In the upcoming July 2014 issue of RIFLE FIREPOWER, author Bryce M. Towsley discusses some of the big-bore AR ammo alternatives to the ubiquitous .308 Winchester/7.62mm NATO. Towsley writes, “Last issue we covered the cartridges chambered in AR-15-style rifles. This column deals with cartridges chambered in its bigger brother. The trouble is that I am not sure what to call it. While Colt technically owns the rights to ‘AR-15,’ the term has become generic to describe the rifle. When you say an AR-15-type rifle, everybody knows what you mean. ArmaLite owns the trademark to the AR-10. It calls its gun the AR-10, but the rest of the makers had to get cre- ative if they want to avoid trouble.

“DPMS calls its big-bore AR rifles LRs, as in LR-308, LR-338, etc. Even the new Gen II DPMS guns have the LR designation. Rock River Arms calls its own the LAR-8, and with JP Enterprises, it’s the LRP07. Ruger calls its rifle the SR-762. The list goes on, and to avoid confusion, a lot of shooters just call them .308/7.62mm ARs. But, as we are about to find out, that’s not correct either, as there are plenty of other cartridge options beyond the .308 Winchester/7.62mm NATO.

“So, I think I’ll just invent my own term: AR-Large, or AR-L for short. It should keep me and this magazine out of trouble, and you will all know what I am referring to as a rifle platform. Most of the new gun-makers entering the field are following the DPMS concept, and that has become the standard, more or less. Magazines and some other parts will interchange, whereas the AR-10 and some others use a different magazine and most parts will not interchange with the DPMS-style guns. Confused? Me too.”

To learn more about the class and this new rifle, check out the July 2014 issue of RIFLE FIREPOWER, available on newsstands and digitally April 15, 2014. To subscribe, go to /rifle-firepower