Meet the Wraith, Houlding Precision Firearms' newest six pound AR-15 (VIDEO)

Houlding Precision Firearms is announcing the new HPF G2L Wraith, an ultralight AR-15 that weighs just 6.2 pounds designed for all-day use with an eye towards competitive shooting. Houlding makes thorough use of carbon fiber to achieve the weigh loss without sacrificing strength or durability.

The Wraith is chambered for 5.56 NATO/.223 Remington, but that’s about the last thing it has in common with your average off-the-shelf AR.

The NMX Handguard and HPF ULStock are composed mainly of carbon fiber. Houlding uses full-thickness carbon fiber for the body of the parts, not just a final wrap for looks, and finishes the handguard and buttstock with machined billet aluminum end caps.

The handguard is mounted onto an extended billet aluminum barrel nut and is of course free-floating. An in-house design, like most of the rifle, the handguard extends all the way to the muzzle and the front cap is slanted to provide as much support as possible when shooting off a barrier. The handguard also has a narrow, octagonal profile to give the user a strong, comfortable grip the full length of the rail.

Early models of the Wraith such as in the photo and review have KeyMod handguards but Houlding has stated that production models will ship with the newer M-Lok modular accessory standard. The handguard does not have a full-length Picatinny rail and instead leaves that option up to the user as far as sights and other 12-o’clock rail accessories with optional rail sections.

HPF G2L Wraith

Production models will ship with M-Lok handguards. Sights and optics not included. (Photo: HPF)

Carbon fiber isn’t the only weight-savings measure as the Wraith is built with a custom bolt carrier group that not only cuts ounces but has the added benefit of low felt recoil. The bolt carrier group is then nickel Teflon treated for lubricity and corrosion resistance.

Combined with the rifle’s mid-length gas system the Wraith is not only lightweight but also a very soft shooter.

One thing that helps in that department is their “Curse” muzzle brake. This brake has been designed specifically for competition shooting with 60-degree offset ports to angle the muzzle blast away from other shooters on the same line while still providing the impulse needed to hold the muzzle in place shot after shot.

The brake rides at the end of a 16-inch match-grade Lothar Walther barrel. With its 1-in-8 twist rate this rifle is geared to shoot a full range of ammo from light to heavy in terms of projectile weights.

The receivers are machined billet aluminum as well, and the upper handguard has an octagonal profile to match the handguard. The lower is multi-caliber marked and has a flared, textured magwell and an integral over-sized trigger guard. Inside the lower is a Geissele Super Dynamic 3 Gun or SD-3G trigger, one of the best in the industry.

Houlding has sourced a few other components from other companies, all made in the US, and they’re great, specifically, Magpul. They use a Magpul MOE+ pistol grip and BAD extended bolt stop lever for even faster reloads.

Not including the carbon fiber which is on prominent display, Houlding uses a combination of MIL-SPEC hard-anodized and Cerakote finishes to ensure that even this rifle’s looks are tough and resilient.

The MSRP for this ultralight practical-tactical rifle is $2,499, but has an introductory price of $1,999. With all the premium components and carbon fiber parts, it would be hard to assemble a similar rifle for less even as a builder.

If you’re looking for a featherweight gun for all-day portability or to dominate your next 3-gun match with, and are willing to open up the coffers a bit, you probably want to put the HPF G2L Wraith on your short list. For more information, visit the Houlding Precision Firearms website.

Latest Reviews

revolver barrel loading graphic

Loading