The lower receiver is milled from a solid block of 6061-T aluminum and hard coated. I'm no metallurgist, so I checked with Remington's Linda Powell, who told me the hard coating is a type of anodizing that increases the surface hardness of the aluminum. Prior to coating, 6061-T registers 1 to 2 on the Rockwell C hardness scale; after coating it's in the 60 to 70 range.

The upper receiver is 6066-T aluminum and is likewise hard-coated. The free-float tube, made of machined aluminum, is ventilated for maximum heat dissipation. The bolt is machined out of heat-treated 8620 steel and features a black phosphate coating.

The Mossy Oak Treestand camouflage finish on the A-2 Zytel stock--as well as the upper, lower and free-float tube--is accomplished through a dipping process that applies a film to the parts.

The stock's vertical pistol grip features a finger shelf, which I found helps get the firing hand in the proper position surely and quickly. The butt incorporates the standard hinged trapdoor lid that opens to reveal a compartment originally designed to hold a military cleaning kit, which is not included.

A captive pin at the rear of the upper receiver pushes out easily, allowing the upper to pivot forward on the front pin to permit easy access to the bolt and trigger group. With the upper receiver pivoted forward, simply pull back on the charging handle and draw it to the rear; the bolt carrier group slides out for easy cleaning.

The day after I took my blackbuck, Danny and I chased black Hawaiian sheep in the hot Texas sun for close to an hour, threading through thick cover and running up, down and across a hill in an attempt to cut them off. During this, I discovered that the rifle--which is fairly heavy for a hunting gun at 83/4 pounds sans scope--carries fine slung over the shoulder, and the short barrel keeps it from hanging up on brush.

The only other carry option I found comfortable, though, was a modified port arms with the sling behind my upper arm, using the sling tension to relieve some of the weight. The rear sling swivel stud has two sets of holes to accommodate standard and tactical-style slings, but all I had was the nylon-web strap sling I usually hunt with and was unable to experiment with other carry styles.

There's no way to single-hand carry it because ARs are too deep through the receiver, and the R-25's flat top dispenses with the carry handle--as do many ARs these days, especially those intended for hunting.

However, the rifle comes up nicely, and there's little recoil. That, coupled with the overall design, allows quick follow-up shots. When we finally caught up to my Hawaiian black ram, he was mixed in with a motley crew of exotics--Hawaiian blacks, Texas Dalls and the weird-looking four-horn sheep--and they were moving off at a trot not quite 100 yards away.

I focused on a good black ram on the right edge of the herd and began follow him in the scope, hoping he'd give me a look at his shoulder as the band moved off. He did for a second, but I rushed the shot and missed. At the noise, the whole band turned and started running to the right. The black ram made the mistake of hesitating for a second, giving me a broadside standing shot, and I dropped him with a 180-grain Core-Lokt.