Hi All! I wanted to get your guys' opinions on .300 WM AR style rifles.
The first long action AR I had ever heard of was the Noreen BN-36, a .30-06 AR-styled rifle that is now available in .270 Winchester and .25-06. The first .300 Winchester Magnum AR rifle I ever heard of was the Nemo Omen. That was not long ago. Then came Falkor Defense's Petra. I am to understand that Falkor is now owned by or merged with Nemo, but I am not sure. Google it if you want more info on that. Recently, POF decided to enter the new .300 WM AR market with their P300. It is new enough that POF's website says "coming soon" when it refers to the P300. I am not certain if any of these three .300 WM guns share common parts, as they are all new enough that patents are still probably held on all of them by their respective companies. But I believe they can all take Nemo mags.
Now let's turn to ammo. The .300 WM is based on the .375 H&H, just like many other cartridges, but is supposed to fit in long action rifles, i.e., anything that can shoot .30-06. The 7mm Remington Magnum is another cartridge of such a description, as is the .338 Win Mag. These cartridges have their granddaddy's .532" rim. Recently Nosler announced the introduction of the 33 Nosler, which claims will send a 265 gr. .338 bullet 25 fps faster than the legendary - nay, mythical - .338 Lapua. It is based on the .404 Jeffrey case, the same as other Nosler rounds. With a rim diameter of .534", it would probably not be too difficult to fit a bolt for the Nosler rounds. The problem might come with making sure that a chamber with thinner walls could handle the high pressures. I am totally ignorant when it comes to re-chambering rifles, so I will let those knowledgeable on such things volunteer information on the ability to re-chamber a .300 WM rifle to .28, .30, or .33 Nosler. Putting on a barrel and bolt to convert one of these guns to .30-06 (or a cartridge based on the .30-06) might be easier. But again, I cannot be sure. With something like the .33 Nosler, if it lives up to its claims, a long action AR could probably be adapted to be an even better long-range option than the .300 WM. A .30-06 or .270 Winchester AR could probably find a place in the hearts of a lot of hunters.
So, in my opinion, there is plenty that long action AR rifles could do. They are incredibly pricey, but that could change with more competition. Which brings me to my next thought. There are many AR manufacturers out there. A lot of them are good, and many considered great rifle manufacturers. I am wondering if a company like Barrett will decide to take up the challenge of a long action AR. They already have long range rifles as well as AR platform rifles. LWRC, which makes good piston ARs, also has their REPR line, which is supposed to be a precision rifle. They also make rifles that already have a high price tag, so a pricey .300 WM AR might not be too far out of their way. But would that be too much competition? Would that be too many guns chasing too few dollars?
So here is where I invite you to express your opinion on the subject. Are the long-action .300 WM AR designs here to stay, or will they be a flash in the pan? Will the number of manufacturers steadily grow, will it balloon, or are we likely to see only a few more entries, if any at all, into this market? Will the new long action designs end up like other ARs, being chambered in a myriad of calibers, or will .300 WM and 7mm Remington Mag be pretty much all we see? Do you see this kind of rifle's use ever expanding into hunting, competition, or others, or is it pretty much a one-trick pony? Do you think that the price these rifles demand is built in to the platform, or will we slowly see the prices drop as the technology becomes more well worn, until we end up with a $1000 Smith and Wesson M&P300?
I hope to hear from you guys. Thanks.
-cstarr3
The first long action AR I had ever heard of was the Noreen BN-36, a .30-06 AR-styled rifle that is now available in .270 Winchester and .25-06. The first .300 Winchester Magnum AR rifle I ever heard of was the Nemo Omen. That was not long ago. Then came Falkor Defense's Petra. I am to understand that Falkor is now owned by or merged with Nemo, but I am not sure. Google it if you want more info on that. Recently, POF decided to enter the new .300 WM AR market with their P300. It is new enough that POF's website says "coming soon" when it refers to the P300. I am not certain if any of these three .300 WM guns share common parts, as they are all new enough that patents are still probably held on all of them by their respective companies. But I believe they can all take Nemo mags.
Now let's turn to ammo. The .300 WM is based on the .375 H&H, just like many other cartridges, but is supposed to fit in long action rifles, i.e., anything that can shoot .30-06. The 7mm Remington Magnum is another cartridge of such a description, as is the .338 Win Mag. These cartridges have their granddaddy's .532" rim. Recently Nosler announced the introduction of the 33 Nosler, which claims will send a 265 gr. .338 bullet 25 fps faster than the legendary - nay, mythical - .338 Lapua. It is based on the .404 Jeffrey case, the same as other Nosler rounds. With a rim diameter of .534", it would probably not be too difficult to fit a bolt for the Nosler rounds. The problem might come with making sure that a chamber with thinner walls could handle the high pressures. I am totally ignorant when it comes to re-chambering rifles, so I will let those knowledgeable on such things volunteer information on the ability to re-chamber a .300 WM rifle to .28, .30, or .33 Nosler. Putting on a barrel and bolt to convert one of these guns to .30-06 (or a cartridge based on the .30-06) might be easier. But again, I cannot be sure. With something like the .33 Nosler, if it lives up to its claims, a long action AR could probably be adapted to be an even better long-range option than the .300 WM. A .30-06 or .270 Winchester AR could probably find a place in the hearts of a lot of hunters.
So, in my opinion, there is plenty that long action AR rifles could do. They are incredibly pricey, but that could change with more competition. Which brings me to my next thought. There are many AR manufacturers out there. A lot of them are good, and many considered great rifle manufacturers. I am wondering if a company like Barrett will decide to take up the challenge of a long action AR. They already have long range rifles as well as AR platform rifles. LWRC, which makes good piston ARs, also has their REPR line, which is supposed to be a precision rifle. They also make rifles that already have a high price tag, so a pricey .300 WM AR might not be too far out of their way. But would that be too much competition? Would that be too many guns chasing too few dollars?
So here is where I invite you to express your opinion on the subject. Are the long-action .300 WM AR designs here to stay, or will they be a flash in the pan? Will the number of manufacturers steadily grow, will it balloon, or are we likely to see only a few more entries, if any at all, into this market? Will the new long action designs end up like other ARs, being chambered in a myriad of calibers, or will .300 WM and 7mm Remington Mag be pretty much all we see? Do you see this kind of rifle's use ever expanding into hunting, competition, or others, or is it pretty much a one-trick pony? Do you think that the price these rifles demand is built in to the platform, or will we slowly see the prices drop as the technology becomes more well worn, until we end up with a $1000 Smith and Wesson M&P300?
I hope to hear from you guys. Thanks.
-cstarr3