The unloaded weight of the rifle with scope is about 13.5 pounds and this weight, in addition to the standard impingement gas system, does a lot to minimize felt recoil. Over the course of two days I fired more than 150 rounds and felt none the worse for my efforts, despite having an arthritic shoulder.
For targets I used 1-inch Shoot-N-C target pasters attached to an IPSC target set out at 100 yards. All shooting was done from a cement bench, from a seated position, utilizing a rifle rest. The results were nothing less than spectacular.
Judicious ammunition selection makes this rifle easily a .5 MOA gun. My groups ranged from .78 inches to my best of .32 inches-a group so small that it could literally be covered with a dime!
The LAR 8 Varmint's trigger also contributed to the rifle's ability to place rounds on top of each other. The trigger on my rifle broke almost exactly at 3.5 pounds with very little overtravel. It is of the non-adjustable variety, which is fine with me. There are no engagement or overtravel screws that can back out and render the rifle unusable.
Blackening the Barrel
A good friend who is attached to a Naval Special Warfare unit, accompanied me during the field shooting portion of my evaluation. He mentioned that the shiny silver barrel would need to be darkened before it could be considered for use as a working gun.
When I asked him what process his guys used to camo their guns I expected him to say something like Birdsong
Black T or Lauer DuraCoat finish. His response was, "whatever spray paint is on sale at the hardware store." Those guys are hard on their weapons and realize that no matter what they put on their guns it's going to get scratched and require a quick touch up. His recommendation for me was to buy BBQ black-the same stuff that you'd use to repaint your BBQ. The hotter your barrel gets the more the paint cures. It is a flat black finish that is nonreflective and easy to touch up.
We set our targets out from 100 to 300 yards and fired the rifle using a Harris Bipod attached to the sling swivel stud on the bottom of the rifle's free float tube. The Trijicon optics and Rock River's two-stage trigger made hitting even the farthest target boring. It seemed an impossible to miss combination.
After going through a couple magazines of ammunition without a miss, we decided to do nothing but headshots and still found that we were hitting them with monotonous regularity. The long heavy barrel dampened muzzle disruption to the point that I could watch my bullets impact on the distant steel targets.
I used a variety of surplus FAL magazines and found that they all worked perfectly. During my 300-round evaluation there were no jams or stoppages of any kind.
I wanted to fit the LAR-8 A4 Varmint with a Magpul PRS stock but found that the new stock is not compatible as there is not enough clearance for the charging handle. Rock River does, however, have a new fixed length Operator stock. While it is not adjustable for length of pull, nor does it have an adjustable cheek piece, it does have a comfortable wedge shaped stock that allows for an excellent cheek weld for the shooter and a rubber butt plate that will keep the stock from slipping from the shoulder even when wearing a nylon vest. The Operator stock also features battery storage compartments and different places for a quick detach sling swivel.
If the 26-inch barrel length of the LAR-8 Varmint A4 seems to be a bit unwieldy for you Rock River now has a 20-inch version available and that should make the rifle a bit more portable. With a suggested retail price of just $1,385 (departments and agencies can call for LE pricing) the LAR-8 A4 Varmint rifle is one of the best values in the semi-auto precision .308 market.
Rock River Arms — LAR-8 Varmint A4
Caliber: .308
Operation: Semi-automatic
Barrel: Wilson air-gauged bull stainless steel with 1:10-inch twist
Barrel Length: 26 inches
Overall Length: 47 inches
Weight: 11.6 pounds
Accessories: Hard case
Warranty: Limited lifetime
Price: $1,385
Mike Detty is an NRA-certified rifle, pistol, and shotgun instructor. A certified rangemaster and competition shooter, Detty served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps and holds a degree in criminal justice from the University of Arizona.