Invest.
It's worth every penny, even for those who have perfect or beyond-perfect vision, a good set of plano-lens (that's properly impact-rated) eyepro will cut the edge-distortion - and may not even realize that this exists on their non-prescription lenses - that plagues el-cheapo eyepro.
Invest. And once you invest, you'll take good care of them. What's more, the good stuff typically have lenses that are very scratch resistant. Most folks go for years and years before they start seeing scratches.
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Went looking at at my LGS and looked at The Saint , Ruger , M&P Sport2, Colt 6920, and Spikes. Must say this has gotten a little hard as far as making decisions. I'm starting to shy away from the Sport 2 because its not as solid as the Saint imo. The Saint is impressive to me. Spikes and Colts are standards in their price range. Both cost less than the Saint at my LGS. Saint is loaded though.
Don't get too fixated on what "feels solid."
This measure is completely subjective, and is often based on weight, which - and trust me that I'm speaking from experience, here, isn't what you really want, unless all that you intend to do with the gun is to shoot it off a bench.
Why am I so emphatic about this?
Because my first AR was an LMT MRP CQB 16 that I, too, "felt was the most solid in the entire store."
Why did it feel so sturdy? Yes, the true-monolitholic upper helped, but it's friggin' near 7 and a half pounds.,
empty.
At the time, the two leading contenders for me at that shop was a Daniel Defense M4A1 versus this LMT, and while the DDM4A1 of that vintage (c.2011) weighed just north of 6 and 1/2 lbs., it nowhere felt as rigid as the tank that's the LMT MRP. So, with the idea that a "more solid feeling gun must be better," I gladly bought the LMT.
A year later, as I started to ready myself to take carbine classes and thus started dry-practice in-earnest, I quickly came to the realization that weight was the enemy, and went out and bought a DDM4V5LW to use as my primary training/range beater.
Look at it this way - if guys like Steve Fisher and Pat McNamara love lightweight guns, why wouldn't any of us mere mortals?
Both Saint models weigh a around 6 and 2/3 lbs, empty. While that's far from heavy, it's also not light, and this can be subjectively very, very deceptive, particularly when the other guns (M&P Sport-2 and Colt 6920) come in at under 6 and 1/2 lbs.
This, combined with the BCM furniture's solid and wobble-free install into the Delta-ring/endcap and the receiver extension/buffer tube (here, I'm assuming that you're looking at the non-free-floated version, due to cost, noting also that it is the heavier of the two versions, coming in at 6 lbs., 11 oz.) versus "standard furniture" models, I know that this can also give a perception of "solidity" where none truly exists - or, honestly, that it actually matters (which it does not).
Does The Saint's BCM furniture give it an advantage in terms of value-added? I certainly think that it is undeniable that they do - but you must be *_VERY_* realistic with yourself and ask if you will honestly be replacing those components down the road. Because if you do replace them before they're damaged or otherwise rendered inoperable, you're effectively looking at false-economy, and you're instead letting your emotions drive the purchase. If you want to play this game, you should then look at the Colt 6290 MPS-series, with the wonderful Magpul SL furniture that locks up incredibly tight (this is the furniture I use on my Aero hobby-gun, and it truly feels exceptionally solid).
I really have not made up my mind. I love the price $520 of the Sport 2 and also its great reviews. I started out looking at that gun only. The Saint wasn't even being considered but its looking pretty sweet. Just not sure about getting a mid length . I think i can get one of those for between $760-800. Then theres the colt that i can get around $860.. Thats a really decent price for a pretty nice mil spec gun. Not much difference between the Colt and the Spikes and the Spikes is a little more expensive once sights and magpul furniture is factored in. That would cost about $1000. So i guess i'm down to three starter rifles between $500-$900. Deciding between a carbine and a mid length might help a little but then again it might just increase my budget. Not good!!!!!! Need to stay as far under $1000 as i can .
Most modern shooters prefer the midlength gas-system configuration, however, purists will still maintain that the gun should go with original specs: either rifle- or carbine-length gas-systems. In all honesty, particularly for a first-time buyer, this consideration is secondary to simply having a gun that runs properly, and at this price-point, the market has plenty of offerings running either the carbine or midlength system just fine, and it should thus not be a worry.
That said, even being the owner of four XDms and as someone who has said (and written here on this Foru) that he'd have bought a Saint had it been introduced just a couple of months before its debut on the market (at the time, I had purchased an Aero OEM 16" middy specifically as a hobby-gun to take with me to a local armorer class - note that I already had three high-end ARs at that point: I specifically wanted to delve into the guts of a supposed "hobby-grade" gun, while under the eyes of a truly highly regarded gunsmith), I am still somewhat cautious about the reliability/durability - as well as the Q/C of the Springfield AR (
Another Saint owner... ) - to be able to offer a recommendation for it.
It's true that more recent owners have come here with very good reports of their Saints, but honestly, in this field that's overflowing with proven examples, it's nearly impossible to make this recommendation to anyone who is either on a budget (where troubles eat into cost, even as a secondary concern, regardless of warranty coverage) or who is purchasing his/her one-and-only.