Sharps Bros Heatseeker bolt action rifle chassis was first introduced in November of 2019 and was initially available only for Howa mini action barreled actions. Back then, the company stated that they were planning to expand the line adding more footprints. Well, the second member of the Heatseeker chassis family has been recently released and it is designed for the Ruger American Rifle. Let’s take a closer look.

The Sharps Bros Heatseeker chassis for Ruger American Rifle is machined out of billet 6061-T6 aluminum. The chassis comes with a 14″ M-LOK handguard made of an aluminum extrusion which shape is exclusive to Sharps Bros. At both ends of side M-LOK slots, there are built-in QD sling swivel sockets.  Both the chassis and handguard are finished with matte black Cerakote. The chassis is compatible with mil-spec AR-15 pistol grips, receiver extensions and stocks. The Heatseeker chassis weighs in at 1 lb 3 oz and the handguard tips the scales at ten ounces.

The Heatseeker Ruger American Rifle chassis shown with Sharp Bros Brazilian Cherry grip & handguard panel set.

This iteration of Sharps Bros Heatseeker chassis is compatible with AICS pattern short action magazines. The company recommends using magazines made by Accuracy International and Magpul. They also note that there may be feeding reliability issues with an early pattern of Magpul AICS magazine followers. You can find a detailed explanation of the follower differences on this product’s page.

The Sharps Bros Heatseeker chassis with the handguard attached.

The installation of the Ruger American Rifle barreled action into the Sharps Bros Heatseeker chassis is a fairly simple process not requiring gunsmithing or permanent changes to the rifle. Here is a video where John Sharps shows the installation process.