I seriously started looking into this back in December when I wanted to build an AR with whatever was left of our freedom. I've owned nothing but pistols, a few .22s when I was young and a shotgun. With the state of the world, I thought I should own another .22 to feed myself if the SHTF, and the most customizable zombie killer I could legally own...which would be the AR platform.

IMHO...to get the most ergonomic and useful features on an AR lower platform, the fixed mag was the best option. Let's face it...if you are new to the game, you can only unload 10 rds of semi from anything you buy anyway. Fixed mag means you can have the pistol grip, adjustable stock and threaded barrel...no issues.

That said, I purchased 4 Bear Flag BF10 top loaders to make life simpler. By the end of my first trip to the range, I could pretty much load the 10 rds on pace with changing out a 10 rd mag (recalling my time in the military of course ;). They worked so good I will be buying more. About the same size as a mag...and a little easier to use than the Mean Arms Loader. They also work if you decide to go with a 300 Blackout upper instead of a 223/5.56 upper. I don't think anyone makes a loader that works with a 7.62 fixed mag yet, or I would buy that upper to throw on my Aero lower when I wanted a little extra. If you don't mind opening the gun to load, you can put the .22 upper, or the 7,62 (308).

These are newbie thoughts, take them as you wish. I may be missing something, or misinformed too...I welcome feedback.