I had hobbies in the past. I used to play role playing games (mostly D&D and Traveller), played paintball fairly heavily, then roller hockey, in addition to computer video games and eventually airsoft. However, since moving to Texas, I have found little to no outlet for many hobbies I had in the past, and actually little interest in pursuing it. I enjoy the shooting sports, but have not been a big purchaser of guns before. I bought a bolt action .308 because I wanted to shoot longer range targets and did not feel that I needed an AR platform for that activity. California's ever changing goalposts on gun ownership may have cycled into that decision. I have been shooting friends ARs back to the 80's, but never felt the need to buy or own one. I never even considered building one.
Things change, and after ending up in Texas, I finally bought an entry level AR. I also had just started working for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and we had to qualify on several firearms yearly. So I picked up a Ruger Ranch Mini-14 and a S&W Model 65 as well and I already owned the shotgun. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed shooting an AR. Ammo, while not quite as good as .22, still is pretty affordable. Well then, lets look into this hobby some more. While I no longer work for TDCJ, I still have the guns.
I have always looked at building a rifle as daunting. I also used to view building computers that way as well, but once I bit the bullet and started doing it, I found it was far easier than I thought. It is really about having a basic knowledge to start, having a healthy respect for the items you are dealing with, and an understanding of how your budget matches your desires. I started small, just moving my .308 from a synthetic stock to a wood thumbhole stock and realized that it wasn't magic, just knowledge and understanding your limitations. I won't be building custom raceguns, but I can do the basic building and do ok for myself.
So then I took on building an AR. I bought a well rated basic lower and then moved forward. I was still not entirely comfortable with certain items, so I bought a completed upper and just built out the lower myself. That was a learning experience, but one I had the parts, a few well written assemble demonstrations and time to just sit and look at how it all went together, I was amazed at how simple the whole thing is. And it works, so that was a bonus.
So now I have three AR rifles and I am building a fourth. But while talking to a friend about it, I was asked how many more I would build. I suprised her when I said none. I have more guns that I want to get, but not many. I don't want to be one of those people who have many guns but never shoots many of them. I want to put my time and money into using them at the range, several times per week if things are going well. My list of guns to get is small and I am still debating about one, so we'll see. In the meantime, more trips to the range, which is surprisingly more challenging in Texas than I thought it would be. My list of guns to get is small and I am still debating about one, so we'll see. In the meantime, more trips to the range, which is surprisingly more challenging in Texas than I thought it would be.
