Bear Creek Arsenal makes good guns at a good price, so here we test out the BC-15 RSCH, BC-201 and BC-101 Grizzly.
I’ve been assessing and writing about guns for more than a quarter century, and it’s rare I receive a gun to test and am genuinely surprised with the results. But a couple months ago Bear Creek Arsenal (BCA) reached out and asked if I would like to review one of their AR-15s. I agreed, but based on the rifle’s suggested retail price, I didn’t expect much. Boy, was I surprised. I was so impressed I asked BCA if I could review some of their other firearms. They agreed and sent me one of their .22 rifles and a 9mm pistol, and here’s a look at all three of the BCA firearms I have experience with. But first, what about the company that makes these affordable guns?
About Bear Creek Arsenal
In 2013, Eugene Moore, a Navy SeaBee veteran started Bear Creek Arsenal. It’s a family owned and operated business, and it has since seen remarkable expansion. Over the past decade, they’ve continually added new CNC machines, and the manufacturing facility, which is all under one roof, now covers 340,000 square feet. Bear Creek Arsenal’s philosophy is that every American should be able to own premium firearms, while not stressing over being able to afford them. They use the finest machining methods and most modern technology to provide some of the most competitively priced AR rifles in the industry.
BCA manufactures all key firearm components in-house, and they sell directly to the customer, cutting out the distributor. They use top-of-the-line shipping and warehouse management processes and technologies to achieve excellent turnaround times, and this is all done to pass along the most savings possible to the customer. In keeping with BCA’s American work ethic, they back all their products with the “Bear Den Guarantee,” which is a limited lifetime warranty. The Moore family also believes in giving back to the community and helping law enforcement, charities and building communities.
Currently, BCA offers firearms available for 26 different cartridges, ranging from .17 HMR, up through the 8.6 Blackout and ending up with the .458 SOCOM. This includes AR-15 and AR-10 (BC-10 and BC-15) style rifles, and the BC-8 Huntmaster semi-auto AR-patterned rifle, which is available in .30-06 Springfield, .270 Winchester and .300 Winchester Magnum. BCA also manufactures pistol-caliber carbines chambered in 9mm, 10mm and .45 Auto, as well as polymer-framed pistols, a 1911 and semi-automatic .22 LR and .22 Magnum rifles. BCA will soon be adding new lever-action and bolt-action rifles on the AR platform.
Bear Creek Arsenal BC-15 RSCH
The typical BCA AR-15 is a mil-spec-style AR that comes in various configurations. The main difference with the BCA BC-15 AR that I reviewed is its right-side charging handle (RSCH). With this AR, the upper receiver and bolt carrier are a bit different. It will still fit a mil-spec AR-15 lower receiver, but the upper is void of the conventional T-handle charging handle and the ejection port is also different to work with the RSCH, which allows you to easily operate the rifle’s action while it’s on your shoulder.
The test rifle was chambered for the 6mm ARC cartridge, and it has a 24-inch, heavy and fluted, 416R stainless steel barrel, with the muzzle threaded at 5/8×24, and a proprietary BCA flash hider installed from the factory. It also has a rifle-length gas system and a non-adjustable gas block that’s concealed inside an aluminum BCA 15-inch M-Lok handguard. The rifle doesn’t come with a magazine or a thread protector for the muzzle, and the trigger is mil-spec.
The first round fired from the rifle failed to eject, but after that it ran perfectly without a single hiccup, with and without a Silencer Central Banish Backcountry suppressor installed. The first load I evaluated was the 105-grain BTSP Hornady Black load, and it averaged about 1.25 inches—about what you’d expect from a less than $600 AR-15 with a not-so-great mil-spec trigger. The next load was the ELD-X load, and it averaged right at an inch, and the Hornady Match load averaged less than three-quarters of an inch. That’s near MOA AR-15 performance for less than 600 bucks!
BC-15 RSCH SPECS:
SKU: CR9001N-6MMARHB2418SSF-15M3
CHAMBERING: 6mm ARC
WEIGHT: 9.2 pounds
CAPACITY: AR-15 pattern 6.5 Grendel magazines (magazine not provided)
BARREL: 416R stainless steel, 24 inches with 1:8 twist, threaded at 5/8×24
SIGHTS: None
RECEIVER: 7075-T6 aluminum with integral rail
HANDGUARD: 15-inch M-Lok with rail
STOCK: 6-position adjustable
MSRP: $596.99
Bear Creek Arsenal BC-201
The BC-201 is really just a copy of the most famous .22 rifle of all time—the Ruger 10/22. It features a 416R stainless steel (match grade) barrel and an over-molded Hogue stock. The barrel has a .920 diameter and 11-degree target crown and interestingly, the 7075 T6 aluminum receiver has an integrated Picatinny rail for easy scope mounting. The BC-201 feeds from factory Ruger 10/22 magazines and one comes with the rifle. As you might guess, the rifle is compatible with aftermarket Ruger 10/22 components as well.
This rifle ran perfectly with every .22 LR load I tried, but it proved to be a bit finicky when it came to precision on target. Most of the loads I tested printed five-shot groups at 50 yards from a sandbag rest in the 1.25- to 1.75-inch range. That’s not stellar but it’s also not uncommon performance for an affordable .22 rimfire rifle. However, the rifle absolutely loved the CCI Green Tag load. I fired 10 groups with this load and the largest measured just shy of an inch, and most were closer to the half-inch mark. CCI’s MiniMag load also shot reasonably well, averaging just a tad more than an inch at 50 yards.
BC-201 SPECS:
SKU: CR8996-SCH22LHB16116SSUT
CHAMBERING: .22 long rifle
WEIGHT: 6.5 pounds
CAPACITY: 10-round detachable Ruger 10/22 magazine (ships with one magazine)
BARREL: 416R stainless steel, 16 inches with 1:16 twist, 11-degree crown
SIGHTS: None
RECEIVER: 7075-T6 aluminum with integral rail
Stock: Hogue Overmold Ghillie Green
MSRP: $345
Bear Creek Arsenal BC-101 Grizzly
This polymer-framed 9mm pistol is essentially a Glock 17 Gen 3 clone. But there are some differences. The slide has window cuts on the sides and top, and the frame has a slightly different shape and feel, and very comfortable and attractive “Bear fur” stippling on the slides, front and rear. The pistol also comes out of the box with photoluminescent night sights and an optics cut for an RMR. BCA offers several versions, but they all cost the same. The base gun is as I described, and then there are models with either a gold titanium or stainless Nitride, threaded or unthreaded barrel. And finally, there’s the pistol I evaluated, which has a black Nitride threaded barrel.
Test-firing started on the bench and the pistol proved to be a tack driver with just about every load I tried. However, I had some issues with the slide locking back before the magazine was empty and then not wanting to release by hand. I had to put my Glock armorer’s hat on, and a full disassembly revealed the slide lock was just slightly bent. I ordered a new slide stop for a Glock 17 for $9.99, and it solved the issue.
I shot this pistol just as well as I shoot my G17, and the trigger was just as good as any factory Gen 3 Glock I’ve fired. I liked the pistol so much that I installed a Trijicon RMR and a set of suppressor height sights from XS Sights. (Sight removal and installation was very easy using the XS Sights In-Line Sight Pusher Kit.) With the reflex sight and XS sights installed, I continued to shoot the hell out of this pistol with and without my Silencer Central Banish 45 suppressor. Those in the hunt for a polymer-framed 9mm should for sure give this gun a serious look.
SKU: CGP101-91917SSBCFTH-TCWC2MPOLY
CHAMBERING: 9mm Luger
WEIGHT: 22.88 ounces
CAPACITY: 17+1 detachable Glock 17 magazines (includes two)
BARREL: 4150 chrome moly vanadium, 5 inches with 1:16 twist, threaded at 1/2×28
SIGHTS: Photoluminescent/three-dot with optics cut for RMR
FRAME: Black polymer
MSRP: $295
The Bear Creek Advantage
I wouldn’t say the guns from BCA are the best American-made guns you can buy. But let me be clear about something, with a Bear Creek Arsenal gun you’ll definitely get your money’s worth. The BC-15 I evaluated was completely reliable and shot great. The BC 201, while a bit finicky when it came to the ammo it liked, was flawlessly reliable. And, after I replaced the bent slide stop—a part that cost me $9.99—on the BC-101 Glock clone, that pistol ran to perfection with every load tried, with and without a suppressor.
As a final note, I’ll leave you with this. The suggested retail price for all three of these BCA guns—not counting the tax man’s cut—is only $1,236.99, which works out to only about $413 per gun. To put that in perspective, three similar guns from Ruger, including an AR-556 MPR, a Ruger American Pistol and a Ruger 10/22, would set you back nearly twice as much. Right now, money is tight and if you’re looking for a new American-made gun, you might want to start your search at Bear Creek Arsenal. Looking is even less expensive—it’s free.
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the November 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
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