Ruger Scout -- "Road Test"

A

Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
Visited a buddy who'd recently bought one. Shot it some; watched him shoot. Mostly, steel at 100 and 200 yards.

Forward mounted Leupold scope.

That is a seriously good recoil pad. The kick is maybe like my seven-pound .243 with 85-grain bullets: No problem!

The only real negative I see has to do with the magazine. I like to carry a rifle at the balance point. His comment was that fully loading the mag takes quite a bit of effort for the last three or so rounds.

More of a minor point: The trigger is not what I'd call bad, but it could stand some TLC. I tended to pull a bit low, but I'm spoiled by such as Canjar.

As far as shooting and hitting, I call it a Good Thing.
 
I wish they offered it in a left handed version. They only left handed rifles you can get now from Ruger is there standard caliber wood stocked hawkeyes.
 
Thanks, Art. I am also told that the Scout can also mount conventional optics on the receiver, for folks who prefer that. Another good thing IMO.

I expect the trigger on any new Ruger to need work.
 
One common comment that seems to be in every review of the Ruger GSR...is the dislike of the magazine. How many would really like to see this rifle offered with an internal/flush magazine? I know I have lost interest in the GSR...for that magazine alone.
 
I have one, and I've shot it a bunch.

This rifle, at least mine anyway, is very accurate and makes it easy to get MOA and sub- MOA with good quality ammunition it likes. Mine tends to favor the mid-range weights 150 grain to 168 grain loads.

One thing that I really like about this rifle is the versatility. Open sights, red dot, scout scope, and traditional scope, all can be handled with relative ease with this rifle. Mine wore a red dot optic, and will again for bear season. For deer season I'll use my 4-12 x 44. After that I'll put a scout scope on it for carrying in the truck for shooting at game targets of opportunity.

I think Ruger really did their homework with this one, and has a winner. If I was going to own only one bolt action rifle, or I needed a practical rifle to fulfill many roles, the Ruger Gunsite Scout would be hard to beat. Only if I was in Alaska would I consider a different caliber. For the Lower 48, while not optimal, the .308 can be used on any large and medium game animal in existence.

The magazine issue is really not an issue at all. Ten round magazines are standard, and easily available. I use the five round magazine because it's lighter when I'm carrying the rifle all day as I trod through the desert. The reason for the in-line single stack magazine is reliability. I'll take reliability over capacity any day of the week. It's rumored that Ruger will be coming out with a left handed version of this rifle, as well as polymer magazines. I hope they do, as I think this rifle fills a void in the rifle world like no other choice currently on the market. The Savage comes close, but not quite close enough I think. As for the Steyr, it's too costly for my blood.

I have no interest in modifying or customizing a rifle to meet my needs. This is an off the shelf rifle that meets 90% - 95% of my expectations. I call that good enough and ready to go. It really is an amazing little rifle that deserves more than a passing glance in my opinion.

Biker
 
Guys, I guess I'm just dense. Tell me what this rifle does that an M1A doesn't. Not picking a fight, just don't get it. Thanks, Pat
 
Its easier to clean and maintain than the MIA, you can also look through the barrel without completely disasembeling the weapon. And you should have less malfunctions because you have fewer parts.
Thats about all I can think of. :)
 
Guys, I guess I'm just dense. Tell me what this rifle does that an M1A doesn't. Not picking a fight, just don't get it. Thanks, Pat
Click to expand...

not much I would guess. some people just like a bolt-gun.

as for the magazine it would have been much better if they would have used a double stack instead of a single. then you could use flush 5 rounders or go up to 10 or 20. maybe the larger cutout would make the receiver flex too much I guess. neat idea but yeah, I think I'd take a M1A like a SA socom.
 
Pat,
The Ruger's lighter (a key goal), simpler, easier to clean.
Two different guns with different core concepts. The Ruger is not meant to be a battle rifle.
Denis
 
Different usage concept, Pat T, as pointed out. Plus, it's lighter and handier. It would make a good truck gun, for instance. Plenty good for hunting anything a .308 would take, and the weight makes it better for a walking hunter. The handiness helps in thick brush.
 
Here's another take: What does it do that a Rem Model 7 .308 with a regular old Weaver K4 on it wouldn't do?

I love handy bolt rifles that can be scoped. But I'm not a fan of magazines poking out on bolt rifles, nor am I a fan of LER scopes.

The fact that it can take a standard Ruger ring set on the receiver is good news- I wasn't aware of that.
 
Street price of the Ruger is about half that of an M1A. Enough money to fund a reloading set-up plus several years of hunting and plinking.
 
@ BikerRN:

Why wouldn't this be OK for use in Alaska or Canada?

I'd think .308 would be fine for moose and brownies with the right ammo. Or were you referring to the fact that it is a bolt gun, and not ideal if you were charged by a bear for some reason?
 
Smaug,

The .308 is way too light in my opinion for moose and brownies, but not having taken either animal I am only going by what I've learned from those that have.

Biker
 
Besides which you lose velocity & terminal effect in the shorter Ruger barrel.
I wouldn't count much on it against those two animals. At all.
Denis
 
M1A v. Scout

Its about 4 POUNDS lighter, all up, than an M1A so equipped (10 rd box w/ optic). Darn significant if one intends to carry it further than the truck to the bench.
 
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