Ruger American run down

[sbhooper]

I recently bought a stainless, left-hand, Ruger American rifle in .308, as I have lots of .308 stuff and the one that already have is in disrepair. I have a Bushnell Elite 3x9 on the rifle.

I have found the functionality of the rifle to be very good. The magazine feeds flawlessly and the rifle handles well. The only problem that I had was that the trigger would not adjust below four pounds, 12 ounces. I did a trigger job on in and got down to two pounds, 14 ounces. I can't wait to do the range test now that it is done.

I have put close to 200 rounds through it and have found that, overall, it is a good rifle for the price. It loves 150 Hornady Interlocks at 2934 fps. It shoots them into 1/2-3/4 minute at 200 yards. 165-grain Interlocks pushed by Varget and IMr 4895 are also good choices. It does not appear to like the long-nosed SST and GMX bullets real well.

I am currently testing 165 Partitions and various loads with the Hornadys.

I really like this simple, tough, rifle and it has proven to be a good performer as a basic, reasonably-priced hunting rifle.

 

[noharleyyet]

Sub minute at 200 is good shooting. Thanks for the info.

 

[Lawnboy]

I've talked to too many people that have them that say they are amazing for accuracy even with factory loads. I'm getting my son the 243 model for his first gun.

 

[Gunner46]

I'm taking my 308 out for it's 1st range time tomorrow. Hope it does as well as yours !

 

[1_pointer]

Congrats on what sounds like a good shooting rifle! I'm thinking Santa will be packing a LH 223 to my house this Xmas for my 8yo along with a spare compact stock.

 

[sbhooper]

I highly recommend the easy trigger job before you use it, if the trigger is like mine. Here is the link. It took me about 15 minutes to complete and totally changed the equation.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=519494

 

[Epfd217]

Ive been pondering getting a RAR compant in 7mm-08 for my daughter. Great tip on the trigger

 

[sbhooper]

The only reason that I did not get a 7-08, is that I have a lot of .308 stuff to burn up and already have two seven mags. It is my favorite caliber, if I was to start from scratch with no rifles.

 

[JohnCushman]

I bought my wife a Ruger American .308 for her first rifle and liked it so much I sold my Savage 30-06 and bought a Ruger 30-06. Our's both shoot the holy heck out of factory Federal Fusion ammo. I can't come up with anything bad to say about them.

 

[RobG]

I can't complain about how the RA .243 I shot performed. Good shooter, but it had a cheap feel to it.

 

[Wyomingforever]

I have the right handed one in 30-06, Wolf Camo with a Redfield Revolution scope. Very accurate, but I don't like the cheap feel and my bolt seems a bit clunky most of the time. I have put about 100 rounds through it and cleaned it several times. Stock trigger seems fine to me. 100 yards with factory 165 gr is mostly one inch or less groups.

 

[sbhooper]

The cheap feel does not bother me, as I am not a "pretty rifle" guy anyway. If it shoots and puts stuff in my freezer, it passes the test. I actually really like the way that it handles and it seems like the more that I shoot it, the smoother the bolt gets. It is about as weather-proof as it can get with the stainless steel and the plastic magazine-which is surprisingly smooth. The trigger system appears to be pretty durable and simple, based on my observation when I pulled the trigger to cut the spring.

Overall, it is pretty hard to beat in my eyes. I paid $460 for a left-hand, stainless steel rifle that shoots pretty well and even comes with scope bases. Hard not to like that.

 

[noharleyyet]

cheap feel

As many of you might recall, shooters used to say the same thing about Tikkas when they were pricepoint introduced.

 

[RobG]

... it seems like the more that I shoot it, the smoother the bolt gets.

Considering how rough it starts out I can believe that .

FWIW, I have heard from a couple people that the magazine is a weak link so picking up a back up could be a good idea if having one fail in the field would mess you up. I didn't like the trigger, but maybe with the modification mentioned it would crisp it up. I can't blame people for buying these, especially in less common configurations like left handed.

 

[mtmuley]

As many of you might recall, shooters used to say the same thing about Tikkas when they were pricepoint introduced.

I looked at the Tikka rifles as soon as they came out. Too much plastic, closed bolt shroud and I just couldn't warm up to them. Named my dog Tikka though. mtmuley

 

[sbhooper]

Considering how rough it starts out I can believe that .

FWIW, I have heard from a couple people that the magazine is a weak link so picking up a back up could be a good idea if having one fail in the field would mess you up. I didn't like the trigger, but maybe with the modification mentioned it would crisp it up. I can't blame people for buying these, especially in less common configurations like left handed.

Already got a backup from a guy on ebay. I don't expect any problems, but they are plastic after all. A lot of plastic holds up better than metal.

I won't probably take it far from home. My 7 mags go west with me. This rifle will be used on local deer and fun shooting on my range for the most part. I would like to kill a cow elk with it, though!

The trigger is a little different for sure, but works well for a relatively in-expensive hunting rifle. Mine hovers right around three pounds now.

Although it shoots incredibly well with 150 Hornadys, I am still trying to get a 165 load that I am satisfied with. It shoots most OK, but not quite what I am looking for so far. Lots of fun figuring it out, though.:hump:

 

[HighDesertSage]

I just bought one in 30-06 at Walmart for $180.

 

[1_pointer]

Holy heck, that is a deal! I'd have bought everyone they had at that price.