My buddy had a significant amount of experience on several of them, so I value his opinion of the platform. Taurus Marketing Manager Caleb Giddings highlights the features of the new Taurus Raging Hunter 460 Magnum, a purpose-built revolver with a 10.5-inch barrel and an effective recoil-taming brake, with Guns & Ammo Executive Editor Joe Kurtenbach. The rifles they were issued were manufactured by Rock River Arms, and were carbine variants in similar spec to the U.S. militarys M4. Rock River Arms (RRA) has introduced a new AR-style rifle to its lineup, designed specifically with the modern hunter in mind, with the new All Terrain Hunter (ATH). The "U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1903," better-known as the M1903 Springfield, has become one of the most popular U.S. military small arms to collect. The testers preference for the Fulton gun was further enhanced when rounds started being sent downrange. Rock River goes the extra steps of cryogenically treating the barrel to relieve stressan accuracy robbing characteristicand then lapping each barrel before shipping to the customer. The rear half of the fore-end is rounded and smooth for a comfortable hold, while the front half has four rails that provide plenty of space for mounting accessories. Rock River Arms has a reputation for making high quality AR-15s, but they also have a reputation for being expensive. Rock River Arms uses barrels from a variety of manufacturers, including FN, Criterion, and Wilson. Ballistic Silver Tip SBST223B, $21.48/20, and Black Hills Match New Production Red Box 50-gr. All that was left was to hit the range. One I especially like is the winter triggerguard; its oversized and creates an opening large enough for a gloved finger. But the Rock River Arms guns have a very solid reputation for reliability. About the only thing someone might complain about is having to wait for a few weeks to get a custom gun they order. Colt Model 1861 Special Musket: What's Its Value? One of the challenges of introducing an all-new cartridge is getting rifle manufacturers to chamber for the new round. All three exceed the Rock River .75" factory accuracy guarantee. The 18-inch barrel that Rock River chose to install has a 1:8-inch twist and features a mid-length gas system. Rock River has also correctly set up the gas system where the rifle is neither under- or over-gassed. Rock River's triggers not only have a lighter pull weight and crisper let-off, the hammer shape promotes excellent accuracy. The gas block has a folding front sight assembly that can be locked down when not in use and three hinged sling loops, one on the bottom and one on each side. Facing off in a handgun challenge featuring the smallest professional-grade enclosed red dot sight on the market, Eric and Tom put the Acro P-2 to the distance test by doing a walk-back challenge. We encourage you to also support these organizations as we continue to fight for our fundamental rights. The barrel's twist rate is one turn in nine inches. The second part of our testing took place under blue skies at the Arlington Sportsmans Club, one the largest private gun clubs in Texas with over 1300 members and offering a full range of shooting opportunities (www.arlingtonsportsman.com). And since then, they have continued to be one of the major manufacturers of AR-platform guns and parts. He loved his Rock River rifle. Accuracy with the rifle was commendable. Rock River Arms is considered to be one of the most reliable AR-15 manufacturers because of the materials they use and the quality of their products. Need Help?service@guns.comCall (866)582-4867, PO Box 1131 13800 Nicollet Blvd Burnsville, MN 55337 2023Guns.com. The Smith flash hider worked very well and the 1:10 twist ratio seemed perfect for the 165-grain Hornady TAP ammo. Rock Rivers winter triggerguard solves this problem. For true fans and students of the gun, we certainly live in a time when many among us may not fully appreciate the incredible diversity of firearms and ammunition at our disposal. We knew from the moment we hoisted this bad boy out of its case where Stag Arms had invested its money. According to Rock River Arms, the FBI has used their rifles in the past. They have to improve quality, offer customized options and mark it all at a fair pricesounds like the ideal business model, but no its not. So, this rifle is as good as any. Epic 22 Pocket Pistol: The Beretta 71 Jaguar. But the Rock River Arms guns have a very solid reputation for reliability. The Fulton turned in the best overall grouping at 0.89 inch, despite some balky performance by the Remington ammo we used that none of the guns could group under 1 inch. The BT-3's furniture includes a Magpul PRS stock and Hogue rubber over-molded grip. The tight adherence to exacting tolerances of their chamber dimensions and the stress-relieving effort are two of the big contributors that I credit for this brands reputation for accuracy. Accurate. Our advicemake your decision and your move now. This allows the hammer to move faster (once released) and still get positive ignition of the cartridge without generating a ton of reticle disturbance. Those of our fathers generation, on the other hand, usually gravitated toward bolt action hunting rifles of the Remington 700 or Winchester model 70 flavor. . Our testers felt that the gun had the versatility to shoot prairie dogs off of a rest, but was light enough to tote through mesquite thickets in search of coyotes. Get a fairly basic model as an introduction and rest assured that when you want to geek-out later, youll be starting with a quality platform. Overall, Rock River Arms is a good brand that makes high quality AR-15s. The Rock River Arms R3 Competition Rifle is designed for and has the feel of a competition rifle, yet the same platform is spot-on if your hunts require a lot of walking or if your predator sets demand exceptional accuracy out to the limits of the cartridge along with the ability to make fast follow-up shots. The safety lever also sported a rounded knurled knob for easy activation. It's outfitted with a 20-inch fluted and cryogenically treated stainless-steel barrel. Most of our testers were competitive shooters, and they were very picky about what they liked, and didnt, on the gunsexactly what we wanted. Full Member. It weighs 10.2 pounds empty and is 43.5 inches long. There are several candidates that also would have worked from other manufacturers such as DPMS, Bushmaster, Armalite and others, but we had to pick one and wanted to see if RRA's reputation would hold up. Users can access the storage compartment by depressing a button recessed into the ribbed rubber buttpad that slides it down and out of the way. We quickly found that choosing four guns to test wasnt going to be easy. The Rock River Arms X-Series LAR-6.8 AR-15 is specifically designed for this bigger brother to the 5.56 NATO. After mounting the scopes, each gun was given a good general cleaning, carefully lubricated, trigger pull weights checked on a digital gauge, and then it was off to the range. RRAGE LAR-15 Type: Direct-impingement, semiautomatic Cartridge: 5.56 NATO Barrel: 16 in., 1:9-in. Rounding out the features were a Krieger heavy 1:13-twist barrel ($390) and a Geissele adjustable two-stage trigger ($200). Jeff Bradley shows off the Modern Hunting Rifle (MHR) from Christensen Arms at SHOT Show 2023. This makes them some of the most accurate AR-15s on the market. Rock River Arms sent me a 6.5 Creedmoor rifle with a tan stock and 24-inch barrel for testing. Rock River cured a couple other standard AR failings with parts they developed in-house. Well it's me and I cheaped out on a scope and have a $200 Nikon on an expensive gun. The Judge has been promoted! This came in very handy when we decided to go ahead and test the .223 cartridge for BBTI last year. Be it new tactics for hunting or customizing your firearm - we cover it all! Being M-LOK compatible, you can fit whatever railed accessories you like or keep it clean. No matter what load we tried, it lagged behind the guns in our test. It took me a bit of time to properly install and set up my scope and rifle for both length of pull and eye relief, but once I had it, I was ready to roll. In short, this means rifle-makers need to adapt, and one company taking that step is Rock River Arms (RRA) with its LAR-15 Operator III in 5.56mm NATO. The A4 also featured a Hogue-style grip, which received no negative comments. However, its unclear if the FBI currently uses Rock River Arms rifles or not. And I know that he also respects my knowledge about other guns, meaning that I didnt feel like some kind of idiot by asking him to give me a run-down on basic ARs some time back. I decided I wanted calm and shade: Spring in Arizona is often unpredictable and weather varies from wet and soggy 60s to hot and steamy upper 90s. Good value. Generally, Rock River makes good rifles and pistols. resulting in 1.5-MOA accuracy at 100 yards. Ammunition for the .350 Legend was available, but he couldnt find anything for his .270. It also had an owners manual, assembly tool and lock. needed for precision accuracy at exceptional ranges. Guys from my grandpas era (at least in my area of the Appalachians) seemed to cling to the classical deer rifle forms, led prominently by the Winchester model 94 lever action. In fact, they even have a testimonial from an FBI agent on their website. Rock River Arms guarantees one-m.o.a. Head to the range this week with American Rifleman staff as they discuss a trim little repeater from Savage Arms that comes chambered for the .22 WMR cartridge. This rifle also has an RRA TRO-XL extended free float rail handguard and an accuracy of 3/4 MOA at 100 Yards. Perhaps the greatest praise was directed toward the side-cocking mechanism. Couple groups with pulled and called fliers that were under an inch. Bob Meinert, FN Marketing Director, introduces FN's first commercial pistol suppressor, the FN Rush 9Ti.          Email *, Example: Yes, I would like to receive emails from Shoot On. Once the barrels get to Colona, Illinois, Rock River finishes the chambering job and then cryogenically stress-relieves the barrel before mating it to an upper receiver. When the carrier key hits the gas tube, that disturbance travels down the tube and into the barrel. They've been producing 5.56mm and 7.62mm models since the beginning of their AR-15 manufacturing, and that's pretty standard. Stags first entry into the varminter category sported an extra heavy 24-inch 416SS Shaw barrel that made the gun extremely front heavy, and a rifle you definitely want to shoot off the bench. Unless otherwise noted, these reviews carry the guns prices at the time of the original review. To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine. The last couple decades have seen a veritable explosion of new, modified, and hybrid platforms designed to meet just about any objective you can think of that involves propelling a projectile downrange. A normal throw lever found on an AR works fine for a right-handed shooter firing off the right shoulder. The muzzle is threaded 1/2-28 and comes with an A2 flash-hider installed. The best grouping in testing at 100 yards was .935 inch with 155-grain Hornady TAP Precision. Our testers said the Bushmaster was handsome and svelte at 8.84 pounds, due to its lighter-weight barrel, and a vented, free-floated forend that included a sling/bipod stud mounted. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Thats one of the nice things about the platform. The case length hits the 1.71-inch mark with an overall cartridge length of 2.26 inches. At the time, both AR-10 and SR-25 magazines were scarce and expensive, so Rock River designed its own AR-10-style rifle around a more abundant and affordable magazine. One of my Ballistics By The Inch buddies is very knowledgeable about ARs. The 16-inch barrel is certainly maneuverable in the brush, and with its 6.8-lb. The design was licensed to Bushmaster, and during the course of about three years, the company built and sold several thousand rifles. Performance of Rock Rivers new ATH V2 was exceptional. Several high-quality triggers exist today that will hold up under the harshest conditions yet allow for more accuracy and faster follow-up shots. The Magpul PRS Stock is one of the best stocks in the market for any precision rifle build; it was easy to set up and, after being set up, nothing moves and it retains its settings after a long day of shooting. The results: Federal Non-Typical, 180-gr. Not everyone likes to shoot off both shoulders, but those who do are familiar with how difficult the selector struggle is. The Hornady. Our gun sported an Ergo grip, comfortable but woefully undersized for hoisting the gun around. soft point; 5-shot string #2, Hornady American Whitetail, 170-gr. The LAR-8 Standard Operator is reliable and accurate, and its fine trigger makes it easy to shoot well. Last but certainly not least, the trigger was the most impressive part of this rifle. If youre looking for a reliable AR-15 manufacturer, Rock River Arms is definitely worth considering. But that was the point: Im a proficient pistol shooter and, as a professional firearms photographer, I know guns as well as anyone. When I formed my frame of reference for hunting rifles in the early 1980s, there was something of a generational overlap going on. Although inexpensive and reliable, the FAL magazine presented a number of design challenges, such as dimensions and feed angles that differ from AR-style magazines. Feb 16, 2019 748 . The rifle weighs in at approximately 12 pounds and is fairly easy to carry but heavy enough to absorb recoil from the .308 Win. Classic Browning Light Twelve Auto-5 Review: Busting Clays With the Old Humpback Shotgun. Their rifles are built to military specifications, which means they are tough enough to withstand the rigors of combat. The Coyote is available in a 16-inch barrel "carbine" model or 20-inch "rifle" model, but I chose the Coyote Carbine because it's easier to wield in the woods. Rock River Arms' new Fred Eichler Series LAR-15 Predator joins a growing number of AR-platform rifles and carbines specifically configured for the serious coyote and bobcat hunter. Are Rock River Arms worth the money? On a grid target, accuracy lives up to the Rock River Arms' claim of 1.5 MOA at 100 yards. InterLock; 5-shot string #1, Hornady American Whitetail, 170-gr. AR-15s tend not to fit standard gun cases when set up with the high mounts required to clear the charging handle, and still provide a solid sight picture. I look forward to hitting the range again, and Im certain that I wont need to burn through too much more ammo before this rifle and I approach the -MOA mark together. This often requires carrying guns through thickets of brush, and a rest, if available, is a handy tree branch.