DTA HTI vs Serbu 50A vs Barrett

M

millsd

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Apr 29, 2010
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Austin, TX
#1
I'm sure there's a posting on this somewhere, but when I try to search the hide, I don't seem to get good results. So...the question I have for those of you that have laid hands on these guns or have a lot of experience in the area is...what are the pro's/con's for each?

Below are my initial thoughts:

On the DTA side, I love the idea of being able to change barrels, but I'm unsure of the complexity of the system overall. I have an SRS in 308 and 338, and I've had issues with the safety and with the 338 not ejecting property. Also, unsure of the quality of the plastic casing. Mind you...I still really like my SRS.

Serbu 50A - I've seen some good reviews and like the simplicity and comments about it being more accurate than barrett. Seems very solid overall, but obviously you're stuck with 50bmg.

Barrett - I like the fact that it's a quality battle proven rifle. Cost is way higher though, no changing calibers, and it sounds like accuracy is probably lower than the other two.

Thoughts?
 
#2
Re: DTA HTI vs Serbu 50A vs Barrett

I haven't shot any of the others but hands down I love my Serbu BFG-50A. Accurate and at a good cost. One over looked thing is this rifle weighs 24lbs, almost 10lbs lighter than the barrett. people were warning me about 50 bmg recoil but let me tell you, recoil is nothing bad at all with this thing. Actually seems less than watching the barrett fire. check out my Serbu vids I recently made

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oygpUca1hkk&list=PLPD202SWByHgN4HCWCL_rYvdX5smaUUAa
 
#3
Re: DTA HTI vs Serbu 50A vs Barrett

The answer is obvious, from reading the threads about big bore ELR guns, one can easily see that the HTI is the better of the three, the Barret is overpriced and not as accurate as other options, the Serbu is ok but not in the same league as the HTI. So take your pick of the three if you must: go high=HTI, go low=Serbu.
 
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#5
Have any of you shot the HTI? I've seen some videos and my main concern is whether or not the bolt action is smooth. Are there any "rapid fire" videos out there to see how smoothly/quickly it could be fired?
 
#6
millsd said:
Have any of you shot the HTI? I've seen some videos and my main concern is whether or not the bolt action is smooth. Are there any "rapid fire" videos out there to see how smoothly/quickly it could be fired?
Click to expand...
The bolt is as smooth as all DTA's, nothing wrong with it at all.
 
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#7
reply Serbu BFG50A vs Barrett

millsd said:
I'm sure there's a posting on this somewhere, but when I try to search the hide, I don't seem to get good results. So...the question I have for those of you that have laid hands on these guns or have a lot of experience in the area is...what are the pro's/con's for each?

Below are my initial thoughts:

On the DTA side, I love the idea of being able to change barrels, but I'm unsure of the complexity of the system overall. I have an SRS in 308 and 338, and I've had issues with the safety and with the 338 not ejecting property. Also, unsure of the quality of the plastic casing. Mind you...I still really like my SRS.

Serbu 50A - I've seen some good reviews and like the simplicity and comments about it being more accurate than barrett. Seems very solid overall, but obviously you're stuck with 50bmg.

Barrett - I like the fact that it's a quality battle proven rifle. Cost is way higher though, no changing calibers, and it sounds like accuracy is probably lower than the other two.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...


I recently purchased a Serbu BFG50A and am not happy at all with it, it's currently on its second trip back to Serbu for repairs. Mark and his crew have done a good job as to customer service but in my opinion the weapon's design is marginal at best. Accuracy is OK but I have not fired a Barret 82a1 to compare. I shoot my weapons a lot when I take them out and they don't just get 20rd and put back as with some other folks. My biggest complaint is a list or unrealiability issues that this weapon brings to the table. I plan on selling it and purchasing either the 82A1 or the M107. Even if accuracy suffers with the Barrett I'm confident it will not fail me in the feild. If you're looking for a low priced 50 Auto this is still an option if you want AWE and cool, if you plan on shooting the crap out of it don't go there. On another note, different length hand gards and barrel lengths are not currently available for this rifle either even though Mark advertised this in his 2013 shot show video, nor is the adjustable bypod that is shown on the web site. And you can't take them off without factory tools that are also not offered yet. I had a Willams set trigger job done and the trigger is the best part of the rifle, if anyone is interseted in purchasing it feel free to email me. Like I said it's a low priced 50 auto and I plan to move on to a more expensive and better quality weapon.
 
#8
Barrett M82/107 != precision rifle, but as Tactical said, it's a great roadblock gun and fun to shoot. Unfortunately a whole host of sources give the false impression that it's king of the hill for ELR shooting.
 
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#9
When you say "Barrett" I'm guessing that you are refering to the M82/M107, is that right? I have both an M82, and the M99. The M82 is very impressive from a volume of fire standpoint, and its ability to deliver rapid followup shots is unequaled. I have had good success with it using Federals American Eagle xm33 on 2.5-4 MOA targets out to 2K yards. That being said, it's trigger is sh#t, it is expensive, and its reciprocating barrel and semi-auto mechanism make it inherently less accurate than some others. Also the magazine configuration may limit your use of some match ammo especially if it is loaded with high BC bullets like the AMAX. The M99 is a much more accurate platform, but lacks any rapid followup, you pretty much have to come off the gun while reloading, but mine is twice as accurate with the same ammo. I have a HTI on order since SHOT, after test firing one ealier this year, and owning a SRS .308/.338 combo. Can you say, "Chey-Tac please."? At a recent Professional Marksmen ELR class, another shooter was battling his Serbu BFG-50. It shot very accurately (2-3 MOA with Barrett/IMI ammunition), but he had to resort to using a rubber mallet to get the bolt handle to lift after firing, due to expansion of the fired case in the chamber. This would be a non-starter for me. I agree with Tactical,-it depends on what you are going to do with it. I would consider an M99 or AR-50 over the Serbu, the M82 if you're into rapid followup shots and using factory ammo, or stop F'n around and go HTI for light weight, versatile, accurate, compact, and straight out badass. That's my opinion anyway...
 
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#10
KCD said:
I recently purchased a Serbu BFG50A and am not happy at all with it, it's currently on its second trip back to Serbu for repairs. Mark and his crew have done a good job as to customer service but in my opinion the weapon's design is marginal at best. Accuracy is OK but I have not fired a Barret 82a1 to compare. I shoot my weapons a lot when I take them out and they don't just get 20rd and put back as with some other folks. My biggest complaint is a list or unrealiability issues that this weapon brings to the table. I plan on selling it and purchasing either the 82A1 or the M107. Even if accuracy suffers with the Barrett I'm confident it will not fail me in the feild. If you're looking for a low priced 50 Auto this is still an option if you want AWE and cool, if you plan on shooting the crap out of it don't go there. On another note, different length hand gards and barrel lengths are not currently available for this rifle either even though Mark advertised this in his 2013 shot show video, nor is the adjustable bypod that is shown on the web site. And you can't take them off without factory tools that are also not offered yet. I had a Willams set trigger job done and the trigger is the best part of the rifle, if anyone is interseted in purchasing it feel free to email me. Like I said it's a low priced 50 auto and I plan to move on to a more expensive and better quality weapon.
Click to expand...

Just wondering what kind of problems you had? My Serbu bfg-50A works just fine and then some.
 
#11
It started out with a bad bolt, the firing pin was way off center and the weapon missed fired 60-70 % of the time, the bolt carrier spring was too strong so most of the rounds that went off did not strip another round from the mag, I also had issues with the extractor ripping the edge of the case rim from the case so I had to knock the spent cartridges out with a rod from the and of the barrel, the mag did not fit correctly, then the barrel loosened up. All this happened on on Barrett and PMC factory ammo while i was trying to break it in. I shot about 60 rds. Serbu was great about the repairs, the mag is a known issue in which some of the Barrett mags are too big, so they sent me a smaller one, they also put in a new bolt, but after another 20 rounds the extractor issue acted up again, after 70 rounds the barrel loosened up again. Once again Serbu is great about fixing it by sending out a ups call tag pronto. But for $7 grand I don't want to ship the weapon back each time I shoot it. Honestly I think the chamber needs to be honed to fix the extracting issues but I am leaving that up to Serbu. I'd be happy to sell it to anyone here who want to try their luck with it, maybe the third time will be a charm.
 
#12
KCD said:
I recently purchased a Serbu BFG50A and am not happy at all with it, it's currently on its second trip back to Serbu for repairs. Mark and his crew have done a good job as to customer service but in my opinion the weapon's design is marginal at best. Accuracy is OK but I have not fired a Barret 82a1 to compare. I shoot my weapons a lot when I take them out and they don't just get 20rd and put back as with some other folks. My biggest complaint is a list or unrealiability issues that this weapon brings to the table. I plan on selling it and purchasing either the 82A1 or the M107. Even if accuracy suffers with the Barrett I'm confident it will not fail me in the feild. If you're looking for a low priced 50 Auto this is still an option if you want AWE and cool, if you plan on shooting the crap out of it don't go there. On another note, different length hand gards and barrel lengths are not currently available for this rifle either even though Mark advertised this in his 2013 shot show video, nor is the adjustable bypod that is shown on the web site. And you can't take them off without factory tools that are also not offered yet. I had a Willams set trigger job done and the trigger is the best part of the rifle, if anyone is interseted in purchasing it feel free to email me. Like I said it's a low priced 50 auto and I plan to move on to a more expensive and better quality weapon.
Click to expand...


OK time to clear things up. yea I had issues with my rifle but Mark Serbu and I have cleared them up. I'm not going to say that they couldn't improve on quality control because I think they could do a better job at making sure all the parts are made perfectly but that would of course add more cost to the rifle. The biggest reliability issue with this rifle from what I have seen online and included on my rifle is miss fires and short stroking. The miss firing is caused by the firing pin being off center on the bolt face. Mark replaced the bolt so that problem no longer exists, I guess some of the bolts were not machined correctly and I got one of them. The short stroking that you see on you-tube is due to a rough surface finish on the chamber wall, Mark is now aware of what was causing this and is looking at ways of improving the finish. So my rifle shoots factory ammo flawlessly now. I'm still working on a good combination for a reaload, I've shot several 3" (outside to outside) groups at 200 yds and once I decide on what the rifle likes best I will start shooting long range. the chambers in these rifles are tight so reloading is a bit more difficult, you need to make sure the cases are sizes back to factory specs or you will damage case rims, even pull the rims from the back of the case if the load is hot and you don't resize properly. If anyone else is experiencing short stroking or damage on the case rim from the extractor I suggest honing the chamber a bit. At the end of the day I like the rifle, it shoots well, is light, and has a decent company behind it that will stand behind any issues you have. I hope that Serbu starts making the assessories soon.
 
#13
I had some issues with mine as well,but Mark was a stand up guy and we worked it out.My 50A doesn't like LC brass with the factory,or the custom match barrel I had made for it.It'll rip the rim of the brass,or shatters the extractor.I thought it was a chamber issue too,but it ended up being that the rims of the LC brass are too thick.I checked the brass in three different chamber gauges,cause I thought it was a brass sizing issue.It will function with PMC,CBC,Winchester+ Barrett brass without issue.The spent brass looks like it came out of a bolt action,unlike an M82/107,that gets beat up a bit. Thankfully I never had any issues with miss fires,or short stroking.This weekend I'm going to take it out to 1K and see what it can do with the match barrel.
 
#14
unless you are lucky enough to be around all these rifles, it is pretty tough for most guys to afford one, let alone all three. I have to say the DTA is a pretty good rifle and the caliber change for the HTI basically gives you 2 rifles for a couple grand more. I have the .50 and the .375CT and it is super accurate with both. Bolt is not smooth like a polished/broke in Rem700 short action, but come on, how much rapid bolt are you really doing with a .50? It has already broke in a lot though, so I am sure it will only get better and was by no means bad when it was brand new.....it just didn't run like it was on ball bearings or anything.
 
#15
8541recon said:
unless you are lucky enough to be around all these rifles, it is pretty tough for most guys to afford one, let alone all three. I have to say the DTA is a pretty good rifle and the caliber change for the HTI basically gives you 2 rifles for a couple grand more. I have the .50 and the .375CT and it is super accurate with both. Bolt is not smooth like a polished/broke in Rem700 short action, but come on, how much rapid bolt are you really doing with a .50? It has already broke in a lot though, so I am sure it will only get better and was by no means bad when it was brand new.....it just didn't run like it was on ball bearings or anything.
Click to expand...
Have you fired any 1,000 yard groups with either caliber and if so what were the results?
 
#17
Just want to put in my 2 cents worth of 50 cal experience. I own a Serbu 50A. I have had nothing but problems with the rifle. Mark will fix any problem, but I say why not get the gun right the first time? I've even brought it to custom gunsmith shops to correct the deficiencies and problems persist in the feed. I've changed mags and tried a total of 13 different types of loads and still it does not feed a full 10 rounds without at least 2 failures to feed a fresh round. It is really a low end rifle with numerous quality issues.
I have shot a friends Barrett 82a1 many times and with the exception of accuracy it is hands down a superior rifle. Never a failure to feed, never a misfire.
It still hold true that "you get what you pay for".
 
#18
Yup, the M82/107s are reliable but it comes at the cost of accuracy. In many ways it's not a whole lot different than a shoulder fired ma deuce, with a short recoil operated closed bolt instead. With the same M33 ball ammo it's not a whole lot more accurate than the ma deuce, but match ammo will bring it down to 2 or 3MOA. So it's not the "awesome sniper rifle" popular culture makes it out to be but it's great for hammering VBIEDs at 500m and closer.

ETA: if you just have to have a semi-auto .50BMG and you don't have to hump or jump it for a living, this would be my choice and it's roughly the price of the M107 though heavier.

http://www.rndrifles.com/firearms/rnd-3000/

 
Last edited:
#19
I was starting to get short stroking and miss fire with my 50A. After numerous unanswered emails to Mark I took off the gas block and opened up the gas tube hole that was causing a restriction in turn causing short stroke. Now the rifle doesn't short stroke but I still have the miss fires though due to the firing pin hole drilled off center in the bolt. I'll have to call him up and get a new bolt since he ignores his emails. Hopefully it will be good by then.
 
#20
shoots100 said:
I had some issues with mine as well,but Mark was a stand up guy and we worked it out.My 50A doesn't like LC brass with the factory,or the custom match barrel I had made for it.It'll rip the rim of the brass,or shatters the extractor.I thought it was a chamber issue too,but it ended up being that the rims of the LC brass are too thick.I checked the brass in three different chamber gauges,cause I thought it was a brass sizing issue.It will function with PMC,CBC,Winchester+ Barrett brass without issue.The spent brass looks like it came out of a bolt action,unlike an M82/107,that gets beat up a bit. Thankfully I never had any issues with miss fires,or short stroking.This weekend I'm going to take it out to 1K and see what it can do with the match barrel.
Click to expand...

Just curious who made the custom match barrel for you (what was the cost? I asked Mark about longer barrels and he told me they had only done one and did not have plans on having a longer barrel option anytime soon) and if you are having this issue with ( American Eagle Factory Ammo,,, it uses LC Brass, from your above post it looks like you are) or more so with reloaded ammo. If you are reloading do you see the issues only with the LC brass? What I don't understand is American Eagle LC Ball uses WC860 powder and I'm pretty sure PMC and Barrett Ball ammo (which is made by IMI) also use WC-860 powder. I've pulled factory Ball ammo apart for PMC and Barrett and both run around 230 grains and velocities are all around 2600 fps 25 ft from the muzzle. I can't get much past 212 grs of WC860 before I start damaging rims and velocities are only approaching 2400 fps. My next test to verify if it's the used LC brass is to pull a factory load apart and place it into a once fired resized LC case. If it rips the rim off then its a weak brass issue or resizing issue. Nice to talk to someone else that has the rifle. Outside of the issue with damaging case mine is running pretty decent.
 
#21
shoots100 said:
I had some issues with mine as well,but Mark was a stand up guy and we worked it out.My 50A doesn't like LC brass with the factory,or the custom match barrel I had made for it.It'll rip the rim of the brass,or shatters the extractor.I thought it was a chamber issue too,but it ended up being that the rims of the LC brass are too thick.I checked the brass in three different chamber gauges,cause I thought it was a brass sizing issue.It will function with PMC,CBC,Winchester+ Barrett brass without issue.The spent brass looks like it came out of a bolt action,unlike an M82/107,that gets beat up a bit. Thankfully I never had any issues with miss fires,or short stroking.This weekend I'm going to take it out to 1K and see what it can do with the match barrel.
Click to expand...

The more I think about it the less I can believe this is being caused by weak brass, only because my rifle did this with Factory PMC and Factory Barrett Ammo. If mark is having quality issues with thinks like firing pins being machined off cente of the bolt its possible that something in the gas system could be different from rifle to rifle. I was thinking of making an adjustable gas block for mine to see if it's an over gassing problem. But it it works for me with Factory Ammo I can't see why it would be an over gassing issue unless the gas design is on the hairy edge of the pressure curve?? getting a slightly higher pressure load than the one before could be the culprit if that's the case.
 
#22
I would not go anywhere near a Serbu. They sold .50's to Iran when the rest of the world asked them not to. At best they are douche milkshakes and at worst they could possibly have American blood on their hands.

The DTA is the best of the three, if I had the cash I would own one. The Barrett's are OK both the bolt action's and the semi's.

Bottom line is I would buy a POS Vulcan before a Serbu.
 
#25
captain moroni said:
serbu, steyr, those "s" words confuse me. To much red bull today.

Disregard my last post except for the dta=good stuff part.
Click to expand...

NO SERBU FOR YOU!! lol
 

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#26
KCD said:
Just curious who made the custom match barrel for you (what was the cost? I asked Mark about longer barrels and he told me they had only done one and did not have plans on having a longer barrel option anytime soon) and if you are having this issue with ( American Eagle Factory Ammo,,, it uses LC Brass, from your above post it looks like you are) or more so with reloaded ammo. If you are reloading do you see the issues only with the LC brass? What I don't understand is American Eagle LC Ball uses WC860 powder and I'm pretty sure PMC and Barrett Ball ammo (which is made by IMI) also use WC-860 powder. I've pulled factory Ball ammo apart for PMC and Barrett and both run around 230 grains and velocities are all around 2600 fps 25 ft from the muzzle. I can't get much past 212 grs of WC860 before I start damaging rims and velocities are only approaching 2400 fps. My next test to verify if it's the used LC brass is to pull a factory load apart and place it into a once fired resized LC case. If it rips the rim off then its a weak brass issue or resizing issue. Nice to talk to someone else that has the rifle. Outside of the issue with damaging case mine is running pretty decent.
Click to expand...
I sent a serbu chambered 29" lother walther barrel to Mark,and he did all of the work.I wanted it to be the same length as a barrett,so we could compare apples to apples.I reload for all of my 50's,using H50,RE50,860,872+VV20n29.I have no issues with the rifle at all now,because I stopped using LC brass.Your brass issues will stop too,if you try other brass.LC is too thick.You defiantly can't load your serbu rounds to a barretts specs.The serbu chamber is alot tighter than an M82/107's.I can go up to 218 with 860/Ball combo.Then the primers start to really flatten out.Especially in the hot weather.It shot decent groups at 1K last weekend.Most groups were around 10"s,with a flyer bringing them out to 15-20"s.It was always the second shot fired that F'd the group size.This was with Amax/H50 loads that are to long to fit into the Mag.My regular projo supplier couldn't get me my projos in time for the match.I like using the same projos I hunt with,750 grn HP turned brass.They feed from the mag and are accurate.PM me with other questions,so we don't have to get off topic here.
 
#27
Wow lots of good info here. I just got my semi Serbu today. Will take her out Thursday, hopefully I won't encounter any issues. Plan on running hornady amax and some all brass rounds through her. Damn range doesn't allow steel core. I'll give u a short report after.
Also got the new armorer tools and spare parts kit and monopod.
 
#28
gunsmithcat said:
Wow lots of good info here. I just got my semi Serbu today. Will take her out Thursday, hopefully I won't encounter any issues. Plan on running hornady amax and some all brass rounds through her. Damn range doesn't allow steel core. I'll give u a short report after.
Also got the new armorer tools and spare parts kit and monopod.
Click to expand...
What are some accurate shooting steel core proj options?
 
#32
srt-4_uk said:
Don't you need a permit for the serbu since it's an explosive?
Click to expand...
We are Americans. As a rule we don't need permits for anything.

50 BMGs are guns like any other for us and require nothing more than a background check. Over 50 BMG and projectiles with more than 1/4 oz of HE are classified as destructive devices and need permits akin to owning a shotgun in the UK.

-Alex
 
#34
Oh...
srt-4_uk said:
images
Click to expand...
You are talking about the retard that blew himself up with SLAP? Yeah, we are getting fewer of those these days with SLAP being less available but the FCSA used to get reports of idiots doing that routinely a few decades ago. If you shoot SLAP with a muzzle brake on you are flipping a coin on blowing up the gun. If you are lucky it just blows the muzzle brake off. Can't fix stupid...

-Alex
 
#35
Sandow the Heretic said:
Oh...

You are talking about the retard that blew himself up with SLAP? Yeah, we are getting fewer of those these days with SLAP being less available but the FCSA used to get reports of idiots doing that routinely a few decades ago. If you shoot SLAP with a muzzle brake on you are flipping a coin on blowing up the gun. If you are lucky it just blows the muzzle brake off. Can't fix stupid...

-Alex
Click to expand...
This one?:

Muzzle brake wasn't the cause in this case but still...
 
#36
Trust me. The muzzle brake is exactly the issue. Shooting a Sabot through a brake, suppressor and even a flash hider will do this. The sabot expands in the brake and blocks gas flow. The large mass of significantly faster than normal powder used to get SLAP up to 4000+ fps burns to completion and the pressures spike. Pop goes the weasel.

Like I said, this is not the first idiot that has blown himself up with SLAP. The only reason it doesn't happen much anymore is because SLAP is getting rare and expensive.

-Alex
 
#38
bulletbluesky said:
In the Kentucky's accident the issue was gun powder. Somebody loaded SLAP rounds with fast burning powder and made bomb out of it. Mark Serbu explained in his video:
Click to expand...
Marks explanation is reasonable and would be more so if it had blown up on the first shot rather than the 5th or whatever. Another explanation is that sabots and muzzle brakes don't mix and there is a fucking established history of SLAP blowing up guns...

-Alex
 
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#42
I have shot the 50BMG quite a bit, close to 1500 rds through it. One day 70 rds was the most for my birthday.
The best 5 shot group at a mere 100 yds was .6" for 5, with .510" bullets, they 620 gr APITs.
 

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