looking to get a car-15 style ar15 rifle

Question
hello my name is vinnie. i have some questions about buying myself a car-15 style ar15 rifle or just a small ar15 carbine if not a car15, well anyway iam in a wheelchair first u should know but i have full use of my upper body and my hands. i own and shoot lots of times a beretta cx4 storm 9mm carbine but obviously i want something stronger and better.well im looking to BUY a car style ar15 but dont really know what i should look for being in a wheelchair i need help on what would be the best parts and what not and what do u recommend as the best ammo to use for my ar15. i know this isnt exactly the best post and i dont know if ud be able to help me out but id figured id give it a try. i know i want a 16'' barrel but a thick barrel would an heavy aka hbar barrel be good for the type of barrel i want. and i dont want a collapsable stock either, plz help me figure out what parts or even maybe ar15 rifle other then the car15 that would be best for me thank u very much
vinnie.

Answer
Vinnie,

You can do a lot of good shopping right on the internet. I concur with your choice of a 16" barrel.  Most of the newer AR's have barrels that are heavier than the original M16 "pencil" barrels, but some are (in my opinion) ridiculously heavy.

You mentioned a CAR-15, but then said you don't want a collapsable stock.  The "C" in CAR-15 stands for collapsable - it is by definition a collapsable stock, so if that's not what you want, what you're looking at is an AR-15 style carbine.

Colt's quality has not been good lately.  I would look at mfgs such as Bushmaster, DPMS, and especially Rock River Arms, which are very nicely made (my personal picks - some people like Armalite as well).  On the high end you have rifles by Wilson Combat or Les Baer, but they are not worth the price in my opinion.

An A-3 configuration (flat-top with a rail) will give you the most sighting options, from iron to optics to dots.

Beyond that, the particular bells and whistles are really personal preference (although I've never much cared for "oversized" anything - mag release, charging handle, etc.).

As far as ammuntion goes, that will depend on what you want to do with it.  Hornady V-Max is hard to beat for hunting or self-defense.  Other than that, military ball is fine, although I'd stay away from Wolf and ammunition of old Soviet block mfg - bad for the rifle.

You can check out the various configs for Bushmaster, DPMS, and Rock River Arms carbines by doing a google search for their web sites.

Best to you.