Rainier Arms' RUC 16" Lightweight AR15 review; initial observations

[AGENT TIKKI]

Hey guys, just want to put up some info on the new Rainer Arms RUC 16" Carbine.

I've been looking for a 16" lightweight free-float carbine for a while, to compliment my 14.5" lightweight middy. I wanted a 16" CL 1x7 twist pencil profile, free-floated barrel, full auto carrier, mid-length gas, with a 12" to 13" rail. I also wanted an AR-15 that was as light as I could get it. I've built all my other ARs and help my friends put together theirs. I've been looking around for a good deal on a 16" pencil barrel but they are kind of hard to find and sources dry up pretty quickly on them. Then I happened upon the RUC. I found it listed on the AR15.com site under the new products forum and it really peaked my interest.

Here are the specs on the Rainer Arms RUC, listed directly from their site:

Specifications:
 16″ Lightweight Cold Hammer Forged 5.56mm Barrel
 Extended M4 Feed Ramps
 MPI HP tested Bolt
 Auto carrier with properly staked carrier key
 1 in 7″ twist
 Mil Spec Phosphate finish
 Mid length gas system
 1⁄2×28 threads
 Pinned low profile gas block
 Flat-top upper receiver
 Rainier Arms Evolution Free Float System - 12.0
 Gun Fighter Charging Handle
 Rainier Arms XTC
 Diamond Head Back Up Iron Sights
 Forged Lower
 Mil-Spec 6 position receiver extension
 H Buffer
 Vltor iMod Carbine stock
 Magpul MOE+ pistol grip
 One 30 rd mag included
 Rifle Weight: 6 lbs 10oz
 Geissele OEM trigger

I called a couple times and Mike was very helpful and enthusiastic, answering any and all questions that I had about the RUC. I mainly called about getting it Cali compliant, and also to ask if the 16" version was really pinned and welded. It was not but they were happy to install and provide a Prince 50 bullet button for $25, and substitute a 10 round magazine in place of the high capacity one that they usually provide.

Also as a promotion, they offered a free upgrade from the Geissele OEM (S2S) trigger, to a SSA. The price just for the SSA is $170. This was the factor that sealed the deal for me. I took the plunge and ordered one. It arrived 5 working days later at my local FFL, Riflegear. Price was a little under $1330 shipped. Just a little side note, this is my first complete AR that I have purchased. My first were made from 80% lowers.

My initial impressions were along the lines of: !#@$!#@#$#!@#$ and $&&*#$!!#!#^%$ but mostly #$%@$^@%!#@$ But honestly guys, they had originally quoted a 2-4 week before delivery so I was expecting to get it next month, so I'm even more ecstatic than you can possibly imagine.

Some things I checked while the paper work was being done:
M4 feed ramps nicely aligned.
Barrel looks straight.
Geissele trigger *click* breaks so clean, its like sex for your finger.
BCG staked, looks good,
Castle nut staked, looks good.
Clean even finish on both the upper and lower.
Just a little play between the upper and lower, very minimal.

When I pulled it out of the nice sturdy cardboard box, kindly provided by Rainer, three guys behind the counter asked if they could handle it. Their initial comments were "great balance", "pretty light", "is that a Geissele" and "it come with this?" (Geissele trigger/Rail/Sights/MOE+).

Picked up the RUC, and then ran a couple quick function checks on the safety, trigger, and reset and this is what I found:

The Geissele. Both the OEM S2S and the SSA are 2 stage setups. If the promotion is already over and you can only get the S2S, don't worry. from what I understand they are both very similar, the S2S being a mass produced version of the SSA but the pull weights and feel is pretty similar. As I have not had the opportunity to handle a S2S, but I was considering getting them when they were available retail. They were going for $125 however it seems that Geissele has pulled them off the open market and is only selling them wholesale for builders and manufacturers. I can say this, I have a SSA-E and a SDC, and the SSA is real nice. basically a SSA-E with a tad heavier pull. Probably 1# to 1.5# heavier. You really need to just experience them to understand why everyone likes them. The first stage is light, and the second stage (when it breaks) is only maybe another pound of pull. Long story short, when you pull it fast, like when doing drills or taking a carbine course, it feels like a single stage. When you are looking for more precision, knowing exactly when your trigger’s going to break makes it easier to be consistent. My only problem now is that my poor trigger finger has been spoiled. I don’t like milspec 7#+ triggers anymore. Oh and I think I like the flat bow more. Need more range time.

The 12" rail is light and long, it is much longer than the midlength handguards I've handled in the past. I pulled down the end of the rail by the muzzle to see it there was a lot of flex, but it’s pretty damn solid and has minimal movement. When I get it home, I'll post pics and check with a flashlight to see if it comes anywhere near the gas block or gas line. Now I love my MOE handguards, they fit my hand almost perfectly. This rail is smaller in overall diameter and it’s slightly octagonal in shape and it fits my hand perfectly. I need to get a glove onto my support hand and see if it’s absolutely perfect, but I don't think I'll be needing a forward grip or AFG any more with this rail. I'm about 5' 10" and the long rail lets me almost fully extend my support arm. It should be the perfect length but I'll have to wait for a range day before I can be sure of that. I do plan on making some index marks on the bolts to see if there is any movement. I did forget to check how far forward I could pivot the upper on the front pivot pin. As I understand it one idiosyncrasy of this particular upper is that the locking collar will limit pivoting the upper on the forward pin. More on that later.

My buis of choice have been Troys in the front, and their DOA in the back. I prefer the precision allowed by the diamond shaped peep, as it’s easier for me to reference if I have the front sight post dead center on the peep. I really like the long range setting which is a completely different setup. No peep sight rear aperture, instead they have two posts in the rear, curved inward. Like the ends of a caliper. All you have to do is center the front sight post in between the rear posts and put the front sight on target. I love that you get a very big sight picture with them. I don't like that if you are using the long distance setting, you must change it back to the peep setting before stowing the sight, otherwise the top of the diamond of the close setting rear aperture will come down on your upper receiver, scratching it, or gouging it, or maybe even bending the rear aperture if closed forcefully.

When checking the Diamondhead premium Diamond sights on the RUC, the first thing I checked was if it could be stowed safely on both the close and long range settings. I'm very happy to report that, yes they can. My initial impressions of the sights are pretty limited given the confines of the small showroom, but the close range setting is pretty similar to the DOAs. It actually seems to be a bit faster due to the shape of the flanges on either side of the front sight post, but I think I will be able to follow up in more detail at the range next weekend. They are nice and solid, and the unlocking button gives a nice positive click when depressed.

I have Magpul MIADs on my pistol and my other carbine, both with the big straps on them all. (I usually used a large size glove) I've handled Ergos, A2s, etc, and I can't get over how much I like the MOE+. The rubberized surface is nice and grips well. Let's see how well it works at the range with gloves and a bit of sweat on them. More to follow later.

Vltor Imod, nice and sturdy, tight lockup and the cheekweld is better than my CTR, I know that's not saying much. Storage compartments, and QS swivel points are very nice. Very similar to the ACS in overall size and shape, I'm just afraid of pulling facial hair while shooting. I may have to start shaving more.

The Rainer Arms XTC muzzle brake is very nice looking. The tines on the front look functional as a flash suppressor. The gaping holes on the side look like the ports that most brakes have. These ports are huge, I can fit my fingers through it. I'm figuring its probably going to be as loud as hell. Felt recoil will probably be greatly reduced but I won't be sure until I can get it to the range this weekend. It has three ports on the top probably to help compensate for muzzle rise. Overall it is a very nicely finished unit. Looks very aggressive and I can't wait to shoot it. On a side note, I'm actually hoping it doesn't work too well. I have an Ares Armor Effin-A I'm dying to try out. I might be able to do a comparison at the range. I also have access to a PWS. I think that comparing all of them will be very very interesting. I'd like to compare it to a Battlecomp too but I don't know anyone that has one.

BCM Vltor mod 3 large latch charging handle. I usually have the Mod 4 Medium latch, and I like to have them on all my ARs. It came standard with this carbine. No complaints here. These units are over engineered and there's a ton of info and reviews out there already so I won't spend too much time here. The Mod 3 does have a large latch; it's nice, probably better when I'm wearing gloves.

Mike Hwang of Rainer has given up that the barrels are made by Daniel Defense. They are a great company and make great barrels. The barrel has everything I want which is 1x7 twist, cold hammer forged and a pencil profile. I’ll have more to report once I can get it to the range.

My first order of business when I got it home was to snap some photos, smack up it, flip it, and then rub it down with some lube. Then it’s off to Angeles Shooting Range as soon as possible. This has got to be the best birthday present to myself....EVER!




I'd like to apologize for my amateur photography in advance......I really have NIL lighting and touch up skillz >.<

[AGENT TIKKI]

Staking pics..............











These sights are really really really good. I really like how easy it is to line up the sights, I'm not sure if its any faster than standard, but it will be alot more accurate....





Due to the way the handguards clamp onto the barrel nut extentions, this is the maximum the upper can pivot forward. If you are not careful, you can really gouge the front of your reciever. I don't normally "shotgun" my upper this way so I can't foresee it ever being an issue. Having said that tho, I know I'm gonna **** the front of my lower, not today, not tommorrow, but I've doomed my self :P

[AGENT TIKKI]

Some mods I've already done. I prefer the flat bow trigger to the standard curved trigger, so I replaced the SSA with a SDC. The Primary Arms Micro will soon be replaced with an Aimpoint Micro just waiting on my mounts to arrive from KAC.

[AGENT TIKKI]

Had a great day at Angeles Shooting Range (ASR) today. All in all put about 400 rounds downrange today. I'm happy to report an unsurpising 0 FTFs and 0 FTEs in the entire day. I shot American Eagle 55g .223, American Eagle XM193, PMC 55gr .223, PMC Xtac 62gr 5.56, PMC .223 75 gr bthp, and Fiocchi .223 69 gr Matchkings. Unfortunately I'm still waiting on my KAC mount to arrive for my Aimpoint Micro, so I took out my Primary Arms Micro Clone with a the high, lower 1/3 cowitness mount and sighted in at 50 yards.

Took her out to 200 yards standing, freehand. Standing freehand, and bench shot out to 300 yards. This thing is fun. Light in the hand, smooth and silky.

My initial impressions of this carbine is, "GD this thing is loud". When I let my cousin try her out, I got buffeted with crazy blast when I sat right next to him. It took a a few shots to acclimate to it, and not wince or blink on the spotting scope. I had my cousin's new model Stag Model 3, with PWS FSC556 and Primary Arms M4 clone to compare with. Shooting back to back with the Stag, its really evident how much heavier and front heavy the Stag is. Standing free hand, I noted that even before I got halfway through the mag, it really got more and more difficult to steady the nose while trying to keep the dot on that 200 yard metal pig. In my purely subjective opinion, the RUC has a slightly less recoil, and its cycling was slightly smoother. The cycling differences were probably due to the heavy buffer, and mid-length gas setup. I may try a H2 and H3 buffer later in the future, but even with the xm193, Xtac and match grade ammo, cycling was smooth and buttery. A little bit of lube in the tube and on my recoil buffer spring really help tame the sproing too, maybe I should tell him.....

ASR doesn't allow rapid fire, so it didn't really get to see how well the Rainer Arms XTC did for muzzle flip. In a couple weeks, I've got a be able to take the RUC to a private range and do some rapid fire drills and target transitions. I'm really looking forward to this! This will be a better testament to how well this gun handles (transitions, balance etc), and how reliable it can be. I will be getting some good old cheapo stuff too, like ....WOLF and Silverbear, both of which are absent this time around. Man I am soooo looking forward to this.

So getting down to the nitty gritty, how precise is this thing. The answer: probably more precise than I am. Disclaimer: I am in no way an expert, just an enthusiast, and I've never been one for precision shooting. In all honesty, I've never tried to get groups on paper at 100 yards before. I've put thousands of rounds downrange with my Ruger 10/22, I can easily get .5 inch groups with it, with regular crap Wallyworld Federal ammo, and a 2-7x El Cheapo $35 scope. I like shooting 200, 300 yard minute of steel, but that's not really what I'd consider precision shooting. After about 100 rounds of match grade factory downrange with the RUC, I called it quits. I realized my eyes are just not good enough without magnification. The best group at 100 yards, 5 shot string was about a 3" group with the PMC 75gr Match BTHP. I tried with the RDS. But a 4 MOA dot really doesn't help in this application. I tried with iron sights, and I really didn't fare any much better. I move the target up to 50 yards and shot a 5 shot group with the Fiocchi 69 grains 2 through the same hole, 2 more touching and and 1 flyer at about 1 inch. I have a couple hundred rounds more of other types of ammo that I had brought for testing, but I'm sorry to say I'm going to have to get scope before trying this again. On a side note, I did try and give about 15 min cooldown before going through 5 shot strings. I didn't succeed at this honestly, this probably may have affected my groups.

All in all a great day. The RUC did not dissappoint. I know a LW barrel isn't really a precision instrument, but its fun banging steel. My wife had a great time. Today was her first time shooting rifles, and her first time ever at an outdoor range. After a day slinging lead out of the Ruger, I coaxed her into shooting the RUC. Ding Ding! Two in a row, her first two shots out at the 200 yard piggy! She had a big *** smile on her face when she looked over at me, this just may be true love.....

[VIP3R 237]

Great review and I liked how detailed you were. Now just go out and put some rounds through it and let us know how it shoots. great looking rig you have there.

[seb5]

Thanks for posting that. I'm AR'd up pretty good. But I have a friend and his father that have been on me to build them 2 AR's. After looking at everything I told them that currently they could buy good stuff cheaper than I could build it. I pulled up the net and showed them the Colt 6920 with LEO discount at DSG, BCM components from G&R, Palmetto, and this. He ordered 2 of them today. He's going to top them off with BFG slings, Aimpoint PRO's, and lower end Surefires. Not bad for around $1800.00 total. They look like a good value and I tend to think they will be quality.

[Trunce]

Thanks for the write up. The guys at RA look like they've put together a great package with this rifle. Def like to pick one up myself.

[AGENT TIKKI]

This is pure conjecture but, it really looks like Rainer Arms is trying to make a name for themselves with these carbines. The RUC 14.5" and 16" are RA's first foray into the complete ARs. They've been making uppers for a while and I've only heard good things about them. They've done custom builds for customers.

At the price point they are offering these tho, they sure are making a big splash. Gonna hit the range this Sunday. Got 200 rounds of match grade ammo, 500 rounds of .223 and 5.56 to test out. Gonna be a good time.

[Cameron]

Great write up, and a great carbine. It looks like Rainier is doing a good job on these.

Cameron

[45mike]

As it's still sort of Thanksgiving I 'm realizing how thankful I am that there are so many quality AR platforms to choose from.It's always good to see another manufacurer with a good reutation giving us more ways to feed our black rifle disease.