Some girls aren’t about unicorns and pumpkin spice lattes. We are about grit, sweat, and a lot of lead. Hunting and shooting tops any day of manicures and shopping. Besides, my kind of shopping constitutes runs to the gun store or lengthy scrolls through gun part websites. I am one the many Americans who enjoy their freedom of building AR rifles!* Seriously, does anything say girl boss like loading up a 30-round magazine and slinging lead at 1,500 feet per second! In 2017, I completed a 9mm AR build in flat dark earth (FDE) Cerakote. This rifle has become my favorite. To date, I have not sighted it in on the bench, but it is surprisingly accurate. My dad built a similar rifle around the same time and has also been very pleased with its performance. Over spring break, I killed some time by heading out to the range and shooting spent shells off the ground at 5 to 25 yards with an impressive number of hits, not bad for my homebuilt plinking rifle. This was also the first time I tried out my custom FDE Savvy Sniper sling. The initial adjustment was challenging, but I soon appreciated not having to juggle my gun while I wasn’t shooting. The 9mm is sporting a Lone Wolf lower, a Trijicon MRO red dot sight, and is dressed up with more parts and accessories from Magpul, MFT, Kaw Valley, XProducts, and Midwest Industries.
Shooting my dad’s 9mm AR over spring break
Since the 9mm is equipped for plinking and small game hunting because of its caliber and weight, I have decided to gear my new build, a .223 AR, for bench and precision shooting. Unfortunately, 50-BMG is out of my price range, so the .223 will have to suffice in the meantime. It is still only in the beginning stages, but my current plans are to leave it black (I may decide to do grey or white Cerakote later) and accent it with red. Earlier this year, I snagged a Seekins Precision lower parts kit (LPK) on sale that even had a safety selector, trigger guard, and mag release in red (I was thrilled). I will be combining this LPK with a Seekins lower and a JP Enterprises barrel. I plan to invest in more Seekins and Magpul products for this build, as well as a Geissele trigger to increase accuracy.
Playing with my 9mm AR shortly after completion
Building ARs gives endless possibilities for the marksman and markswoman. Manufactured rifles are great in many respects, but the number of options for performance, accessories, and feel are unlimited to the builder. If the builder invests in high-quality products, the completed rifle will be unique to the builder’s preferences. It can get expensive, but the satisfaction of a homebuilt, personalized-to-perfection rifle is worth the time and money.
*Just a quick lesson, “AR” doesn’t mean “assault rifle”, it actually stands for “Armalite”.