everything I need in a 50. Very accurate. Recoil is tamed very well by the brake and weight of the rifle. For a single shot it’s a great choice and built like a tank
I owned a Serbu 50 BFG as well. Doesn’t hold a candle to the quality of the Armalite. I’d stay away from the Serbu. FYI I would have said the same thing even before that Serbu blew up in scotts face
The barrets are nice as well. M99 or M95 if you want a mag. The Armalite is a single shot
There are several more options in this price point as well. The ones I’m familiar with are the Armalite and Serbu on the cheap end.
I owned a Serbu 50 BFG as well. Doesn’t hold a candle to the quality of the Armalite. I’d stay away from the Serbu. FYI I would have said the same thing even before that Serbu blew up in scotts face
The barrets are nice as well. M99 or M95 if you want a mag. The Armalite is a single shot
There are several more options in this price point as well. The ones I’m familiar with are the Armalite and Serbu on the cheap end.
Why do you want a .50 bmg?
Not that there is anything wrong with getting something just because you think it's cool and fun. But the why might have some bearing on it.
You are NOT going to get match style accuracy out of one unless you get a special one built that shoots match loaded rounds.
That being said, for the money if you just want to have fun and be able to say you have that .50 bmg rifle, the Armalite AR-50 is an excellent platform that is surprisingly accurate, reasonably priced and fun / easy to shoot. It does weigh a lot, is long and is very loud, but that's what makes it nice to shoot.
One of those with a decent optic (around the $2k range give or take) and some decent high quality commercial ammunition should be well inside your budget with plenty left over and will let you have lots of fun at the range.
That being said, if you were wanting something like really bomb proof that could take tons of pressure without blowing up and you wanted to really push the limits and such, it would be worth waiting for the Hoplite Rifles Phalanx which is about a year out. It will be over your budget just for the rifle alone but it will also let you swap several calibers easily.
If you want semi-auto, then I'd say at this point, the Barrett M107-A1 is pretty much the only way to go.
There are other options such as the DTA, Cadex and Accuracy International, rifles, but they are going to be over your budget just for the rifle, in which case, I'd hold out for the Hoplite rifle.
I'd say go with the Armalite AR-50-A1 and maybe something like a used S&B 5-25x56 scope and a really good set of mounting rings and some decent ammo and have fun.
Not that there is anything wrong with getting something just because you think it's cool and fun. But the why might have some bearing on it.
You are NOT going to get match style accuracy out of one unless you get a special one built that shoots match loaded rounds.
That being said, for the money if you just want to have fun and be able to say you have that .50 bmg rifle, the Armalite AR-50 is an excellent platform that is surprisingly accurate, reasonably priced and fun / easy to shoot. It does weigh a lot, is long and is very loud, but that's what makes it nice to shoot.
One of those with a decent optic (around the $2k range give or take) and some decent high quality commercial ammunition should be well inside your budget with plenty left over and will let you have lots of fun at the range.
That being said, if you were wanting something like really bomb proof that could take tons of pressure without blowing up and you wanted to really push the limits and such, it would be worth waiting for the Hoplite Rifles Phalanx which is about a year out. It will be over your budget just for the rifle alone but it will also let you swap several calibers easily.
If you want semi-auto, then I'd say at this point, the Barrett M107-A1 is pretty much the only way to go.
There are other options such as the DTA, Cadex and Accuracy International, rifles, but they are going to be over your budget just for the rifle, in which case, I'd hold out for the Hoplite rifle.
I'd say go with the Armalite AR-50-A1 and maybe something like a used S&B 5-25x56 scope and a really good set of mounting rings and some decent ammo and have fun.
I appreciate the anecdotal experience. I just want a simple 50 that will reliably fire an accurate load, wont fall apart if it gets a little dirt inside, and wont "pipe-bomb" my face. Im really only looking for a single shot at this point and so far this seems to be the perfect balance of price and quality for me. Thanks!
Suffice it to say: I just think they are super cool guns (is that a viable reason? Lol). I don't want match style accuracy as much as I want a reliable gun that does what I need it to (reasonably speaking) when I need it to.
I'll be sure to take a look at the Hoplite for sure, but the odds of me getting it at this point in time are fairly slim simply due to the pricepoint. It will certainly go on the list tho.
After last April and that Kentucky boy getting shredded with his Serbu, I have been a bit more careful in dd on this subject. I don't wanna settle for a cheapo 50 and have it doa me one day on the range or wherever. That being said, I don't quite have the cash available at this point to drop 10k on a Barret either. Trying to go for the meaty middleground here.
Thanks for the tips friend.
The Armalite AR-50-A1 is a well built solid gun that you are unlikely to have any safety issues with.
- Nov 3, 2010
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6k will get you a new Barrett 99 or maybe even a good used 95 if you shop around. The glass selection will be limited for what you have left in your budget, but don’t think glass will be hard to come by like a 50 might become. You can always get a better scope later if you decide to upgrade. I’d look into reloading as well, it may save you a few bucks here and there when shooting one. The problem I ran into with mine is a place to shoot it. More and more places are not allowing them on the range. I got lucky and could take my 99 to Thunder Valley when I lived in Ohio. When I moved to NC, I ran out of public ranges that I knew of to shoot at. My property just wasn’t big enough to handle it. It was really fun to shoot and I was set up to reload for it so that was always an option for me. Unfortunately, I sold the gun before I got too far into reloading.
gun broker is running single shots https://www.gunbroker.com/item/904751867
Your wants mirror the reason I have mine. The Armalite AR50A1 will serve you very well
As long as you arent being a dumbfuck putting high pressure rounds through the cheapest gun you can do it with, you'll be fine. Thats just Darwin attempting to do the lord's work.
Also, buy what you want, but a 50bmg is dumb for so many reasons.
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