.308 advice

[jesuvuah]

First, the backstory. I just got a very large check and I am going to be adding another gun to the stable. I have debated quite a bit between getting a bullpup (tavor) and getting a semi auto 308. I think I have settled on going the 308 option because there really is nothing that a bullpup can bring to the table that I do not already have a gun to cover as I have several AR's configured differently.

I thought about the FAL, G3 pattern rifle, and M1 style rifles, and while they are all great guns, they are all older generation battle rifles and not really what I am looking for. Then the debate really boiled down to the scar vs lr308/ar10. I think the scar is a great rifle, and has a lot going for it, but there were just some things about the gun that I did not like, and for that price range, I want to be happy with what I am getting.

This leaves me with the 308 AR. I have looked at about every production rifle I can get my hands on, or do research on the interweb about. The fact is, there is not one gun that is setup exactly how I want it right out of the box. This has lead me to building one. I have built several 5.56 AR's in the past and the mechanical skills needed to build a rifle are of no concern. What I am looking for is insight.

Fist off my goal: to build a Semi-auto precisionish rifle. Most shooting would be 600 yrds and under, but I would love to be able to stretch it out to 800 or even a thousand. What I really want to do is bridge a bit of the gap between a full blown precision rig and a battle rifle. In other words, I am trying to keep the weight down, reliability up, and get as much precision out of it as possible.

So here are some thing's I am debating. Receiver sets: I am really debating between a mega maten set, or trying one of these aero precision sets. The aero precision set is tempting because it is cheaper, but money really is not an issue. That being said, every penny saved is another penny towards ammo and glass. It almost does not seem like the aero is really that much of a huge savings though. The mega set comes with a CH. I also think if I get the mega set, I should have enough parts laying around to finish off the lower with spare AR parts I already have. If I get the Aero set, I will have to get the Aero kit and a charging handle which does narrow the price gap. That being said, the Aero does look nice, and has a nice price tag.

If I do get the Mega set, I am really trying to decide if I should get there MKM set that comes with a keymod handgaurd. It is not a monolithic setup, but it does look like it would be a very solid setup. This one here: https://www.rainierarms.com/?page=sh...roduct_id=3479 . The rainier switch rail https://www.rainierarms.com/?page=sh...roduct_id=4626 is also another one I am considering, but I am unsure about the setup. All I know is I have switched all my other rifles to keymod, so I am basically after a lightweight keymod setup.

I am probably going to go with an 18" rainier match barrel, but I am open to other suggestions. I want a good barrel, but I do not want to sink too much into the barrel as I am not a phenomenal shooter, just pretty average. If my skill goes up, I can always swap out the barrel later.

BCG: I am probably just going to go the lr308 route for simplicity. I am not sure what BCG to get though. Any suggestions?

There are probably lots of other things I am missing and I guess that is why I started this thread.

Thanks for any and all info.

[IraqVet1982]

Go for the SCAR. The balance on that rifle is amazing.

IF you're set in AR308, go LaRue and skip the build.

[jesuvuah]

Go for the SCAR. The balance on that rifle is amazing.

IF you're set in AR308, go LaRue and skip the build.

Here is the problem with the scar. It is light, and does balance well, but I personally did not really love the stock. I really do not like that it uses proprietary mags. I would want to upgrade the trigger and add an extended handgaurd, because that is how I like a rifle set up. I am also not sure on the location of the charging handle, I could see my thumbe getting hit. That may be a training issue, but that is how I occasionally hold some of my other rifles. Having to throw that much money into an already expensive system make me want to keep searching.

I am sure the larue is a great gun, but once again, there would be things I would want to change on it, and I don't want to spend 3k on a gun and then start chopping it up.

That is why I am thinking of building. If I was going to buy a stock rifle, it would probably have to be the scar, but at this point, I am definitely leaning towards building. I should also mention that I enjoy setting up a gun exactly the way I want it.

[broylz]

I am planning on building a psa 308. Might be worth considering...

[henschman]

If you're concerned about weight, the Aero Precision or Palmetto receiver sets are probably a good bit lighter than the Mega, with it being billet. Stick with a medium to light profile barrel and light free float handguard like the MI-SS, and you'll be alright on weight. Hell, the SCAR has a pencil profile chrome lined barrel on it, so if you're fine with that, you can get something similar for the LR-308 platform and really cut the weight. The barrel is where most of your weight savings will be.

I was in a similar boat myself, liking the weight, accuracy, and reliability of the SCAR, but disliking a lot of the features like the handguard, stock, and charging handle placement... also how there is no other option besides a 16" barrel (I wanted at least an 18"). I ended up going with the M&P 10. It is pretty close to the same weight, has a nice tapered profile 18" nitrided barrel that handles great, and it takes the same mags, handguards, and stock setups as an LR-308. You may have to drill out your gas block to get it to run reliably on 7.62 ammo though... I did on mine.

[specopsscout]

My POF P308 Recon has a Mike Rock 5R barrel. It will shoot under MOA to six hundred, and well under when I'm on point.