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UVA Staff Review - Rock
River 24" EOP Varmint |
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 Looking over the Rock River Arms catalog, I saw they made a rifle that would suit my needs. Rock River Arms 'Varminter' setup was listed with a heavy, stainless steel barrel that was available in lengths from 16" to 24". The rifle also featured a free float tube and a Rock River Arms 'National Match' trigger. Another option available was the EOP, or Elevated Optical Platform, upper receiver. The EOP upper allows the shooter to use medium height rings to mount the scope, instead of the high, or sometimes ultra-high, rings needed when mounting a scope to a standard A4 upper receiver. Seeing as how this rifle would not be packed over long distances, I settled on the 24 inch stainless steel barrel mounted on one of their EOP uppers. Speaking with the Rock River Arms, they stated that the rifle would ship in about 8 to 12 weeks. 8 to 12 weeks?! Ouch! Hopefully it was worth the wait. I placed the order and marked the calendar.  After a grueling 10 weeks and two days, I got the call. The rifle had arrived. I can honestly say that it was better then I expected. The fit and finish is absolutely perfect. The mating between the upper and the lower is tight, with there being absolutely no wiggle between the two. The anodizing is a deep, rich black and both the upper and lower receivers match in color perfectly. Also packed in the box was a 9 round magazine and an Army M16 manual. Throwing it on the scale, it weighs in at just over ten pounds. It is a bit front heavy with that much stainless steel out there in front, but overall it isn't that bad. Using medium height rings, I mounted up the scope and got it boresighted.  The next weekend, I took her out to stretch her legs and see what she could do. The loads I used were just 55 grain V-Max bullets over a standard starting load of surplus WCC844. The first shot from the rifle was six inches high and five inches to the left. The next two shots from the rifle printed a group that measured slightly more then an inch in diameter. "Wow, we might be onto something here.", I thought. Over the next hour or so, I shot the rest of the loads I had made up for the day. The rifle consistently grouping them all into a nice, round group that covered about an inch. I later found that a slight change to the charge of WCC844 I was using resulted in a load that consistently produced groups that hovered at half an inch at 100 yards. The rifle for sure shoots better then I can hold. This review is slightly different then the others, as I have had the rifle a few years before I wrote the review, instead of writing it up right after reviewing the product. Honestly, I'm completely happy with the rifle. Although the finish shows some wear and tear, it has worked flawlessly and has never let me down. During the spring, I regularly use it to shoot Rockchucks. Shots out to 300 yards are a chip-shot. You put the crosshairs on the target, send lead downrange and what's under the crosshairs is dead. Simple as that. In the end, all I can say is Rock River Arms makes one hell of a rifle. As a result, the RRA 24" SS EOP Varminter rifle gets a perfect 5 out of 5 on all counts.
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