Hi I need suggestion/advice on a .308 Rifle to complete my collection I am thinking of getting a bolt action has anyone had any good luck with RugerM77? Or another one I am considering is a Marlin .308 Marlin Express lever action. Does anyone have any other suggestions?
Need a .308 rifle
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cat_IT_guy
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my thoughts...
Ive always heard good things about Rugers, never shot one though. Dont overlook Savage or Remington - I have shot both of them in .308 and they are sweet.
Savage will probably shoot just as well or better than a Ruger, wont be as pretty though, but will definitly be cheaper.
I think you will have a hard time finding many people who have much experience with the .308 Marlin as it is pretty new. It is a neat concept as there is just something about lever action rifles that we tend to like - now we get bolt action performance (or so they say) from a lever gun.
Anyway, these are just my thoughts - get what YOU want.
Ive always heard good things about Rugers, never shot one though. Dont overlook Savage or Remington - I have shot both of them in .308 and they are sweet.
Savage will probably shoot just as well or better than a Ruger, wont be as pretty though, but will definitly be cheaper.
I think you will have a hard time finding many people who have much experience with the .308 Marlin as it is pretty new. It is a neat concept as there is just something about lever action rifles that we tend to like - now we get bolt action performance (or so they say) from a lever gun.
Anyway, these are just my thoughts - get what YOU want.
cdrt
Member
Always been very pleased with Savage; good accuracy out of the box and a pretty decent trigger.
TOU
Member
CZ baby...CZ! (550) It has what all triggers should be...an easily adjustable single stage set trigger as well as a standard along with beautiful Turkish Walnut. Once you try one you will be spoiled and not want to shoot anything else for the money. All for the same or less the most. It is also available in a HB Varmint, synthetic, and a tactical.
Good luck!
"CZ: You can pay more and you can pay less...but you can't buy more for less."
Good luck!
"CZ: You can pay more and you can pay less...but you can't buy more for less."
alucard0822
Member
Depends on what you want to use it for, Hunting, target, scoped or open sights. Heavy baull barells and bedded thumbhole or target stocks will cut recoil, and make bench target shooting more comfortable, but makes a rifle too heavy to carry long distances. Light taper barells, with traditional stocks are light, easy to carry, and better for standing shooting, and make for an ideal and powerful deer gun. Also you have the choice between mauser style controlled feeding reliability, or a bolt mounted extractor (better if you want to chamber single rounds for target shooting'
The savage and CZ varmint rifles have fantastic triggers and area about as accurate as you can expect from a < $1500 rifle, the Winchester and remington are a little pricier, but dont really have any edge in accuracy, have a plain trigger(no accutrigger insert (savage), or push forward to engage target pull(CZ)) and the fit and finish seems to be better. I love marlin lever actions, but would be a little hesitant to shell out a lot of money on a new cartridge where availability is low and assurance of long term support is still up in the air. The leverrevolution bullets are not available to reloaders yet, you could load the cases with standard RN bullets, but that kindof defeats the purpose. If you like lever actions, one in 30-30, 45-70, or even 44mag already has good component and factory load availability, and 30-30 is no slouch, more deer have been taken with this cartridge in N.A. than any other, but 150+ yard accuracy is not it's strong suit.
As others will probably say I agree with the idea to find one that looks good to you, shoulder it, fire it if you can and weigh that in with your decision.
The savage and CZ varmint rifles have fantastic triggers and area about as accurate as you can expect from a < $1500 rifle, the Winchester and remington are a little pricier, but dont really have any edge in accuracy, have a plain trigger(no accutrigger insert (savage), or push forward to engage target pull(CZ)) and the fit and finish seems to be better. I love marlin lever actions, but would be a little hesitant to shell out a lot of money on a new cartridge where availability is low and assurance of long term support is still up in the air. The leverrevolution bullets are not available to reloaders yet, you could load the cases with standard RN bullets, but that kindof defeats the purpose. If you like lever actions, one in 30-30, 45-70, or even 44mag already has good component and factory load availability, and 30-30 is no slouch, more deer have been taken with this cartridge in N.A. than any other, but 150+ yard accuracy is not it's strong suit.
As others will probably say I agree with the idea to find one that looks good to you, shoulder it, fire it if you can and weigh that in with your decision.
rangerruck
Member
I have 4 cz's , and unless I am dying, i will not sell them ever. that is if you want nice wood as well. A real keeper. For synthetic, I would then go Savage, then remmington.
krimmie
Member
My suggestion would be to look at a Weatherby Vanguard. The synthetic can be had for under $500.
rockstar.esq
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Personally I find the stock layout of the Ruger's to be tremendously uncomfortable especially under recoil. There's little doubt that Ruger arms are strong and reliable. They aren't seen at target matches for a reason, however they are exceedingly common hunting rifles. The hunting accuracy is more than adequate so there's no reason not to. Bear in mind that the Ruger action is essentially a Mauser action which is more or less the same as a Winchester, FN, CZ, and others.
alucard0822
Member
These are probably the two best rifles for your purposes I have fired, the CZ 550 american is more twards the hunting end of the spectrun, but is accurate, beautiful, and functions flawlessly. The savage 12 series is geared more as a varmint/target rifle, heavier barrel, tighter twist for heavier bullets, a little heavy for deer, but can be shot all day at the range without discomfort, and 300 yards is not even breaking a sweat if hunting groundhogs.
http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=18
http://www.savagearms.com/12bvss.htm
http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=18
http://www.savagearms.com/12bvss.htm
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Ian Sean
Member
My hunting rifle is a Ruger 77 in .308, I like it a lot and it works well for me. I have owned it for 15 years or so now.
I bought a Savage for my daughter (.243) and I was pleasantly suprised with it...I am sure any offering in .308 Savage has will be good also.
If I were doing it all over again I personally would consider the Savage first over the Ruger.
My .02
I bought a Savage for my daughter (.243) and I was pleasantly suprised with it...I am sure any offering in .308 Savage has will be good also.
If I were doing it all over again I personally would consider the Savage first over the Ruger.
My .02
Davo
Member
I never understood the concept of the .308 marlin express.
TCB in TN
Member
Have had Ruger M77 in .243, .270, and in 30-06. Excellent rifles all, were better rifles than I am a shooter. As a rule Ruger is a very good value for the money, and IMHO the M77 is no exception. Local you can get a stainless with composit stock for $475 to $500. Again IMHO a good buy for what you get. BTW lots of locals use the M77 and you don't find many in the pawn shops, there is a reason for that.
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