Please suggest me a good .308 AR

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ShootAndHunt

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I want to buy a .308 rifle for shooting @ 200 yds and more. I was thinking on the M1A for a while but it is very hard to get. In addition I heard that it is very to scope and accurize, so I put my eyes on a .308 AR. I only have .223 AR before, and not very familiar with its big brother. Could you recommend me some good .308 AR.

I want it to have a 20" bbl since I want to shoot long rang, but still not difficult to carry. Flat-top for scope, and could shoot accurately if I do my job, but it won't burn a hole in my pocket so I am NOT looking at > $2K gun.

Thanks in advance,
 
DPMS LR308 is an excellent choice,and maybe the most inexpensive at about 1000 dollars.Then there is the Rock River Arms LAR-8,I have heard nothing but praises for these,usually around 1300 bucks.The Armalite AR10 is also a fine rifle ,but a little pricier at around 14-1500.You will be very happy with any of them.The DPMS base model comes with a rather basic trigger,so factor in a trigger upgrade.
 
i recently picked up a remington r-25 in 308. 20" barrel, 2-stage trigger. i am pleased w/ the gun and would make the same purchase again. cost me about $1300-1400.

a week or two ago i put a thread w/ pics up if your interested enough to do a search.

good luck!
 
Well the basic options are covered above. The DPMS is by far the least expensive, but it gets there from having a lower standard of fit and finish - you will almost certainly need to make upgrades such as to the trigger. The Armalite is far nicer out of the box than the DPMS. The DPMS tends to be very accurate out of the box, but it gets there partly from an extremely tight chamber that can hurt reliability.

M1As are terrific guns and not hard to find. If you can't find one locally, check out the website of Whittaker Guns.
 
The tie-breaker for me is that Magpul is making magazines for the DPMS pattern guns. Several manufactureres make the lowers, and you can get uppers in a variety of calibers. The Armalite pattern is less universal.

All true. However, the Magpul .308 Pmags do not seem as nice or stout as their .223 Pmags, and have left me generally unimpressed. I actually think that the best DPMS-pattern 308 mag right now is (gasp!) the C-Products mag.

To add to my earlier post: the DPMS is a real deal and the free float version (which is most of them) tend to be surprisingly accurate. I have an LR-308B and this past weekend I was getting groups as small as 3/4" at 50 yards (not 100) using relatively inexpensive Magtech FMJ ammo. Some people report sub-MOA at 100 yards, generally using better ammo. That's pretty good accuracy! They are also fairly customizable and have some (not nearly complete) parts interchangeability with 5.56 AR-15s.

But the bad news: it's a DPMS, and fit and finish isn't the highest, nor is it something I would call a pride of ownership gun. It's closer to being an appliance than almost any other rifle I own. I suppose if you like Glocks, you'll like the DPMS .308. I mentioned the tight chamber. Despite the great accuracy, I don't think DPMS did as much engineering work as Armalite or Rock River did with their .308 guns. I think the Armalite is a much nicer gun overall, but it's not the standard and as noted the DPMS pattern is becoming the standard pattern for a .308 AR.

Back to the M1A for a second: they cost a lot and getting one to reach MOA accuracy will cost a lot more, probably over $2000. However, they are really, really nice, and are, IMHO, a pride of ownership gun. Mine has been 100% reliable, literally no jams ever in several 100 rounds of use with various ammo including surplus. I have not put a scope on mine, yet, but I've read that if you get a Bassett mount it's straightforward and works.
 
Go with the Armalite AR-10. The guns are very accurate and fit/finish are outstanding. You should be able to get an accurized version for under $2k.
 
I bought a DPMS Sportical .308 for $849 a while back. Does what I want it to do! As someone else said it takes the $20 Magpul LR20 magazines which is a huge plus.
 
Ar10 from armalite is 1250 from several dealers online. I'm stuck between the armalite 308 or a colt 223. Same cost; plusses for the colt- it is a slightly better quality piece. Ammo cost is reasonable enough I can practice more. Armalite plusses? It is 308!


I've been on the fence a while. Not going tacticool just wNt a 20" a2 style for self defense
 
Z-Michigan said:
All true. However, the Magpul .308 Pmags do not seem as nice or stout as their .223 Pmags, and have left me generally unimpressed. I actually think that the best DPMS-pattern 308 mag right now is (gasp!) the C-Products mag.

I don't agree at all ... your comment re the PMAGs that is! I have five MAGPUL PMAG 20LR magazines and they work perfectly in addition to looking good. I have one C-Products magazine and that does work well too. However, the five DPMS magazines that I bought have been problematic ... two of them any way and always on the second to last round. I noticed that the follower in the PMAGs is opposite to standard .308 mags from C-Products, DPMS etc and this may be a deliberate choice by MAGPUL as opposed to "that's all we could get". A friend didn't like how the 20LRs looked in his SR-25 so I bought some extras from him.

ShootAndHunt said:
I was thinking on the M1A for a while but it is very hard to get.

They're not hard to get at all ... there are plenty available online including Scouts, SOCOMs, standard and loaded versions. As for a .308 in the AR platform ... as others have said, a DPMS would make a good choice if you're on a budget.

:)
 
DPMS-pattern 308 mag right now is (gasp!) the C-Products mag.

hands down, the best 308 mag is the KAC mag. However, at like, $117 (because it's KAC, not because it's gold plated or something), I can't afford to own dozens of them.

There are several things I don't like about the magpul 308 mag. however, at $15 or so, I can afford them.
 
Thanks guys for all these advices. It seems DPMS, Armalite and RRA are three to choose from.

I have a RRA AR15 and the quality is really good, but when I look at their website, it seems that the mag on LAR-8 is the FAL mag (although I don't find the description). How is it compared to other magazines?

For DPMS, it seems the most inexpensive one, but whether the quality is good?

How does an Armalite compare to a RRA (just quality wise. I know Armalite is the "original" AR-10, but I am not a collector, I just want to shoot a good rifle) :)

Should I go with a free-floated Barrel. This will be a rifle which I want to use to get into the long-range shooting.

For M1A, I was told last time there was a 3 month to half-year waiting period.
 
A free-floated barrel typically improves accuracy, at least in the AR platform, so if you're looking for really small groups then it's worth focusing on.

The RRA LAR-8 took several years of engineering for RRA to make work right, in large part because of the use of FN-FAL mags that were, at the time it began, cheap. They are no longer cheap or abundant. They are a quality mag, durable, no issues with them, but the supply is drying up and like-new FAL mags are in the $20 range now, and likely higher in the near future. Worn used FAL mags, still serviceable, can often be found for $10-15 or so. The FAL mag was intended to be a strength of that design but has really turned out to be a drawback.

Armalite quality is great in my view, but nothing wrong with RRA. I think you would find the Armalite very slightly nicer than the RRA and its customer service noticeably better (more responsive, at least), but both are good companies.

M1As are readily available if that's what you would rather have. In fact, much easier to find than the RRA LAR-8 most of the time. I would decide what you really want and not default to something because of perceived availability issues.

Armalite and Springfield Armory (M1A) have lifetime warranties and excellent service. DPMS has only a 3-year warranty though they do seem to have an excellent reputation for service within that time frame. Not sure of the RRA warranty. I really wanted a LAR-8 several years ago but really got soured on RRA after not being able to get through on the phone after perhaps a dozen attempts spread over several months, and this was long before Obama was even a candidate. They didn't reply to email (back then) either, though that's more common. However, Armalite has always replied to my emails promptly with useful replies written be someone who seems to know what they're talking about. (I have emailed a mix of questions, some relating to an AR-15 I own, others relating to potential purchases.)
 
ShootAndHunt said:
For M1A, I was told last time there was a 3 month to half-year waiting period.

Impact Guns has a bunch of models in stock and ready to ship. Thier prices are ok but not great.

http://www.impactguns.com/store/springfield_m1a.html

They have these models available:

M1A SOCOM
M1A Scout Squad (black)
M1A Scout Squad (green)
M1A Standard (black)
M1A Loaded (walnut stock)
M1A Standard (walnut)
M1A Super Match (walnut)

:)
 
DPMS has revamped part of their 7.62 line with their SASS rifles. They have bumped up the design and finish I believe on their rifles. Finally an ejection port cover and forward assist. Check them out on their website. It is pushing your price range but they can be found for under 2K.
 
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