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Rock River Arms LAR-15 Elite Comp: A Top Notch AR-15 Variant With Some Great Features Out Of The Box

Rock River Arms has introduced a new AR-15 variant: the LAR-15 Elite Comp. Guaranteed to shoot 1.5″ MOA, the Elite Comp features a number of very nice features, typically seen only on nicely upgraded AR rifles.

Chambered in 5.56 NATO (.223 Remington), the LAR-15 Elite Comp has a forged A4 upper with a 16″ chrome-lined barrel with a 1:9″ twist. The threaded barrel features an RRA Tactical Muzzle Brake standard.

Sighting is handled by the combination of a flip front sight gas block assembly and a PADS flip rear sight.

The trigger is a two-stage match trigger in a winter trigger guard. The front end features an RRA half-quad, free-float mid-length rail system. The pistol grip is an Ergo SureGrip.

The buttstock is my favorite: the Magpul CTR stock. The Magpul is fully adjustable, feels very good when the rifle is mounted and is designed in such a way as to prevent any inadvertent adjustment of the length.

I currently have a LAR-15 from Rock River Arms that I bought before they announced the Elite Comp. On my LAR-15, I installed the Magpul buttstock, the front flip-up sight/gas block, rear flip-up sight, and the SureGrip. All totaled, I paid more than what Rock River is asking for the Elite Comp. Â So, I think the rifle package is a very good deal. Â Also, my Rock River has run pretty well. Â I don’t know who makes the “best” AR-15, but these Rock River rifles seem to be well built.

The LAR-15 Elite Comp ships with only one magazine. I would expect at least two magazines at this price point, but fortunately, new magazines are relatively inexpensive. Â You can pick up Magpul PMAGs for less than $15 for example.

MSRP is listed at $1470, and advertised prices start very close to this number. Dealers are accepting orders now, and the Elite Comp is due to ship in the third quarter of 2008.

The AR-15 platform has become extremely popular in the past two decades. With it, the .223 Rem rose to one of the most popular rifle cartridges of all time.

In the hunting realm, the .223 has been very popular with varmint hunters. However, many people have felt the .223 cartridge is too small for hunting deer-sized game.

Remington is trying to change people’s minds.

Core-Lokt .223

To help influence the debate, Remington introduced a .223 cartridge in their Core Lokt Ultra Bonded line of hunting ammunition.

According to Remington, the Core Lokt Bonded bullet “…offers the unique combination of excellent accuracy, superb weight retention, and expansion with overall superior terminal results.”

Remington says the bullets retain up to 95% of their original bullet weight, and by using a progressively tapered jacket, the bullets expand reliably at “all practical” velocities. Expansion of up to twice the original bullet diameter is typical with this bullet design.

The obvious goal is improved penetration with the relatively light bullet. A bonded bullet enables the projectile to hold itself together when hitting bone and other tissue.

Whether deer hunters will embrace this round remains to be seen. However, Remington’s introduction of their Core Lokt Ultra Bonded bullet in a .223 loading expands the possibilities with this already versatile rifle cartridge.

Specifications

Caliber	.223 Rem
Bullet Weight	62 grains
Bullet Type	Core-Lokt Ultra Bonded
Muzzle Velocity	3,100 fps
Muzzle Energy	1,323 ft-lbs
Ballistic Coefficient	.234
MSRP (2021)	$38.99/box of 20

The Core Lokt Ultra Bonded line is fairly extensive and covers many of the other popular calibers in both short- and long-action.

Additionally, the company offers these bullets loaded in the 6.8 SPC cartridge, which is another caliber that is very popular with AR-15 shooters. For deer-sized game, I would much rather have the 6.8 SPC cartridge than the .223. It definitely gives the hunter a lot more power for anchoring an animal.

While you could hunt whitetail with a .22 LR, I still believe in clean, humane kills. Bigger bullets tend to improve the likelihood of this happening.

Another excellent hunting cartridge for the AR-15 platform is the more recent 300 BLK (aka the 300 AAC BLACKOUT) cartridge. This uses a .30 caliber bullet in the same size envelope as a 5.56 cartridge. They even use the same magazines and can be had in subsonic versions for suppressor use. I’ve seen these used on hogs and they are very effective.

Do you hunt deer with the .223? If so, what ammo are you running? Anyone want to offer their review of the Core Lokt ammo in .223?

Last update: June 3, 2021