[scott92]

I am in the market for a new rifle and have decided to look at the bushmaster series... i would mainly use the rifle for deer but will hunt other big game in near future... main question was that i see that cabelas offer a .450 caliber but have not heard anything on hear bout them to wether there a trustworthy caliber, or else the .308? thanks

[yellowhand]

.308 has been around a long time.
Can be loaded light or heavy depending on what you're looking to hunt.
Elephant to rabbits can be taken with .308 depending on the loads used
.308 Ammo is everywhere and cheap.
Non standard ammo, is as a rule, expensive and hard to locate.

[dunerunner]

If you want an AR platform in .308, I believe you will have to go with DPMS, or Armalite.

Someone please correct me if this is information is in error!

That didn't take long!! It's wrong!

Bushmaster builds an MOE .308 which is a mid length carbine

They also build a Hunter and Vista Hunter with a 20" fluted barrel

Bushy also builds the ORC, a 16" barrel carbine designed for the buyer who is going to add optics

Larue has a .308 AR platform rifle they call the OBR

[dog2000tj]

You can add Rock River Arms to the list of .308 AR10's - Rock River Arms: RRA LAR-8 .308/7.62. POF also has a .308 - POF-USA Patriot Ordnance Factory, Inc.

As for AR's in .45 caliber you have the Bushmaster .450 or the Rock River Arms.458SOCOM

[JonM]

you cant use a 450 458 556 6.8 upper on a 308. so if thats your plan it wont work. but colt also makes a 308. dunno anything about the colts.

maagazines can be a big issue with 308 ARs as in finding cheap spares.

[dog2000tj]

Also keep in mind that there are 2 distinct classes of AR10 - DPMS and Armalite. The parts are not interchangeable, it's one of the other.

Now the real question you should be asking yourself is ... why settle on just one AR when you can have 2? Get a AR15 and a AR10 - endless possibilities!

[NitroxAZ]

Originally Posted by dog2000tj

Also keep in mind that there are 2 distinct classes of AR10 - DPMS and Armalite. The parts are not interchangeable, it's one of the other.

Now the real question you should be asking yourself is ... why settle on just one AR when you can have 2? Get a AR15 and a AR10 - endless possibilities!

What he said. There are a boatload of calibers and configurations that you can do with this platform.

[scott92]

Well im not looking to really mod out the gun, i'm mainly just looking for a good hunting/target rifle, all im probably going to do is put on a scope, otherwise probably nothing more than that.

[dog2000tj]

Well you will have to decide on what type of shooting you will be doing. The .308 really doesn't compare with the .450/.458 calibers and shooting would be drastically different between the two. Granted, either caliber will perform well in hunting applications and take down any game in NA. But don't expect more than 200yds out max of the .450 or .458SOCOM.

[TrapperJohn]

Originally Posted by scott92

Well im not looking to really mod out the gun, i'm mainly just looking for a good hunting/target rifle, all im probably going to do is put on a scope, otherwise probably nothing more than that.

When I do a build I think of long term use. The AR is great for this. The AR-15 has a vast selection of calibers that can be used like 5.56, 6.5 Grendel, 6.8 SPC, .22, 458 SOCOM, .50 Beowulf, .45acp, 9mm and many more.

The AR-10 types so far. .308, 7mm-08, .243 and Fulton Armory even has a 6.5mm Dreadnaught out now.

The cool thing about the AR platform is it's ability to change calibers and you can do most maintenance at home including changing calibers.

My suggestion is figure out what caliber you want to start with and get the platform that fits that caliber. After that you can modify the AR to a different caliber to fit your needs. Do some reading on what calibers are good for you and where you want to go in the future.

Keep in mind any AR is restricted by the size of the magazine well. You cannot use anything bigger except in the case of the .50 BMG upper that connects to the AR-15 lower and that is just a one shot rifle once the upper is connected.

To me the AR is the ultimate survival rifle. You can go rabbit hunting and zombie hunting in the same day but just making some minor changes while relaxing in the man cave.

Keep in mind most AR-15 are built to milspec tolerances so you can interchange parts. This does not include some like Bushmaster. But the AR-10 is a different animal. As others have said DPMS & Armilite are the two main patterns used. DPMS being the most common.