Ruger American....wow, what a piece of crap!

blargon said:
I bought an American in 22wmr at a local store. Polished and deep bluing and fantastic accuracy, but the same plastic stock. The rimfire line must have a better QC group...
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Ordered the Ruger American Compact 22 WMR and then saw this thread and immediately became concerned on my purchase. I received the gun and started to open it expecting the worst piece of crap gun there could possibly be, started feeling it all over, dropped the mag out, ran the action etc almost hoping to find all the issues in this thread. I even called my neighbour to check it out to make sure I wasn't trying hard to convince myself that I made a good purchase. We both agreed it was pretty smooth. Today I shot the gun and to my surprise it was not only accurate but has a very smooth action. I will be one of the few that says the Ruger American at least in the 22 WMR is a great little gun and am very happy with my purchase.
 
rjf1963 said:
Ordered the Ruger American Compact 22 WMR and then saw this thread and immediately became concerned on my purchase. I received the gun and started to open it expecting the worst piece of crap gun there could possibly be, started feeling it all over, dropped the mag out, ran the action etc almost hoping to find all the issues in this thread. I even called my neighbour to check it out to make sure I wasn't trying hard to convince myself that I made a good purchase. We both agreed it was pretty smooth. Today I shot the gun and to my surprise it was not only accurate but has a very smooth action. I will be one of the few that says the Ruger American at least in the 22 WMR is a great little gun and am very happy with my purchase.
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It is the center fire Ruger American rifles that have the problems, mainly with the magazines which seem to be a hit or miss situation. I really like my Ruger American Predator in 308 which I find very accurate and luckily I do have problems with the magazine.My Buddy has a Ruger Ranch rifle in 300 Blackout and he has to turn the rifle upside down in order to get it to feed reliably. It would be nice if Ruger acknowledged the problems with the magazines.
 
For me the fact that the asking prices for these "budget" rifles has jumped up to $800+ in some places is what keeps me away from them.
 
Hitzy said:
On a good note, my $250 Axis in 7mm-08 which has a much better finish, much smoother action, but a similar ####less stock....shot 10's at 100m today round after round using 130gr Speer and 162gr Hornady. I think it's a keeper....ugly as hell though lol.

And the "cheap" .308 I wanted that the Ruger was going to fill, could easily have been replaced with another Axis. But found a nice deal on a Benelli so went that route instead.....no more Rugers for this guy.
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IMHO the Benelli was a good choice.
I was very happy with mine before so sold it.
 
rjf1963 said:
Ordered the Ruger American Compact 22 WMR and then saw this thread and immediately became concerned on my purchase. I received the gun and started to open it expecting the worst piece of crap gun there could possibly be, started feeling it all over, dropped the mag out, ran the action etc almost hoping to find all the issues in this thread. I even called my neighbour to check it out to make sure I wasn't trying hard to convince myself that I made a good purchase. We both agreed it was pretty smooth. Today I shot the gun and to my surprise it was not only accurate but has a very smooth action. I will be one of the few that says the Ruger American at least in the 22 WMR is a great little gun and am very happy with my purchase.
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I purchased the 22 compact rimfire and was pleasantly pleased with it.
I pulled it out of the locker as I thought I owned too many rimfires and was going to put it on my
table for inventory.
I studied it, rolled it over, shouldered it, glanced summore and gave meself a Gibb's..........:slap:

Stuck it back in the locker.

Keeper......:redface:
 
galamb said:
I think it all comes down to "expectation".

I sell, so I handle a lot of Axis, 783, Patriot's and Americans. The group of them is very popular with first time hunters or guys that are finally retiring their Grandfather's old 303.

I point out the quality or lack there of. I point out the sharp edges, the marks in the metal work, the poor blueing, the sloppy bolts, the cheap hollow stocks and in the case of the Axis, the trigger that takes two men and a boy pulling on it to get it to fire. Like seriously, for about 150 more bucks you can get a Model 11 which is a pretty fair "starter rifle".

But "they" don't care. They have an almost non-existent budget for this "tool" that they will use once a year and if the rifle comes with factory glass then all the better. They are going to spend a week with the boys mostly drinking beer and smoking cigars "out in the woods" and if they wake up early enough they are going to sit a stand for deer - at least if it isn't too cold or wet out. Then the rifle is going back in rear of the closet with the mfg supplied trigger lock and will remain forgotten until next year unless they are "busy", then it will be the year after that.

For "them" this "gun" allows them to get away for a week and "do some hunting with the boys". They could care less about fit/finish, quality of the stock, resale value etc - they want something that will go bang and hit what they aim at (with the cheapest box of shells they could find).

That is the "typical" guy who buys one of these and it's over 80% of the type of guys buying any gun where I work. For every X-Bolt or Mod 70 that goes out the door, 4 Axis go through the register. That's what "typical guys" buy so while I might order a couple of model 16 Savages in my order there will a couple of dozen Axis on that same order sheet - that's just the reality.

The majority guys/gals that frequent this forum "love guns" - they like to look at them, fondle them, take them apart, play with them and shoot them a lot. They want a nicely finished, quality product. The consider "value for the money" over "price" so they see the "value" in a Vanguard II or a T3 even through they could have bought 2 or 3 "budget rifles" for the same price. But I would suggest that "that type of owner" is NOT typical - most guys just don't care - at least not the one opening their wallets on a daily basis right now...
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We're not all one-or-the-other. I LOVE guns, and consider myself a true gun nut like most of the people around here, but I am also a fulltime student, with kids and a wife on disability. Buying a $1000 rifle is simply not in the cards right now. I dropped about $235 for my Axis XP(after mail in rebate), and at that sort of price I would recommend them to everyone, all day, every day. For that sort of price, they are amazing rifles.

bearkilr said:
It's 2016. A Bic Mac meal at McDonald's costs $10, a dozen eggs $3.50, a good steak $15, a tank of gas $100, a new truck $45,000+.
Why people expect to get a quality new firearm for $400 is beyond me.
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2.5 dozen eggs is only $6 at costco, if you are smart you'll buy roasts and cut them into steaks, and get good steaks for $5 a piece, and if a tank of gas costs $100 then you drive a fullsize truck - my ford Escape only takes $60 to fill. And a new Ford F150 starts at under $26000.

So for people who seem the need to spend $50 000 on a truck and $15 on a steak, then I guess expecting a good rifle for $400 is crazy. For those of us who know how to find a deal or be thrifty, $400 is a lot of money to get a rifle. Hell, for $400 I got my Axis, a beat up Enfield sporter, and a box of ammo for each one. (granted, this was 2 years ago, you'd probably be looking at $500 in todays weak dollars.)

Barnes_270 said:
What I don't get is why guys don't just pick up a good quality used gun - get a Parker Hale, BSA, or similar. They can be had for the same price as these new budget rifles, they come with real metal and wood, and the quality is light years ahead. Even the old 303 sporter is a better made rifle. Sometimes progress isn't progress.
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You are absolutely right. You can get a very nice used gun for a very reasonable price. I've noticed the resale market has not been effected nearly as much as the retail market, so I'll be buying used rifles for the immediate future. There are a few milsurps on my list that I want to pick up soon before they get too expensive (K31, Swiss mauser in 6.5x55, an 8mm mauser of some sort (chek ones are still pretty cheap...) otherwise I have been getting very interested in some of the older Parker Hale, BSA, ect rifles that I've seen on the EE. I've always wanted a 7mm rem mag...

The problem with that is people - especially new gun owners, who dont know much - are weary about going the used route. Without knowing what to look for in a used gun, it is hard to know whether it is a good purchase or not. On top of that, there is always the worry that you are going to buy someone elses headache, and end up with a gun that has issues. If your brand new gun has issues, most stores will try to make it right, or at the least you've got a warranty. If you buy a used gun with issues, there isn't much you can do about it.
 
I can't knock my Axis too much now that I've put some rounds down it. Feeds reliably, shoots accurately, light and handy. Certainly not the most durable rifle you can buy, but if you can snag one for $300 or less it's a good buy. I'd put it way ahead of the Ruger for value for your dollar.
 
I would have taken it back or ship it back, I bought 2- 243"s one left hand and one right and mine do not look like yours at all. I thought for under $400 they are OK. finish decent , trigger good, accuracy under an inch for both.
 
Huh. My American in .308 is actually quite accurate; surprisingly so. I had it out recently and fired about 50 rounds of odds and sods--reloading leftovers--and put all rounds into a a couple of inches at 100 yards while shooting off the bench braced only by my elbows. I haven't formally checked accuracy beyond sighting it in after it arrived and deciding that getting about an inch from a rest was acceptable for it's intended purpose.
 
What I find so interesting about threads like this is that forty years ago the same people who say that all modern Ruger Products are junk (i.e no CRF), where as before they were just wonderful, would have been complaining that they were junk because they had investment cast receivers! In the past when Ruger produced "quality items" they often had problems because Ruger did not make the barrels and it was a hit and miss situation, unlike the present were Ruger makes there own hammer forged barrels. I have a Ruger American Predator in 308 which is one of the most accurate rifles I have ever owned, also it is quite light in weight at 6.3 lbs, so putting a heavier scope on it does not make the combination to heavy to carry while hunting (One peeve I have with most gun manufacturers is that they do not post the actual weight of a rifle in different calibers, which often varies considerably, Ruger does)
 
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