Originally Posted by billt

It's a bit over your price point, but I picked up this Rock River Arms LAR-9, 9 MM AR-15 last year, and it's been a super performer. The really nice thing about it is the lower is machined from solid as a dedicated 9 MM. It doesn't have the magazine block pressed in like the Colts do. This gun ran right around the $1,000.00 mark, and is worth every cent. It has very good sights, and I can easily hit the 24 inch steel gongs at my clubs 200 yard rifle range. 32 round magazines from Colt, C-Products, Pro-Mag, and several others all work well.

I already have an AR. The RR looks like a great gun, but it is more than I want. I am just looking for something to run around the farm with. I think I will be taking a serious look at the Kel-Tec Sub 2000. I like the fact it runs Glock mags and the price isn't bad at all. It doesn't like aluminum cases, but I reload which means I only shoot brass anyway so it fits my needs pretty well. Thanks for the input though.

The biggest issue with inexpensive, pistol caliber carbines, is that companies just can't make them cheap enough, or sell enough of them to make it a worthwhile venture. Both Marlin and Ruger found this out. Both produced excellent pistol carbines. They just couldn't sell enough of them to warrant the floor space, machinery, and people it took to produce them. If they raised the price sales would have dropped off even more. That is why you see so few of them except for companies like Kel-Tec or High Point that can manufacture them dirt cheap.