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Hard Use Rifle Made in USA?

Jeremy45

Gunny Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
May 1, 2010
565
63
36
Odessa, TX
Are there any? What would be the closest American Made rifle to the Accuracy International (it is the gold standard after all)?
 
When @THEIS releases his super Hoplite rifles, you will probably want to take a good look at them.
MemePointUp.gif
 
Hi,

Thanks to @W54/XM-388 for the referral and tag!!

@Jeremy45 Depending on your timeline (If you can wait until the fall for final production models to hit the vault) I would recommend you to spend some time and read through this entire thread that showcases the transparency of Hoplite Arms as a company along with a greater amount of technical details, specifications and all the "super secret squirrel stuff" the industry never really wants to talk about.


Sincerely,
Theis
 
Hi,

Thanks to @W54/XM-388 for the referral and tag!!

@Jeremy45 Depending on your timeline (If you can wait until the fall for final production models to hit the vault) I would recommend you to spend some time and read through this entire thread that showcases the transparency of Hoplite Arms as a company along with a greater amount of technical details, specifications and all the "super secret squirrel stuff" the industry never really wants to talk about.


Sincerely,
Theis
I'll go through it, thank you. I remember looking at it at the very beginning and then forgot all about it. I'm glad I asked the question!
 
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love your Chinese overloads you want to give them your money you need to be ruled over so you can be made to see your place in the world lol
 
How come there’s no phased plasma rifles in the 50 kW range? What kind of old technology are you trying to pawn off on us!? 😅
 
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I'm still waiting for @THEIS to offer up a pre order.
Hint hint.
Ya, I'm half way through the linked thread and really liking what I see. The KMW stock has always been on my wish list. Would love to get hands on one of these, just not where it's going to end up budget wise. I am hoping to have something early September and it looks like this will be available a little later.

Definitely continuing to read and following what he's up to though.
 
I'm still waiting for @THEIS to offer up a pre order.
Hint hint.

Hi,

You will be waiting for....well FOREVER, lol....

The "Pre-order" business model is one of the key factors in the degradation of the firearms industry to customer service relationship, among its list of numerous other reasons as to why Hoplite Arms is not taking that business model path.

If we look at most of the complaints we see posted from a customer about a company....significant amounts of them are of derived from lead times with a shit load of them having been based on the "Pre-order" business model. That is just bad business.

The customer journey is just as much if not more important than the actual product on the businesses side of the house. So if customer is told to pack for a 2 week trip but yet it is now week 9...well that "Journey" sucks and pretty much nothing can be done by the company to have that customer become a repeat customer.

Sincerely,
Theis
 
@supratt96 I'm jelly. How is the weight and balance?
It weighs about 13 lbs, with optics, making it relatively light for a tactical rifle. If you want to make it heavier, KRG offers a variety of weighting options. The balance is quite good. The action is smooth as glass and the trigger is excellent; very much like a pre 2013 Sako TRG. The ergonomics are great and the rifle is VERY well built. I actually like it better than my TRG-22, and that's high praise indeed.

The SOTIC and DTA are my favorites of all the rifles I own, and I own a bunch. The SOTIC has superior build quality than the DTA, but the DTA is more versatile and compact. Both are supremely accurate. If your goal is a high quality and durable American made rifle, then these are the two top contenders, IMO. You could go with a custom build, but I doubt the finished product would be any better and quite possibly, not as good.

I was fortunate to buy mine when KRG had their introductory sale, but even at full price, they are a bargain.
 
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Hi,

You will be waiting for....well FOREVER, lol....

The "Pre-order" business model is one of the key factors in the degradation of the firearms industry to customer service relationship, among its list of numerous other reasons as to why Hoplite Arms is not taking that business model path.

If we look at most of the complaints we see posted from a customer about a company....significant amounts of them are of derived from lead times with a shit load of them having been based on the "Pre-order" business model. That is just bad business.

The customer journey is just as much if not more important than the actual product on the businesses side of the house. So if customer is told to pack for a 2 week trip but yet it is now week 9...well that "Journey" sucks and pretty much nothing can be done by the company to have that customer become a repeat customer.

Sincerely,
Theis
I thought you would find it amusing given your typical direct responses and actual understanding of the industry🤣
 
It weighs about 13 lbs, with optics, making it relatively light for a tactical rifle. If you want to make it heavier, KRG offers a variety of weighting options. The balance is quite good. The action is smooth as glass and the trigger is excellent; very much like a pre 2013 Sako TRG. The ergonomics are great and the rifle is VERY well built. I actually like it better than my TRG-22, and that's high praise indeed.

The SOTIC and DTA are my favorites of all the rifles I own, and I own a bunch. The SOTIC has superior build quality than the DTA, but the DTA is more versatile and compact. Both are supremely accurate. If your goal is a high quality and durable American made rifle, then these are the two top contenders, IMO. You could go with a custom build, but I doubt the finished product would be any better and quite possibly, not as good.

I was fortunate to buy mine when KRG had their introductory sale, but even at full price, they are a bargain.

That's some very high praise. What makes you prefer the SOTIC over the TRG. There are some good deals on TRG's now but the SOTIC does look good! Now I'm really kicking myself for not buying on the first run, they have taken a big price jump.
 
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☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️

Why cant I have more than just a few each of AI's, Mausingfields, Nucleus, Defiance, Remington, Barret, Sako, Stiller, Kelby, Anschutz?

Oh I can so I still want my Hoplite!!! That's all that matters!!!😇😱👽👽👽👽🦧🦧🦧
 
That's some very high praise. What makes you prefer the SOTIC over the TRG. There are some good deals on TRG's now but the SOTIC does look good! Now I'm really kicking myself for not buying on the first run, they have taken a big price jump.
The TRG is a great rifle, and for many, it may be a better option dollar for dollar than a SOTIC. Whether the benefits the SOTIC offers over the TRG are worth the extra money is a personal and budgetary decision. That being said, here are the things that I prefer about the SOTIC:
1. Although the TRG has great ergonomics, despite the fact that it weighs about the same as a SOTIC (maybe even a little less), it is a large and bulky rifle in comparison. The SOTIC feels more compact and easier to maneuver.
2. The SOTIC has a barrel nut system that makes barrel changes fairly easy. Not as easy as a DTA or AI, but still much easier than a TRG. You can convert the TRG to the same barrel nut system as the SOTIC, but it doesn't come that way.
3. The SOTIC uses AI mags which are much cheaper than TRG proprietary mags.
4. The SOTIC action has some improvements over the TRG action and I like the safety and mag release much better.
5. If you take both rifles apart and compare the construction and machining, the SOTIC is clearly the better made rifle.
6. I believe the Whiskey 3 chassis is more durable than the TRG's, but that is more anecdotal.
7. KRG makes a great variety of options and upgrades for the SOTIC at reasonable prices. They also make some nice stuff for the TRG, but the SOTIC is very well supported, much better than Baretta USA supports the TRG.
8. Customer service from KRG is excellent. Baretta USA... not so much.
9. The SOTIC is American made and the money goes to a great American small business success story (KRG).

In my opinion, these factors make the SOTIC worth the extra cash. But, if a SOTIC is stretching your finances, then the TRG is an excellent option.
 
The TRG is a great rifle, and for many, it may be a better option dollar for dollar than a SOTIC. Whether the benefits the SOTIC offers over the TRG are worth the extra money is a personal and budgetary decision. That being said, here are the things that I prefer about the SOTIC:
1. Although the TRG has great ergonomics, despite the fact that it weighs about the same as a SOTIC (maybe even a little less), it is a large and bulky rifle in comparison. The SOTIC feels more compact and easier to maneuver.
2. The SOTIC has a barrel nut system that makes barrel changes fairly easy. Not as easy as a DTA or AI, but still much easier than a TRG. You can convert the TRG to the same barrel nut system as the SOTIC, but it doesn't come that way.
3. The SOTIC uses AI mags which are much cheaper than TRG proprietary mags.
4. The SOTIC action has some improvements over the TRG action and I like the safety and mag release much better.
5. If you take both rifles apart and compare the construction and machining, the SOTIC is clearly the better made rifle.
6. I believe the Whiskey 3 chassis is more durable than the TRG's, but that is more anecdotal.
7. KRG makes a great variety of options and upgrades for the SOTIC at reasonable prices. They also make some nice stuff for the TRG, but the SOTIC is very well supported, much better than Baretta USA supports the TRG.
8. Customer service from KRG is excellent. Baretta USA... not so much.
9. The SOTIC is American made and the money goes to a great American small business success story (KRG).

In my opinion, these factors make the SOTIC worth the extra cash. But, if a SOTIC is stretching your finances, then the TRG is an excellent option.

Fantastic info. Thank you for taking the time to share this!!
 
Fantastic info. Thank you for taking the time to share this!!
No problem.

I also remembered another big advantage the SOTIC has over the TRG; tooless adjustments for comb height and LOP. The TRG comb adjustment employs a very small and proprietary nut that floats inside a track that is built into the stock. Once you remove the comb, there is nothing holding that little nut in place and it is VERY easy to lose, especially in the field. Without the nut, there is nothing securing the comb in place. It just falls off. In fact, I lost that little nut a few years ago. I called Baretta USA to get a replacement and found out that they don't sell it as a separate part. I was initially told I would have to order a whole new stock that costs hundreds of dollars because of the loss of a fifty cent nut. I called back and spoke to another service rep who told me that they had a broken stock in their shop and he would ship the nut from that stock to me at no charge. I got very lucky.

With both rifles, you have to remove the comb to extract the bolt. With the TRG, this requires a metric allen wrench and risking losing that pesky little nut I previously mentioned. You also have to remove the separate and rediculously expensive height spacers that are not included with the rifle purchase. It takes a couple minutes to remove the comb, spacers and nut and then put them back in place. With the SOTIC, you just loosen the comb adjustment wheel and the comb pops right off. No tools, no spacers, no small parts to lose and it only takes a couple seconds.
 
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Tubb ATR is worth a look. No chassis to come loose...it’s all integral. Stiffer barrel tennons, robust/excellent trigger. Designed for higher pressures.
 
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I rub with the tubb gun and the mrad is all the metal. It looks like it would be painfully hot sitting in the West Texas sun?
 
Aluminum is actually a poor conductor of heat (ex: Al decking, bleachers, etc), so it's never been an issue for me (own an ATR), and I live in the hill country of TX.

Additionally, the cheek piece is plastic, and I run a thin patch of adhesive foam on top of it.
 
Aluminum is actually a poor conductor of heat (ex: Al decking, bleachers, etc), so it's never been an issue for me (own an ATR), and I live in the hill country of TX.

Additionally, the cheek piece is plastic, and I run a thin patch of adhesive foam on top of it.

Aluminum is an excellent conductor of heat... (Only copper and silver beat it)

Here’s a ranking of heat conducting metals and metal alloys from lowest to highest average thermal conductivity, in Watts/meter-K at room temperature:

  1. Stainless Steel (16)
  2. Lead (35)
  3. Carbon steel (51)
  4. Wrought iron (59)
  5. Iron (73)
  6. Aluminum Bronze (76)
  7. Copper brass (111)
  8. Aluminum (237)
  9. Copper (401)
  10. Silver (429)
 
Those facts are true, so it conducts well, and I misused the term. I guess what I was trying to say is that it does not hold its heat very well due to its lower mass, so relative to other metals it is able to cool much quicker.
 
Love my Desert Tech. I remember a video Frank did about a class they had with a lot of wind and dust that effed up a bunch of the rifles but the DT's kept running. They're not a super refined, smooth as silk action comparatively, but neither am I 😉
 
I really enjoyed my DT as well when I had one. Very cool rifle, and another rifle with integral action and massive tennon support.
 
Hi,

You will be waiting for....well FOREVER, lol....

The "Pre-order" business model is one of the key factors in the degradation of the firearms industry to customer service relationship, among its list of numerous other reasons as to why Hoplite Arms is not taking that business model path.

If we look at most of the complaints we see posted from a customer about a company....significant amounts of them are of derived from lead times with a shit load of them having been based on the "Pre-order" business model. That is just bad business.

The customer journey is just as much if not more important than the actual product on the businesses side of the house. So if customer is told to pack for a 2 week trip but yet it is now week 9...well that "Journey" sucks and pretty much nothing can be done by the company to have that customer become a repeat customer.

Sincerely,
Theis
When will you be hiring more employees? You sound like someone I would like to work for.
 
Barrett MRAD is what you are looking for
Ding....Ding.....Ding......We have the winner. Well done 264Win. SOCOM agrees with MRAD. They could have chosen any rifle from any country, and after extensive evaluation.....Ding...Ding....Ding,,,,they chose MRAD. If you have better resources to one up their selection process, let's hear about it.
 
Ding....Ding.....Ding......We have the winner. Well done 264Win. SOCOM agrees with MRAD. They could have chosen any rifle from any country, and after extensive evaluation.....Ding...Ding....Ding,,,,they chose MRAD. If you have better resources to one up their selection process, let's hear about it.

Hi,

As good a rifle as the MRAD is...THAT is NOT how any of that .Gov procurement works, none of it, lol.

Lets not forget that SOCom is so great at picking things that the very next day after choosing the SCAR they put out a separate RFI for a new magazine.
Lets not forget the 4 rooms full of Tac50 stocks sitting at Crane that are cracked from the bipod spigot to the recoil lug because SOCom demanded there be a rod running from the bipod spigot to the recoil lug.
Lets not forget the PSR tender fiasco, lol.
The list goes on and on, lol.

Also they could not have chosen ANY rifle from ANY country (For example):
1. Could not have chosen the Haenel RS9 because of Haenels' agreement with Germany Gov.
2. Could not have chosen the Caracal Sniper rifle because the Company is owned by an International Gov.
3. Could not have chosen the Lobaev Arms sniper rifle because of the VRA signed over 30 years ago listing by make and model of what can be imported in from former USSR bloc countries and to this day it does not get updated with all the current makes and models that were not even around back then.
4. Could not have chosen the Voere M2 because of the "Company Size" mandates that were listed in the tender requirements.

The list goes on and on, lol.

Sincerely,
Theis
 
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