770 or american

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mikefor

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I just got lucky and my dad said he would go in half on a 400 or under rifle for my birthday. The 2 i was debating were the ruger american and the Remington 770. I looked at both and they looked very similar and felt similar. Both were also within 50 bucks. also they had 30-06 and 308. my question is, is there any difference in accuracy, trigger feel, upgrades available/spare mags ect that i may not have noticed. in reference to yardage i only plan on shooting 400yds or closer. soooo which one is better or is it pretty much a coin toss? has anyone ever used these two fire arms?
 
Another vote for the American. In the budget rifle category, it's a winner IMO.

As far as .308 vs .30-06 goes, it just depends on what you plan to use the rifle for. For paper punching and whitetail hunting, .308 is plenty of gun and the ammo can be a bit less expensive. If you plan to go after heavier game, the 06 has an edge when it comes to heavier bullet weights.

When I picked up my Marlin XL7, I wound up with .30-06 because that's what they had on hand. I would have been just as happy with a .308 or a .270 as I was more interested in the platform than the chambering.

YMMV
 
The Remington has a little bit shorter bolt throw. Also, in 308 it's a good 2 lbs heavier. Can anyone shed some light on that other than it might include the packaged scope? Regarding the American, can anyone confirm that the short action is a "true" short action, or is it the one-size-fits-all as found on the Sav Axis?
 
When I worked the Gun Counter I saw more returns on the Rem 770 then all other long guns combined. Everything from light primer strikes to scope mounts not staying tight and holding zero, to actions just falling apart. I personally think it would be dangerous to shoot the .300 mag version of that gun. The only thing I recommended them for was in a .243 as a combo for kids hunting. And then I suggested to the purchaser not to expect them to last more than 3 or 4 years. I would take the Ruger American over some of the cheaper 700's (later ADL's), they are more accurate and have better QC. The Savage Axis is also a better gun than the 770, which is perhaps the worse bolt action ever made. :eek:
 
Buy the Ruger, it is offered in both long and short actions

The Ruger is a very light rifle, which I consider a huge plus, but it might be too light in 30-06. I'd strongly recommend 308, especially in the Ruger.
 
Ruger hands down between those two. The 770's are complete pieces of junk imo.
 
American. I had a 770 and it was nothing but problems from day one. I almost had to pay someone to take it away from me. Sold it at a loss but was glad to get rid of it.
 
If I had a Ruger American, I'd bed it, polish it and see how good a gun I could make out of it. I suspect the end result would be a pretty good gun.

I wouldn't own a Remington 770 if it were free. It's an embarrassing piece of junk.

Be glad you asked before you bought.
 
I wish someone would give me a 770 so I could see just how bad it is. i ain't gonna BUY one to find out, not with the reputation it has on the internet. Don't need a rifle anyway, just sayin', but yeah, based on internet rep of the 770, get an American. I've always liked Ruger handguns, but never owned one of their rifles 'cept my 10/22.
 
I'll use the vehicle analogy. The Ruger American would be like a Chevy Impala, or Ford Taurus. Not top of the line, but a reliable affordable choice. The 770 would be like a Yugo or Daewoo. Cheap, ugly, will work for a while, but when it breaks, you can't find anybody to work on it, and if you want to trade it off it has no value.
 
I'm not sure about the ruger.

Look on the Internet and see if you can find a Remington 700 ADL on sale in .270, .308 or .30-06. It'll cost a little more but it'll be worth it IMHO. See if you can find one around $500 or so, let your dad kick in $200 and you pay the rest.
 
I have a 770 which I bought as a back-up for under 200 new on a Christmas special sale. It is plenty accurate and works fine as a hunting rifle to be shot occasionally and banged around, but definitely not worth more than a couple hundred max. The scope was crap and action is not smooth at all. Get the American or an Axis. They are much better quality rifles for your money.
 
The 770 isn't worth consideration
The 783 is decent if you plan on swapping out the stock

The American is definitely the better of the 2 you mentioned. Built solidly, accurate, no bolt binding, 60 degree lift, and magazines that work well.

OR you could be our guinea pig and try out the new Mossberg Patriot:D

Here's something I posted a couple days ago that may help you:

I have owned the Savage 11, 10, Axis, Marlin XS7, and Ruger American.

The Axis is accurate but the bolt handle necessitates a medium to high scope ring due to the stock. The stock can be changed but at that point you could just get a Weatherby S2 or 10. Access to the chamber is very small and the trigger guard is molded plastic that can't be removed. To get the accutrigger (which you want, trust me) you will have to spend more than any other of the budget guns. The clip that holds the magazine in place is flimsy, made of plastic, and worries me.

The Savage 10 or 11 family is great right out of the box

The Marlin XS7 is great if it isn't a Remlin and even if it is it's still a solid choice. I just purchased one and the feed ramps weren't finished all the way but as far as the design of the gun it's great, especially for a stainless model for $270 nib. The trigger guard can be swapped out for a metal one for $20 and 5 minutes of work with a drill. Well worth it. You can also use the hinged floor plate from a model 70 if you wanted to spend the money. The bolt handle is also notched to allow for low or ultra low rings which is nice. Spare parts can still be had for this model.

The Ruger American is a solid gun. It is accurate, rugged, and the bolt never seems to bind. It has a 60 degree bolt lift so even with the cheapo stock you can run low scope mounts to match the comb. The magazine it comes with seems decent and spares are about $30. The only real downside for me is the trigger guard is molded into the stock like the Axis. I plan on getting a Boyd's stock for it but there still aren't any metal guard options available that I know of. The gun feels very solid. If a part breaks you are likely going to have to send it Ruger for what that is worth.

If you feel the stock is too flimsy on a model, use some Rockite.
If you feel the stock is too slippery on a model, use some traction tape made for pistols.

So, if it were me and I had $500 I would get the Weatherby S2 or Savage 110
For a budget gun I would get either the Marlin X7 or Ruger American.
 
MCgunner said:
I wish someone would give me a 770 so I could see just how bad it is. i ain't gonna BUY one to find out, not with the reputation it has on the internet. Don't need a rifle anyway, just sayin', but yeah, based on internet rep of the 770, get an American. I've always liked Ruger handguns, but never owned one of their rifles 'cept my 10/22.

If I still had mine I would gladly send it. It had feeding problems from round 1 up until I got rid of it. Tried selling it or trading it for anything under the sun and nobody would even look at it. $300 was the sticker price for it when I got it and sold it for $150 to a gun store, a gift given the quality.
 
WOW.......OK i know which one to get. thank god i asked, i was leaning a bit towards the 770 but didnt know anyone with it. I will definitely go with the ruger. Thanks for the advice on this matter and saving me some possible heart ache. Voodoo mountain, thank you and the others for the advice. i may modify it down the line but i will be hesitant because here in TN i found out that gander mountain has a $30 life time warranty on ruger, savage and Remington (or so the guy at the counter claims) so i dont want to kill the warranty.
 
770 is low end new Remington junk...Ruger American is very low end Ruger...I love Ruger but this a low end cheap firearm....I hear it works pretty good, but you get what you pay for....save some money and get a good firearm.
 
I wouldn't trade 2 770's for an American. In fact a guy tried to trade me a 770 and a 710 for a S&W 629 and I laughed at him. He was trying to burn me and we both knew it. He just didn't know I knew it until I laughed. Price for those 2 would have been higher than the price for the Smith at that time but the value would be somewhere between a box of hammers and a map of the Soviet Union.

I guess they aren't quite that bad but I have zero use for one.
 
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