Win this rifle! .308 Deer Hunting Rifle Giveaway
7/8/2019
THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED. CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER, RUDY A. IN HAWAII! YOU CAN VIEW ALL CURRENT AND PAST GIVEAWAYS ON OUR BLOG PAGE.
With Independence Day concluded, the time has come once again to announce the monthly rifle giveaway. In honor of our most patriotic holiday, we wanted to do something special: a purpose-built .308 AR for the modern deer hunter.
Much of American history is the story of hunters—frontiersmen and explorers whose marksmanship and self-reliance pushed our borders westward. For these men, a rifle wasn’t just a tool: it was their lifeline. The rifle was the only thing keeping man at the top of the food chain, and in the untamed wilderness, a well-placed shot meant the difference between life and death. In short, failure was not an option.
The spirit of the frontier lives on in our modern-day hunts. In many ways, few things have changed. We’re in the same forests, chasing the same kinds of animals with the same core skillset. Hunters still pursue their prey with patience, persistence, and intuition, even though the stakes are much lower nowadays. The biggest difference comes from the technology. We have trail cameras, four-wheelers, and GPS devices to handle our navigation. Heated jackets keep us warm in the winter, and nightvision blurs the lines between day and night. The hunter’s rifle is also undergoing a transformation, as we’ve traded wood stocks for polymer and aluminum. The rifle of the modern hunter is sleek, efficient, and accurate in any conditions. Whether you’re crawling through Montana snows or sweating in the Georgia swamps, your rifle should keep up with your every move. If it isn’t, it’s time to upgrade.
This is the modern hunter’s rifle—an AR10 chambered in the proven .308 Winchester. We built it to be light on your back and quick onto target. It brings all the reliability and accuracy one expects from a tuned bolt-action, but it improves on the speed and ergonomics. The optic is as intuitive as it is effective, so the hunter can identify and range targets before their opportunity passes. Here’s how it all comes together.
We start with a precision-machined Aero Precision M5 Lower Receiver. Aero Precision is known for their high-quality receiver selection, and the M5 series is no exception. These receivers are a perfect starting point for any .308 or compatible rifle cartridge, delivering exceptional consistency for improved reliability and accuracy in the field. We then match this lower receiver with Aero Precision’s M5 .308 Standard Lower Parts Kit, as it offers the best fitment and has an excellent parts life. We also installed a BCM A5 Intermediate Receiver Extension with an ArmaLite H3 Heavy Buffer, delivering a strong balance of reliability and recoil reduction.
As any marksman will tell you, your trigger-pull is key in landing the best shot. Geissele Automatics is a respected name in AR-15/AR-308 trigger systems, and their flagship Super Semi-Automatic (SSA) trigger line is a staple among premium AR builds. For a hunting rifle, a good trigger can make the difference between an instant drop and a total miss, especially on partially obscured or distant targets. That’s why we equipped our rifle with the Geissele Automatics Super Semi-Automatic Enhanced (SSA-E) Two-Stage AR-15 Trigger. A low pull weight and silky-smooth 2-stage pull make this trigger one of the best that money can buy. This trigger will minimize any risk of fidgets or bumps during the trigger-pull.
Ergonomics are also important, as a strong grip and cheekweld will give you the most consistent hold over the target. Magpul products are the most popular option for rifle furniture, and that title is well-deserved. Magpul’s products are lightweight and robust with contours that perform well in awkward positions. Many hunters must shoot from awkward positions while adapting to the movements of their prey, so we’ve equipped this rifle with a Magpul MOE SL-S Carbine Stock. The SL-S stock is highly adjustable, lightweight, rugged, and comes with waterproof storage for extra batteries and supplies. While fixed stocks can add more cheekweld and length-of-pull adjustment, the SL-S stock maintains a lower profile and faster deployment, making it better suited for hunting. We also fitted this lower receiver with a Magpul MOE-K2 Pistol Grip, which fills the hand and uses a reduced grip angle to improve trigger-pull.
The upper receiver is the heart of any AR15 or AR10 build, as the rifle’s accuracy and reliability primarily draw from the barrel, gas system, and bolt carrier group. We start our upper receiver with an Aero Precision M5 Upper Receiver to match the lower. Not only does this look good, but it minimizes play between the receivers.
For our barrel, we selected Faxon Firearms’ 16” .308 Mid-Length Pencil Barrel. This barrel is plenty accurate, but the real highlight is the weight. Hunting rifles should be light, as they spend most of their time slung over the shoulder. When you’re navigating through the forests or hiking for hours, a heavy rifle will drag you down. By cutting the barrel back to 16” and adopting a pencil profile, you shave weight without compromising your terminal ballistics. To get the most out of the barrel’s mid-length gas system, we installed an SLR Rifleworks Sentry 7 Set Screw Adjustable Gas Block. This gives the user more control of the gas system, so you can configure the rifle for your specific cartridge loading. If you have a suppressor—or ever intend on trying one—this gas system enhances reliability by reducing excess gas blowback.
Your handguard plays an important role in protecting the barrel and gas system, but some handguards add substantial weight. For this rifle, we handpicked a handguard that balances durability and practicality with weight savings. The SLR Rifleworks 14.87” AR-308 Ion Ultra Lite M-LOK Handguard is slim, sleek, and provides plenty of mounting surface for slings and accessories. This handguard is also free-floated, meaning that it doesn’t directly contact the barrel when it’s attached. This eliminates potential POI shifts when using a bipod or bracing the rifle against a hard surface. To complete the fore-end, we installed a Rise Armament .308 NATO Compensator with a black nitride finish. A good compensator flattens recoil, allowing you to maintain a visual on their target even in dense brush.
With the barreled upper completed, the last step is selecting a bolt carrier group and charging handle. For .308-caliber ARs, one BCG stands out above the rest: the LMT 308 Bolt Carrier Group. Special forces teams around the world choose this BCG for their marksman rifles—and for good reason. It features a modified cam pin path, improved gas porting, multiple relief cuts, and twin ejectors. LMT designed this BCG for heavy duty use in the world’s most adverse environments, so it will certainly keep your hunting rifle running in the American wilderness. Though, if you need to manipulate the bolt, we’ve added a .308 Radian Raptor SD, which gives additional gas venting and ambidextrous controls for rapid operation in any position.
Your optic can be the single most important component on your rifle. If you cannot identify or range your target, you cannot make ethical shots. A hunting optic needs crystal clear glass to spot targets, bright illumination to discern point of aim, and a durable body to survive nature’s scrapes. With the Primary Arms Silver Series™ (SLx6) 3-18x50mm FFP Rifle Scope, you have everything you need to leverage the strengths of the rifle. This scope’s large objective lens transmits more light, improving your ability to discern movements in the brush. The intuitive illumination controls give fine-tuned adjustments, even during bright daylight.
When paired with the ACSS® HUD™ DMR .308 reticle, this optic provides all the ranging and ballistic information instantaneously. The ACSS HUD DMR 308 reticle matches the ballistics of a .308 Winchester round, providing clear holdovers for drop at hundred-yard intervals. The HUD DMR reticle includes multiple ranging methods, wind dots, and moving target holds, so the hunter has pre-calculated responses against any target. ACSS HUD DMR 308 makes the SLx6 3-18x50mm FFP Rifle Scope a natural fit on a modern deer hunting rifle. To give it the slickest, lightest profile, we’ve mounted it in the trusty Aero Precision Ultralight 30mm Extended Scope Mount, which has a best-in-class weight to durability ratio.
This brings us to the final prize—the modern hunter’s rifle. This .308 rifle is perfect for deer, but with the features packed into this build, it’s more than capable of taking most game in North America. With everything assembled, we put on the finishing touch: a Blue Force Gear padded rifle sling. This sling is a favorite and makes extended carry of a full-size rifle manageable. We also set the rifle in a 42” Plano All Weather Rifle Case, which can be locked for transport on flights.
If you want to take this rifle, we have good news: our giveaway is completely free. You can enter by visiting our Giveaway Landing Page, which has all the instructions to give you the best odds. Some terms and conditions apply. The giveaway ends July 31st, 2019, at 11:59pm CDT. At the end of the giveaway, the winner will be contacted via email on August 1st. Winner MUST be legally able to possess a firearm and pass a federal background check. Winner is responsible for all taxes. If the winner cannot meet the requirements necessary to take ownership of the firearm, the winner will be granted the total value of the prize package, $2,830.82, in cash. Exclusions apply, and no purchase is necessary. A full list of terms and conditions are visible through the Giveaway Landing Page.
If you’d like to build a clone of this rifle—or if you want to learn more about the components—all these parts are available at primaryarms.com.