What .308 HK rifle is like an Assualt rifle?

[TronJohn]

I want to get a .308 for long range/hunting

I want to go AR10 just to get a weapon in that platform to be very familar with.

Seems the AR10 is almost impossible to find right now (go figure)

So I'm looking into what HK offers.

So for the .308/7.62 round, what gun is there available that is along the "Assault Rifle" platform?

I'm already doing a 53 build.

Is my only choice the 91?

Or is there a better choice?

[Darkest2000]

I can only think of the HK91.

You can look into other 7.62s like the FAL/Galil/M1A/FN SCAR(?)

Truth is 7.62 really is being phased out(or has been) from the "assualt" role, that's why you don't really see them that much compared to 5.56.

There are a bunch of different 5.56 platforms but only a few 7.62s that I can think of.

[TronJohn]

Why is 7.62 being phased out?

What is replacing it?

It is still a very powerful round for the 600+ mark, and still the most available.

I was thinking 6.5 grendel, but I want .308.

[dwillHK]

The HK91 series is pretty much your only option from HK in .308.

The .308 was replaced by the .223 over 30 years ago. The US went from the M14 to the M16, the British went from the FAL to the SA80, the Germans went from the G3 to the G36, etc. The .308 is a powerful round, but the guns are heavy, the ammo is heavy, it's difficult to control on full auto, and individual infanty combat rarely occurs at 600 yard ranges. .30 cal weapons are mostly used by the military as sniper rifles and belt fed machine guns, not as individual rifles for the average soldier.

[AviatorDave]

Why is 7.62 being phased out?

What is replacing it?

It is still a very powerful round for the 600+ mark, and still the most available.

I was thinking 6.5 grendel, but I want .308.

I'll try and keep this HK related, replace the models with any other brand of M16 pattern rifle. So here goes:

Even with the alloy magazines, a G3 magazine full of ammo is much heavier than an HK416 magazine. Most of the current theater battles are at much closer range than 600+ yards, so the HK416 and the 5.56 round it shoots work fine. They're not really looking at replacing it as the standard NATO round.

The .308 that the HK417 shoots is obviously a much more powerful round. It will still be used for longer range shots.

The whole reason for all these other intermediate calibers like the 6.5 Grendel, and 6.8 SPC are that they will fit into the existing HK416 magazine envelope and magwell, but they have much more down range energy.

So if a civi-friendly HK417 ever comes out, you'll have just what you want. And oh how I hope that they do. Until then, if you want a .308 carbine sized rifle, you'll have to go with a G3K.

[TronJohn]

Well doesnt the AK platform still heavily use the 7.62/.308 round?

And thats one of the most popular guns around.

I dont think its a good choice for full auto no, but hunting/long range is good.

What kind of Assault rifle type weapons come in .30?

I really want an AR just to really have my weapons versitale.

I have an HK53, a Saiga 12 and hopefully an AR platform of some kind.

[JTinIN]

Why is 7.62 being phased out?

What is replacing it?
It is still a very powerful round for the 600+ mark, and still the most available.
I was thinking 6.5 grendel, but I want .308.

What is being phased out of the world's military is the use of shoulder fired full auto (i.e. selective fire) main battle rifle type firearms, in particular for general issue (a full auto .223 is just so much easier to control). The larger General Purpose Machine (GPM) is still around (the SAW gave it a run, but both are needed and lighter weight full auto .308 belt guns like the HK21x have never caught on except possible for very limited use with special forces) and the for limited precision applications semi auto (at least in the application) .308 rifles are still around.

I have had an HK91 for a few dozen years (paid $385 for it back in the early 80's ;-), and since then have tried an AR10 (back when they had a production issue with rough chambers), a couple FALs (which I still have) and several SA M1As (been unlucky with everyone having reliability issues) and in the long run have stuck with the HK91 and kept a couple FALs for shooting with iron sights (missed getting extra HK91s when then went low several years ago). The HK91 works very well with a scope, as long as you get some type of raised stock (I like the MSG90A1) and for most of use a better trigger (PSG1 or Williams).

Biggest plus of the HK91 is a nice balance of reliability and accuracy (not as good as my PSS but still well under 2 MOA with Federal Red Box FMJ).

If cost is no factor, then get a PSG1 and never look back ;-)

[TronJohn]

I'll try and keep this HK related, replace the models with any other brand of M16 pattern rifle. So here goes:

Even with the alloy magazines, a G3 magazine full of ammo is much heavier than an HK416 magazine. Most of the current theater battles are at much closer range than 600+ yards, so the HK416 and the 5.56 round it shoots work fine. They're not really looking at replacing it as the standard NATO round.

The .308 that the HK417 shoots is obviously a much more powerful round. It will still be used for longer range shots.

The whole reason for all these other intermediate calibers like the 6.5 Grendel, and 6.8 SPC are that they will fit into the existing HK416 magazine envelope and magwell, but they have much more down range energy.

So if a civi-friendly HK417 ever comes out, you'll have just what you want. And oh how I hope that they do. Until then, if you want a .308 carbine sized rifle, you'll have to go with a G3K.

I totally forgot about the 417... I suppose I just dont think about it because we cant get it.

Isnt there a way to get an upper or a lower for the 416/417 platform?

God only knows if they ever come out with one... if they do I would def get that.

Of course it will be expensive as hell.

What is this G3k?

How long of a barrel can I put on it and still keep it a carbine to allow me to reach upwards of 1000 yards?

[TronJohn]

I seen a pic of it I think... I honestly like the AR15 platform better for the .308 than HK.

which is surprising because I hate AR15's and absolutely love HK's.

Man if I could just get an HK 417 lower and upper... whew!

[AviatorDave]

I totally forgot about the 417... I suppose I just dont think about it because we cant get it.

Isnt there a way to get an upper or a lower for the 416/417 platform?

God only knows if they ever come out with one... if they do I would def get that.

Of course it will be expensive as hell.

What is this G3k?

How long of a barrel can I put on it and still keep it a carbine to allow me to reach upwards of 1000 yards?

Oh yeah, there are plenty of 416 uppers going around. They've been sold for $3000-$5000 over the past year of so. I'm not sure if a 417 upper, even IF you could find one, would be useable without the lower. The reason is that unlike the 416, there isn't a standard blueprint for the .308 AR style rifles. For example, all of them are made to fit either a DPMS upper, or an Armalite upper, but they have a different shape. I don't think there's any way to know if they'd mate up until you had a 417 upper in hand as well as each of the lowers.

A G3K is for G3kurtz or G3 Short. It's basically an HK91 that uses the shorter forearm from an HK93, and with a flash hider that screws on right up to the front site base. It's got a 12.4" barrel instead of an almost 18" barrel like on the G3.

But I think your last question is not answerable. No way a carbine anything will be useful for targets out to 1000 yards. Arguably, the most accurate semi-auto rifle HK makes is the PSG1, it has an almost 26" barrel, and it will have trouble hitting anything with any expectation of accuracy out that far.

So you're going to have to decide whether you want a carbine length rifle for compactness, or a long bull-barrel for maximum distance potential.