I have recently purchased an Armalite 50. Anyone have any experience with them. California banned sale of the 50 at the beginning of this year. I bought one at the last minute but sadly haven't been able to shoot it yet. Anyone have experience with this model?

What is the reasonable shooting range on this rifle?

the armalite has a good rep, especially for a very effective muzzle brake. not sure what you mean by a reasonable range - I usually have the most fun starting about 600 yds and ranging out to about 1800-2000

The AR-50 has a very good reputation as an accurate, solid rifle. I decided against getting one because they have a very long throat lead and because they can only be shot same handed as the action, lefties can't shoot RH actions and visa-versa. I'm a lefty, so many of my friends could not shoot my rifle, if it were an AR-50.
On the positive side, the AR-50 seems to be an easy rifle to have a match barrel installed. Many AR-50 shooters are doing this, particulary match shooters. Also, there are some very good accessories available for this rifle. Contact Darin, dlprince1@aol.com for a product list and pricing.

What is considered the maximum lethal range on a 50 BMG...Say in the AR-50

Off the cuff, maximum effective range is right at or just under 2600 yards, just before the projectile with the best combination of B.C. and velocity goes subsonic. Anyone with hard #s wanting to correct me, be my guest. I imagine a stray projectile would kill at better than twice that range, depending on where it hit.

goneballistic:

I heard from a USMC HUMINT officer friend of mine (who just returned from Iraq) that a guy using a 50 BMG had a confirmed kill out to 1.5 miles.

Second hand info, but I have no reason to doubt the person who told me. Take it for what it's worth.

Hey I have been wanting a 50 but no place to shoot it here in Maryland.
This sounds like a good rifle.
By the way Goingblistic is right 2600 yds is just shy of 1 1/2 miles by 40 yds.
The infamous Mr Carlos made these shots history.

quote:

Hey I have been wanting a 50 but no place to shoot it here in Maryland.

They have 1000 yard matches for the .50 at Quantico on occasion. They also have informal fun shoots now and then.

What are the most beneficial mod's to an AR-50?

Well, Darin Prince offers a bipod and a rear monopod tailored for this rifle. Been at it for quite a while. That and a match SS barrel would be a good start. Personally, I'd get some wear and tear on the factory barrel before I invested in a match barrel. They get good accuracy, in spite of the long thoat. Maybe it would be a good idea to put in an order to K&P for a barrel now. They have about a 1 year backlog, last I heard. Maybe it's more, maybe less. You would need to find a smith that was experienced in 50's to chamber, finish, thread, and install the match barrel. Also, I believe these rifles can be set up to change barrels by the user, you would just need to have the proper tools and know the torque setting. Not quite a takedown rifle, but I beleive you could swap barrels depending on if you wanted to do some plinking with surplus, or accuracy shooting with match grade ammo.

I've had one since the first year they came out. Fantastic rifle. Don't believe all the BS you hear about the .50 BMG. It has a rainbow trajectory and is not immune to wind. Hitting at long range first shot takes a lot of tallent and an equal amount of luck. Even the late great Skip Talbot had to walk his rounds onto a refrigerator sized rock at a measured one mile and it took him about 10 shots to do it, with the help of a spotter (VHP Magazine, 2003 or 2004). A lot of things can happen to a bullet between muzzle and target and wind, temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, and phase of the moon so it seems all play a role.
The longest range I have shot mine is 500 yards and it easily keeps 5 A-Max match-prepped handloads inside of 3 inches and often inside 2 inches when I am shooting worth a crap.

Only two things you need to do to the AR-50 to make it shoot with good ammo.
1. Change the trigger to a match grade trigger made for the Remington 700.
2. Put on a good scope like a Leupold Mk 4 or the most excellent Nightforce. Do not expect your rifle to shoot well with cheap optics.

Yeah, I have a Leupold Mark 4 for it. Great scope.