Range Report: DPMS LR-308

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MarshallDodge

MarshallDodge

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I was able to take my newest aquisition to the range last night and it shot pretty well in my opinion. I did the sighting in with some plain cannelured Winchester 147 grain boat tails and shot a real nice 3 shot group with them.
Then I loaded up five 168 grain Hornady A-Max's and shot a nice five shot group.
I wanted to shoot another round but I ran out of time. With cleaning every 3 rounds (except for the last five) it took me a while to get it zeroed.

Overall I really like this gun. The action is very tight but it had no issues feeding or ejecting. The trigger is awful and that is going to be remedied soon. ;)

lr308target1.jpg
 
I'm a huge fan of the DPMS LR 308. I owned two since they were offered and can say it's my favorite weapon. Mine is a heavy beast due to the Badger handguard and Magpul PRS stock. I don't feel that there is a better 308 semi rifle in under the $1,000 range.
 
I recently received my previously defective DPMS .308 back from DPMS. I had them switch out the defective aluminum upper receiver to steel. I haven't had time to seriosuly test the grouping ability. I'm waiting for the family farm trip for that. I think some 300 yards shots are in order. :) Slap the 36X scope on her and have too.

You have the heavy barel correct? 18"? Mine is an AP4, so I don't know what to expect in groups from sustained firing. We'll see. Thanks for sharing.

Doc20005
 
When the DPMS came out...it was said that the 18" shot a little better compared to the 24" SS. My first DPMS was the 18" version and a year later I bought the 24" SS. The barrel length would just add or reduce the FPS. I have been loading Hornady 178gr Amax for my rifle.

I have some groups that are all in one hole at 100 yards using BH 168gr. I feel that the DPMS rifles are as good or even better than some bolt action rifles. I know that mine will keep up with my Remington 5R and my Steyr SBS Tactical rifle.
 
S2MC said:
The target says 25 yd. sight in target, so is that the range you were shooting?
Click to expand...
No, it's a slow fire pistol target placed at 100 yards. It was the biggest target I had in my target bag. I bought the scope rings at Sportsmans Warehouse and they mounted and boresighted the scope for free but their bore sighting was pretty far off...8" at 50 yards and then I re-zeroed at 100.
Doc2005 said:
You have the heavy barel correct? 18"?
Click to expand...
No, it is the 26" barrel.
lr308small.jpg
 
Note that the DPMS steel upper receiver shape is different than the DPMS in aluminum. More important (for me), it is much heavier and is extremely robust. I inserted the magazine so you can see a direct comparison of the receiver thickness to the .30 cal. Projectiles. The receiver ranges from .20" thick to over .40” thick in some areas! Most surfaces are in the range of .25" thick. The receiver is octagonal, but not equilaterally. (Edit to clarified thickness).

I did engage the safety prior to inserting a full magazine into the magazine well with the bolt open. :)

View attachment 301915

Hard-chromed bolt carrier, AP4 free floated barrel, steel upper receiver. Odd, in day light the steel and aluminum look similar color…in pictures, the steel takes on a brownish tone…the aluminum very black. Note, the steel upper receivers do not have forward assist. Do you love to let your bolt carrier slam? That’s how you close these rifles…slam away! They are built to take it.

View attachment 301916

At a total of 24 rounds fired, it is no where near the break-in point of 200 rounds. Once I get 200 rounds fired for break-in period, I will run a formal accuracy test with my 36X scope.

View attachment 301917

View attachment 301918

View attachment 301919
 
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Doc, that's a nice setup, maybe I will need to get an AP4 upper for mine :D
Yes! I love to hear the bolt slam forward. When my Dad bought his first AR in '85 the guy at gun shop said "Don't be easy on these guns, let it slam!"

I would think that I would need the steel upper receiver more than you to prevent barrel deflection but so far that has not been an issue.

Mine has 37 rounds through it. The guy who had it before me shot the first 17 rounds straight, without cleaning, even though the manual suggests you clean it every round for the first 25. I started off by cleaning the barrel thoroughly then clean every 3 rounds. This is what I have done with my other target rifles with good results. Based on the patches coming out the barrel is becoming less and less fouled. Some guys use JB paste to "lap" the barrel but I can't bring myself to put something abrasive in there.
 
I could not imagine having a steel receiver. My rifle is heavy enough as it is with the aluminum receiver.

Just finished coating the Badger handguard.


170464f53bd48581.jpg


170464f53ab492fb.jpg


170464f53938c70b.jpg
 
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Yes, PRS stock. I find that it balances the weight on the rifle. I just weight the rifle without ammo on my digital scale and it showed 14.8lbs. It actually feels heavier than that, but scales don't lie.

I really dig Magpul products and I am going to be switching all of my mags to the new Pmags. I just received my second order of Pmags in FDE today. The Miad grips from Magpul feel the best in my hands.
 
I would agree about the heavy weight. My rifles weighs 14 pounds (loaded) with the AP4 barrel. For most people, weight is a negative. I like the extra weight because I have a fused neck and an electronic implant in my neck for pain. The steel upper receiver reduces recoil. :) God bless whomever designed the upper in steel for that reason alone! At least for my neck…you could almost say he saved my neck...baha! I hate puns! Link to DPMS steel upper: http://dpmsinc.com/store/products/?prod=1774&cat=1705

In terms of weight potential of this, or any rifle really, the steel upper receiver only adds 1.5 Lbs over the aluminum option. Keeping an aluminum receiver and adding only a heavy barrel will add nearly 2 Lbs. For my part, my intent is to drive the rifle's weight right through the roof. Seriously...more weight means less recoil. I won’t rely on weight alone; I will use a good recoil-reducing break. According to the employees at DPMS, the steel upper receiver’s sole purpose is to add balance to the rifle, and especially in the case of heavy, long barrels.

I had a DPMS .260 Rem custom upper on order, then I cancelled it when I saw the additional attributes (options) that can be had. I need to take time to investigate thoroughly before I order it. I had ordered an 18", I want the 24", or whatever is longest barrel they offer. Also, since it will be a target/competitive shooting rifle, I will not need the quad-rail foreend. I am also considering that I probably will simply need an entirely new lower as well. The collapsing stock probably will not work as-well-as a stubby stock?

For fact I will want a stainless steel barrel with flutes. So many options. Anyhow, wow, that is one sharp-looking rifle you have MarhshallDodge! Take care of her and shoot straight!

Doc2005
 
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In the spirit of informed decision-making, I thought I would be prudent add a set of pictures with both upper receiver platforms for comparison/contrast of: the aluminum upper receiver and the steel upper receiver. Each has it attractive attributes.

In some of the photos you will note the optical illusions of the receivers appearing to be bent. I assure you that DPMS does manufacture their upper receivers flat. :)

Left side view (steel on top mounted, aluminum below):

View attachment 302142

Left side view (aluminum on top, steel below mounted):

View attachment 302143

Right side view (steel on top mounted, aluminum below with ejection port closed):

View attachment 302144

Right side view (steel on top mounted, aluminum below with ejection port closed):

View attachment 302145

Right side of steel upper receiver close-up to show Melonite finish that enhances steels hardness for greater wear, and hard-chromed bolt carrier:

View attachment 302146

Rear view of both upper receiver formats (aluminum on left, steel on right):

View attachment 302147

Rear view of steel upper receiver (Note the octangular shape, not equilateral):

View attachment 302148

Rear view of aluminum upper receiver (Note the round shape):

View attachment 302149

Right side of aluminum upper receiver mounted on lower receiver, waiting for a new .243 Win, .260 Rem, .308 Win (or other like-sized chamber barrel) to be mounted.

View attachment 302150

Note that not all aluminum upper receivers have the forward assist. None of the steel upper receiver have the forward assist.

Doc2005 Post #2500
 
Doc, thank you for the compliments and pictures. There is one thing I wish mine had, a case deflector. I noticed that the side of the upper has brass skid marks on it from the brass hitting it. Maybe there is an aftermarket option?

I emailed Magpul to see if the PRS stock from the AR-15 would fit the LR-308. They said that it would not because the charging handle is longer on the LR and would hit the cheek riser when it is being cocked. I put it on anyway and it fits fine because the scope is mounted low so the cheek riser is barely raised. It's nice to have a length-of-pull adjustment.

I did not have a chance to get pics today but I will try to get them on soon
 
Thanks for posting the reviews. What is the reason for going to the steel receiver, and is that on all their new .308"s or just the heavier target models? Also have you guys tried shooting any mil-surp ammo through them?
 
I posted the rationale for steel in post #16. :) It's kind of hidden in there.

For DPMS' part, the rationale for the steel upper receiver is to provide better balance with heavy barrels, and you will note that the picatinny rail on the steel is significantly higher than the aluminum. This, according to DPMS, is to provide clearance for large scope objectives. While one can use iron sights on the steel version, they are designed for scopes. My next upper will have to be in .260 Rem.
 
Glad to hear that the PRS AR15 stock will fit on the AR10 receiver. I knew that the charging handle was longer on the AR10, so I just figured it wouldn't work.

On a side note, I doubt I'd buy the UBR stock when it's released. To me the PRS stock was worth the price paide, but the UBR doesn't seem to fit my needs. Perhaps down the line when the UBR price is lowered after the initial offering.
 
Fingolfin said:
Also have you guys tried shooting any mil-surp ammo through them?
Click to expand...
I'm not trying to sound condescending but I reload almost every round that goes through my guns so that I can control all the details. Personally, I do not feel comfortable with mil-surp ammo unless I know it is of the highest quality. If I were to shoot low cost ammo I would have bought a Cetme or similar low cost rifle.
The chamber on my rifle is very tight so I don't know how well mil-surp would function. I am using mil-surp (US- Lake City headstamp) brass that I tumble polish, full length size, remove primer crimp, trim, and debur before using. It seems like a lot of work but my source is free :D
 
I also do not shoot surplus ammo through my "good" firearms. If it's a cheap rifle or pistol, surplus is the way to go, but I feed my rifles the good stuff. It's also good to note that DPMS has stated that shooting surplus ammo will void your warranty.
 
DPMS will also void your warranty if you use reloads. However, I am sure they would stand behind their product if the problem was proven to be unrelated to ammunition.
 
200 yard target

I was able to get some good groups in this last weekend at the THR get together. The trigger has got to go, I had a five shot group with two shots 2" high right and I know it was the trigger. I am pulling the whole gun!

So far I have 89 rounds through it and one stoppage due to an oversize case (my fault)

This one was shot off a bipod at 200 yards:

lr308200s.jpg
 
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