"Battle Rifle/ DMR's"

What do you think?

  • LWRC REPR

    Votes: 9 23.7%

  • Other

    Votes: 29 76.3%
  • Total voters
    38
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sprice

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After much consideration I've decided I want an accurate all purpose type .308 rifle. I want it mostly for targets with hunting and JIC (just in case) in the back of my mind. It needs to be mansize (or bigger metal target) accurate out to 800 yards. The usual range will be 4-800, but the more versatile the better. 18"- 20" barrel, as light and accurate (and durable/reliable of course) as can be please.

This was my train of thought- I wanted an m1 garand. $500 from the CMP? Great deal. But then I realized I would want it with a scope, and a synthetic stock. But then I would also want to rebarrel it to a .308, and make it more accurate. So then m14's came to mind but it's more expensive and I would want to go all out and get a nice one, like a fulton or smith enterprise and not a springfield. I figured that would run me 4-5 grand easy and isn't worth the trouble.

So what are my options here? I was leaning to the LWRC REPR. It looks like a sweet gun. The $3,500 seems a bit much for me, but I'm going to easily put more $$$ in ammo through it than that, so it doesn't bug me that bad. Around $2,000 would be ideal without glass and accessories. But I know I get what I pay for, and an LWRC seems best right now. I'm not a fan of the DI gas system either.

The PTR-MSG 91 and kel tec RFB seem to be some good options too.
 
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READ THIS TOO If you specify "other" please tell me what it is.

Also (copied from bottom so you all can see it)- Ok if I'm not mistaken an LWRC REPR costs about $3,500 and these m14's are about $1,000 more!

http://fulton-armory.com/fultonarmor...1-1-2-2-2.aspx



LRB arms:

ABOVE RIFLE FEATURES: M14SA RECEIVER. CRITERION 22" HEAVY BARREL 1:11 TWIST. TRW BOLT-NEW IN WRAP. NM MODIFIED FLASH HIDER. NM FRONT SIGHT. NM REAR SIGHT. NM UNITIZED GAS CYLINDER. TITANIUM PISTON. USGI OP ROD. NM SPRING GUIDE. MC MILLAN M2A STOCK-DESERT CAMO. PICATINNY BIPOD RAIL. BIPOD-GG&G #1125. SCOPE MOUNT-SADLAK STEEL. SCOPE-FALCON MENACE MODEL MEN1042BMD. SCOPE RINGS-TPS MIL STD MEDIUM 1.075. PRICE AS PICTURED: $4,917.45

I don't see a significant weight difference between the REPR, m110/sr-25, and m14/m25 either.

I just found the PTR-MSG 91. That looks like it'll do what I want as long as it's accurate. http://www.ptr91.com/
 
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I would really check around and save a little. Many .308 cal ARs to chose from and several around the $1500 or less price range. I doubt with your stated type shooting you will ever wear something out or be replacing parts other than an ejector spring or something in the far round count future.
 
A 700 action boltgun...
Are you going to shoot at people? I doubt there is much benefit from having a Semi-auto over a good boltgun, it flings brass, and is not as easy to make as precise, You will not be able to seat bullets into the lands with most mags..It will be very unlikely that it can outshoot a boltgun of equal price / quality..
and If you want a semi, just get an AR-10, or an M1A of some sort, even an SR-25 if you have the cash, but I like boltguns more unless I might need to shoot at people, and in that situation I would prefer a long distance, 1 shot 1 kill..
 
LaRue OBR, LMT 308, SR-25, SCAR 17
I have never handled a REPR and it looks good on paper but I bet that piston drive makes it heavy. If spending that kind of cash LaRue will always be my first choice even though I have never had that kind of scratch laying around.
 
The REPR is a little on the heavy side for a battle rifle, if you get the one with a decent barrel length for good terminal ballistics at 800 (20"). Plus it takes mostly proprietary parts.

The 20" SCAR-17 is nice and light and plenty accurate, but it has horribly short sight radius and all it's parts are proprietary, including the magazines.

I'd say the M-14 is a great choice. A quality one from 7.62mm Firearms, LRB, or Fulton will cost about a thousand less than that REPR, and will be an utterly reliable rifle with GI surplus parts available. Man-sized targets at 800 are within the capabilities of a plain old GI M-14 with chrome lined 22" barrel, iron sights and a sling. If you get into the accurizing game you can tighten it up even more, but for the stated role, it will do the job just fine the way it comes out of the box. They weigh 9 lbs., which is a lot less than a lot of those AR based rifles you see. They also have better iron sights. They require a scope mount and a cheek rest to mout a scope though.

The custom build on a MA-Ten receiver set is not a bad idea, either... I'm thinking of building one of those with an Armalite AR-10 20" chrome lined light profile barrel, and putting it up against my M1A to see how it compares as a battle rifle! I'd like to see if I can get acceptable reliability with one. I like that receiver because about all the lower parts that you would ever need to replace are standard AR-15/M-16 parts, which are cheap and which you will always be able to find plenty of, even if someday that means you have to shoot someone to get them! ;) It also takes DPMS/Magpul mags, which are cheap and plentiful.

Whatever you get, I would definitely advise you to keep an eye on the weight. Rifles start getting heavy fast once you start slapping optics and other accessories on them, and before long, what is supposed to be a rifle for field use ends up being a range gun only. The part that adds the most weight is the barrel. Lots of AR's and M-14's have heavy profile match barrels which are great for accuracy, but are very heavy. For the roles you stated, you ought to keep it light. I'd be looking for a rifle with a standard light profile barrel, like the GI M-14 barrel or the Armalite AR-10 barrel.
 
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Ok if I'm not mistaken an LWRC REPR costs about $3,500 and these m14's are about $1,000 more!

http://fulton-armory.com/fultonarmoryusriflecal762mmm14-1-1-1-2-2-2.aspx



LRB arms:

ABOVE RIFLE FEATURES: M14SA RECEIVER. CRITERION 22" HEAVY BARREL 1:11 TWIST. TRW BOLT-NEW IN WRAP. NM MODIFIED FLASH HIDER. NM FRONT SIGHT. NM REAR SIGHT. NM UNITIZED GAS CYLINDER. TITANIUM PISTON. USGI OP ROD. NM SPRING GUIDE. MC MILLAN M2A STOCK-DESERT CAMO. PICATINNY BIPOD RAIL. BIPOD-GG&G #1125. SCOPE MOUNT-SADLAK STEEL. SCOPE-FALCON MENACE MODEL MEN1042BMD. SCOPE RINGS-TPS MIL STD MEDIUM 1.075. PRICE AS PICTURED: $4,917.45
 
I also don't see a significant weight difference between the REPR, m110/sr-25, and m14/m25
 
Either the Remington AR or the M1-A. Those would be my preference. But I'm old fashion as homemade grits, and I would lean toward the M1-A
 
I have a Springfield M1A 16" carbine and absolutely love it!

Having said that, if you want to mount a scope, I would recommend something other than an M14/M1A. There just isn't a great way to mount a scope on them. Don't get me wrong, it can be done but there are other rifles that do it better and it sounds like you're looking to drop some serious cash on this.

I'm not a big fan of direct impingement systems either, primarily because they're a lot dirtier than a piston system. I used to have a Century HK-91 clone (same design as the PTR-91 but not as nice). One thing that surprised me about that was that it got really dirty too. I'm told that this is a product of the fluted chamber. I always cleaned it and it always ran fine, but if you don't like DI because it's dirtier, then you might not care for the HK-91 based designs.

Scope mounting is simpler than it used to be with these because PTR offers a version with a rail on top of the receiver (PTR-91 FR). Also, Magpul makes their PRS2 adjustable rifle stock in a version that would work for this. That would let you get a good cheek weld with a scope.

Oh, one other downside to the HK-91 design: it's really hard on brass. Of course, if you don't reload then you probably won't care.

One rifle I haven't seen mentioned is the Kel-Tec RFB. I'm not sure what your feelings are about bullpups, but from what I've heard, it's a nice rifle. Supposedly it's nicer than you would expect if you were only familiar with Kel-Tec's earlier long guns (Sub-2000 and SU-16). Of course, I've not actually handled one so I can't say for sure.
 
M1a + ebr

After 3 years with my M1A match, Basset mount, 5-20 scope, finally got the EBR on last week.

Pros: Good cheek weld, higher stock now fits into shoulder, so can now shoot comfortably from any position.

Cons: More weight; sling is awkward; EBR does not shield piston, op rod, guide block, etc. from dirt or mud intruding like the old wood stock. Lots of little holes and cracks for sand to get in. Then to get it off for cleaning there are 5 set screws on top and 3 more biggies in the op rod guide block to take off. They are supposed to be torqued at 65 ft-lbs when you put it back together.

Great for the range, but kinda scary in the field. I feel like wrapping it all in a giant condum when going into the field. Am I doing something wrong?
 
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