Sig Rattler for 3 gun

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bobblehead

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Just wanted to hear what more experienced shooters would have to say about using something like a Rattler for 3 gun. I've been thinking about buying my first AR type rifle and saw this little guy. Thought it looked neat, I like the compact aspect of it, and the ability to use LAR mags put it ahead of other shorties like the EVO, MPX or APC9 in my mind. I know the cost of .300 Blk is a fair bit more than .223 but I will be ok with that. i will mostly just use this gun to play around at the range but if I ever decide to try my hand at 3 gun competitions, will a rifle like this be less desirable than a typical AR in terms of handling? Maybe too loud with such a short barrel etc? Or anything else that I don't even know to ask about?

Thanks in advance for any words of encouragement or discouragement!
 
If you are competing for fun, you will be fine, but understand that like any sport gear often becomes tailored to its specific role in order to best accomplish it.

There is a reason that the 3 gun scene in the US uses primarily 18" barreled, long but light weight HG, and 1-6/1-8 scope.

As fare as I am concerned you will have lots of fun running a ratler but it may not be the most competitive rifle option.
 
If money is not a problem I say go for it. If you have shots beyond 100m you may want to run through your ballistic calculator first to figure out the hold over, especially for slow and heavy rounds.

But competition is a bit different from "tactically" purposed stuff. It is like trying to go canoeing with a paddle that is too short, great for portaging/storage but not so great for paddling. The right size of paddle is definitely essential for paddling but you aren't going to stash it in a suit case.
 
I say no. For very good reason.

I have a MCX Virtus in .300 Blk with the 8.5 inch barrel. I actually was going to buy the 500$ more expensive 5.5 inch Rattler, but spoke with a tech from Sig who recommended against it. The Rattler is truly made to run a suppressor. There isn't enough back pressure to cycle the action without a can installed. The tech said that subsonic rounds would be useless, and supersonic rounds are definitely going to be problematic. In my Virtus, I have run a limited number of subsonic rounds with no problem, and a few hundred supersonic rounds flawlessly. While I love the concept and look of the Rattler, it isn't made for Canadian markets. Consider the 8.5 inch Virtus if interested in a 300 blk "pistol".
 
There is a Canadian PCC that is green light for 10 round mags as it is a "pistol", as for the Rattler, I will echo the rest of the guys here. While it looks AWESOME and would be a ton of fun to shoot, there are far better setups that will help you be a bit more competitive overall and likely cause you less overall stress with your learning curve. I have shot in 2-3 different leagues in Alberta and consistent 100+ yard carbine shots are fewer and far between. You will be best served by a 16-18" barrel with as long a gas system as you can get. I think Odin Works has a 16" Intermediate length that would be a great barrel to build into an upper that will do a lot of things for you.

Take time and look into it all, from my Competitive shooting experience the knowledge I can and would pass on is spend time, talk to people and make the best decision you can with the info you have. Unfortunately there is a large learning curve with just the gear and personal setups on top of the hardware itself.
 
Shooting short barrel rifles is always a ton of fun, unless it's unreliable. At that point the fun tapers off real fast! I think the MCX Virtus suggestion is a good one. With a slightly longer bbl you gain a better gripping surface, more accuracy and more reliability. I like my 11.5 inch AR, which I believe is the best compromise between function and bbl length.
 
Thanks to all those that replied, your insight is very helpful! I didn’t know the Rattler doesn’t run well unsuppressed, that would definitely be a deal breaker here...you would think a company like Sig would make a gun that runs well either way. Taking the advice given, I will look into the Virtus SBR.

When/if I ever get to the point where I find the shorty holding me back in a competition, I suppose that just gives me a reason to go shopping again :)
 
bobblehead said:
Thanks to all those that replied, your insight is very helpful! I didn’t know the Rattler doesn’t run well unsuppressed, that would definitely be a deal breaker here...you would think a company like Sig would make a gun that runs well either way. Taking the advice given, I will look into the Virtus SBR.

When/if I ever get to the point where I find the shorty holding me back in a competition, I suppose that just gives me a reason to go shopping again :)
Click to expand...

The gun is designed to run unsuppressed, and can be run suppressed - Go see Mac's super long winded video on the rattler and he shot many rounds unsuppressed. The gas regulator shows "subsonic" and "supersonics", not suppressed / unsuppressed. There appears to be quite some confusion even amongst SIG employees as to what the gun really does or does not.
 
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