“R-Rated” Black Rain Ordnance’s PG-13 speaks with authority for a .308 AR rifle.
The weather was ironic when I stopped by a local Nashville hotel to pick up Sam Major for an afternoon of shooting at my local gun club. You see, Major was the president of Black Rain Ordnance, and the weather we faced on that misty, overcast day was rather fitting.
After trading a few phone calls over the summer while I was testing a Black Rain rifle, I was glad to finally meet Major, then the president of BRO, face at the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW) annual expo in Orlando, Florida, in early November. During our visit, I learned that Black Rain Ordnance had just purchased another company, HTG suppressors.
Based out of Neosho, Missouri, Black Rain Ordnance is a relative newcomer to the firearms industry. Setting up shop in 2009, this manufacturer is quickly rising among the ranks of AR-platform builders. Business has been so successful over the past year that Major and his staff sought opportunities to expand their business. One such approach was the recent acquisition of HTG Silencers.
“At Black Rain Ordnance, Inc., we are a precision firearms manufacturer, specializing in the AR-15 style rifle,” Sam Majors said. “Incorporated in January of 2009, we are a young company, but far from new to the firearms industry. From the beginning, we acquired the best machinists to manufacture the finest receivers possible. Our design team created a unique look and feel, with features that all shooters can appreciate, as well as including the use of the best materials available. We strive to use only American metal, it is important to us to ensure that all products carrying our Bio-Hazard logo are made in America by American workers.”
Gun Details
“After producing the upper and lower receivers, we moved our focus to gradually conquering all of the metal parts of the AR platform. We are still working in that direction, designing and producing more and more components and accessories. We revealed our new .308 platform this past year, complementing our existing and already proven AR-15 platform. Our 308’s design reflects the same lines and desired features as our AR-15 platform. We continue, every day, to pursue new and creative ways to improve our industry,” Majors said.
The PG-13 is aggressive looking and built with functionality in mind. The Magpul UBR stock features a storage compartment for things such as extra batteries, emergency supplies, or tools. The compartment can be oriented to open on either side of the rifle, giving it another degree of adaptability. The length of pull is easily adjustable giving it versatility in CQ situations, and the ability to fit different shooters correctly. It offers a consistent cheek weld as well as an adjustable length of pull. A short-stocked, easily maneuverable rifle provides an advantage when wearing protective gear, too. However, when compactness is not required, the longer length of pull allows the shooter to adjust to his most comfortable length of pull. Several sling swivel mounts are positioned on the stock to allow the use of a single-point sling or conventional sling. Magpul was also chosen to supply the textured grip, consistently as rugged as the rest of the rifle.
The upper and lower receiver have a bold, but not overly flashy skull pattern. The intricate detail of the finish is impressive and goes well with the other sharp, aggressively styled features of the rifle. If that wasn’t enough, the spiral fluted barrel and flash hider definitely set this rifle apart. This rifle demands attention at every public gun range. The dust cover sums up the look well, “Let It Rain!”
Both upper and lower receivers are milled from 7071 billet aluminum, providing a strong, rigid platform. The receivers are definitely the accuracy cornerstone of any rifle. With this in mind, the engineers at BRO made certain they had a good foundation for their new AR-10 style rifles. The finished product weighed in at nine pounds eight ounces.
The BRO-designed DIT (Drop In Trigger) is very crisp, with relatively no creep. The hammer is released at 3.5 pounds, which is the ultimate compromise between safety and feel. This quality of this fire control group is on par with many high-grade after-market products.
The bolt carrier group is constructed from steel that is nickel boron coated, a coating that increases the service life. Throughout the length testing of this model rifle, I have worked with pre-production versions that varied slightly. The earliest bolt head was nickel boron coated, and a later bolt was machined from Carpenter 158 steel, while the third and last version was again the nickel boron-coated bolt and carrier group. The final version is constructed from an alloy is that is resistant to high pressure and temperature, and came through with flying colors after firing 100 rounds as fast as new magazines could be swapped. The gas key is attached to the bolt carrier with two Torx head screws, and a staking method is employed to prevent separation.
Other small improvements set this BRO model apart. The receivers have been machined well, with the trigger guard as a part of the lower receiver. The forward assist has also been eliminated, reducing the amount of moving parts to malfunction. Anti rotating trigger pins have been utilized as well. This design eliminates the likelihood that a pin would fall out, a major malfunction to say the least.
Another detail that may go overlooked is the flared magazine well. Everyone loses a degree of fine motor skills when under stress, and small features like this can speed magazine changes. A 20-round magazine, also manufactured by Magpul, is supplied with the PG-13.
The Magpul UBR stock features a storage compartment for things such as extra batteries, emergency supplies and tools. The compartment can be oriented to open on either side of the rifle, giving it another degree of adaptability. The length of pull easily adjusts, increasing the rifle’s versatility and shooter customization capabilities. It also offers a solid, consistent cheek weld. The stock has several points for mounting slings. The rifle’s grip is a Magpul MIA unit, which is textured for enhanced control and is as rugged as the rest of the rifle.
The fore-end has 12-inch accessory rails on all four sides, providing ample room for nearly any tactical accessory combination. It has been designed to be completely free floating, another staple of accuracy for AR platform rifles. The handguard assembly is affixed to the receiver with eight recessed hex head screws. The handguard tube features triangular shaped holes; done to reduce weight, aid barrel heat dissipation and add another degree of intricate detail to the rifle. Their design blends well with BRO’s bio-hazard logo, too. Hidden under the hand guard is a low-profile adjustable gas block.
The rifle was initially tested with the first generation hand guard available from Black Rain Ordnance. The rifle was shipped back and fitted with the new designed hand guard that is now standard on the PG-13 rifle.
The flat top receiver can accommodate large objective scopes and night vision systems if desired. This is truly a versatile and intimidating weapon with endless capabilities. The milled Noroguard charging handle has a large latch, making it easier to operate.
The 18-inch barrel of the PG-13 is spiral fluted for another tasteful option. However, only the portion of the barrel in front of the gas block has this spiral fluted design. They chose to go with a 1:11” rifling, a common twist rate for the 7.62 caliber. Capping off the unique barrel is a milled black flash hider with an unfriendly appearance. Even this can be utilized as a weapon in the unlikely event of a weapon failure. If the skull pattern isn’t intimidating enough, the sharply-pointed flash hider definitely will.
Down Range
The first pre-production PG-13, although accurate, experienced some ejection problems. It seems that the coating on the first bolt was out of spec and caused the malfunction. A new bolt was swapped out a few days later and the gun ran like a sewing machine thereafter. More than 10 trips subsequent trips to the range and 800 rounds fired was a thorough enough trial to see that this rifle is a dependable performer. Velocity data were tabulated with an Oehler 35P chronograph 15 feet from the muzzle. A variety of optics were mounted on the rifle, ranging from a Nightforce NXS 5.5-22x Zero Stop to a Leupold Mark VI 5-20x.
Seven factory loads were used in testing, with a minimum of six 5-shot groups fired over multiple days.
Military barrier-penetrating MK 319 rounds averaged 2,983 fps, its standard deviation was 37 fps and the extreme spread was 105 fps. These rounds are constructed with bullets quite similar in design to a Trophy Bonded Bear Claw. After testing in dozens of rifles, I have found that this ammo hovers between 2.5 and 3 MOA on average. The PG-13’s best group measured 2.652 inches, and the average was 2.944 inches.
Hornady’s 178-grain Superformance Match loads averaged 2,595 fps. Their standard deviation was 19 fps, and the extreme spread was clocked at 52 fps. The tightest group measured 1.124 inches, and the average opened up slightly to 1.348 inches.
Federal 175-grain Gold Medal Match, loaded with Sierra Match Kings provided very consistent group sizes. Averaging 2,461 fps, the standard deviation was 10 fps, while the extreme spread was 27 fps. The average group was 1.662 inches, while the smallest measured 1.539 inches.
Winchester’s 168-grain Match loads averaged 2,524 fps. The standard deviation was 2 fps, and the extreme spread was 5 fps. The smallest group measured 1.317 inches, and the average group was calculated at 1.952 inches.
Remington’s 175-grain average group size was just under three inches, with the smallest measuring 2.601 inches. The average velocity was 2,498 fps.
Barnes’ 168-grain TXS boat-tail provided some promising performance. The smallest group measured 0.874 inches, with the average opening up to 1.226 inches. The average velocity was 2,574 fps.
Black Hills’ 168-grain Match loads averaged groups tallied 1.432, with the smallest measuring 1.196 inches. The average velocity was 2,568 fps, and the standard deviation was 19 fps.
The Black Rain Ordnance’s PG-13 will suit the needs of serious professionals as well as those of the weekend gun club plinker with a desire for a serious 7.62 NATO semi-auto. Check one out for yourself and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
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