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Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera

Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera

Lithgow’s LA105 Woomera is a collaboration with KRG’s X-Ray stock to bring an Australian take on the PRS-type chassis rifle, with crossover potential to all precision shooters. It all begins with a dished 11° crown on the face of the muzzle, which is threaded 5/8”x24 TPI and comes with a thread protector. A triple ported brake is supplied, which screws into position and is locked with an Allen bolt. The rifle is available in .308 or 6.5 Creedmoor (on test) and the barrelled action is Cerakoted for durability. The 24” tube shows a 1:8” twist rate, which is suited to a broad range of bullet weights. The profile taper runs straight from 21.1mm at the muzzle back to the action diameter of nearly 30mm. It shows a matt black finish for minimal reflection and corrosion resistance.

Action facets

Lithgow’s cylindrical action sports facets to both flanks, breaking up the profile, and a subtle logo engraved onto the left-hand side. The bolt has three lugs for a 60° lift, with a plunger ejector and extractor claw in the right-side lug to enthusiastically fling the case from the spacious 81mm ejection port. The 40mm handle is capped with a 20mm diameter spherical knob that shows light, unobtrusive grooves for grip. The design gives the bolt ideal mechanical leverage ratios for fast transit, without any hint of stuttering in motion.

There is a 3-position wing safety that sits on the bolt shroud. Forward for FIRE, middle for SAFE with bolt lock and fully rearward unlocks the bolt so it can be unloaded. This is a little unusual, but functional and quiet in operation.

Trigger adjustability

The Wommera’s single-stage trigger shows a 10mm wide, smooth blade. The pull weight and sear engagement are both adjustable, however, the screws are thread locked at the factory to dissuade the casual twiddler. I measured the pull weight at 1300-grams with a small amount of creep. Lithgow accept adjustment is possible in the instruction manual and I’m open to the fact they err on the side of caution in a litigious culture and appreciate their mindset. As it was, the trigger was easy enough to read and consistent in feel, with an overall adjustment range from 750 to 1900-grams advertised.

The guard is spacious for gloves and an extended, polymer, ambidextrous mag release hangs at the front of the guard to drop the AICS compatible 10-round magazine into your hand. Single rounds dropped on top of the mag through the ejection port loaded straight into the chamber and feed was reliable.

Bedding arrangements

The action and chassis are mated with twin screws fore and aft of the magazine well, with the front screw sitting deep within the assembled forend. The barrel tenon screws into the receiver, making rebarreling possible and shows its threads openly where a recess is cut into the lower face of the action’s cylindrical profile to engage the stock’s recoil lug.

This steel component slots into a pocket on the Aluminium chassis, which is otherwise peppered with holes, threads, stainless steel inserts and other intricate engineering details designed to perfect its performance, whilst saving weight and maintaining stiffness. Machining standards are excellent, with smooth homogenous character to all black anodised components within its spine. The rear action screw locks into a laterally floating socket, dovetailed into the receiver’s underside to further alleviate any mechanical misalignment and consequent bedding stress. The whole aluminium backbone through to the forend is totally stiff, with a fully floating barrel in all conditions. Tallied with the 20 MOA Picatinny rail bolted to the top of the receiver, threaded anchor points are shown at the tip of the 220mm forend. These can be used to attach a barrel bridge for night vision or thermal optical accessories.

Accessorises

Picatinny mounting points are located all over the underside of the forend with Magpul and M-LOK compatibility. The polymer sidewalls offer a degree of textured grip on their railed profile and the whole back end of the chassis shows a similar warm polymer texture.

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Three 9.5mm spacers come with the rifle and these can be used to adjust the length of pull (LOP). In order to fit them, the 25mm rubber butt pad must be removed first. Lithgow has thought this through and supplied screws of varying lengths to ensure all is secure, without any hard spots protruding from the medium-soft recoil pad.

The height of the detachable comb can be adjusted and it can even be swapped around, offering differing comfort profiles from its asymmetric shape, which is a superb factor when personalising any gun. The twin pillars holding the riser both have rubber O-rings on them, a very simple yet effective method of returning it to a chosen position. The right side of the butt shows a polymer locking screw, perhaps a little small as it needs to be tightened firmly for use. The rifle was extremely comfortable, both ergonomically for correct scope clearance and sightline, as well as the fact the cheek piece fits tidily without a resonant ‘ring’ after every shot.

The vertical grip is delivered assembled ‘slim’ as standard, with additional thicker panels and a central spacer supplied if you want more bulk. Quick-release sling anchors are located on either side of the butt and the underside bag rider/hand stop also shows linear adjustment positions to suit your needs.

Stability, reliability and versatility

With all three spacers fitted and a LOP of 14”, I found the rifle comfortable, but suspect some shooters may well want one or two more. I liked the bag rider/ hand stop and was comfortable prone or seated. When used with a Harris bipod, there was a 600mm span between its feet and the rear bag, which was great for stability. I really liked the comb design, finding this one extremely pleasant in comparison to similar peers whose bulk pushes the jaw aside.

The muzzle brake created the usual sharp, snappy crack and pressure wave that envelops the shooter, but that is the price of directing exhaust gasses backwards to diminish recoil and retain a sight picture. However, if you like brakes, Lithgow’s is certainly effective. I also liked the fact it did not need to be removed for cleaning.

The balance point was about 10mm ahead of the barricade stop, so when rested for improvised support, it felt assured, without any additional weight, which some may prefer to add. I didn’t get on wonderfully with the grip, finding the thumb hole through the stock cramped. I don’t consider myself to have particularly large hands and the angled bar rising to the rear from the base of the grip simply doesn’t leave a lot of space, even for my palm and thumb to fit through it, especially with the larger grip panels, but each to their own.

Results

The rifle showed an easily cleaned barrel that fouled minimally throughout the run-in process. 5-round, sub-MOA groups at 100m were no problem from the start and ammunition selection was a matter of preference rather than a necessity.

Consistent high winds through the initial test period limited shooting time at longer ranges with less shelter, but Hornady 147-grain ELD-M match ammunition was developing 2649 FPS with sub 10 FPS consistency at the muzzle and I know this to offer excellent ballistics beyond 100m when required. The barrel showed no generalised point of impact shift through 20- shot strings and its medium/heavy profile had plenty of mass to absorb and dissipate the heat at a relaxed pace.

Conclusion

The Woomera is a fundamentally capable rifle that can easily be customised, depending on the user’s preferences. It comes with an effective brake, an easily cleaned and stable barrel and a notably smart cheek piece design that provides excellent head alignment. I also like that Lithgow is not afraid of offering trigger adjustability on a well-priced rifle intended for precision shooters.

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  • Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera - image {image:count}

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  • Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera - image {image:count}

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  • Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera - image {image:count}

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  • Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera - image {image:count}

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gun
features

  • Name: Lithgow Arms LA105 Woomera
  • Calibre: 6.5 Creedmoor (on test) and .308
  • Twist rate: 1:8”
  • Trigger: Single-Stage, adjustable
  • Magazine: 10-round DM (AICS)
  • Weight: 5.1kg (empty magazine and muzzle brake fitted)
  • Length of pull: 14” including 3 spacers
  • Overall length: 46” (including brake and three spacers)
  • Scope mounting: 20 MOA Picatinny rail
  • Accessories supplied: Grip panels, adjustable hand stop and comb, LOP Spacers, Picatinny rails and a muzzle brake
  • Price: £2364.99
  • Contact: Highland Outdoors - www.highlandoutdoors.co.uk
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