Over the years, I have had a number of scoped hunting rifles, Ruger Model 77 in .308, Remington 700 in .308, even a Remington 700 PSS .308 (Police) rifle with a Leupold Varix-III Tactical scope. All were good hunting rifles, the Remington 700 PSS was an extremely accurate (but heavy) target rifle, but somehow they got away from me.
Every shooter needs a good scoped rifle, I prefer a .308 or 30/06 as reloading components are plentiful (normally), and a .30 caliber bullet is adequate for most uses here in North America. One thing I found with my other wood stocked hunting rifles, I kind of "Babied" them, never taking them out in any sort of threatening weather. So, when I looked at the Ruger American, it appealed to me in a "Utilitarian" way, with it's synthetic stock it shouldn't be worrisome if it gets caught out in the rain, and it's low price was also a factor. I had thought about buying another classic wood stocked rifle like a Winchester Model 70 or Remington 700, but I figure another expensive wood stocked rifle would stay in the gun safe.
Found one in 30/06 caliber at my local gun shop, $379 for the rifle, $153 for a Redfield "Revolution" 2 X 7 variable scope, $532 for the whole package. I have used the Redfield Revolution scope on other rifles and really like it, it's made in America at the Leupold plant, I've been told it's a Leupold Vari-X I in a Redfield box. They are compact, hold zero and are a great value. The rifle weighs 6.25 pounds, the scope 11 ounces, so together the rifle and scope combo weigh less than seven pounds, so this rifle will make for a good carrying rifle!
Here's a pic of the rifle and scope setup. The stock cartridge holder and pouch is a freebie that Ruger sends you after you buy the rifle, the stock pouch has a zippered compartment that will hold a small Swiss Army knife and waterpooof match case, plus five rounds of ammo on the outside:
I've been playing with this rifle for a couple of months now, shooting Remington factory 150 grain soft points through it, and experimenting with other 150 grain handloads. The trigger is good, breaks at about four pounds, smooth feeding action, detachable box magazine that holds three rounds and fits flush with the bottom of the rifle. With almost every load, it shoots into almost exactly 1" at 100 yards from a sandbag rest. Today, my best result was 1.25" when a trigger jerk opened up a promising group:
The bench rest results really don't show the shootability and effectiveness of this rifle, it just "Fits" me, and shooting the rifle from field positions such as prone and sitting show that if I can get a target in my scope, it is doomed. The shape of the stock lessens recoil, so even though it is light, it is not unpleasant to shoot. I think I won't be needing to look for another field rifle in my life time!
Ruger American 30/06 Rifle and Redfield scope, pics and range report....
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