Home Forums Hunting & Shooting AR and Tactical Rifles Seeking advice for .308 DMR-like build

I've pretty well got my 5.56 stuff covered for now, so I'm looking to doing a .308 build starting a couple months down the road, and I'm seeking advice to get the best possible accuracy. I'm leaning towards the Aero Precision M5 matched sets for the receivers, as all the reviews I've seen have been positive. But I'm not married to that idea if there's a better option.

The barrel/bolt combo is the next big question. Who makes the best AR/.308 barrel, and preferably properly headspaced bolt combo? Kreiger? Lilja? I'm open to suggestions. Plan is for a 20" barrel, not too heavy, maybe in the 2.5-3# range.

Handguard is up in the air. If BCM made a KMR .308, I'd go that route simply due to the fact that I really like their 5.56 version. Maybe Aero Precision? Midwest? No particular brand loyalty.

Haven't decided on the stock yet, but likely some sort of Magpul, quite possibly the PRS. Open to suggestions there.

Beyond the components, what needs to be done to the receiver set, etc... in the way of truing?? I'd think it's be a good idea to have the barrel mount, or whatever it's called, squared up, but I'm not that well versed in these things. I know the action of a bolt gun needs to be squared up and trued for best accuracy, and I'd assume some of the same stuff needs to be done to the AR platform.

Any suggestion ya'll have will be greatly appreciated. I've learned alot from ya'll on the 5.56 platform. This is taking things to another level and I want to get it right. No shortcuts on this one.

Thanks,

David

My advice is buy my Aero .308 and rebarrel it to suit your desires.....

Mine pretty much fits your wants, is for sale and is very accurate but only has a 16" barrel currently.

They are fun rifles with a million options to suit each user but for my preferences im going back to a bull barreled bolt gun.

No work needs to be done to the receivers. Just bolt everything together and go.

For a BCG I will recommend buying a good quality one, not one you "got a good deal on". Cheap 308 BCG's have issues, I know from experience. Also, make sure its full mass and not a lightened carrier. The JP FMOS would be a great choice as would a Young Manuf. Match BCG.

There are lots of good barrels out there, just make sure you get one setup right. If its a 16" barrel or longer, go with a rifle length gas system. .308's do better with longer gas system lengths than .223's.

An adjustable gas block is never a bad idea on these either. SLR and Syrac both make great ones.

I have a AR-10 with an 18" Rainier Arms Ultramatch barrel, which is based on a Shilen Blank. It's not very heavy, and is reasonably priced. Shoots well, too, around 1 MOA for 5 shots, with its preferred loads. I think they sell them in both Armalite and DPMS patterns.

Hey Mallard. Appreciate the offer. I want to start from the ground up. But I do like your rifle. Just re-barrel it. Maybe a .260 or 6.5 Creed. Plenty of good options. And build the bolt gun. Can't ever have too many!!

Everything on this one will be best quality. It's gonna be purpose built. And yes, 20" rifle length gas. Gonna get my feet wet with a SLR Sentry 6 in a couple weeks. Gonna finish up an 11.5" rifle to be suppressed.

Any suggestions on barrel maker? Faxon offers a profile I like, but haven't seen many reviews yet. Ones I have seen have been pretty decent. Lilja makes some nice stuff. Wilson Combat, but all heavy. Gotta check out the Rainier options. White Oak has a good rep I think, not sure what they offer. Any others?? Likely looking at SS, either melanited or I'll have it cerakoted.

War Eagle!!

Definitely plan to check those out. Direct to Shilen as well.

I really like the Lilja barrel I have. Its very accurate, minimal fouling, and a good profile. Its .750 under the handguards and in front of the gas block.

If your budget allows, get a Krieger or Bartlein blank, a BAT barrel extension, and let a good smith turn you a custom barrel. Just try and keep the weight to a minimum. When these things get heavy, they aren't as fun.

I was able to keep this one under 10lbs, not as pleasant to carry around as a Model 70 Featherweight but still fun to hunt with occasionally.


MEGA MA-10 .308 by X Ring, on Flickr

Who is a good smith? LOL If this was a bolt gun, I wouldn't have so many questions. And I really like that rig. 18"?

Best quality screams only one thing on the barrel. Get with a known smith, and tell him or her what you want to do. Then come to an agreement, and have them build the tube.....off the shelf would not cut it for best quality IMHO.

17"

There are lots of good smiths out there. I would check with White Oak Precision and see if they would do it. Its not cheap and you can get a very good barrel for much less. Just depends on how much you are willing to spend.

Personally, I would just buy a good barrel from a reputable company and have them verify headspace with your bolt. Lilja, Krieger, Criterion, Rainier Arms, BHW, etc...

I was hoping you'd chime in rost. Seems you have a lot of experience with highly accurate and .308.

Who's the smith to go with? And are we looking $1k for a barrel? May need to qualify my previous statement. LOL

Any other advice from ya'll on trigger? I assume a Giessele of some flavor? I'd like a good crisp 2-3#'s if possible. Do any of them resemble a good M700 or M70 trigger pull?

I agree best quality would come from a custom tube but at what price? You can get two good off the shelf barrels for what 1 custom cost. Given the fact that 99% couldn't shoot the difference between them, what is the benefit of paying $600+ for minimal accuracy gain?

Overlap in typing. That may be the route I take. A match chamber with a correctly head-spaced bolt, and maybe a spare, seems like it would be a good package.

Looking for a rifle to go beyond the effective .223 range and fill the gap btwn that and a good bolt gun in .308 or .300WM. Say 500-600 yd rifle, maybe???

Trying to round out the arsenal if you will.

I don't have any use for an AR10.

My 308 is in a bolt gun. That's just me. Has a Rock tube on it. Under 400 for the barrel. Don't recall the cost of barreling. 250 I think, plus 250 to true? Dunno but truing a bolt gun is a one time thing.

Others note can you tell accuracy differences? They are true. But you said very best... very best would be custom I'd talk to White Oak Precision because I trust John and crew. I have no clue if they would even do it on an AR10 though.

Triggers... I"ve got Milazzo and RRA in my 15s.... my bolt gun is an OLD 700 down to ounces of pull worked over by me...

Had I to start over again with AR triggers, AR and Bills bunch at Geiselle. I"ve no clue what all he makes so I'd have to call Bill and have a good old chat.

IMHO you gain a lot more than minimal with a top barrel. But at long distances. Thats where most folks have no clue whats going on...anyway...They wouldn't konw a bad shot from a condition shot mostly.

So you are very true....

Come to think of it, I don't have any use for... but always wanted a 10 in 6.5x284 if I could make it work... for some dumb reason....

I agree with you there also. Although, you can still get a top notch barrel that will shoot with the best of them without going custom. Going custom just insures that. You can find barrels ready to drop in from Krieger, Rock Creek, Lilja, etc... You won't find an individual that could shoot the difference between them in an AR. That's the reason I say save yourself $300-$400 dollars and buy one from a top name that's ready to go.

Man, ya'll are giving me an inferiority complex. LOL. If I were a liberal Bernie type I'd have to go protest or something.

So the search is on. Guess I'll see what I can find off the shelf that suits my needs, and get a couple bolts properly headspaced from the mfg. I guess, worst case, I could call Lilja and see what they can put together for me.

Looked at the Geisele web page last night. I think the Hi-speed National Match - Match or DMR trigger might be a good choice.

Gonna look to NF for optics on this one. That's gonna take some saving up.

We usually offer complimentary headspacing services with customer provided bolts on our .308 AR barrels. Barrels are normally kept in stock, so they are usually shipped out the next business day following the arrival of the bolt.

Thanks for the heads up Criterion. I'll check it out.