When you hear the name “Barrett,” you probably think of the company’s renowned .50-caliber rifles. The success of the highly popular Barrett M82 led to an entire line of large-bore rifles that includes the bolt-action M99 and M95 as well as the newer M107A1. When USSOCOM came looking for a multi-caliber Precision Sniper Rifle (PSR) Barrett unleashed its Multi-Role Adaptive Design (MRAD).

In the upcoming April 2014 issue of Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement, author Rob Garrett gives us the latest scoop on a new MRAD variant in .308 Winchester. He writes, “Last year, Barrett received a request from an overseas client to develop a more compact MRAD in 7.62x51mm/.308 Winchester. The client wanted to retain all of the modularity of the original MRAD while developing a rifle that was better suited for urban use. The result was the new MRAD in .308 Winchester, a rifle that I believe is extremely well suited to LE use.

“The MRAD is a magazine-fed, bolt-action rifle with a chassis that consists of an upper and lower receiver. The upper receiver starts as an extruded block of 7000-series aluminum that is precisely machined to exacting tolerances in one of Barrett’s many CNC machines. An integral Picatinny accessory rail with a 20-MOA taper runs the length of the upper receiver and provides a solid platform for optics and other accessories. A series of elongated slots is machined into the rail to allow for improved cooling and reduced weight. The rail also features threaded attachment points along the 3, 6, and 9 o’clock axes that allow users to add rail units to mount additional accessories.”

To learn more about the Barrett MRAD .308 and how it fared on the range, check out the April 2014 issue of Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement, available on newsstands and digitally January 7, 2014, or click here to read the full article. To subscribe, go to /guns-weapons-for-law-enforcement