08-01-2017, 12:41 AM
The main thing I am taking away from this rifle after a short range trip on Friday is how smoothly it runs.
I loaded up a mag of Federal 120gr OTM Match, inserted it, and wanted to see how it fed from bolt hold open.
Stripped the cartridge off and into the chamber so quickly and smoothly that it was like butter.
Firing the rifle feels like this is the correct cartridge for the AR15, not .223 Remington. It just had this strange normalcy about how beautifully it functioned to me, based on decades of driving these guns. Honestly, it felt more like a tuned race gun than a rack-grade operating system, even though it uses a standard buffer and recoil spring arrangement, standard weight carrier, and a LaRue low profile gas block. The Tranquillo brake makes this higher-pitched bark that sounds like the Robocop gun or a drill almost. It has a very unique sound on the range, without the obnoxious concussion of most gilled brakes.
My POA never moved more than 1.5" off of initial POA, and the rifle handles so smoothly, I fell in love with it even more first shot. I blasted through several strings of ammo before we had to go, doing rapid 5-round groups using the 1.5-6x Burris with a fairly large dot aiming point in the reticle. I'm going to mount a higher magnification Vortex with a finer reticle and take my time next trip, maybe work up a load with 8208XBR or AR Comp and see what it likes.
My first group was literally in the exact grid location as Mark LaRue's test-fired group. Keep in mind the scope and swag box was shipped separately, and there were marks on the upper rail showing that a scope mount had in fact been installed for test-fire. That level of return-to-zero was astonishing really, and reminds me of the story when Mark did his elk hunt up in Wyoming by showing up without optics mounted, telling the guide it would be ok. The guide was already majorly concerned about a customer showing up with a puny little AR15, and now he doesn't have his scope mounted? Mark told him not to worry, at which point the guide figured this guy must be nuts. 405yd shot on a rather nice bull with a 120gr TSX and all questions were answered after that point.
I'm a skeptic when it comes to all these marketing campaigns and hype, so even with stuff that has proven itself to me, I still remain cock-eyed and am waiting for the failure point at some time.
This rifle makes me feel like someone who spent their childhood and entire adult life learning how to drive and build a hot rod racecar, only to have a performance shop come along and smoke me with theirs.
I loaded up a mag of Federal 120gr OTM Match, inserted it, and wanted to see how it fed from bolt hold open.
Stripped the cartridge off and into the chamber so quickly and smoothly that it was like butter.
Firing the rifle feels like this is the correct cartridge for the AR15, not .223 Remington. It just had this strange normalcy about how beautifully it functioned to me, based on decades of driving these guns. Honestly, it felt more like a tuned race gun than a rack-grade operating system, even though it uses a standard buffer and recoil spring arrangement, standard weight carrier, and a LaRue low profile gas block. The Tranquillo brake makes this higher-pitched bark that sounds like the Robocop gun or a drill almost. It has a very unique sound on the range, without the obnoxious concussion of most gilled brakes.
My POA never moved more than 1.5" off of initial POA, and the rifle handles so smoothly, I fell in love with it even more first shot. I blasted through several strings of ammo before we had to go, doing rapid 5-round groups using the 1.5-6x Burris with a fairly large dot aiming point in the reticle. I'm going to mount a higher magnification Vortex with a finer reticle and take my time next trip, maybe work up a load with 8208XBR or AR Comp and see what it likes.
My first group was literally in the exact grid location as Mark LaRue's test-fired group. Keep in mind the scope and swag box was shipped separately, and there were marks on the upper rail showing that a scope mount had in fact been installed for test-fire. That level of return-to-zero was astonishing really, and reminds me of the story when Mark did his elk hunt up in Wyoming by showing up without optics mounted, telling the guide it would be ok. The guide was already majorly concerned about a customer showing up with a puny little AR15, and now he doesn't have his scope mounted? Mark told him not to worry, at which point the guide figured this guy must be nuts. 405yd shot on a rather nice bull with a 120gr TSX and all questions were answered after that point.
I'm a skeptic when it comes to all these marketing campaigns and hype, so even with stuff that has proven itself to me, I still remain cock-eyed and am waiting for the failure point at some time.
This rifle makes me feel like someone who spent their childhood and entire adult life learning how to drive and build a hot rod racecar, only to have a performance shop come along and smoke me with theirs.
NRA Basic, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, RSO
CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor
6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:
www.AR15buildbox.com
CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor
6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:
www.AR15buildbox.com