The Beard's Rifle Of Choice

When LaRue Tactical announced that it was producing a 5.56mm AR-15-based carbine in conjunction with famed tactical trainer Chris Costa, our interest was piqued. Was this simply a clever marketing ploy to merge two respected names in order to sell more rifles, or was there something more to this collaboration? We needed to investigate further.

We spoke to Costa about his role in the rifle's creation. He pointed out that LaRue's line of OBR (Optimized Battle Rifle) carbines have been long known for their impressive accuracy and high standard of build quality. Available in 7.62 as well as 5.56 calibers, the OBR line quickly became the favorite of users of precision semiautomatic platforms. With the long-range segment covered, tactical shooters looking for the lightest build came calling. Always listening to its customers' feedback, LaRue introduced a line of ultra lightweight carbines a few years ago under the PredatAR name. They are arguably the lightest full-featured complete guns of their kind produced by any manufacturer in the industry.

Shortly after Costa opened up his own training company, Costa Ludus, earlier this year, he approached LaRue about making a rifle specific to his preferences that he can run hard in his classes. We asked why he went to LaRue Tactical to collaborate on this project. Costa responded that he was impressed with LaRue's build quality and liked that hte manufacturer doesn't play favorites. Every rifle that comes out of production is no different, whether it was made for him or one of his students. LaRue even had a great base gun to start with. When training is your everyday job, you learn really quickly what you like and don't like in your equipment. For Costa, it was important to keep weight to a minimum. LaRue's ultralight PredatAR weighs in at a paltry 6 pounds, 4 ounces; it seemed to fit his needs to a “T.”

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