Black Rain Ordnance 308 , Not 5.56

[4Freedom]

Any opinions about the Black Rain 308 Fallout and Norguard rifles?

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I have heard lot of people knocking them in the 5.56 caliber, because of their price and gimmicky finishes. Most people I have read on forums say to buy a LaRue or Noveske for the money. And, I, perhaps can agree with them about the 5.56 caliber. However, with the 308 brands that Black Rain is producing, it appears they are a good $1000 cheaper than even the lowest price LaRue 308s and still cheaper than LMTs. It appears from reading the specs that they contain very high quality components and are well constructed, compared to the cheaper and more mass produced DPMS rifles. They are actually only about $500 or $600 more than similar DPMS models, but seem to offer much higher quality barrel, rail, and receiver.. The Fallout model also includes a muzzle break and fluted barrel.

I'm wondering for all the extras is it worth an extra $500-600 for one of these over a DPMS or Armalite? The fact it uses DPMS mags is a plus, as that saves me $100 on mags, which I already have a few and can buy magpuls. If I buy an Armalite, I will probably spend at least $200-300 in mags.

I'm interested to hear people's opinions on the Black Rain 308... Please don't be confused with the 5.56 models. The closeness in price between 5.56 and 308 models I also find intriguing whereas LaRue/Noveske have major price differences jumping from 5.56 to 308.

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[PBinWA]

I haven't heard anything bad about them but I also haven't heard much about them.

If you were paying MSRP then you might also want to consider POF or GAP. I suspect you can get an LMT in that price range if you called around. Try Joe at Crossroadsarms.com (site sponser - username jcs3) he often has good prices on LMT.

There is a long wait for GAP. Not sure about POF.

 

[4Freedom]

Actually, from what I seen the Black Rain is quite a bit cheaper than the POF and LMTs.. I also would like to avoid AR Piston guns and stick with the DI gas mechanism. I've heard a few not so good things about POF, which would make me weary about spending the money, which usually runs at least 3k for a 308. The LMTs I would really be interested in, but even those are about $1,000 more than the Black Rain..

The rifle I am looking at is about $600 under the MSRP. The person I would be purchasing from is a direct distributor for the company and gets them highly discounted.

The person also was offering a layaway plan. I guess I would prefer someone who could offer at least 4 month layaway as well, if I am going to spend over $1800 for a rifle..

I'm not familiar with the GAP rifles, but will do some research.

Thanks for the information about Crossroads Arms.. The name sounds familiar. Maybe I will see what he has available.


I'm still awaiting others here have any inside knowledge about the Black Rain 308s and comparison to the higher end models, such as Noveske, LaRue, LMT, etc, as well as the lower end/mid-range models, such as DPMS/Armalite.

 

[madcratebuilder]

I'm still awaiting others here have any inside knowledge about the Black Rain 308s and comparison to the higher end models, such as Noveske, LaRue, LMT, etc, as well as the lower end/mid-range models, such as DPMS/Armalite.

You may have been miss informed on quality of some brands. World of difference between DPMS and ArmaLite.

DPMS uses 6000 series extruded aluminum

ArmaLite uses forged 7175 aluminum receivers.

Noveske uses the same M14 magazine as the ArmaLite "B" models. For the past year ArmaLite has offered the "A" model that uses SR-25 magazines (Pmags).

ArmaLite is the only 7.62 AR manufacturer that offers a lifetime warranty.

Mag prices, the M14 style for the B model ArmaLite cost less than metal mags from KAC or LMT. DPMS metal mags are less but have reliability issues. The ArmaLite Gen II metal mags are under $30 each. Unless you are buying dozens and dozens of mags, the cost difference is insignificant.

I'm not a fan of plastic 7.62 mags, the increase in the body length may cause the lips to spread if left loaded for long periods of time. Another negative on plastic mags is you have a limited over all case length compared to metal mags. This can be a issues when reloading longer projectiles.

I have owned both ArmaLite and Noveske precision 7.62 AR's, the major difference is the barrel quality and hand guard quality. Noveske has great barrels and uses a SWS hand guard...and cost more. The same rifle with a ArmaLite brand well have a inexpensive hand guard and a barrel that may not shoot as well as the Noveske.

IMHO the best buy in 7.62 AR's is the ArmaLite A model (Pmag) carbine, under $1500 street price. There are used B models (M14 mag) on Gunbroker at bargain prices.

 

[iamme]

Cheapest I saw on there was $2500- that's still LMT MWS (battle proven), GAP, Larue, Custom smith territory. that's just me.

 

[FourTeeFive]

Bison Armory is in Bellingham and has a few rifles on sale right now. I've never seen his work so this isn't an endorsement, but might be worth checking out:

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