FNH Ballista™

[f3rr37]

http://www.fnhusa.com/le/products/firea ... id=FNM0240" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



• Calibers: 338 Lapua Mag.; 300 Win. Mag., 308 Win. (7.62x51mm NATO )
• Manual bolt-action only
• 20 MOA and MIL-STD 1913 sight rail, 30 MOA rail is available as an accessory

RECEIVER
• High-strength aluminum alloy receiver with top mounted MIL-STD 1913 rail
• Barreled receiver is vibration isolated from the aluminum and polymer stock via elastomeric cushions
• The magazine well accepts magazines for multiple calibers without further modification

BARREL
• button-broach precision stainless steel
• operator changeable in less than two minutes
• Headspace is preset within the barrel extension
• retains centerline alignment with receiver
• 338 Lapua Mag. and 300 Win. Mag. barrels available in 24” or 26” fluted barrel with polygonal rifling and progressive twist
• 308 Win./7.62x51 NATO barrel utilizes conventional rifling profile and constant twist rate to integrate with existing ammunition

STOCK
• Ambidextrous folding stock is fully operator adjustable for length-of-pull, buttplate height, comb height, cast-on and cast-off
• Integrated rear monopod allows precise adjustment of rifle elevation
• Single lever side folding stock to minimize overall rifle length

OPERATING CONTROLS
6 ambidextrous magazine release forward of trigger guard
• Trigger system is fully adjustable for single or two-stage release between 2 and 5 lbs.
• Multiple safety systems include manual thumb safety, grip safety and drop safety system

MAGAZINE
• 338 Lapua Mag.: 6/9 rounds
• 300 Win. Mag.: 8/12 rounds
• 308 Win. (7.62x51mm NATO): 9/13 rounds

[srt-4_jon]

Progressive twist on the 300 win mag and 338 Lapua? That is pretty sweet. So is the barrel swapping. I wonder why they didnt do a chrome lined barrel like they do on the SPR series

[flyingirish04]

Progressive twist is nothing new. Tons of companies have tried it. Currently Bartlein has a very hot 6mm barrel that is winning all the benchrest comps with a progressive twist.

[PainKillaX]

Might need. But I have no range long enough to justify it.

[srt-4_jon]

Progressive twist is nothing new. Tons of companies have tried it. Currently Bartlein has a very hot 6mm barrel that is winning all the benchrest comps with a progressive twist.

i didnt say it was. just saying it's sweet. i dont know of any other off the shelf rifle with it.

[f3rr37]

Holy cow, batman... apparently this thing weighs a whopping 17lbs.
http://www.gunsandammo.com/2011/08/25/f ... per-rifle/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[panzermk2]

It's a beast. It did not work for me though. You think it would. But it just seemed like it was trying to hard to impress.

[f3rr37]

From what I've found elsewhere... the price tag is basically all of your limbs and organs ($8-15K).

[panzermk2]

Well yes then there is the price.

[panzermk2]

It's really no better then a hand fitted rem 700 action in a APO stock.

[srt-4_jon]

some would argue there is no replacement for the claw extractor.

[flyingirish04]

some would argue there is no replacement for the claw extractor.

Maybe for dangerous game when positive feed in all manipulations of the rifle. But for accuracy, there is a reason that all custom actions are versions of the 700. You can't beat them.

And the price tag on that gun is a waste of money. No way I would buy that given the other options. If I spent that, I would go with the AICS AX.

I'm with Jay, doesn't work for me.

[srt-4_jon]

i would say someone shooting at me is dangerous game. it is obviously geared toward the military.

[smpsmp]

Was told today the price tag is going to be around 10K, and it will ship with the 338 lapua barrel for the initial run of them. The barrel kits will also be going out for the 300 win mag, and the 308 win, and each kit is going to be around 1900.00.

For the money I'd just build off a Montana 99 action at that point. I like what's out there for the 700 actions, but always preferred the Mod 70 safety for some reason.

[smpsmp]

Holy cow, batman... apparently this thing weighs a whopping 17lbs.
http://www.gunsandammo.com/2011/08/25/f ... per-rifle/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That actually isn't too bad on the weight for who/what they are trying to market it too. It's not a traditional hunting rifle, and most of what is out there that's similar (tac rifles) are weighing in and around that. I was actually expecting it to be in the 25 pound range when I first saw it.

[flyingirish04]

In this type of stand off op, you want accuracy so you can increase distance of engagement. For that, you want accuracy. You care little for positive feed, because like I said, walking the bush for close range DG hunting is about all that .00001 more reliability is what I care about. Otherwise, I want a trued Rem action or a custom action patterned off it. You can't beat them for extreme precision. That is why CheyTac and AI utilize a design that has its roots in the Rem action.

Montana 99 action is decent. But it can't hold a candle to a APS, Defiance, or BAT action. Not even close. I know about MRC. I grew up in Kalispell, and grew up shooting his rifles. They are pretty darn good rifles,especially now, that his barrel quality is better as sometimes an upgrade to assembly line production can do for a semi-custom platform (another realm where FN missed the boat on this monstrousity, the barrels are factory FN crap).

But again, you want something that will shoot in the 3s at 1500 yards, get a premium custom action, a premium custom barrel (IMO only Lilja, Bartlein, and Krieger can claim that title), bed it in a premium stock, and put a NF on top, all for 60% of what this POS costs without a scope. Oh and it would weigh 16 lbs scoped at most. If you have had to low crawl a field or scale an obstacle with a pack and your weapon.

But if you like the look and want to spend your money, your choice. I will maintain it is a collosal waist and of virtually no value as an option given the alternatives. Fanboys be darned.

[smpsmp]

I'm going to agree with Irish on this one. I don't see the Ballista going anywhere in the market, especially considering the price and what else is already out there.

And the one guy at the shop finally got his NF for his custom 700 build he had done. Only took 28 months since they had a mil contract to fill up first. I told him to just drop the extra on a USO or a S&B, but he wasn't in any rush anyway. So it looks like you'll start seeing NF scopes in stock again at more places.

[flyingirish04]

I didn't know NF were hard to get? I got mine 11 days after I ordered shipped directly to my door. Granted it was a G7 model, so perhaps Gunwerks has a better channel of supply for their NXS based scopes. I know barrel blanks and stocks are tight right now as well for same mil run reason.

MOst of these companies are pretty small and due to compliance can't afford to expand to fit peak demand. Always sucks when you have wait.

[fooschnickens]

Yeah, this thing fills a hole in the market that doesn't exist.

[wharfrat1940]

I am little late is seeing this beautiful monster. I saw one advertised somewhere for sale for around $5995 with one barrel. You can buy them with all 3 barrels for just over $10,000. I don't think the $5995 is too bad considering lots of SCAR 16's and 17's have gone for that and move on Gunbroker not all that long ago. I have access to a 1,000 yd range. That would be a good gun for that range! :ponder:

RAT in Houston, Texas

[blueorison]

Pictures for ya'll. To see how it handles and the relative balance, though it's hard to tell. Thanks to my USPSA buddy for taking pictures; I let him know that my friends on the forum would want to see it, and he was nice enough to send these to me for posting.





Copied from the FNAR thread:

I was only there on Friday for the NRA Show, but I had the opportunity to speak with the Marine in charge of the Ballista exhibit. I wasn't planning on checking it out, but I decided to, at the last moment.

Long story short, it is an incredibly modular platform, that is set up to accommodate future upgrades in energy packs for optics, NV/IR, light, etc.

People were circling around the platform and staring at it, but I thought this wasn't a very efficient way to see how well it worked, so I went up and picked it up, with permission from the marine.

Handling, it is quite heavy; you can check out how much at FN's site. I won't get into details so I can keep it short and sweet, but it is a platform with a lot of potential. One thing to note is that the interchangeable bbls are held in with friction/tension and locked with the lugs. It has 3 lugs on the bolt face.