I ran my RDB this weekend at the annual Zombie Invitational 3 Gun match. The match is 2 days with day one being pistol and rifle only, day two is pistol and shotgun. It's also an "Iron Man" format where you have to hump all your gear, ammo, food, etc. for the whole day, no going back to your car after morning load out. Before I go any further understand that I'm no professional 3 Gun shooter, in fact this is only my second 3 Gun event (I shot it last year as well), and outside of this I've shot a couple IPSC matches and a few sporting clay tournaments.
I only have a few minor mods on my RDB, a handstop and lower rail cover, and my optics package is a Primary Arms 1-6x24 scope in an Aero Precision Ultralite mount. I also replaced the A2 flash hider with a Levang Linear Compensator which really cuts down on the muzzle blast you feel at your face.
The courses of fire for the match really test your skills in every facet of weapons handling. For example, the first stage has you engaging 11 steels, 2 shots on each, from 70 yards out to 300 yards, then running down a trail and triple tapping (2x chest, 1x head) cardboard silhouettes from 5-10 yard ranges, before switching to pistol for the rest of the stage. Another stage has you advancing on targets from 70 yards to 30 yards, stopping and firing from various barricades including barrels, plywood walls, car doors, etc. There's even The Meadow, which had targets arrayed from 50 to 500 yards, some in tall grass, so you had to engage from prone, kneeling, and standing.
All I can say about the RDB's performance is WOW! I had no problem reaching out to 500 yards, and it performed equally well well on closer range shots. The rifle is also so compact and easy to handle I had no problem maneuvering around barricades either. The one thing I was worried about was accidentally dumping magazines, but it never turned out to be a problem.
I did a have a few minor issues but I think they will all resolve themselves in time. My biggest problem was missing the ultra close range head shots due to the large difference between the scope axis and bore axis. Chalk that up to shooter error. I also found the rear bolt release extremely stiff, on one occasion I actually had to go back to the charging handle. I've only had the rifle 2 months and I don't think I have 1,000 rounds through it yet, so I'm hoping this will break in with more use. My last issue is the sling. I was using an SOC Slings 2-1 point convertible setup. I just couldn't find a comfortable position for it. I think I just need to spend more time with it and play with the adjustments some. I'm just used to easily slinging up an AR so this does take some getting used to.
I had a fantastic time at the match and the RDB ran great. I got a lot of compliments on it to, and fielded a lot of questions. Hopefully next year I'll see a few more out there. But the experience makes me so glad I bought it, no glaring problems showed up and the few minor issues I encountered I think will all be easily resolvable.
I only have a few minor mods on my RDB, a handstop and lower rail cover, and my optics package is a Primary Arms 1-6x24 scope in an Aero Precision Ultralite mount. I also replaced the A2 flash hider with a Levang Linear Compensator which really cuts down on the muzzle blast you feel at your face.
The courses of fire for the match really test your skills in every facet of weapons handling. For example, the first stage has you engaging 11 steels, 2 shots on each, from 70 yards out to 300 yards, then running down a trail and triple tapping (2x chest, 1x head) cardboard silhouettes from 5-10 yard ranges, before switching to pistol for the rest of the stage. Another stage has you advancing on targets from 70 yards to 30 yards, stopping and firing from various barricades including barrels, plywood walls, car doors, etc. There's even The Meadow, which had targets arrayed from 50 to 500 yards, some in tall grass, so you had to engage from prone, kneeling, and standing.
All I can say about the RDB's performance is WOW! I had no problem reaching out to 500 yards, and it performed equally well well on closer range shots. The rifle is also so compact and easy to handle I had no problem maneuvering around barricades either. The one thing I was worried about was accidentally dumping magazines, but it never turned out to be a problem.
I did a have a few minor issues but I think they will all resolve themselves in time. My biggest problem was missing the ultra close range head shots due to the large difference between the scope axis and bore axis. Chalk that up to shooter error. I also found the rear bolt release extremely stiff, on one occasion I actually had to go back to the charging handle. I've only had the rifle 2 months and I don't think I have 1,000 rounds through it yet, so I'm hoping this will break in with more use. My last issue is the sling. I was using an SOC Slings 2-1 point convertible setup. I just couldn't find a comfortable position for it. I think I just need to spend more time with it and play with the adjustments some. I'm just used to easily slinging up an AR so this does take some getting used to.
I had a fantastic time at the match and the RDB ran great. I got a lot of compliments on it to, and fielded a lot of questions. Hopefully next year I'll see a few more out there. But the experience makes me so glad I bought it, no glaring problems showed up and the few minor issues I encountered I think will all be easily resolvable.
