gotboostvr
Member
I have a 20" 308AR, the barrel is full bull profile the entire length (PSA's idea of a "A2 rifle" profile, i guess) and when I got it my first thought was "this thing weighs a ton". Once I put a scope on it and a bipod, it really does weight quiet a bit.
Then I got my scoped FAL out of the safe after collecting dust. Then I scoped my M1A. They are all in the same category of heavy, IMO. Whatever weight I save in the barrels of the M1A or the FAL is taken up by the steel receivers, so they all feel about the same weight.
An AR10 upper and lower receiver set is just bulky and big. Big compared to an AR-15 set and laughably big compared to a bolt action rifle receiver. Same with the FAL. The M1A isn't as bulky, its just...dense. Add a magazine and a scope to a standard frame AR10 rifle and its literally a foot tall at the receiver.
I've just gotten used to the idea that a scoped semi auto magazine fed .308 battle rifle is going to be heavy. Too heavy and bulky for me to want to carry in the field. If a bolt action or lever action rifle is like carrying a dowel through the woods, an AR10 is like carrying a 2x6.
The SFAR thing is intriguing to me. It seems to mitigate at least some of the issues with carrying a .308 battle rifle in the field and I would love to play around with a 16" version.
With careful selection of optics and mounts, the SFAR could potentially handle quite well in the woods. Something like a Leopold VX3i 3.5-10x in the AERO lightweight mount would keep the rifle from getting too bulky.
Or the Primary Arms micro 3x prism would be even lighter and more svelt.