i bought a used Robar RC50 in 2004 after selling my Barrett 99. The Barrett was tough and accurate. However, it was less than aesthetically pleasing. i felt that the trigger was decent, but not great. The area above the ejection port, being bare metal, was not a great place for a cheek weld. So, i sold the 99 and got a Robar RC50. The rifle was sub half minute with handloads and just over one minute with remanufactured ammunition. i acquired a Nightforce scope, kept the Barrett adjustable rings and had a friend make an action length 30 MOA rail. All of the metal work was great.
The Robar came with a fixed McMillan Big Mac stock and a Parker Hale bipod. The stock was great in every way with the exception of a very low comb that allowed the bolt to be fully withdrawn. i ended up using a folded wash cloth and 100 mph tape to get something like a good cheek weld. The Parker Hale bipod worked. It had been modified with three large allen head cap screws to provide tension on its moving parts. The foot print was narrow enough that you could push on one side of the optic and tip the weapon over.
After a bit of frustration with the Big Mac stock i decided to order a McMillan TAC-50 stock. It features a removable butt stock with a spacer system and a saddle cheek piece, a pistol grip and an extremely short, square forend. It retailed at $950 and i waited for right at six months to receive it. One friend bedded it and another made a M14 bipod with a spigot adapter. After putting everything together i went out to zero. On the third shot the right bipod leg snapped off where it had been welded to the block. i shot two more rounds from a ruck rest and called it good. While cleaning i noticed that the trunnion that holds the front action screw had broken loose from its bedding (Ti Devcon). i ended up re-bedding the trunnion and shooting from a custom tripod made by Danel at Precision Rifle Solutions. This setup worked but i was not completely pleased with all aspects of it. The tripod rocks, but the forearm was too short to utilize it.
Don't get me wrong- i am a big fan of most of McMillan's A series and competition stocks. They are great on normal rifles. They just did not fit the bill for this platform, in my opinion.
The whole system sat waiting while Uncle Sam kept me occupied for a few years.
i first saw Kyle's stock here on the Hide in the Beyond 1000 forum. It was a very simple design for a Lawton actioned .375 CheyTac featuring a carbon fiber free float tube and a match AR style buttstock. i liked that the design was simple and innovative. Shortly after the post XLR Industries developed into a full time shop with a functioning website. i also appreciate that the design had come from a small shop and at a reasonable price
During the first part of my last deployment i checked in with Kyle and arranged to ship him the barrelled action while i was back for R&R. i told him that time was not an issue and also gave him artistic license with the color selection. Through the entire process of discussing the specifics i was looking for in a stock, Kyle was extremely patient and helpful. There have been several previous reviews describing XLR's excellent customer service and i would completely agree with them.
Fast forward about six months. Kyle sent me a few pictures of the Robar in its new stock before shipping it out. i was floored. You could tell from the pictures how exceptional the fit and finish is. Kyle chose to anodized the stock black and coat some of the components black to match while leaving the large components with light desert tan Duracoat. It is sexy. Especially considering that most of my rifles have several coats of krylon. i will let its appearance speak for itself. i am more of a function over form type of guy.
Key points of the Design:
Comfort: The buttstock is adjustable for LOP, cheek piece height, and butt pad height. There is significant range of adjustment available in all movable areas. The buttpad and cheek piece all held in place by two allen screws each. The cheek piece has a thin foam coating that will be equally comfortable in the heat or cold. The pistol grip is an extremely comfortable suregrip model by Ergo.
Durability: There is nothing on this stock that wiggles or moves when tightened. The tolerances are close and fitting is extremely tight. There are no plastic pieces. Everything is very solid feeling. The handguard is held in place by a cap and a total of ten allen screws. Rail mounting is accomplished with a steel backing piece and a minimum of three screws. Obviously, there is nothing but metal to metal contact. Bedding is expensive and in this rifle subject to tremendous force during recoil. i have fired just over 100 rounds since receiving the rifle and not a single screw has loosened
Weight distribution: The stock weighs within a pound of the MCM Tac 50 stock. However, moving about a quarter of that weight forward over the barrel drastically improved overall handling characteristics and stability. With this stock , the bipod can be mounted almost two thirds of the way to the end of the barrel. This is a huge improvement over the TAC 50 and a significant one over the Big Mac.
While Firing: Firing this .50 is a pleasure. Being able to have a proper cheek weld is a nice change. The rifle moves straight back during recoil. A tendency with the other stocks was for the rifle to hop from where ever its pivot point was. The XLR chassis when combined with a LR Accuracy SC-2 Bipod made watching my own trace as close as 600m easy.
i have fired several hundred rounds through the M99 and the AR-50, and about 1000 through the M107. None have been this easy to shoot.
Drawbacks: They are really few and far between. For this rifle i would say the butt pad is a bit too narrow and hard. i will likely try fitting a pad from a Barrett to the rear plate. The range of adjustment in the buttstock for this set up is perfect. If i go to a USO SN-9 or one of the larger SN-3s i would have to contact XLR for pieces with maybe half an inch more space. i will end up trying an ACE, ltd folder mechanism. At the moment, both the cheek piece and the butt plate must be removed to clean the weapon. It is an option that Kyle offers with the stock. That is really it. And none of these issues keep me from shooting it accurately.
Overall: This stock transformed my rifle. The price is on par with, or cheaper, than any currently available conventional stocks. And it is roughly a third the cost of the only other chassis design that i know of. Subtract the cost of bedding a conventional stock and you definitely come out ahead. You will not wait nearly as long as with other manufacturers either. i highly recommend XLR industries. Kyle's CS and the product quality are equally exceptional. Check out the XLR industries website at www.xlrindustries.com.
Also,
The real test, of course, is how does it shoot. i have shot it out to a mile so far on steel. i have yet to set up a target for recording actual groups. Should be able to in the next month or so. The rifle was a solid .6 MOA shooter before with my handloads. And now it is just simply easier to shoot. i also plan on shooting a Hunter class BR match in March and will update this post with pictures and a range report.
The bipod pictured is the Sniper's Choice 2 by Long Range Accuracy. Check out my review of it in the Equipment section coming soon.
Thanks for reading and if you have any questions feel free to PM me,
Cris
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