The AR-15
rifle system has been with us for about forty years now, and has
proven itself worldwide as one of the best semiautomatic rifles
ever made. After four decades of refinement, the AR system has
evolved into a battle-proven rifle that has served most of the
free world well in several conflicts as the military M-16.
In its
civilian form, the AR system can be divided into two distinct
categories. The first version is represented by the light
and handy short-barreled carbines that are very useful for most
any serious social situation, such as filling the role of police
carbine or defense of the
homestead. The second version of the AR-15 rifle system
is that of a heavy-barreled, highly accurate, long range rifle
for both target shooting and the hunting of small vermin and
predators. There is an almost endless variation of in-between
styles of the AR-15 that can do double duty as a defensive and
precision rifle, but here we will concentrate our focus on the
heavy-barreled AR-15s that excel at the accurate placement of
bullets on small targets at extended range.
First, let’s
examine the need for such a rifle. This can be separated
into the needs of the varmint hunter and the precision tactical
shooter, such as a police sniper. The varmint hunter has many
good weapons from which to choose, including bolt action and
single-shot rifles that are capable of fine accuracy. The
advantage offered by the AR-15 varmint gun is that of being able
to fire repeatedly without moving either the gun or the shooter.
With a heavy-barreled AR-15, the shooter can remain in position,
moving only his trigger finger to send repeat shots down range.
To a groundhog hunter under normal conditions, this means very
little, but to a hunter on a prairie dog shoot where you may
fire hundreds of rounds per day, this can be important.
A few years
back, we had a situation in which groundhogs were destroying our
sweet corn crop. The corn was tall and thick, and the groundhogs
would leave the safety of their burrows on the creek bank to
enter the cornfield and steal a few ears at a time. They had to
cross a five-foot clearing to get to the corn, and they crossed
this at full speed. Any shot that could be taken had to be made
in that five-foot clearing, at a running target. The area around
the field was heavily wooded, but there was an old combine at
one end that offered a good view of the groundhogs’ escape
route. The groundhogs would enter the field, grab the
corn, and then exit to the safety of their home. I would watch
from the top of the old combine, and when a corn stalk was
pushed over, it would only be a few seconds until the fat little
pigs would head across the clearing. Any shooting had to be
quick and accurate, or the groundhog was home free. Sometimes,
as many as three pigs would cross the clearing together, each
with an ear of corn in his mouth. Sure, a single-shot or bolt
action rifle would have let me harvest one of the little corn
thieves, but getting the second or third was out of the
question. This type of hunting situation is where an
accurate semi-automatic really shines, and none is better than
an accurate AR-15 with a good scope sight. The heavy barrel
helps to steady the gun for repeat shots, and the extra length
of the barrel adds velocity for greater terminal effect. I did
not get every groundhog that crossed that clearing, but more
than once I was able to connect on multiple targets, getting as
many as three at a time. After shooting began, the pigs
wouldn’t be back that day, but would live to steal more corn
the next day. Without the ability to pop more than one at a
time, the corn harvest would have been greatly reduced that
year. As much as I like a good bolt action .22-250, the
AR-15 was the perfect rifle for this situation.
Another
situation in which the heavy-barreled AR-15 excels is in the
role of a police sniper weapon. There are instances in which a
skilled police marksman must make critical precision shots at a
hostile target. The target is often moving around, and if a
second or third shot is needed, it is needed immediately. The
AR-15 allows almost instantaneous repeat shots, without
taking the sight off of the target. With modern .223 ammunition
using heavy bullets, the AR-15 has ample power and penetration
to get the job done, with relatively low recoil.
For this
article, we gathered a sampling of some of the best
heavy-barreled AR-15 type rifles on the market. This is by no
means meant to be a complete representation of every heavy AR
available, but these are each well-built and accurate weapons.
The guns represented here are from Bushmaster, ArmaLite,
Doublestar, Rock River Arms, and DPMS. Each rifle is
of the flat top configuration to easily facilitate the mounting
of a precision scope sight. All of the test guns were
fitted with a heavy twenty-four inch barrel that thankfully had
no muzzle appendages of any kind. To make an accurate AR-15
takes a good barrel. To make an AR-15 that will hold its
accuracy repeatedly shot after shot, it takes a heavy barrel.
Each of these rifles wore a barrel that measured around an inch
rear of the gas block, with the diameter of the barrels forward
of the gas block as follows:
| Rifle |
Barrel
Diameter |
| ArmaLite
M-15A4(T) |
0.798" |
| Bushmaster
Varminter |
0.740" |
| Doublestar |
0.924" |
| DPMS
Panther |
0.922" |
| Rock
River Varmint |
0.924" |
The Bushmaster, Doublestar, and DPMS barrels were fluted to
reduce weight and promote faster cooling.
Each of these
rifles has a stainless barrel, with the exception of the
Bushmaster, which has a chrome-moly barrel. The pistol grips of
the ArmaLite and Doublestar are of the standard hard plastic
AR-15 type, while a rubber finger grooved pistol grip is
featured on the Rock River and Bushmaster, and a target type
pistol grip with "Olympic style" hand rest is included
on the DPMS. Trigger pulls were measured with a Lyman
digital trigger pull gauge, and are as listed here:
| Rifle |
Trigger
Pull |
| ArmaLite
M-15A4(T) |
4.5
pounds |
| Bushmaster
Varminter |
4.4
pounds |
| Doublestar |
7.1
pounds |
| DPMS
Panther |
6.5
pounds |
| Rock
River Varmint |
3.5
pounds |
Each of these
rifles weigh in the eight and three-quarters to ten pound range,
providing a very stable yet still portable shooting machine.
During the test firing of these guns, each of them fed, fired,
and ejected every round without a hitch, using a variety of
ammunition, both factory and handloads. Two really great
performing loads in each of these guns were factory loads from Winchester.
Their 55 grain Ballistic Silvertip premium ammunition
performed superbly, as expected, but also the 62 grain USA
full metal jacket ammo grouped very well, in some cases beating
out the Silvertip. Each of the rifles tested had fast twist
rates to handle the heavier bullets well. With every load tested
in these rifles, all groups measured less than one inch, with
most measuring half of that. This was while shooting at a range
of 110 yards with a moderate gusty wind. I believe that each of
these rifles are capable of very fine accuracy with the loads
that suit it best. Half inch groups with factory ammo is very
good, and each rifle tested did that or better with the Winchester
Ballistic Silvertips.
Shooting with each of these fine firearms was a pleasure. The
AR-15 rifle system has proven itself in recent years to be an
excellent platform for a varmint and target rifle. With practice
and a good scope sight, accurate hits at several hundred yards
are easy. The recoil is light, and the ergonomics of the AR
system is almost perfect. The heavy barrels on these guns are
free-floated for consistent accuracy. The flat top
receivers are perfect for mounting a precision scope. I like to
keep a heavy and a light AR around, but if I had to choose only
one, I would keep a heavy. They are easier to shoot well
at long range, have less muzzle blast, and greater velocity than
a short barrel. For a fast shooting varmint gun, they can’t be
beat. For a police sniper rifle, the heavy AR is almost perfect.
Where legal, they make a good deer rifle with the proper ammo in
skilled hands. Follow-up shots on a running coyote are
easier with a heavy AR than any other type of rifle.
You can check out the complete specifications on each of these
fine rifles at the following websites.
Bushmaster Varminter: www.bushmaster.com
ArmaLite: www.armalite.com/index.htm
Doublestar:
www.star15.com
Rock River
Arms: www.rockriverarms.com
DPMS: www.dpmsinc.com
Choosing any
one of these rifles would be a winner. Look at the websites,
compare prices, and check the specifications that best suit your
needs. I recommend any one of the rifles tested here, and regret
having to send them back.
Jeff Quinn
[Ed.
Note: For further reading, check out these articles by Jeff
Quinn:
Customized
Bushmaster XM-15
Bushmaster
Varminter
-Boge
Quinn]
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