FIRST LOOK: Nord Arms Semi-Automatic 338 Lapua Magnum Precision Rifle

[Zarvan]

(Matthew Moss/TFB)

Last month, at DSEI 2019 in London, I had the chance to take a look at some of Nord Arms’ rifles ranging from their NA-9, 9x19mm pistol calibre carbine right up to their new .338 Lapua Magnum marksman’s rifle. Nord Arms are an Estonian company specialising in AR-pattern rifles and is run by a pair of European IPSC rifle champions, Madis Reier and Margus Riso.

Firstly, let’s take a look at the NA-338. The rifle is brand new with its magazine still being refined, a 3D printed placeholder can be seen in the photo below. The production magazine will hold 10 rounds.

The NA-338’s magazine is still in development, here is a 3D printed mock-up (Matthew Moss/TFB)

The NA-338 uses a standard AR-pattern direct gas impingement system with a rotating bolt. The rifle has a 23.4 inch barrel and an overall length of 46 inches. The barrel is free floated and has a 1:10 twist, and is tipped with a Nord Arms muzzle brake. Without optic and unloaded the weapon weighs in at 5.4kg or 11.9lbs.

The Nord Arms NA-338 brake and bipod (Matthew Moss/TFB)

Here’s another close up of the rifle’s brake:

A close up of Nord Arms’ .338 brake (Matthew Moss/TFB)

Left side of the NA-338, note the fixed marksman’s stock with NA’s own adjustable monopod (Matthew Moss/TFB)

The rifle has a full-length Picatinny top rail and Nord Arms’ NordLok system. The NA-338 is fully ambidextrous and has a listed trigger pull weight of between 3.5 and 5.5 lbs.

Close up of the NA-338’s receiver (Matthew Moss/TFB)

Nord Arms also had a number of their other weapons on display including their NA-308 and NA-223 rifles. The NA-223 has a 12 inch barrel, weighs 5.7 lbs, is fully ambidextrous and has the same NordLok handguard as the NA-338. You can find out more about the NA-223 here.

The NA-223 (Matthew Moss/TFB)

The example on display at DSEI has some ergonomic refinements when compared to that shown on the Nord Arms site with some changes to the receiver profile, a larger bolt release, and other accessory changes such as the charging handle and pistol grip. Nord Arms also told me that they are finishing up development of their own ultralight, translucent polymer mags.

A close up of the NA-223/556, note the new NA polymer mag, extra large bolt release and shortened selector (Matthew Moss/TFB)

The last weapon on display was their new 9x19mm submachine gun/pistol calibre carbine. With a 12 inch barrel and overall weight of 5.3lbs, the NA-9 feeds from Glock magazines and has a dedicated lower receiver.

The NA-9, PCC or SMG (Matthew Moss/TFB)

Check out Nord Arms’ website here.

Matthew Moss
Matthew Moss – Assistant Editor.

Matt is a British historian specialising in small arms development and military history. He has written for a variety of publications in both the US and UK he also runs www.historicalfirearms.info, a blog that explores the history, development and use of firearms. Matt is also co-founder of www.armourersbench.com, a new video series on historically significant small arms.

Reach Matt at: matt@thefirearmblog.com

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