Initially looking at the Barrett MRAD in 300 Norma Magnum I had a chance to talk with several club members competing in our 1000-yard club competitions. Our membership is diverse and has a high percentage of current and retired law enforcement and military personnel and knowledgeable civilian shooters.
I also spoke with folks at Barrett and a national retailer selling Barrett and Accuracy International rifles. There is a lot of discussion about both rifles, especially the Barrett MRAD with some forum information that is not accurate after speaking with Barrett directly.
Several club members owned either the Barrett or Accuracy International, a few owned both. While my moderate investigation over several weeks would not qualify as exhaustive I opted to buy the Accuracy International AXSR in 300 Norma Magnum to start.
Owners of both rifles said they both shoot well, but in reviewing results of our 2024 1000 yard club shoots, the best scores were from those shooting the Accuracy International variants. This is not conclusive, as they simply may be better shooters or have superior handloads. While the Barrett owners pointed to its selection by the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and the US Army, those from the industry and military said selection by SOCOM takes into consideration many variables.
None of the previous issues experienced with Barrett MRAD rifles are known to have happened to the Accuracy International rifles and many feel that Barrett built the MRAD to meet the requirements of SOCOM, where Accuracy International builds their rifles to be the best in category.
So why does the Accuracy International AXSR cost more than twice the Barrett MRAD at retail? Both rifles perform extremely well, however many uses give the edge in precision to Accuracy International.
How good is the Accuracy International AXSR? Cal Zant of the PRS Blog took a new AI AXSR rifle with little time for load development or turning and took 4th place out of 180 competitors at a Nightforce ELR Steel Challenge engaging targets from 700 to 2,000 yards. Two of the top four shooters used the Accuracy International AXSR rifles. First place went to Jorge Ortiz also shooting an Accuracy International AXSR in 300 Norma Mag.
Of the people I personally spoke with that own either rifle, I came away with the sense the Accuracy International rifle is built by a firm where precision and quality come first. I ordered the rifle, and this is not my review of it, rather a summary of weeks due-diligence talking with club members and others that are directly involved with either rifle, rather than hearsay.
In my experience, buying a premium product is rarely something one comes to regret.
I also spoke with folks at Barrett and a national retailer selling Barrett and Accuracy International rifles. There is a lot of discussion about both rifles, especially the Barrett MRAD with some forum information that is not accurate after speaking with Barrett directly.
Several club members owned either the Barrett or Accuracy International, a few owned both. While my moderate investigation over several weeks would not qualify as exhaustive I opted to buy the Accuracy International AXSR in 300 Norma Magnum to start.
Owners of both rifles said they both shoot well, but in reviewing results of our 2024 1000 yard club shoots, the best scores were from those shooting the Accuracy International variants. This is not conclusive, as they simply may be better shooters or have superior handloads. While the Barrett owners pointed to its selection by the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and the US Army, those from the industry and military said selection by SOCOM takes into consideration many variables.
None of the previous issues experienced with Barrett MRAD rifles are known to have happened to the Accuracy International rifles and many feel that Barrett built the MRAD to meet the requirements of SOCOM, where Accuracy International builds their rifles to be the best in category.
So why does the Accuracy International AXSR cost more than twice the Barrett MRAD at retail? Both rifles perform extremely well, however many uses give the edge in precision to Accuracy International.
How good is the Accuracy International AXSR? Cal Zant of the PRS Blog took a new AI AXSR rifle with little time for load development or turning and took 4th place out of 180 competitors at a Nightforce ELR Steel Challenge engaging targets from 700 to 2,000 yards. Two of the top four shooters used the Accuracy International AXSR rifles. First place went to Jorge Ortiz also shooting an Accuracy International AXSR in 300 Norma Mag.
Of the people I personally spoke with that own either rifle, I came away with the sense the Accuracy International rifle is built by a firm where precision and quality come first. I ordered the rifle, and this is not my review of it, rather a summary of weeks due-diligence talking with club members and others that are directly involved with either rifle, rather than hearsay.
In my experience, buying a premium product is rarely something one comes to regret.
