Wanting to get an AR Need help

I am starting to get interested in getting an AR. I have always hunted with a bolt gun but I am really interested in getting a weapon that can take multiple shots quickly. I will mainly be using the AR to hunt coyotes/varmints and am looking for some info. Looking at 5.56 caliber

Price/pros cons of buying complete rifle or building
What is the differnece in 223 and 556
If I buy complete weapon what brand would you recommend with price

Thanks

Pros of building -- less cost, handpicked components. Save money where you want, splurge where you want.

Pros of buying -- someone to talk to if something goes wrong, easier time in resale (most likely)

.223/5.56 -- .223 wylde or 5.56 chambers would be my recommendation as they allow for milsurp plinking ammo. The chamber dimensions are slightly different between the 3, with 5.56, .223W, 223R going from largest to smallest. General recommendation is this: 5.56 and .223W are universal. .223R can ONLY be used with .223R ammo.

rifle manufacturer recommendation is dependent on budget.

In general I'd recommend: PSA (or spikes if it has the lothar walter barrel) for a < 1400 price tag Daniel Defense for 1400 to 1700, Noveske for 1700 to ~2400, LaRue for 2400 - 3000, LMT if you want a high dollar piston AR. wilson and les baer also make excellent top dollar ARs. Lots of people like Rock River in the <1400 category, but I don't like their furniture, and the tendency to run 1:9 barrels outside of the 1:8 wylde chamber.

(edit-- price figures are approximate, there's probably a few hundred bucks in overlap in most of those categories)

I haven't owned one, but the Radical Arms line through Primary Arms is one hell of a deal. Personally, I love my Palemetto State Armory build and it was very cost-effective. Since you're looking at .223/5.56, I won't tell you how much I prefer 300blk for hunting

I've been very happy with my DPMS.

The only difference in the actual rounds are the pressures. The differences in the rifles are the barrel leade. It's not recommended to shoot 5.56 in .223 barrels.

There's really no point in recommending a rifle. There's many to choose from that'll work.

X2

Mine is in 6.5 Creedmoor and it'll shoot 5 round groups under 1" all day long.

X3. So will my DPMS .243. And I'm glad that someone has finally realized that most ARs are just too damm heavy and unwieldy. Coming in at less than 8 pounds, the DPMS Lite Hunter destroys the myth that a black gun--ready for hunting--should weigh 15 lbs.

But don't forget that there are other semi-autos other than the AR, and despite the reasonable pricing of ARs these days, you might find a better value in something like a Remington 4 or 7400, especially if you want more power than a .223. Ruger Mini-14s and Ranch Rifles have no flies on them either, and their barrels are more accurate than they were just 5 years ago.

5.56 will shoot .223 but a .223 will not shoot 5.56 so I would buy the 5.56 as a start. What's more important is the barrel twist rate. Get a twist rate that will handle heavier bullets (if you want to shoot hogs, etc)

Buy or Build is up to you..... I bought because I am not really into tinkering with firearms. I shoot left-handed so I went with Stag as they had a good reputation and lots of left-handed models, but there are a ton of good AR manufacturers....just do some on-line research.

I bought a Colt at first, shot it a lot and loved it. Decided I wanted to try my hand at building one. I fell in love with ARs after building one. I had my lower custom engraved, built up the lower and I bought a complete upper for it. I loved that gun so much more that I sold my Colt. Building it is fun, and I'll always recommend doing that, but if you're gonna be a buyer it's a good time to do it.

Building isn't hard either, I'm not exactly good at building and fixing things. So if I could do it I know you can, just follow directions.

probably a stupid question, but the more I think about it, the more I feel like I want to get into this build thing.

What parts are you looking for to build an AR?

Are all uppers/lowers compatible with each other?

Recommendations on equipment to seek out or avoid???

Happy with my dpms recon.. very accurate for me! Topped it with a zeiss terra

Paid 879.99 new free shipping for rifle

I would say start with building a complete lower. With an AR15, any upper should fit any lower. So you could build your own lower and then buy a complete upper. If you want a different upper, it's easier to sell a built upper vs trying to sell an upper you built.
Parts are all standard, all you have to watch out for is if your lower is to Colt M4 specs or not. Only difference is roll pin size. Oh, you also have to pay attention if you go with a mil-spec buffer tube or not. It's a different size tube so you just need to know which you have for your stock.
For tools, you need a small hammer, a roll pin punch set, a stock wrench, and masking tape. Oh, and a small 2x4 scrap piece of wood. I think that's all I use to build the lower. Lots of videos on building one on Youtube. Watch a few of them and decide which looks like the easiest way to do it.
Building your own lets you go with the look and parts you want to start off with. Otherwise you are changing out parts on a built rifle. You can try to stay within budget with a build, but like most stuff you build, you often have to double the budget in the end because you always find cool stuff that you want.
Not really much to avoid that I can think of. I don't care for polymer AR lowers, others are fine with them. Some cool looking stocks are really heavy. They look cool and work well, but not something you want to carry around due to weight. You can buy lower parts kits without a fire control group (trigger) if you want a better trigger in the gun. Saves a little money if you want a nicer trigger.

Get yourself a good vise and the upper block, or make one. You'll want to crank that barrel a little and on the floor is just too hard.

I need a budget and intended purpose to answer this adequately. I wrote this a couple months back and its a pretty good start for an all around good rifle at a 1400-1900 level, but that may not make sense for you. An ARPerformance or Black Hole Weaponry barrel would shave a a bit off that, you could get nicer furniture to up the budget at the other end.

Thanks! I've been a hunter all my life and I know how to use guns.. no question about it! But when it comes to this 'black rifle' stuff, it gets a little overwhelming to me! I always thought they were cool but never really wanted to bother with them. I've been reading up on it a little and most of yall in here have really good advice so thanks and keep it coming!