Remington R2Mi .50 BMG Bolt-Action Rifle – First Look

With the demise of Bushmaster a hole appeared in the Remington portfolio. With Bushmaster went their .50 caliber Browning Machine Gun (BMG) chambered rifle. While .50 BMG rifles are not something you see every day, they are popular with a segment of shooters and important for foreign military sales. So, Remington has responded by fill this gap with their new R2Mi .50 BMG bolt-action rifle.

Rather than being a standard production piece the new R2Mi will be “built-to-order”, basically like a custom shop piece. It’s slated to be produced in their Sturgis, South Dakota facility and should be available in the fall of 2020. Until samples are actually available we only have the specifications released with the announcement.

• Bolt action: left bolt / right port, for faster cycling of action
• Lothar Walther barrel free-floated within vented hand guard
• Lower receiver machined from T6-6061 aluminum billet
• MIL-STD 1913 rail on receiver and vented hand guard
• Hard anodized type 3 green finish on aluminum parts (Mil-Spec)
• Manganese phosphate finish on steel parts

The heart of the rifle is a beefy bolt-action design with a lower receiver machined from T-6 6061 aluminum billet. In profile it resembles an over-size AR and has an inline configuration. What is interesting is the bolt handle is placed on the left side of the rifle, rather than the right. Yet it is ejects on the right side of the action. As this is not a piece you will be shooting offhand, it makes sense. The left-side placed bolt handle allows faster cycling by a right-handed shooter when firing prone or off a rest. The controls are placed similar to an AR-15 which will reduce training time. The design is fed from a 10-round detachable box magazine. Take-down is claimed to be similar to an AR-15, again to reduce training time.

The 30-inch long Match grade barrel is free-floated to enhance accuracy and features a 1 turn in 15 inches 8-groove rifling twist. The upper receiver features an integral M1913 rail for easy mounting of optical sights and the handguard has a matching height M1913 rail as well. This allows easy mounting of night vision devices, laser rangefinders or other accessories. The handguard also has what appears to be a spigot type bipod mount. A steel bipod is standard.

The muzzle is equipped with an AAC Cyclops muzzle brake which allows it to easily mount an AAC Cyclops sound suppressor. An ErgoGrip Deluxe Tactical pistolgrip is fitted and the aluminum parts are hard anodized Type 3 green finish. The metal parts all receive a manganese phosphate finish. At the rear you will find a Magpul PRS Gen 3 buttstock which is adjustable for LOP and comb height. MSRP? That comes in at $4,599. For that you get the rifle, a Pelican hard case, two 10-round magazines, cable lock and even ear and eye protection. I expect it will be a few months before samples roll out, but we will bring you can expect a full review in Firearms News when they do become available. For more information visit www.Remington.com