Question for the gun gurus about AR long range shooting

[lipsplitter39654]

I have been looking at some long range AR setups, Armalite, DPMS and Remington and was wondering if any of you have any experience shooting them at long ranges, 400-600. I am talking about the larger calibers like .308, .338 and 7mm 08. Which of the brands is the best bang for the buck straight out of the box? I realize that you cant get custom bolt action type accuracy out of these guns but was curious as to what you can expect. I also realize this depends on the shooter but my question is related to what the gun can do. I read 1 inch MOA at 100 yards on all the sights which to me doesnt impress as many guns are doing this. What I want to know is on a large deer at 500 yards rested what will the gun do? thanks

[mshunter77]

The remingtons have become extremely popular for long range hunting. Also I beleive the remingtons are made by bushmaster.

[SHANE704]

its all about preference. for me, a rra platform with a 20" quality barrel & free float handguard chambered in .308 would be hard to beat. unless u wanted to step up to .338...then its a whole different ballgame.

[cwink]

I am not real familar with AR platforms, but 1 MOA at 100 yards should translates to 5 MOA at 500 Yards which for deer is accaptable, most higher end bolts are probably pushing .75 MOA, but if all ARs are saying 1 MOA then the ammo you use will probably make more difference than the rifle.

[duramax]

Look into Stag arms AR guns. I had a Stag Varminter with a 24" heavy barrel in 223 and it was a 1/2" MOA all day with almost any ammo I fed it straight out of the box. Hate I sold it.

[drakechaser]

I have a Stag in 5.56 but they don't have a 308 model. Armalite and DPMS are the two that I've always seen guys shooting. The gunsmith I use shoots an Armalite so I assume they are good rifles.

[lipsplitter39654]

ok thanks guys for the info, please keep it coming. the 2 that seem to keep coming up are the DPMS and Armalite. THe armalite is around $400 more for the same features. The Rock River 308 is nice too and those seem to be on my short list and maybe remington. Is the armalite $400 better which is about 25% of the price?

[tombstone]

bushmaster, dpms and remington all owned or operated by the same group. I do not know if they are manufactured in different places though.

Good info being posted.

[duramax]

I have a Stag in 5.56 but they don't have a 308 model.

No but they do offer a 6.8 SPC now. Not a true 600 yard round, but it's another option.

[khound22]

i have a DPMS w 18" bull barrel. Impressive accuracy for a short barrel like that. LOVE it. Nice rifle, never has jammed, has about 700 rounds of cheap bulk ammo shot thru it.

[Seymore]

Have the Stag A2 and the Stag Varminter. Both are 1/2 ' MOA. Don't think you can translate a 1" MOA to a linear progression and say it will be 5 MOA at 500 yards. Maybe in a vaccum with all variables the same but the variables will all be different and how much the bullet is off will be a function of those variables. Things like atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity, curvature of the earth, cross wind. Even down to how clean the barrel is.

[lipsplitter39654]

thanks for the info guys. i think it will be between the rock river and the dpms the more i research both of these rise to the top for what i am looking for. remington r25 out for sure, want a stainless steel barrell not chrome lined and want a match trigger rr and dpms both have. any pros or cons in comparing the 2?

[landscaper]

Someone is making one in .338 Lapua Mag. Maybe Armalite or Stag, not sure. Supposed to be a comfortable 1000yd gun. I'll see if I can find the magazine article I saw it in.

*Edit: "comfortable" as in 1000 yds is well inside its range. If I remember correctly, though, they said the recoil and noise level were far from comfortable!

[Blackduck]

I bet you will be disappointed in your AR 500yard gun. I'd get a bolt gun if you really want to shoot that far.

[duramax]

I bet you will be disappointed in your AR 500yard gun. I'd get a bolt gun if you really want to shoot that far.

I used to think that as well, and I'm a bolt action only shooter, until I bought the Stag Super Varminter. I've never shot a gun more accurate out of the box. And I'm by no means an expert with a rifle. But off a bipod an a rear sandbag that thing shot lights out. It was even more accurate than my Savage Model 10FP that I put a few accuracy mods (bedded stock) and worked up loads for (and it's a 1/2 MOA gun). I have shot AR's before and the triggers ruined it for me. The Stag's match trigger (I've never shot a RR or a DPMS with their match triggers, but I'm sure they are good as well) was as crisp as my Remington's that are at the 3-4lb range. Some of the AR's that are made for long range accuracy will come mighty close the accuracy of a bolt.

Still hate I sold it, but I barely shoot my rifles to begin with, and I got a hell of a deal on a Remington VLS in .204 when Sportsman's went out of business ($350 I think down from $900) and needed to make room for it and use the cash difference to customize the VLS and buy all the reloading components to load .204.

I'm not saying that they will ever have to potential that comes with a highly modified specialty bolt gun for reliable 1000 yard accuracy, but they are getting damn close.