DPMS Sportical vs Oracle

[dannyfro]

Hello all I was wondering what the major differences were between these two as they seem all mighty similar and the price point is close as well. Is it just that the Oracle has a different finish and or other slight components missing on the Sportical? Thanks for your time.

Dan

[Lloyd Smale]

looks to me by the pictures that the oracle is about indentical to a sprortical but with the addition of a forward assist and dirt cover that are on the oracle.

[SHOOTALL]

At gun shows and many retail outlets (that sell "parts" for AR's) many say all AR parts are made by a few companies. And many "builders " use parts from these suppliers stamping their logo on them calling them MIL SPEC. In many cases this might be true as most look alike. But if you take the time to read and inspect mant different manufacters products you see differences . Finish , shell deflector, how the lower is made to not accept a full auto trigger group, forged vs cast , Steel the bbl is made from, fences vs no fences, forged vs powder controls , type springs etc.. If all was equal there would be no need for things like wedges , offset pins etc.. The bbl is the heart of the gun , military bbls are 4140 I think and those on the civilian in many cases are 4130 ( I may have the numbers backwards ) . A military spec bbl is stronger and harder to take abuse such as sustained auto fire and knocks getting out of choppers and vehicles.
 So if you can don't rely on looks check the specs to see what you are really getting. Does the gun have a single stage trigger ot two stage one ? What is the finish other than black ? Are the internal parts domestic or imported ?
Pick up a shotgun news it has a worth of parts for sale with discriptions , use as a learning guide . Sights are a big thing if supplied are they composition or metal . These things are hard to see in a picture and sometimes in hand.
Best to decide what you want and but the best you can.

[dannyfro]

Lloyd thats what I noticed after I posted....I'm almost wondering if it would be cheaper to build one and probably a lot more fun what do you think?

Dan

[SHOOTALL]

 

[simplicity]

The only difference between the oracle and the sportacle is the sportacle doesn't have a forward assist or dust cover. I ended up getting the oracle only because of my time in the millitary.  Though I can count the number of times I've use my forward assist on the rifle on one hand. but I did use it. (btw I'm refering to the 7.62 oracle) I bought it to have base to build off from.  As of now this is what mine looks like now I do have another stock and a afg coming for it.

[Lloyd Smale]

ive got both 308 and a 223 sportical and for the money there tough to beat. they will shoot right alon side of my high dollar ars and in many cases are even more accurate. Ive had absolutely no reliability problems with either. As to the sportical/orical thing ill say this. A forward assist is someting that should have never seen the light  of day on any ar!! I do like a dust cover though but can live without it for a sprorting gun. If it were a true combat gun id want a dust cover though. Ive seen sporticals go for around 600 bucks and its tough to build one much better for that and even if you do when a part breaks (and eventually they all break no matter who made it) you will have a good warantee to fall back on. Also ive seen guys build guns that just never ran right. If you happen to get a maufactured gun that doesnt run right or shoot well again you have a warantee. Its well worth the 100 bucks or so you might save. to me it is anyway.

Lloyd thats what I noticed after I posted....I'm almost wondering if it would be cheaper to build one and probably a lot more fun what do you think?

Dan

[SHOOTALL]

I have to agree about the forward asst. it turns a FTF into a stuck case alot of times. As for building you can get a very nice gun that way. It is important to decide what you want before buying the first part. Reserch the parts as to being Mil Spec or not. If you do a good job selecting parts and don't try to get out of the mil. spec. build then you can get a very nice gun. The cost may be less or more depending on what you want. The key here is you get what you want. Warranty is a good point but in reality if you pick good parts they come with a warranty. So you will supply the warranty labor. Part of the price of any product is warranty so you do pay for it either way. The real ? is if you do a build can you take your time and fit the parts . A good guide works wonders , Mid-way has a guide and CD . I used both and my AR turned out well. That said the BBL I got was flawed and the vendor I got it from replaced it free and switched the bbl on the upper along with giving me some other stuff for my trouble. For a first time build you might want to get a complete upper and build the lower yourself.
 

[dannyfro]

Thats a good point about the warranty...On the Sportical is it possible to add a dust cover later on?

Dan

[Lloyd Smale]

nope unless you by another upper reciever

Thats a good point about the warranty...On the Sportical is it possible to add a dust cover later on?

Dan

[dannyfro]

Thanks for the info. It would mostly be for fun and recreation but I do like the idea of a dust cover...just because it couldn't hurt.

Dan

[SHOOTALL]

Depending on your way of thinking lube on the carrier and bolt can be from to little to to much. The dust cover does keep a wet carrier/bolt from being exposed to dust and dirt when stored or in the field. Here is a plus for a build . You can get upper recivers from $85.00 to $120.00 stripped. You can upgrade your carrier to a nickle borion which is a very slick coating making lube less critical.

[Bart Solo]

Looking at the latest Midway USA advertisement, the difference in price between the sportical upper and the oracle upper is about $20.  Right now both are going pretty cheap.  You should be able to acquire a stripped lower from your FFL for pretty cheap.   DPMS lower kits are almost the standard for AR builders.  They aren't very expensive.  Throw in an A2 stock and you should be able to put the basic pieces together for around $600 (without sights.)  The rifle you assemble will be very, very accurate.  In addition it will be all yours.  You will know more about the AR platform than if you just bought new.   You can assemble a lower with a few hand tools.  If you want to assemble the upper as well and install a barrel you will need some tools and guages that are fairly expensive.   Brownells has the very best assembly instructions possible.  Follow them to the letter and you can't go wrong.  Don't worry about the sights.  You probably don't want military sights anyway.  There are hundreds of optics available at every conceivable price point.
What DPMS lacks is a chrome lined barrel, but none of my other rifle or pistol barrels are chrome lined.  Civilians just don't shoot as much as folks in the military so it will be decades before we wear out a barrel anyway.     
My build was a slick side (sportical) with a bull barrel.   I am already planning another upper.  Oh, that is the cool thing about the AR platform, once you have a lower, you can switch out your upper to suit your mission.  If you want a target or varmint rifle pick an upper with a bull barrel.  If you want to hunt deer, buy an upper in a deer caliber like the 6.8 SPC or the 30 Remington AR.  If you are afraid of zombies or you just want something to plink with buy a light weight barrelled upper.  If you want to shoot three gun, put a three gun upper and optics on your lower. 
The only modification I made to my DPMS lower was install an upgraded 2 stage Guiselle trigger group.   The trigger group cost more than the rest of the lower combined.

[SHOOTALL]

If you get the bbl with the bbl extension you really don't need gauges really .

[dannyfro]

Thanks for all the info guys...I just thought it might be a fun project to take on to play with then again you can just buy a complete upper and lower and slap them together and its still cheaper than buying new. I might take on a stripped receiver and a complete upper just to get a taste for it.

Dan

[ironglowjr]

Sometimes building uppers andlowers is cheaper....But you have to pay attention and do the math sometimes it is just cheaper to buy an assembled upper(minus BBL) than it is to buy the upper and all the parts same with the Lower....It all comes down to Shopping around ...!!

[dannyfro]

That is most certainly true. Im never one to jump on the first thing I find. I just want a basic plain jane one to go out and plink around with nothing fancy.

Dan