Perfect Union banner
9K views 25 replies 18 participants last post by  scubadad 
#1 · (Edited)
I just saw the new Outdoor Life magazine with the new rifle test, there was a good article about the new Ruger 308 scout rifle. It made the editor favorite!
 
#2 ·
It seems like a sweet little rifle, but for the price would I be happy with any quality 308 bolt? Seems a few hundred more dollars gets you a clip and a 16 " barrel with a muzzle fh/comp. I like it, but am not sold. I'm wanting a 308 bolt, i may spent the same money, but I'm just not sure.
 
#4 ·
I am undecided on the ruger scout, it seems like a niche rifle. From what I heard, the price in the $700 range.

For $700, I could buy a marlin 336 and a ruger 10/22. Then I could have 2 rifles for the price of a single ruger scout.
That Marlin is a beautiful rifle. Not having shot one, the only real advantage I see in the Ruger Scout is that it has a magazine that is easier to load. What I mean by that really is that you can carry several extra magazines with you. I guess that isn't so imperative for hunting, just for ninja warriors :ph34r:
 
#7 ·
Actually, I doubt LtCol Cooper would like it all that much, less so that it deliberately ignores several key points of the concept while claiming to be the ultimate embodiment of his vision. It's actually a huge disappointment, especially for the $$$. They really just cobbled it together out of the parts bin, and the places where they spent money were exactly the wrong places.

1) It only barely makes max weight, but could easily have made ideal weight with proper stocking and ditching the stupid detachable magazine. But Ruger already had the laminated stock in the parts bin, so they used it. And big detachable mags on bolt rifles are currently very tacticool, so they spent a bunch of $ to have one.

2) It makes length only by use of an excessively short barrel, thus reducing muzzle velocity. Cooper settled on 19 inches as ideal. Apparently, it was too much trouble for Ruger to make a run of 19 inch barrels for their flagship rifle, and, well, they don't actually have a .308 barrel of 18 - 20" length in their parts bin, so they just went with the closest thing, even though it isn't even close. Good enough, right?

3) The only possible gain for this loss is a threaded muzzle for suppressor attachment, which maybe 1% of the owners are going to do. Ruger could have threaded that (nonexistent) 19" barrel and put a thread protector on it; the rare owner who has a suppressor is taken care of and the rest of us have 19" worth of velocity, but, well, flash hiders are black and a Tier 1 gun has to have one. And besides, the 16" barrel needs a flash hider, 'cause it's really short, see? Ah, OK now I get it: you now have a barrel as long as a proper 19" barrel, but with all the reduced velocity and increased blast of a 16" barrel. Genius, pure genius.

4) There is no provision for a 3-point sling, nor is a CW or Ching sling provided. Sure, you can install a 3rd swivel yourself, and buy or make a 3-point sling, but this is Ruger's flagship rifle that's missing a critical part of the concept.

5) The detachable magazine is another superfluous, weight-and-bulk-increasing "feature" that goes against the concept. Closely tied to this is the lack of any provision for loading from stripper clips. Stripper clip loading of the existing, perfectly fine, internal double-stack Hawkeye magazine could (and should) have been done for less $ than dithering about changing to an expensive single-stack magazine. It would not even have been necessary to modify the rear receiver bridge: incorporating a clip guide into the rear sight would have been far cheaper than modifying the action for an expensive detachable magazine, and certainly more effective. One can buy hundreds of USGI stripper clips for the price of one of these magazines. Anyone who has stripper clip loaded a Mauser or '03 Springfield magazine knows it can be done as fast as changing a detachable magazine. Any hope that Ruger would make a rear sight/clip guide combo (which they could easily also make in 5.56 NATO and 7.62x39 stripper clip flavors) is dashed by the use of a single-stack mag that can't be loaded from clips.

A huge, gigantic part of the scout concept is to have a rifle that is handy. Cooper wrote at length about being able to carry the scout with the hand wrapped around the action, just as you would carry an iron-sighted lever-action. He stressed the advantages of a slim receiver and forward scope to achieve that end, even suggesting that a 3-round magazine would be advantageous. Nobody at Ruger remembered that part, because they have a really big, bulky magazine protruding exactly where it shouldn't.

Ruger were very close to a rifle that embodied the scout concept with their now-discontinued Frontier, but went all "tacticool" and added a bunch of junk that detracts from the rifle, while ignoring things that would really be useful.
 
#8 ·
Yep what he said....but it is fun.



Agreed.... all that aside they are selling ALOT or it seems.
Ruger® M77® Hawkeye® Tactical Bolt-Action Rifle Models
These are larger and no box mag, which are the Ruger price (of course)
They basically made this "tacticool" and added a box magazine Ruger® M77® Hawkeye® Compact Bolt-Action Rifle Models
I do like the similar iron sights like the mini's have plus it has the rail. (iron sights)Which Ruger has seemed to avoid on most rifle as some seem to hate or dislike iron sights. I think iron sight should always be on a rifle heading into a WROL or teotwawki or a shtf world. They get a plus for that!
Ruger® Gunsite Scout Rifle Models
They are a niche gun and they are a gunsite rifle as the name implies. They do work well and are Ruger tough and Ruger quality. I enjoy mine even with all the "short" comings stated in these above posts.
It is a 7lbs bolt gun that has good iron sights and it has a detachable magazine. There are worse $700ish dollar guns that you could spend money on. If you like Rugers you will probably like it, alot. It is 308 :) so untill we get a 308 mini...it might have to do... You could do worse?
 
#9 ·
What is it for?

Well the detractors and promoters notwithstanding - It is supposed to be a "General Purpose" rifle which can mean what ever you want it to + or - .

The idea behind it is that if you could have only one rifle, to serve multiple purposes, in various scenarios, this is the one to have.

It is a very rugged, handy and well designed rifle for the $$ and seems to fit the needs of many if the sales are any indication.

IMO it is also a good complement to other .308s one might own (like semi-autos or bench rifles). Personally I like to keep my caliber variations to a minimum.

If you appreciate the Scout concept, don't want/need a super sniper precision rifle, and want a reliable, practical bolt gun, this one might be the ticket.
 
#21 ·
Well the detractors and promoters notwithstanding - It is supposed to be a "General Purpose" rifle which can mean what ever you want it to + or - .
The idea behind it is that if you could have only one rifle, to serve multiple purposes, in various scenarios, this is the one to have.
I'll agree, this rifle can be used in a number of roles.
I sure like mine .....:D

Lateck,
 
#11 ·
I think a lot of folks are forgetting two key things with the Cooper/scout ideas:

1- Cooper laid out the idea of the scout rifle as a very vague, loose concept for others to follow and/or modify as they saw fit. His own personal scout rifles were often lever actions, which are totally outside of the box that many others put his ideas in.

2- Cooper was a great man, but he was not infallible, and his ideas are decades old. It may be that he simply never even considered a detachable mag for a bolt action simply because such a thing had never crossed his mind.

I personally think the RGSR is a good rifle. I wish they made other calibers, I would prefer a fixed mag that can be loaded with stripper clips or one rd at a time, and I would like to see a rear mounted scope option that does not require removing the iron sights... But that ain't what they made, and as far as I know, no one else makes that either.

Honestly, I think if Cooper were alive today he would love the RGSR... But his opinion alone should not make you buy or not buy one.
 
#12 ·
Detachable Magazines

"Cooper was a great man, but he was not infallible, and his ideas are decades old. It may be that he simply never even considered a detachable mag for a bolt action simply because such a thing had never crossed his mind."

^^^ Since Cooper helped design, and endorsed, the Steyr Scout Rifle that has a detatchable box magazine, I think we can put that notion to rest.

The Steyr Scout Rifle Page
 
#22 ·
I think the biggest problem with the GSR is YOU CAN'T FIND ONE! None of the dealers I work with can even get one. Heck Gunbroker only has left handed versions last I checked. (Just the other day.)
I would get one in a heartbeat if I could find one.

Sent from my Ally using Tapatalk
 
#24 ·
I've also got to say that I consider my Armalite AR-10A-4SPR to be the best Scout/Sniper/Tactical/Hunting/ All Around Best rifle I have ever owned. With the SWFA SS 10X Scope on it I can reach out to 1K Meters easily and with the flip up BUIS I can use it for a standard MBR if needed. It helps that it shoots less than MOA even with my old disabled ass at the controls as well.
 
#25 ·
Its a Hell of a deer slayer!!! Two very close friends own Scouts and love them. They picked them up after using my M77 Hawkeye in 30.06, which is my favorite rifle for large game. I also have some reservations, but in the most part i love the handling of the rifle.

We have had discussions about how interesting it would be if Ruger came out with a Scout in .233/5.56 or 7.62 that could use the Mini magazines as well. This would give you and a family member / friend options with two rifles that use the same ammo and magazines.

This is my Buddy and His first Buck ever, beautiful at that! It scored 160 and was shot with his Scout, this Nov 2011. He liked the compact feel of the rifle, the traditional scope position and the magazine option over a Hawkeye. To each their own...

 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top