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LaRue Tactical
Are you one of the many folks patiently waiting on your LaRue Rifle ?

If so, first and foremost, I implore you to please accept our apologies ... every hour, it seemed as if we were an hour from completion ... hours turned to days, days to weeks, weeks to months, etc.

Truth is, making a barrel that lives up to our reputation is tougher than it looks. Anyhow, as of this moment, we're still not quite where we want to be. Even state-of-the-art barrel-making equipment needs tweaking in order to ensure match-grade barrels - and yep, we're still tweaking.

In the meantime, we are awash in Field Grade quality barrels. So, to get rifles out into long-awaited folks' hands, we are going to offer to send rifles with a Field Grade barrel on it. These Stainless-Steel barrels are nothing to look down upon, but they’re just not on par with the ones we’ll be producing soon. Consider the Field Grade barrel as a "beater" barrel to use and abuse. The rifle will ship with a coupon for a no-cost follow-on Match-Grade barrel that we'll send out once we're satisfied with our setup.

Be advised, But you don't have to take us up on this offer. You may stay in line if you wish.

Please do not call us, Juli will be calling you shortly ... starting today.

Thanks,
Mark LaRue

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I'm not waiting on one, just passing the information along but it sounds like a good option to me, I would take advantage of it as long as they send you the correct barrel within a reasonable time.


[This message has been edited by Agfan2013 (edited 10/9/2013 3:49p).]

I am waiting on one. Basically just ordered it and forgot about it, check ar15.com every month or so to see if there is any movement. I probably would have cancelled the order and gotten something else after this huge backlog occured, but I ordered through a dealer in Houston, so would have had to paid a fee through them. Hopefully I'll see a rifle soon, not getting my hopes up, though...

Bit the hand that fed them, now they're trying to learn a new craft they had no experience in. Their previous barrels met spec until they messed with them. Hard lesson for LaRue. I wouldn't wait if it was me.

Reading between the lines, there are real problems there at LT...

Love my upper that tx4guns built me with my WOA barrel.

So. . . . I would like to pick up an Aimpoint T1 in Larue mount. Any of the experts here have an idea on the backlog on those items from Larue at this point?

I haven't heard of any backlogs on their mounts or optics. I need a mount, as well.

[This message has been edited by tx4guns (edited 10/9/2013 4:21p).]

2nd world problems.

I got a mount for my magnifier a couple months ago with no wait.

I'm a bit surprised - first time in my experience of following the company that he hasn't acted like he's God's gift to ARs. I have to admit that his attitude on arfcom has soured me on ever buying a rifle from them.

someone fill me in on the "between the lines," i haven't been following this story.

I cancelled my PredatOBR and went with Daniel Defense. Glad I did, too. I did, however, order a mount for my scope and my bipod from Larue and they arrived shortly after I ordered.

I ordered 13 months ago. I have the lower. If I understand this he is going to complete my rife soon and then send me a new larue barrel down the road when they figure it out.

Does this affect the regular predatar?

My understanding is it is all LaRue rifles...

There are plenty of quality alternatives...

Out of curiosity, how did they become "awash" in field grade barrels?

How do you dump your main barrel supplier (whose barrels have a key role in the reputation of your rifles) when you do not yet have your own production yet running or a viable alternative in place?

Sounds like some lessons to be learned here and very expensive lessons are best learned at the cost of someone else.

constructionag, you're asking the right questions that the homers are ignoring. They are not a barrel manufacturer, but they are learning it. I saw some of the Facebook comments praising Mark on taking on this new capability to bring it in house, like it was his doing as a proactive move. Not so. He ruined his relationship with his primary barrel manufacturer, and they told him to pound sand. Instead of using another quality barrel manufacturer, he's bitten off a lot more adding a new capability to his shop, but it's an area in which they have no expertise. Now he's running a turnkey operation on barrels, or trying at least. It's gonna be nice if he can get it right, but it will probably bankrupt him if he doesn't.

I think they'll work through it. The question is will their customers be willing to wait? I think LaRue makes GREAT products and I like that they're a Texas company, but if I were in the market for a rifle right now if look somewhere else simply because I don't want to wait a year or longer to get a gun.

Just curious, who was providing their barrels and what caused that relationship to go south?

Lothar Walther, and Mark allegedly accused them of making barrels out of spec after he made mods to the barrels. They told him to find another barrel maker. That's how I heard it anyway.

I hate to see how things are turning out over there in Leander, but I can see how Mark has fueled this.

On the other hand, I'm glad I got my PredatAR back when the LW barrels were still being used!

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There are plenty of quality alternatives...

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This.

I love LaRue, but this wait time is crazy.

So we wait a long time and end up with a barrel that is better than anything they've ever put on a LaRue, or they put a beater barrel on it and send you a new barrel that is better than anything they have ever put on it as soon as their barrel operation gets going?

What's all this *****ing and moaning about? I can wait. I have a brand new Colt 6920 Magpul edition in my safe if I just get my panties bunched up over the wait.

Heard this weekend from a very good source that the Field Grades are barrels they are making in-house.

Quality is all over the place with no end in sight. But, they cant keep making barrels to try and figure it out and just keep putting them on the shelf or throwing them away...so they are going to get their customers to pay the cost on these barrels and the ones they continue to make as they try to figure it out.

Talk about being in a corner...

Sounds like they bit off more than they can chew...