Ruger Scout...the good, bad and the ugly

Hey, about that bolt action -- Is that a normal thing, then, for Rugers to be 'rough' or 'coarse' in actioning? I mentioned elsewhere, the local CanduTire store has a left handed .270 Ruger, and while the rifle itself was quite comfy to hold, that action feeling like two pieces of sandpaper bothered me - a LOT. To me, a bolt should be smooth, firm and crisp - IE, Enfield firm or Tula crisp. Am I hearing it correctly that Rugers are normally rough??

Also - why in the world would anyone gripe about the weight of a centerfire, especially a heavy caliber one? The more weight the gun is, the less makes it to your shoulder; so Ive been taught... I would much rather a 10 or 15 pound rifle that doesnt beat the stuffing out of my shoulder than a 5 pounder that tries to rip it off...
 
NorthernMopar said:
Hey, about that bolt action -- Is that a normal thing, then, for Rugers to be 'rough' or 'coarse' in actioning? I mentioned elsewhere, the local CanduTire store has a left handed .270 Ruger, and while the rifle itself was quite comfy to hold, that action feeling like two pieces of sandpaper bothered me - a LOT. To me, a bolt should be smooth, firm and crisp - IE, Enfield firm or Tula crisp. Am I hearing it correctly that Rugers are normally rough??

Also - why in the world would anyone gripe about the weight of a centerfire, especially a heavy caliber one? The more weight the gun is, the less makes it to your shoulder; so Ive been taught... I would much rather a 10 or 15 pound rifle that doesnt beat the stuffing out of my shoulder than a 5 pounder that tries to rip it off...
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.308 is far, far from a heavy caliber. Funny enough, the very entry level American has a smoother bolt than any M77 I've ever tried..
 
I want one.

I`ve been looking for a short left-handed, bolt action .308 with iron sights for a long time now. The Ruger Scout seems to be the best candidate I can find so far. Even the scout scope idea appeals to me. I need all the peripheral view I can get...

I hear all of the downsides, and none of them really turn me off.

Now... someone want to help me locate one of these in Lefty? Preferably in around the Ottawa area? Pretty please?
 
NorthernMopar said:
Hey, about that bolt action -- Is that a normal thing, then, for Rugers to be 'rough' or 'coarse' in actioning? I mentioned elsewhere, the local CanduTire store has a left handed .270 Ruger, and while the rifle itself was quite comfy to hold, that action feeling like two pieces of sandpaper bothered me - a LOT. To me, a bolt should be smooth, firm and crisp - IE, Enfield firm or Tula crisp. Am I hearing it correctly that Rugers are normally rough??

Also - why in the world would anyone gripe about the weight of a centerfire, especially a heavy caliber one? The more weight the gun is, the less makes it to your shoulder; so Ive been taught... I would much rather a 10 or 15 pound rifle that doesnt beat the stuffing out of my shoulder than a 5 pounder that tries to rip it off...
Click to expand...

I had a .338 Ruger 77 MK II briefly, and in spite of hours of polishing the raceways, I could never get that action smoothed out. Especially rapid fire drills from the shoulder, it would always bind. Would start to think I was making progress, then I'd compare it to my Mausers, and have to start all over again. That along with the muzzle break is why it went down the road.

The older I get the less I like heavy rifles. You'll carry a rifle a lot more than you'll shoot it, and anything much over 8 lbs gets to be pretty obnoxious by the end of the week. There's no need for a rifle in the .30-06 class to weigh more than 7-7 1/2 lbs. For all the talk of recoil, even my 7 3/4 lb. 9.3x62 kicks a lot less than the average 12 ga. shotgun.

As for the Ruger Scout, all things considered, I'd rather have a Jungle Carbine.
 
9.3mauser said:
As for the Ruger Scout, all things considered, I'd rather have a Jungle Carbine.
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Funny you say that. I was really looking at the scout rifles and compact bolt actions for a while and realized I could get all the options in a 7.5 pound rifle for $350. So I found one and couldn't be happier. Might not be quite as ###y but the deer don't care.
 
trykillthis said:
Funny you say that. I was really looking at the scout rifles and compact bolt actions for a while and realized I could get all the options in a 7.5 pound rifle for $350. So I found one and couldn't be happier. Might not be quite as ###y but the deer don't care.
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But... but... but.... the deer will all laugh at you if you have an ugly gun. Laugh2
 
best rifle I have,

Dont see issue with mags, weight... not a issue, if your a boy and cant carry a rifle, get a plastic water gun. Its not like full wood en fields are any lighter.

Action is fine as soonest you can understand, 2 motions not 1, pull up, then back. To complicated for NutnFancy.

It is a tractor of rifles. You can fight with it, heavy enough to take someone out just with the stock. Its a AK47 of bolt action rifles that are produced new, not from old surplus stocks.
 
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Sold my heavy Ruger and replaced it with a Browning Xbolt Micro Hunter 308. They are reliable but then so is a lot of other stuff out there.
 
I'm a fan of the scout concept...I had a Savage Scout, sold it when I got my Steyr Scout. I'm also a fan of Rugers in general, have always owned at least a couple of M77's and a few 10/22's.

Nevertheless, the Ruger Scout has NO appeal to me whatsoever. Ugly as a brick. Way too heavy...and don't spout off about "manning up" or working out. I have no issue with carrying a heavy gun when the chambering calls for it, but this thing is a .308, ferrchrissake, not a .458Lott! I have one of those, and at 10 pounds it is quite shootable. A measly .308 should be much lighter.

How about scope mounting? You can mount a scout scope in Weaver/Picatinny rings, but if you want the conventional type of scope you will be using Ruger rings, AND you will need to remove the rear sight. An inelegant solution to a simple problem.

If you want a scout rifle (and that really only makes sense if you intend to use it with a scout scope) I think the Savage version is a far better gun, for less money. It still requires you to remove the rear sight to mount a conventional scope, but it has a better trigger, is lighter, is very accurate and, as mentioned, costs way less. It's not a Steyr, but it's a great value for money spent.
 
jjohnwm said:
How about scope mounting? You can mount a scout scope in Weaver/Picatinny rings, but if you want the conventional type of scope you will be using Ruger rings, AND you will need to remove the rear sight. An inelegant solution to a simple problem.
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Wrong.

My scout works fine with a picatinny mounted scope AND keeping the ghost backups. just have to think out of the box.

See my mount system here:
i-3wFH7XH-M.jpg


i-KDq5xHS-M.jpg
 
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Coho said:
Wrong.

My scout works fine with a picatinny mounted scope AND keeping the ghost backups. just have to think out of the box.

See my mount system here:
http://coho911.smugmug.com/Hobbies/Firearms-photos/20580221_Tsnt8P#!i=2031618044&k=KDq5xHS

http://coho911.smugmug.com/Hobbies/Firearms-photos/20580221_Tsnt8P#!i=2031615564&k=3wFH7XH&lb=1&s=A
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That is a slick solution, and I assume that the mount is quick-release? That would allow you to switch back and forth between this scope and a scout scope, also mounted in QR rings. It's pretty high, but your cheekpad probably takes care of that issue.

But if this is your permanent set-up for this gun, I must ask: why get the scout rifle in the first place? Any compact bolt action would fill the bill. This seems a bit like buying knee-high rubber boots, and then punching holes in them to keep your feet cool. Just buy the sandals in the first place!:)
 
Coho said:
Wrong.

My scout works fine with a picatinny mounted scope AND keeping the ghost backups. just have to think out of the box.
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A 9lb scout rifle?

Rifle.......................................... 7lbs
Scope........................................12.7 Oz
cantilever mount.........................8 Oz
Sling.........................................4 Oz
Buttstock Shell Holder and Pouch..4-6 Oz
 
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