lightwieght 308 AR... need recommendations please
 

Im not educated when it comes to all the different AR's. Trying to read up as much as I can and there's so many different brands and terminology, it's really overwhelming so Im hoping yall can help point me in the right direction.

My hunting land is over run with hogs and I want a very light weight AR chambered in 308 to hunt them with. I set out on foot and walk all around 800 acres of woods, so light weight is very important to me. Accuracy and good quality is also important. I dont want something cheap.

Most of my shots will be between 40 and 150 yards. I will put something like a Trijicon Accupoint 1 - 4 power scope or maybe a similar short range Leupold. I would like quad rails so I can have a small laser light up front to assist with night shooting.

So what would yall recommend? Light weight, accurate, well made 308? I want to buy a complete gun, not spend the time building one with different parts. I dont mind spending a little more for better quality. Im not wanting a base model entry level gun. Would like to keep purchase for the bare gun around or under $2500.

A couple people have mentioned Larue PredatAR model as it is very lightweight (7.75lbs). I really like that gun but they have a roughly 5 - 6 month wait. That may be the case with any nicer gun right now however and I may just have to wait. Ive done some looking at RRA, Colt, DPMS, LWRC, LMT...... some are too expensive, some too heavy, some dont have rails ect ect. Trying to keep it close to 8 lb or less.

Does anyone have any brands or suggestions I should look into? Any opinion of the Larue? Thanks in advance for any and all replies. :cheers:

308 in an AR platform usually does not equal light weight.

I'd probably stick with a 5.56, .300 BLK, or 6.8 for a light weight setup.

I have my mind made up on a 308. I understand there are other much lighter AR's available, but Im just looking for suggestions on some that would be considered "lightweight" when referring to 308's. Thats all.

There is no such thing as a light weight .308 AR. Some are lighter than others. But most will push 10 lbs. With a scope and magazine you are around 12-13 lbs...maybe more. There's only so much you can do in terms of designing a semi-auto rifle around a cartridge that will push 60,000 PSI.

DPMS makes a .308 Recon version that comes in a hair under 9 lbs. But that's about as light as you will find. Add 2 lbs for the magazine and another lb or two for the optics and you are pushing 13 lbs.

Consider a 6.8 SPC which has 70% of the energy of a .308 and can be had in a very lightweight AR size rifle. Ammo will be cheaper than comparable .308 Ammo too.

MY ArmaLite 16" AR10 is under 8# w/o scope and ammo. 1.5moa w/ my 3x ACOG. Good luck finding one in stock.

ETA: Sorry, I missed you wanted rails...You'll have to add those after and that will add weight.

Ok let me try this again.

Larue PredatAR 7.62 in 16" barrel with quad rail = 7.75 lbs

Just wondering if theres any other 308 that is comparable that I should check out also?

Doesn't get much better, or lighter than that.

Exactly. In your price range, OP, the Predatar is by far the best option.

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If you can swing the dough ($2,800) and the wait (a year) Larue's the way to go. But again: Add 2 lbs for the magazine and 2 lbs for the optics/mount and you are back up to 12 lbs with even with a Larue.

Brother...that ain't a lightweight rifle. Hell, My .416 Rigby with glass beats it by almost 3 lbs and I think that rifle is a chunk!

Depending on what you want to do with it, and if you're not dead-set on an AR-10 pattern rifle, I would recommend the SCAR-17S. It sits just under 8lbs, and is the softest shooting 7.62 NATO I've had the pleasure of shooting.

...or cheap

Ive been really happy with my pof 308. And I think if you get it with the 14.5 inch barrel it comes in just over 8 pounds.

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A fully loaded LR-308 magazine weighs 1.5 pounds. Down load it to 5 rounds for hunting and it weighs 10 ounces. A Leupold VX-R 1.25-4x20 with firedot illuminated reticle weighs 11.5 ounces and Burris Extreme high rings weigh 5.5. So loaded and set up with the Leupold VX-R for hunting, a rifle that weighed 7.75 pounds clean is still under 9.5 pounds.

I prefer the Leupold VX-R 2-7x33. The larger objective lens transmits more light and 7x magnification brings my view out to my rifle's range. At 2x a shooter can be quite fast using the Bindon aiming technique. The VX-R 2-7 weighs just 12.7 ounces, there is very little weight added v. The 1.25-4 Leupold and it is 1.3 ounces lighter than the Trijicon you mentioned and $385 cheaper.

Buds has the Bushmaster ORC .308 for $1114. It weighs 7.75. Mine shoots 1.5 moa with 168gr GMM and I expect it to do slightly better once I get a free float forearm for it.

The Remington R25 weighs 7.75 pounds and it comes free floated for about $1200.

Pof ar10
 

Another vote for the POF 14.5" w/pinned FH. Accurate, soft recoil, and light weight. I have the 3-9 Leupold Firedot on it. It is my go to rifle.

The guys saying there isn't a light weight .308 must live under a rock, the Larue PredatAR 7.62 weighs 7.75 lbs.

$300 more than your budget though, save a couple more weeks and get the Larue.

http://www.laruetactical.com/16%E2%8...l-predatar-762

5.56 NATO is around 60,000 psi and SAAMI .223rem is 55,000psi.:whistling:

Look into the Rock River Arms LAR-8 Elite Operator, one of the lighter .308 ARs on the market.

http://rockriverarms.com/index.cfm?f...ategory_id=400

Did ya miss the OP's post? :dunno:

Light weight & 7.62 USUALLY do not mix. Notice I said usually.
The Larue is an outstanding platform, the only one I could recommend to the OP

I guess I neglected to read the 5th paragraph. I have a pretty short attention span for reading. My comment was more toward BB when he said a light weight 7.62 didn't exist.

PredadAR- 7.75lb
Leupold ultralight 3-9x33 - 0.61lb
DNZ 1piece picatinny mount - 0.5lb
PMAG loaded with 150gr hunting ammo- 1.5lb

That puts you just over 10lb for a loaded and scoped semi auto .308 with a little more scope than the OP wanted.


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Pressure is important but so is rearward bolt thrust. You need more diameter (larger case head)/larger bolt lugs and bolt mass to control all that. Bigger round = bigger action because the build materials are the same. Compare the Thompson Contender and Encore frames for example. One can handle .308 and the other can not.

I understand that, go look at the post i quoted. My post was more or less saying that the pressure had nothing to do with the size of the rifle, and that 60,000psi is not a super high pressure as far as center fire rifles are concerned.


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That's very doable! GIs carried 10 pound Garands all over the planet in WWII.
My preferred long range bolt gun is just under 11 pounds.
My M1A is right at 13

A darn good padded sling will make a 10 pound rifle feel like 7