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+--- Thread: Standard AA Hunter (/showthread.php?tid=916)
Standard AA Hunter - Jaywalker - 08-15-2011
I'm toying with the idea of buying an AA standard Hunter, but I've never seen a plain-jane model reviewed. Standard trigger, barrel, the whole, basic thing. I'd appreciate any links or comments.
Standard AA Hunter - bwaites - 08-15-2011
The more basic versions of the rifle may make up the bulk of sales, but their owners don't seem to make up even a small minority of the people who frequent the boards.
I've never seen the Hunter reviewed.
The standard trigger is a basic AR trigger, single stage with some takeup. The rifles themselves are accurate, but designed for hunting use, so they probably won't match the GDMR and GSR. Expect sub-MOA to 2 MOA accuracy, though most people seem to be able to find at least one load, and maybe more than that, that will shoot sub MOA at 100 yards. 2 MOA seems to be the accepted standard for any hunting rifle, and I've never seen or heard of ANY Grendel being worse than that.
Not much help, I know!
Standard AA Hunter - Jaywalker - 08-15-2011
You can't provide links that don't exist, of course, and you did provide the comments that I requested, so thanks.
I suspect I'll be one of those people who upgrade, then write about it, myself. At the very least, I'll want an improved trigger, and probably barrel.
Are the upgraded AA barrel chambers cut to the same dimensions as the standards? I wouldn't want to trade accuracy for decreased reliability.
Standard AA Hunter - bwaites - 08-15-2011
All licensed Gendel barrels are cut to the same chamber. Its one of the reasons Bill Alexander has maintained the Trademark, to guarantee that a Grendel is always a Grendel. Years ago CSS built some rifles with the same chamber, but a tighter neck, .295 vs. .300 and they were called the "match chamber". CSS and Alexander Arms are no longer affiliated, so that chamber is no longer marketed as a Grendel.
Alexander Arms itself never sold them, but there are some out there.
Bill Alexander does not believe that they offer any significant advantage in accuracy over the .300 neck version, and that it does increase the risk of malfunction to some degree. Anyone would have a hard time making the case with me that it does improve accuracy, at least in an AR, since I've shot plenty of .25 MOA groups from 2 different AA chambers, and that's about as good as it gets with a gas gun.
Standard AA Hunter - BjornF16 - 08-15-2011
Quote:
...I've never seen a plain-jane model reviewed. Standard trigger, barrel, the whole, basic thing.
JW
I own a factory Grendel Entry upper which I purchased to hunt with. It is the basic 19.5 inch barrel, not the Shilen upgrade. I believe the Hunter barrel is the same as Entry, just different handguard (but free floated).
It is very accurate with my handloads (129SST, .5 MOA). It was MOA with factory ammo that I tried (129SST, Lapua 123).
Had I all over to do again, I would go with Shilen option (at the time, I didn't want to wait for the Shilen). Hard to argue with five shots - five whitetails though.
It sits upon a RRA lower that I built up, so can't comment on AA trigger.
Those barrels are heavy, I wouldn't consider them to be stalking guns (at least not all day in the mountains)...but they make great bench and stand guns.
I'm just completing a Grendel stalking gun built from the ground up around 18" double fluted SS barrel (Satern Spartan).
Standard AA Hunter - Jaywalker - 08-15-2011
Interesting about the heavy barrel - I hadn't thought yet to ask about barrel profiles. I had a Bushmaster AR with a 16-inch HBAR 10 years ago and really disliked it. It had too much muzzle blast for what it was and the balance was so far forward it felt very clumsy. I sold it. I'm hoping to a better job of choosing this time around.
Standard AA Hunter - BjornF16 - 08-15-2011
There is good info found here: http://www.alexanderarms.com/gtech.htm
FWIW, the Hunter is not a free-floated handguard