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Posted: 12/17/2015 3:24:11 PM EDT
Last week, my 74 year old father told me he wants an AR. The problem being, he is a price buyer and with the recent terror attacks and holiday shopping he can only find models outside of his price range in stock. He can afford pretty much anything on the market, but he's set on an entry level M&P 15 or Ruger SR556. I offered to help him build him one from parts and a stripped lower, he refused. I also offered to let him order a rifle online from my house (he refuses to have interwebs, also) and pick it up locally. He won't buy without seeing the actual rifle in person.
Today he calls me to complain about every dealer he called or visited still didn't have what he wants. He's impatient and afraid of legislation, so he wants his "as-sault rifle" now. His new plan is to bubba fuck his old SKS. He asked a local dealer about SKS parts and I think the guy tried to explain to my father about 922r and it went over his head. He thinks the man told him they wouldn't fit his gun. If he really wants a tacticool SKS I will help him, but I'd rather figure out a way to convince him to either wait for his gun to come back in stock, or help him assemble a kit. Has anyone else tried to help a stubborn (but good) older person with firearm advice? |
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It sounds like he can't be helped. If he can find a version he likes and sees it in person, how is buying it online bad?
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You are in KY and you can't find a single dealer with a sub 600 or less AR rifle?!
Shelves are full of them here all over. M&P sports, DPMS, Bushmaster ORC, and some Windhams no one really wants... all over the place here. KY has to be easier than it is here to find one. EDIT: Just checked, KYGunCo has them all in stock. |
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Just let him buy whatever gun he wants, whether it's an AR or a bubba'ed SKS. More people buying guns is a good thing.
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There are some good deals out there right now if he would reconsider buying online
Delton Sport Anderson w/Bushnell Red Dot Palmetto Kit |
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Order all the parts to assemble one, take them to his place with the needed tools. Pour him a cup of STFU and watch this. Hand him the rifle when finished and say Merry Christmas ya grumpy ol bastage
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Academy should have the DPMS Sportactical for $500. He'll need sights. Don't let him put an EoTech on it.
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He lives near Louisville, I live a ways south of Lexington. I really don't know what's in stock up his way. Buds has one of the guns he is interested in buying, but he won't order online and won't drive that far "hoping it's there" as he put it. He won't call them either because he called two places near him that told him over the phone they had it, but when he showed up it wasn't there. Now he thinks all counter guys lie.
I'm not making this up, he's really that stubborn lol |
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Order all the parts to assemble one, take them to his place with the needed tools. Pour him a cup of STFU and watch this. Hand him the rifle when finished and say Merry Christmas ya grumpy ol bastage View Quote Or just show up with an assembled lower and upper and bolt them together. I would definitely do some variation of this. |
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Haven't looked. Are folks panic buying again? Prices up again? ugh
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Quoted: Order all the parts to assemble one, take them to his place with the needed tools. Pour him a cup of STFU and watch this. Hand him the rifle when finished and say Merry Christmas ya grumpy ol bastage View Quote |
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If he wants it now, he needs to pay.
Just stop helping him with this until he either A: comes to his senses or B: gives up. Either way, you're not stressed anymore. Win - win. |
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Can't you just buy a PSA kit and a stripped lower and help him put a rifle together. Who cares if it's a non milspec cheapie? Is your 74 year old dad our only hope to keep ISIS from our shores?
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How many AR's do you have? Maybe you can sell hime one of yours, then go replace it. Your old man can inspect it in person, test fire it to his heart's content, and that poor SKS will not need to be defiled by Bubba.
If my old man were still alive and wanted one (I'm sure he'd be of a similar mindset as your dad), I'd just sell him one in a basic carbine configuration at a deep discount and then use that money towards parts from PSA to buld a replacement. |
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I love ignorant people who will refuse an AR "built" with high quality parts by someone they know and trust...but then go out and buy a "factory" Delton, PSA, DPMS, etc. instead.
It's even more amusing when you go to the range with them, and they can't figure out why your pieced together frankengun is so much more accurate than their "complete" rifle. |
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If he wants it now, he needs to pay. Just stop helping him with this until he either A: comes to his senses or B: gives up. Either way, you're not stressed anymore. Win - win. This sounds like the best advice op. Very much this. Have you learned NOTHING OP from that time you helped your parents set up their computer?? Speaking of the thread title - man I'm seeing a LOT of non-AR/Non-gun guys buying AR's. Part of me thinks this is great. Part of me does not. |
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He can afford pretty much anything on the market View Quote SKS Type D |
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Take him to the range with some of your shooting buds and let him play with the toys.
THEN tell him if he is serious about getting one to let you walk him through the process without complaining...otherwise you should let him do it his way without any input from you. Stubborn dad is stubborn. |
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Maybe just help him do a simple box mag conversion on his SKS? http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/kadiindo/034-4.jpg View Quote How simple is that conversion? Got a link to the parts? |
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OP, how many ARs does it take to make a guy an AR guy? If dear old dad buys an AR is he then an AR guy?
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I sold my two ARs to help pay for my divorce attorney 5 years ago. In September I finally aquired all of the parts to build one. It's just a PSA freedom kit on a stripped lower. I did offer to give him a lower I bought a while back if he would pay for the kit. He didn't like that idea. I also offered to trade him my AK (since he needs a hi-cap rifle and he needs it right damn now lol) for something, but still he refused.
It has to be his way, or no way. We're talking about a guy who carries his ccw gun in a sock in his front pocket. I make holsters for part of my living, and I have made him several, he won't use them. He has his ways and he sticks to them. I was just wondering if I was alone in having a parent like him. |
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Order all the parts to assemble one, take them to his place with the needed tools. Pour him a cup of STFU and watch this. Hand him the rifle when finished and say Merry Christmas ya grumpy ol bastage I like the cut of your jib. I like this idea. |
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How simple is that conversion? Got a link to the parts? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Maybe just help him do a simple box mag conversion on his SKS? http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/kadiindo/034-4.jpg How simple is that conversion? Got a link to the parts? Not mine, just did an image search. I am sure the AK section here would have some info tho. |
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My 73 year old dad decided he wanted one at the height of the Sandy Hook panic. I calmed him down enough to wait about a year when things were calming down and convinced him to get Daniel Defense lightweight model. Slapped a Bushnell scope on it so he can see and we've had fun with it.
Total he was in it for about $1600 or $1700 plus ammo. I'd bet you could maybe help your dad by being the go between with a dealer to get the M&P 15 in in short order. Scope and some ammo all told will still be close to a grand. |
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I was at my FFL last night and he has 3 ATI's for $569 each. They were basic but for $569 I almost took one home.
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He lives near Louisville, I live a ways south of Lexington. I really don't know what's in stock up his way. Buds has one of the guns he is interested in buying, but he won't order online and won't drive that far "hoping it's there" as he put it. He won't call them either because he called two places near him that told him over the phone they had it, but when he showed up it wasn't there. Now he thinks all counter guys lie. I'm not making this up, he's really that stubborn lol View Quote Send him to 111 Gun Shop on Hurstbourne near I-64. They are good people and have a range of price points. A friend got a Del-Ton/DTI for $450ish a couple weeks ago from them. ETA: I'd be happy to meet him up there if he needs/wants any guidance. I'm about 10 minutes from there. |
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I sold my two ARs to help pay for my divorce attorney 5 years ago. In September I finally aquired all of the parts to build one. It's just a PSA freedom kit on a stripped lower. I did offer to give him a lower I bought a while back if he would pay for the kit. He didn't like that idea. I also offered to trade him my AK (since he needs a hi-cap rifle and he needs it right damn now lol) for something, but still he refused. It has to be his way, or no way. We're talking about a guy who carries his ccw gun in a sock in his front pocket. I make holsters for part of my living, and I have made him several, he won't use them. He has his ways and he sticks to them. I was just wondering if I was alone in having a parent like him. View Quote Unfortunately this is just the way of things. Sadly, most of us are fated to become this. You just get more ornery and set in your ways as you get older, with a little paranoia, and confusion. Part of it is just hard-wiring taking a set, part of it is your senses don't work as well, you're brain is running slower, and you're less familiar with the latest and greatest. Paranoia is the brain's default mode, because historically, everything really is trying to kill you. As faculties fail, that default starts resuming, making your even more ornery. Though rarely do aging folks take it all the way to the extreme definition of paranoia that the word inspires. In such a confusing world with those handicaps, elderly just can't logically analyze every thing before you, and so set a plan (as close to how you used to do things), and stick with that plan no matter what. And fight anyone or anything that tries to make you change it. There's something comforting and pleasing in the human mind to follow grooved maps of activity and processing that you have established. The older you get, the more appealing those grooved maps become. It's silly, painful, and frustrating to watch as a a person still in your prime, but there will be you in 30+ years. Which is kind of depressing, but there it is. Best way to fight it is to try and surround yourself with young people and keep trying new things, especially as you age. |
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Turning an AK into an AR-ish rifle will cost as much as a new AR rifle. But maybe valid if he doesn't want to have .223 in addition to his 5,000+ rounds of already stockpiled 7.62x39.
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Sorry to be the A-hole in the room.....but can a 74 man handle the AR? Maybe, some can...some can't.
But for how long? I've seen 60 year old men who are invalids.....I've seen 75 year men who are tough as nails. My dad is 73 going on 74 and was out in the yard over Thanksgiving cutting down trees. Still.....his tree cutting days are growing fewer by the hour. |
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Quoted: Maybe just help him do a simple box mag conversion on his SKS? http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y211/kadiindo/034-4.jpg View Quote If you have a milling machine. |
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Last week, my 74 year old father told me he wants an AR. The problem being, he is a price buyer and with the recent terror attacks and holiday shopping he can only find models outside of his price range in stock. He can afford pretty much anything on the market, but he's set on an entry level M&P 15 or Ruger SR556. I offered to help him build him one from parts and a stripped lower, he refused. I also offered to let him order a rifle online from my house (he refuses to have interwebs, also) and pick it up locally. He won't buy without seeing the actual rifle in person. Today he calls me to complain about every dealer he called or visited still didn't have what he wants. He's impatient and afraid of legislation, so he wants his "as-sault rifle" now. His new plan is to bubba fuck his old SKS. He asked a local dealer about SKS parts and I think the guy tried to explain to my father about 922r and it went over his head. He thinks the man told him they wouldn't fit his gun. If he really wants a tacticool SKS I will help him, but I'd rather figure out a way to convince him to either wait for his gun to come back in stock, or help him assemble a kit. Has anyone else tried to help a stubborn (but good) older person with firearm advice? View Quote Just build him one and gift it to him. Be a good son. Simple, light, durable, nothing tacticool. |
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If he wants it now, he needs to pay. Just stop helping him with this until he either A: comes to his senses or B: gives up. Either way, you're not stressed anymore. Win - win. This sounds like the best advice op. Does he understand why he is having this problem..? Last month it would have been no problem... |
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Sorry to be the A-hole in the room.....but can a 74 man handle the AR? Maybe, some can...some can't. But for how long? I've seen 60 year old men who are invalids.....I've seen 75 year men who are tough as nails. My dad is 73 going on 74 and was out in the yard over Thanksgiving cutting down trees. Still.....his tree cutting days are growing fewer by the hour. View Quote Hmmm, I've never thought of the AR as hard to handle. Around here, they're often the gun of choice for children learning to deer hunt. |
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my 74 year old father told me he wants an AR View Quote Father - check 74 -check wants an AR. -BUY him a decent AR, I have a feeling you'll get it back someday... |
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