I have a co-worker that was talking yesterday about getting an AR. The thing is, he's waffling about getting it in 223 or 22lr and he said its primary duty will be to hang accessories from. Then he turns around and says that he wants to be able to use the stuff on it. Seriously, how many people put a laser, flashlight, scope, telescoping stock, and all the other tactical stuff on a 22 and expect to use it? He said the main purpose of the gun is plinking and he likes the idea of rattling off lots of fast shots as fast as he can without paying lots for it. I actually have never encountered this attitude before, and it confused the hell out of me. Why would you blow all that cash to make your AR 133t tactikul if it was a 22 that is totally unsuitable for the use the accessories are meant to serve? Wouldn't he just be better off with a 10/22 and 25rd mag instead of the AR clone? If you need or plan to use the gun for social purposes, get the 223 and hang that crap on it. If you want a cheap range toy that's easy on your wallet... buy a REAL 22... and save the cash from the accessories for ammo and a scope. Is he smoking something really good, or is this normal behavior for a young man in his early 20s?
Explain this logic to me
- Thread starter Daekar
- Start date
I plink with the best of them with my 10/22
If you are hard pressed to explain or understand his logic, then it's obvious that we would be equally so. I have never understood Tactical .22's but there is a bunch out there. If it were me, I'd go with the .223 AR platform and that seems more "logical" to me but not by all that much. His money and his choice ...
Be Safe !!!
If you are hard pressed to explain or understand his logic, then it's obvious that we would be equally so. I have never understood Tactical .22's but there is a bunch out there. If it were me, I'd go with the .223 AR platform and that seems more "logical" to me but not by all that much. His money and his choice ...
Be Safe !!!
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chadstrickland
New member
As a wise man once told me.."there is no cure for stupid son..we have tried everything on you and nothing worked".....I used to be that way but now I have found a saying that I have been told many times and have finally understood...K I S S......im not saying that a highly trained operator could not use the advantages those gadgets offer..im simply saying for the most part..I cannot ...there are plenty of other thing he should spend that money on..like training to engage multiple targets faster...but yes I have ran into that strange unusual behavior before...it used to be me lol...contrary to popular belief practice doesn't make perfect...proper practice using good form and correct training makes you better...imho that is
..I used to be that way but now I have found a saying that I have been told many times and have finally understood...K I S S......im not saying that a highly trained operator could not use the advantages those gadgets offer..im simply saying for the most part..I cannot ...there are plenty of other thing he should spend that money on..like training to engage multiple targets faster...but yes I have ran into that strange unusual behavior before...it used to be me lol...contrary to popular belief practice doesn't make perfect...proper practice using good form and correct training makes you better...imho that is Shooter4Life
New member
Is it not what the firearm is used for that in essence makes it tactical? I'm pretty sure when you hang a bunch of junk on it, then it becomes tactiCOOL. Im just as confused as you are.
Marco Califo
New member
Yeah, but it is black
Yeah, but it is black, and scary looking. Therefore, it will sell.
Appearance over form.
The perception is the reality.
This is the same logic that GM used when they bought the Hum-Vee branding rights, to an innovative and useful off-road vehicle (the real Hum-Vee). Then they puffed out a Tahoe or Suburban to be big and black and ominous looking "like the Hum-Vee". Note: The Hummer vehicles GM sold had nothing mechanically in common with the real Hum-Vee. They did sell, but GM lost money on them.
Yeah, but it is black, and scary looking. Therefore, it will sell.
Appearance over form.
The perception is the reality.
This is the same logic that GM used when they bought the Hum-Vee branding rights, to an innovative and useful off-road vehicle (the real Hum-Vee). Then they puffed out a Tahoe or Suburban to be big and black and ominous looking "like the Hum-Vee". Note: The Hummer vehicles GM sold had nothing mechanically in common with the real Hum-Vee. They did sell, but GM lost money on them.
I have a Colt .22 conversion for the AR-15 I have had for over two decades plus a Kimber Conversion Kit I have mounted on a GI 1911 Frame. Ammo was cheap a long time ago. Now I find myself buying a brick of .22 LR to use with these. I am even thinking of buying a .22 LR Upper for the AR 15.
The fanciest I have gotten with my AR-15 is a scope and reflex sight on top of the scope for the other and a EoTech for the M4 style I might add a flip over magnifier behind that. I have a bipod I can put on and a handle for the forerend that fits on the rails.
I have a night Vision Scope I can substitute on either rifle thats about as fancy as it gets.
The fanciest I have gotten with my AR-15 is a scope and reflex sight on top of the scope for the other and a EoTech for the M4 style I might add a flip over magnifier behind that. I have a bipod I can put on and a handle for the forerend that fits on the rails.
I have a night Vision Scope I can substitute on either rifle thats about as fancy as it gets.
it's his money. if he wants to buy a .22 clone just to hang stuff on and look cool and then go out and dump rounds through it, what's wrong with that? it's still fun. at least he's not trying to buy a cheap AR then buy cheap accessories he doesn't need and then think he can use it as an actual defensive tool. it's just a range toy and that's all he expects out of it. I would like a .22ar for a plinker/trainer myself.
all of my .22s I bought and use for these purposes in this order:
1. fun/plinking (including the occasional full-mag dump)
2. practice/training
3. other practical uses like hunting/pest control
matter of fact ALL of my guns were bought as fun guns 1st, everything else second.
all of my .22s I bought and use for these purposes in this order:
1. fun/plinking (including the occasional full-mag dump)
2. practice/training
3. other practical uses like hunting/pest control
matter of fact ALL of my guns were bought as fun guns 1st, everything else second.
ndking1126
New member
Same reason stock Honda Civics have performance brand stickers on them
But seriously consumers are irrational in all areas of spending.. buying houses they can't afford, boats they won't use and fruits that spoil before they eat them. The only logic is that's what he wants.. and its his money right?
Although kudos for using "l33t"!!
shootniron
New member
I have a $700 AR that has an inexpensive sight that would do a pretty damned good job of defending me in most of the situations that I might find myself in.....
But more to the point of op, it is his money and he can do what he wants with it. However, I am like you, I do not see the point.
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While I agree with you thinking its a waste of money, I think alot of the view's on here might be closed minded... A gun means different things to different people.
When you guys are looking at a group of girls, do you look at the pretty ones or the ugly ones? While looks aren't everything they are certainly important. He probably thinks the 'tactical look' looks really good so he wants it, just like you want the pretty girl. Not everything needs a function. Plus , it will do just fine in most defense situations. It almost seems like most people on here think that their average defense situation will be against a 300 pound man 1000 yards away. Unloading your magazine on someone attacking you at 5 yards, will certainly kill him or do enough damage for you to get away and call for help. At close encounters it probably wouldn't matter if you had a bare bones 22 or a real 'tactical 223 ar15'. Shot to the head will be just fine.
Obviously if you are law enforcement or deal with violent situation often, then you should definitely go with a 223+ but all I'm saying is a well placed 22 shot can be more effective then a bad 223 shot, so why the negatives views?
When you guys are looking at a group of girls, do you look at the pretty ones or the ugly ones? While looks aren't everything they are certainly important. He probably thinks the 'tactical look' looks really good so he wants it, just like you want the pretty girl. Not everything needs a function. Plus , it will do just fine in most defense situations. It almost seems like most people on here think that their average defense situation will be against a 300 pound man 1000 yards away. Unloading your magazine on someone attacking you at 5 yards, will certainly kill him or do enough damage for you to get away and call for help. At close encounters it probably wouldn't matter if you had a bare bones 22 or a real 'tactical 223 ar15'. Shot to the head will be just fine.
Obviously if you are law enforcement or deal with violent situation often, then you should definitely go with a 223+ but all I'm saying is a well placed 22 shot can be more effective then a bad 223 shot, so why the negatives views?
arizona98tj
New member
Exactly....unless the person is making you pay for it, why get your self all worried about it?
I drive a lifted Jeep that has more mods on it than many folks may consider reasonable. I personally think little rice burner cars are useless (albeit they make a great wheel ram for my TJ)....and I've no doubt what so ever that some of the rice burner car owners think the same about my Jeep. But I don't get on auto forums and post about the owners of those cars....I don't have to pay for their cars so I don't care how they spend their money! If they care about how I spend mine, they need to get a life.
I also admire the way folks toss around the "tacticool" term on some of the gun forums.
Because the person doesn't approve of the way a rifle or shotgun is configured, it is better to belittle it and the person that owns it.... Why? Edward429451
Moderator
Sometimes it's a financial decision. I didn't have the dough to trick out my 10/22 with Match barrels and 200 dollar trigger groups and all that (sigh), so I went tacti-cool in a practical way. Butler creek folding stock, extended Mag release, Williams peep sights, Ramline Hand-guard, flash hider, and a pile of 30 round mags. The only thing that wasn't really practical is the flash hider.
I went all out on my A3 AR-15 (sic) with a RR two stage Match trigger and a scope. The scope is only for testing ammo and then comes right back off again. What else does a guy need on an AR? Nothing.
If it was something practical like a percolator, then I might go for another add-on.
I went all out on my A3 AR-15 (sic) with a RR two stage Match trigger and a scope. The scope is only for testing ammo and then comes right back off again. What else does a guy need on an AR? Nothing.
If it was something practical like a percolator, then I might go for another add-on.
Double Naught Spy
New member
Maybe you should be asking yourself why you don't have the ability to let somebody else decorate his own belongings the way he wants. So you don't think what he is doing is logical. Do you want somebody evaluating all of your personal purchase decisions based on their sentiment and logic?
What is wrong with the guy having a cool looking .22? Are you afraid this will somehow diminish the value of your duded up .223 or .308?
You probably don't like it if he buys a nice tie, hankerchief, and good shoes to go with his Wal-mart suit either.
One thing I am sure of is this. If it was going on a more substantial caliber, you would still be complaining and calling it a Barbie-gun or dress-up or poser gun or some such moniker that wasn't approving.
Apparently, you don't understand the usefulness of accessories. No problem. Telescoping stocks are great. You can adjust the length of pull to suit you regardless of the position from which you will be firing the gun. It is an option that fixed stock guns don't give you. It is a really nice feature.
A laser is unsuited? Contraire! If the guy likes blasting away, the laser is the perfect accessory. He can shoot from the hip and do so accurately if he has properly sighted his laser.
Flashlight? I have seen flashlights taped to .22s and all sorts of other calibers for varmit hunting over the last couple decades. A light on a .22 is not unsuited as you claim. It doesn't mean he will use it in that manner, but the claim the light is unsuited isn't valid.
Venison_Jerkey32
New member
How is this logic any different than Cowboy Action Shooting?
I would argue that the main purpose of CAS is so that people can live out the cowboy fantisies they developed watching cowboy shows on TV.
Now my generation has "COD: Black Ops" and everyone wants a blacked out, tacticool rifle with unlimited ammunition.
What's the difference between paying a lot of money for a tacti-kewl rifle that shoots underpowered .22 rounds, and paying a lot of money for a reproduction six-shooter that shoots CAS underpowered .45LC rounds?
I think every generation is influenced to buy guns in different ways. As long as it's your money, you're following the 3 rules, and you let me put a few rounds through it at the range, I don't have a problem.
Maybe the tacticool rifle will introduce them into a lifetime of shooting so that one day they too can be crogidy old man that only shoots "blued steel and wood."
I would argue that the main purpose of CAS is so that people can live out the cowboy fantisies they developed watching cowboy shows on TV.
Now my generation has "COD: Black Ops" and everyone wants a blacked out, tacticool rifle with unlimited ammunition.
What's the difference between paying a lot of money for a tacti-kewl rifle that shoots underpowered .22 rounds, and paying a lot of money for a reproduction six-shooter that shoots CAS underpowered .45LC rounds?
I think every generation is influenced to buy guns in different ways. As long as it's your money, you're following the 3 rules, and you let me put a few rounds through it at the range, I don't have a problem.
Maybe the tacticool rifle will introduce them into a lifetime of shooting so that one day they too can be crogidy old man that only shoots "blued steel and wood."
I like his logic personally, get a decently priced rifle/carbine that fires CHEAP ammo. Therefore you want to shoot it more often and can afford to! I know I know, .223's are cheap comparing it to other centerfire arms, but still way over the price of a 40 gr LR. If he's just getting a gun to fling lead, why not make it a cheaper .22 rimfire over a centerfire? If you're going to be using it as a defensive weapon, then I guess yeah, a .22LR is not going to fit the bill, but it doesn't sound like that from this side of the keyboard.
I've had a similar argument with a friend of mine who hates the idea of putting scopes on "just a little .22" I figure, if I put fifty times the ammuntion through a scoped .22, then will shoot better with my scoped deer rifle. I'd much rather practice with my .22 all year and be able to afford rifle shells in the fall then shoot centerfire rounds all year and be broke as a joke! To each his own I guess.
I've had a similar argument with a friend of mine who hates the idea of putting scopes on "just a little .22" I figure, if I put fifty times the ammuntion through a scoped .22, then will shoot better with my scoped deer rifle. I'd much rather practice with my .22 all year and be able to afford rifle shells in the fall then shoot centerfire rounds all year and be broke as a joke! To each his own I guess.
I think you might misunderstand a bit here. I don't care what he does... it's his money, as many have observed, and he's certainly not hurting me by buying whatever. The thing that stumped me was the attitude that it would somehow be more than a range toy... it was as if he thought that it would somehow become useful when he added the accessories, but when I tried to talk to him about it, friendly conversation-like, he didn't really understand how it would be useful himself. And yes, he does play the FPS Xbox games.
I do seem to have hit a nerve, although unintentionally. I don't have a "duded-up" anything (although I might steal that expression) and it wouldn't matter if it was a more powerful caliber. I'm not sure what a more powerful gun has to do with Barbie dress up.
I think the comparison to Cowboy Action is sort of accurate, although he won't do anything that structured. I assume the Cowboy action shots are reduced in power to simulate the performance of guns from the period they're emulating? That makes it a bit more valid in my opinion. Anyway, it's nice to know I'm not alone in my puzzlement.
I do seem to have hit a nerve, although unintentionally. I don't have a "duded-up" anything (although I might steal that expression) and it wouldn't matter if it was a more powerful caliber. I'm not sure what a more powerful gun has to do with Barbie dress up.
I think the comparison to Cowboy Action is sort of accurate, although he won't do anything that structured. I assume the Cowboy action shots are reduced in power to simulate the performance of guns from the period they're emulating? That makes it a bit more valid in my opinion. Anyway, it's nice to know I'm not alone in my puzzlement.