When I was about 18, I traded a 222 bolt gun for a mini 14. Next thing I knew there was 3 of them in my family and we spent the next several years dumping thousands of rounds through them, laughing at the AR guys. We also quietly traded into several mini's trying to find one that was accurate, it never happened.
I finally tried a Colt at the reccomendation of a buddy (at the time there was Colt, Bushmaster and Armalite) and fell in love with it. My buddy taught me how they worked and how to work on them. Being able to set one up to fit me, being as accurate as a bolt gun (my first Colt shot 1/2" groups out of the box) and being 100% reliable sealed the deal. A second or thirtieth follow up shot was nice too.
Today I favor light bolt guns like the Kimber Montana but still have a few AR's and always will. When you need an AR, nothing else will do.
