Ruger Hawkeye African or Savage Alaskan Brush Hunter or Model 70 Alaskan

BigUglyMan said:
I've used the Ruger African and it treated me very well. I like the Ruger ring system over any other scope mounting system on the market (except Talley Lightweights on light rifles). I prefer the Winchester action to the Ruger but only by a small margin. Winchester would be my first choice, then the Ruger.
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Can agree with this, I used to lean to Model 70 and own twice as many Rugers, had trouble explaining why and still recommended Winchesters by a hair over Ruger. Then I looked at why I was buying and using more Rugers, so my opinion's very close to BUM's I just tip slightly in favour of Ruger.

-Ruger has a far better floorplate release, in fact the best in the business and better than even Mauser's bow release. Never accidentally dislodged, never hurts cold fingers like trying to depress the Winchester "button".

-The M77 / Ruger's safety you can see visibly blocking the firing mechanism, it's a more substantial set up than Winchester's even if they invented the three position wing.

-The rings / mounts are the best in the business, and included free.

-I prefer Ruger's stock lines.

-Ruger seems to offer more unique models, and more stainless models, and more unique chamberings than anyone else (.257 Roberts, .300 H&H, .375 H&H, 6.5 Creedmore, .475 Linebaugh, .357 & .44 Mag bolt actions, 6.5x55, 7x57 etc etc). Yes the No.1 is home to a good few of those, but just a taste of the chambering diversity vs Winchester's bland line up.

-Rugers are tougher, with their one piece bolts (Winchester uses a pressed on handle to the bolt body), and nonetheless are usually about the same weight as the Winchesters.

So after all that time touting Winchesters, I came out of the cabinet as a died in the wool Ruger guy.
 
Ardent said:
-The M77 / Ruger's safety you can see visibly blocking the firing mechanism, it's a more substantial set up than Winchester's even if they invented the three position wing.
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Just to be thorough about nit-picking rifle actions;

The Winchester safety blocks the firing pin in both the middle and rear positions.

The Ruger MkII safety only blocks the trigger in the middle position and it only blocks the cocking piece in the rear position, not the firing pin itself.

If the crosspin fails or more likely, the firing pin breaks where the crosspin is drilled through, the firing pin falls. The Winchester safety grabs the firing pin itself and there is no hole through the pin to weaken it.

Ruger also left out the bolt sleeve lock like the 98 pattern and Model 70's use, instead relying on a small detent notch that the bolt sleeve nose sits in. This works of course, but it IS possible to knock the sleeve and cause it to rotate and drop with the bolt open. Mauser felt this was important enough to machine a very elaborate locking system to prevent this. So did Springfield/Winchester.

The Ruger Mark II safety is in no way 'more substantial' than the Model 70.

All this to say what many have said before, every 'redesign' and 'improvement' over the basic Mauser 98 design was an improvement in economics for the company only.
 
The stock on the Ruger African is prone to splitting in the inlet between the mag well and trigger mechanism, it's a known problem if you do a search. I had one that did this in 375 Ruger.
Perhaps it's been rectified on current models or can be avoided with a proper bedding job before firing, that I don't know as I installed an HS Precision stock after.

I would also strongly lean toward the Winchester. I wouldn't even consider the Savage out of the three choices.
 
rgv said:
Just to be thorough about nit-picking rifle actions;

The Winchester safety blocks the firing pin in both the middle and rear positions.

The Ruger MkII safety only blocks the trigger in the middle position and it only blocks the cocking piece in the rear position, not the firing pin itself.

If the crosspin fails or more likely, the firing pin breaks where the crosspin is drilled through, the firing pin falls. The Winchester safety grabs the firing pin itself and there is no hole through the pin to weaken it.

Ruger also left out the bolt sleeve lock like the 98 pattern and Model 70's use, instead relying on a small detent notch that the bolt sleeve nose sits in. This works of course, but it IS possible to knock the sleeve and cause it to rotate and drop with the bolt open. Mauser felt this was important enough to machine a very elaborate locking system to prevent this. So did Springfield/Winchester.

The Ruger Mark II safety is in no way 'more substantial' than the Model 70.

All this to say what many have said before, every 'redesign' and 'improvement' over the basic Mauser 98 design was an improvement in economics for the company only.
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Fair clarity, and I'm sure we both agree there is no deficiency with the Ruger M77 Mark II / Hawkeye's safety.

Still with that considered Ruger gives you a true 1 piece bolt rather than a pressed on handle, better mounts / rings (they're free, and quick detach from the factory), far superior floorplate release, and to me more interesting chambering choices.

This said, I still really like Winchesters and own em, Ruger just has the edge for me.
 
I Bought back my old Ruger african that sits in a HS precision stock the other day to replace my savage which is now forsale ;) any takers Ardent..... supercub???? lol just kidding. Go with the ruger or win and never look back!!!!
 
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The Rugers do have stock problems, splitting with all calibers from 300 WM up. Serious and significant problems!! The Winchester, from your list of choices, is far and away a winner followed by the Ruger with the caveat that the stock be pinned and bedded before firing and then.................................................What's a Savage?

Super Cub...........more like a Lada
 
The RUger and the Savage use the superior 375 Ruger cartridge, which is a big plus, but both the Ruger and the Winchester are very good rifles. I have no issues with Savages, they are excellent rifles for their price point, but they aren't in the same class as the Ruger or the Winchester. I'd go for whichever you like the best between the 2 CRF actions.
 
Gatehouse said:
The RUger and the Savage use the superior 375 Ruger cartridge, which is a big plus,.
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Ahh, Gatehouse and the 375 Ruger. You come around like flies on sh*t at the first opportunity to type that caliber into your post. d:h: V:I:

OK, I'll bite. At what point did the 375 come into the equation here? The OP is asking about the 338 WM, which everyone knows is far more versatile for North American hunting than the 375-soon-to-be-joining-the-obsolete-caliber-list Ruger

This is especially true for those of us who don't need to hide our inadequacies by constantly promoting calibers we can't actually handle. :D :nest:
 
bearkilr said:
Ahh, Gatehouse and the 375 Ruger. You come around like flies on sh*t at the first opportunity to type that caliber into your post. d:h: V:I:

OK, I'll bite. At what point did the 375 come into the equation here? The OP is asking about the 338 WM, which everyone knows is far more versatile for North American hunting than the 375-soon-to-be-joining-the-obsolete-caliber-list Ruger

This is especially true for those of us who don't need to hide our inadequacies by constantly promoting calibers we can't actually handle. :D :nest:
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My sincerest apologies. I read the title and didn't notice that the OP had specified 338WM. I am sure that the internet is overwhelmed with gratitude that you were able to find a discrepancy in my post.

Regardless of cartridges, my choice in the rifles listed is still the same.

Once again- A deep, heartfelt apology for the cartridge mix up, and thanks for your efforts. Without your input with the cartridge selection, I am sure that the OP would not have been able to make an educated choice in rifle.
 
Gatehouse said:
My sincerest apologies. I read the title and didn't notice that the OP had specified 338WM. I am sure that the internet is overwhelmed with gratitude that you were able to find a discrepancy in my post.

Regardless of cartridges, my choice in the rifles listed is still the same.

Once again- A deep, heartfelt apology for the cartridge mix up, and thanks for your efforts.Without your input with the cartridge selection, I am sure that the OP would not have been able to make an educated choice in rifle.
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Sometimes it helps to read the first post. :cheers:
 
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