whats a good low-end bolt rifle

The new Ruger American has been getting rave reviews. I'll also throw out the Mossberg 100ATR though I don't believe it's offered in 7mm mag.

One gun mag did a comparison of all the budget rifles and I believe the marlin x7 topped their list with the Mossberg being second or third. The Ruger American was not out at th time of the writing.
 
Tikka T3's are not really a low cost rifle and probably shouldn't be compared to these. I had forgotten about the Marlin. It even has a Remington bolt handle!
 
Ruger tends to Pay Cash for good magazine reviews...so I've got a few issues with that practice...
Check the repair forums on rifles if you want to see how they are acting up, or not acting up, as the case may be.
The problems that owners report tend to be the most telling.
Its also nice when they post pics of their shot targets! Lets you see what kind of groups a particular rifle/load shot!

Along with having to return three Ruger products for QC issues over the years...I look at Ruger with "Prove It" eyes...
Two Vaquero's & a 1022T...shoulda been made better...

Video's are the best!! Gotta love it when folks put up shooting vids!!
 
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I bought a Ruger American .308 . I paid just about $400 out the door . I have put about 200 rounds though it and have had no problems . It is accurate right out of the box with ammo I bought off the self . Its light so you can carry it all day on a hunt . The stock is a little cheep feeling but the recoil pad works great . The bolt has a little wiggle but not much and it never binds up . All-n-all I'm very happy with it .

This is my unpaid review of the American http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=492169

Ruger American rifle at 100 yards 3/4 MOA , using Federal gold metal match 168 gr


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Last weekend I bought a NIB CZ 527 in 7.62x39mm for $375.00 at a gun auction in Indianapolis.

Here is a stock photo. The optics did not come with the rifle.
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My vote would be for HOWA. My 30-06 will shoot one hole at 100 yards
from a bench with a bi-pod. No tooling marks at all. I measured groups at 5/8" X 5/8" OUTSIDE using 5 shot groups.
And no its not for sale at any price
 
Basically none of the fine rifles mentioned here are "low end", although they are low cost. You have don't have to spend a fortune to get a very nice bolt gun.
 
Rifle

I have a Steven 7 mm Rem Mag it shoots 5/8" groups at 150 yards with Wolf Gold line ammo. In fact I have 6 more Savages from a .223 to a 338 Win Mag all are dead nuts on.
 
Just yesterday me and the boy's went to the range where I shot my two Savage rifles on a "trigger stick" tri-pod, and I shot pretty decent for 50 yds and then the 100 yd target, the 100 yd target my group was about three inches for the 30-06, and 2 and one half inche for the .270 win. (standing with tripod) which is alot better than I'd hoped for. I'm very happy with this target!!!;) And I'm very happy with these two $300.00 rifles!;):cool:
 
Hmmm I was thinkin of a .270, sounds good to me I don't have a need for a magnum, though a .300 magnum would be nice I guess.
 
Most of the low cost rifles everybody has recommended arent chambered in 7mm magnum. After a quick search I see that the weatherby VG2 does come in 7mm rem. mag. And so does the stevens 200. My son has a Marlin XS7 in 7mm-08 that is a very sweet shooting rifle. Of course his is a pre-remington rifle. Basically, for a low cost rifle you need to change calibers or your choices get a lot smaller.
 
I would go with the weatherby, savage, or remington 700 adl not the 770 all can be bought for less than $500. I had a venture from tc it is very accurate but they do have problems. If they have their rifle fixed where they won't go off with out pulling the trigger you can get a very accurate rifle. Mine would not eject spent cartridges half the time. Or would jam due to the magazine. But when it shot it was accurate.
 
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