I have always preferred the hinged floorplate over a detachable magazine in a centerfire rifle. Mostly for the reasons already stated. I have one 30-06 with a DM, and the only reason I keep it is because it is "crazy" accurate, and I really hate getting rid of very accurate rifles. [No, it is NOT a Tikka T3!] Buy the Ruger, it will serve you well. Regards, Eagleye.
Ruger rifles
- Thread starter longarm28
- Start date
I have a leftie stainless Ruger in 30-06 and prefer the heavier lam stock for a bit of recoil absorbtion. After about 100 rounds it smoothed right out and is pretty slick now. I originally wanted a DM too but have had no problem with the floor plate and I dont have to clean junk out of it either. DMs can tend to collect debris eventually. All around solid gun and reliable as sin. I had a good smith adjust the trigger to 3lbs and stopped messing with it then. At the time I bought it the Ruger was the only thing available anywhere and it has given minute of angle out of the box. I prefer a heavier built rifle for a larger cal and the T3, although it had a DM just didnt appeal. Looks too Euro for me. Yes the stocks are thick but that is easily dealt with too. Sure is a lot of them around.
My hunting style demands I load and unload once or twice a day- Or on extended trips in the bush- Never, unless I want to fiddle with my rifle, which I do at times, and then it is in camp, so a floorplate is not an issue. I don't get in and out of trucks repeatedly through the day, where a detach mag might save 30 or 40 seconds loading and unloading.
Drawbacks to detachable mags include getting lost or damaged (unlikely with a hinged floorplate) and also, some detach magazines you can not "top up" from an open bolt- Like the T3. Also, some detach mags rattle quite a bit, and some are just abortions, like the A-Bolt "hinged floorplate detach mag over engineered POS"
I like to keep my rifles in a state of "semi readiness" which to me is a hinged floorplate, and a Butler Creek sling with cartridge loops. When I pick up the rifle, I have one unit, with 4 cartridges ready to load. I don't have 2 units (rifle and magazine)
I like to keep things simple, and since I rarely have to make quick reloads in a hunting rifle after emptying the magazine of 4 cartridges, I don't need to pack around extra magazines to reload the rifle.
Detach magazines make it easier for someone that loads and unloads often, or I suppose for someone that shoots alot and rarely hits, but wants to reload fast, I've just never found it necessary, while I *do* find it necessary to pick up a fully functioning, one unit rifle.
Detach mags work great for those that like them, but they are not a "better" system than the hinged floorplate, just a different system.
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I have recently purchased a Ruger African in .375 Ruger. T3 lites have murderous recoil in a 300 win mag. I cant imagine what a .375 would be like. Chiropractic service for a year? Detached testicle?
Naw, it just becomes a Ruger No.1 then...Only, without the class...
fair assesment, i suppose, but walking around with one in the tube might get the safety nazi's hackles up. Loading a single shot that was designed for a mag (the t3, with its smaller ejection port, comes to mind) can be a prick at the best of times. When that book deer is staring you down and you are wearing gloves, it is a bit more undesireable.
great budget guns nasty recoil ouch
nasty nasty nastyI have recently purchased a Ruger African in .375 Ruger. T3 lites have murderous recoil in a 300 win mag. I cant imagine what a .375 would be like. Chiropractic service for a year? Detached testicle?
Sounds like I stirred the pot over the DM/latched preference. At our camp, in Central Ontario, we are in and out of camp several times a day, crossing roads, hitching rides on quads, etc. In this case a DM is convenient. My house is 6 miles from camp, so I could easily recover from a mag issue.
If I was doing some serious wilderness hunts involving hiking on rough terrain, then the preference would sway to the latched floorplate.
If I was doing some serious wilderness hunts involving hiking on rough terrain, then the preference would sway to the latched floorplate.
LOL Its a boys choir gun. The Ruger African seems fairly light as well. I should have bought a Sako H and H.
Stop putting the rifle on your balls when shooting, and you'll be OK.
1. Cheap plastic that costs about $100 to replace.
2. Can't single load from the top.
3. Hinged floorplates generally have a slicker appearance.
4. Volume of fire is unimportant in a hunting rifle. If you need a fast reload, you're doing it all wrong!
Why would you think that the Sako in .375H&H would be any lighter recoiling? You should have known that buying a .375 is a stomper no matter what rifle it is chambered in. Check out Chuck Hawks Rifle Recoil Table for a reference. The H&H is practically the same recoil.......
Is that rifle going to the EE soon, it may make a nice companion to my Alaskan. I always did like wood and blued metal guns..........
Seriously isn't the 'plastic' argument getting a little old by now? First off it is not just 'plastic' but a copolymer polypropylene and not the cheap plastic your kids toys are made of. Secondly, I don't see the Glock boys complaining about plastic , or the the AR guys complaining about plastic mags, or even myself with my Ruger Mini-14 mags I have.
/cl
Not at all. I'm not arguing that plastics can't do the job, but rather that they look and feel cheap and nasty. If they're going to make magazines out of synthetics, they should cost far less than they do.
Synthetics work fine for pistol frames, but I prefer metal for my own use. While I happen to like ARs, my taste in hunting type rifles is extremely conservative. I want both from and function. Guns aren't just tools to me, but objects of aesthetic enjoyment.
Honestly, I can't see why Tikka T3s command a premium price; they're essentially the Finnish equivalent of a Savage with more marketing hype. If you're going to buy a push-feed, synthetic stocked rifle, you might as well save a few hundred bucks and get the rifle that can be loaded from the top.
