Steyr Scout or not?

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dmancornell

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I've been looking for a lightweight hunting rifle for some time. My first outing was with a scoped K31 which was a bit of a chore. For the new rifle I'm settled on the .308 Winchester cartridge since I am heavily invested in it.

I am not a large person (5'10") so I would prefer something handy with a smaller LOP. The K31 kept getting snagged on tree branches in Oregon so a shorter barrel would be nice.

Handled a Ruger Gunsite Scout but it felt cheap and the bolt was rough. Plus it's only got 16 inches of barrel. Saw a Steyr Scout and it seemed to fit all my requirements but the price is at the extreme high end of my budget.

Would anyone have any suggestions for another rifle, or feedback on the Steyr Scout?
 
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Scout

I have two Steyrs. One has the scope in the conventional position so I have used them both ways. I also have the old version of the Ruger scout and a Marlin 45/70 scout. just bought the Ruger with plans to run a suppressor on it. Can't bring myself to thread the Steyrs. I think the Ruger's bolt rough going over the ejector and I plan to look at what you can do on that. It is also a bit heavy.

Scouts take getting used to. The advantages are mostly if you are hunting and walking. Nothing better to get on target quickly. The weight savings is a big plus in this venue too. You will like that the LOP. is easy to adjust with the spacers. I sold my SSG as my Tactical Scout with a 3-9x32 Ziess was shooting just as well out to 200 yards. You an use QD Leopold rings and set one up both ways. I have them on my Tactical.

Lots of deer stand hunting here in Texas and the Scout setup is a waste for that. I use mine in PA too and love it in the brush.
 
I'm a huge Steyr fan...all things being equal, I'd go Steyr Scout over Ruger GSR. I like that the Steyr has synthetic stock and a built in irons. I also like that the Steyr can hold two mags in the stock. I like the Steyr action as well.

I have the Ruger GSR...I don't think that the action is bad...I just prefer the Steyr action better.

I like that the GSR has a 16.5" barrel and it's threaded ready for suppressor. The GSR is a very light hunting rifle. I also favor the AI/AI clone mags over Steyr's proprietary mags.

Savage also offers a scout rifle.
 
Would anyone have any suggestions for another rifle, or feedback on the Steyr Scout?
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If you are not set on a scout pattern rifle, Savage makes a Model 11 Lightweight Hunter and a Model 11 Hog Hunter in .308 with 20 inch barrels which might work out for you. Savage rifles are well known for their value and out of the box accuracy.
 
The GSR is a very light hunting rifle.
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???

The Ruger GSR is often quoted as weighing 7 lbs, but that's without a magazine. Add a magazine and it weighs 7 1/2 lbs. Add a scope, bases and sling and it weighs 8 1/2 lbs.

I don't consider 8 1/2 lbs scoped and ready to be a "very light hunting rifle", at least not for a 308.
 
mdauben said:
If you are not set on a scout pattern rifle, Savage makes a Model 11 Lightweight Hunter and a Model 11 Hog Hunter in .308 with 20 inch barrels which might work out for you. Savage rifles are well known for their value and out of the box accuracy.
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Thanks, I'll check them out. I think 20 inch is the maximum barrel length I can easily carry in the woods.
 
I've got the Hog Hunter in .308. However, I couldn't find any scout scope mounts for it. I don't know if you really want a scout scope anyway, though. I haven't fired it yet but the Hog Hunter seems very solid and well made. The stock isn't the greatest but I don't think its as bad as people lead you to believe.
 
I have a Steyr, not a Scout. The quality is simply as good as it gets. They make a hammer forged barrel that is incredible.

If you get a Scout in .308 I would recommend you find one with a 1 in 10 twist. I think most of them are 1 in 12.

If you do get one you will have an exceptionally high quality piece. Not that any other makers scout model is really poor quality, but short of a custom built or tweaked version, nothing really approaches Steyr.
 
I've owned a Steyr Scout for more than 10 years and it's the lightest, fastest handling, most versatile hunting rifle I've ever owned or used. I have the Jeff Cooper model. It took a few days to get used to the scope, aiming with both eyes open and the Ching Sling but now I wouldn't go back. I've set-up my FNH SCAR 17S with a similar sling and scope.
 
natman said:
???

The Ruger GSR is often quoted as weighing 7 lbs, but that's without a magazine. Add a magazine and it weighs 7 1/2 lbs. Add a scope, bases and sling and it weighs 8 1/2 lbs.

I don't consider 8 1/2 lbs scoped and ready to be a "very light hunting rifle", at least not for a 308.
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Compared to my other bolt action rifles...the GSR is much lighter. Most of my rifles have a 26" barrel with varmint contour or heavier barrels...so YES GSR is much lighter.
 
The Steyr Scout is worth the money. I don't think anything else comes into competition with it. For a Scout rifle, it's the Steyr or get one built by a competent gunsmith.
 
The Browning BLR Takedown offers a compelling alternative. Drilled and tapped for a scout mounted scope on the 20" barrel, the BLR is light and quick. The magazine fed lever action is great. And it's about the same price as the GSR if you shop around.
 
aubie515 said:
Compared to my other bolt action rifles...the GSR is much lighter. Most of my rifles have a 26" barrel with varmint contour or heavier barrels...so YES GSR is much lighter.
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There's some pretty fuzzy logic going on here. Yes, there are rifles that are heavier than a GSR. If you have a 26" heavy barrel varmint rifle it might well be heavier.

This does not by any stretch of the imagination make the GSR a "very light hunting rifle". The Kimber Montana is a very light hunting rifle, but then it weighs about 2 1/2 pounds less than a GSR.
 
My buddy has one in a dinky bore caliber, don't remember now whether it was 243 or 22-250 or something like that. He brought it prairie dog shooting one day. He mounted his scope in the conventional position, and boy could he connect with that thing. I was truly impressed.
 
You might take a look at the FR-8 Spanish Mauser. It is a K98 action in 7.62x51 with an 18" barrel. Threaded muzzle, flash hider, aperture sights, feeds from stripper clips, and it has a cool little storage tube under the barrel. They are nice and handy. That's what I went with for my Scout build, since no other rifle gave me all the features I wanted. It isn't near as lightweight as a Steyr Scout, but what is! I have mine all pulled apart with the front sight removed, waiting on the XS-Clifton scout mount and Fajen synthetic stock, but here is what she looked like in original trim:

FR81.jpg
 
I'm also looking at getting a Steyr Scout as I don't like the trigger on the Ruger Gunsite Scout.

I do like that the Ruger has a true Mauser controlled feed claw extractor and receiver mounted ejector which are far more reliable and rugged than the newer style in-bolt mounted extractor and ejector. If the Ruger Gunsite Scout came with an easily user-adjustable two-stage or safety trigger like the Ruger Marksman trigger or the Savage Accutrigger and took more widely available magazines like M14, G3 or FAL mags (I consider the AI style mags to be proprietary, they are just too obscure), then I would be all over it. The M77 "lawyer trigger" in the Ruger Gunsite Scout is just plain crap and the available aftermarket replacement triggers aren't much better. The Steyr is still a superior weapon, though I'm not sure the $1800-$2000 price tag is really justifiable.

As for optics, I'm really torn because a scout rifle really needs low magnification (but NOT 1x) intermediate eye relief optics. Putting a standard eye relief tube scope in the standard relief position just turns your fancy scout rifle into just another Bubbafied deer gun. Yawn. However the most popular scout scopes on the market, the Leupold and Burris just have a boring old school duplex crosshair reticles. Double yawn. I'd prefer something like a Trijicon TR24 with a post and tritium illuminated triangle reticle, but the TR24 is 3.2" eye relief only. I see lots of people putting tacticool red dot sights like Eotechs and Aimpoints on their Scout rifles, but that doesn't seem quite appropriate either. Great for an AR set up for CQB run-n-gun type action, not quite the same animal as a general purpose bolt action Scout rifle (which was Cooper's point). You need some magnification, but the flip-to-the-side magnifiers for red dots are way too fiddly for the purposes of a scout rifle. The Leatherwood, Leapers and NcStar Chinese made knockoff scout scopes are mostly just a joke. An intermediate eye relief Trijicon TR24 would be perfect, if such a beast existed. If I had my druthers I would also put BDC stadia and an optical rangefinder in the reticle. I know some people don't like busy reticles, but I do. I want as much information as I can get at an instant on one pane of glass.
 
If your comfortable paying the price tag for it then by all meens go for it. If it were me id get an FN TSR, cant speak much on it but FN is a quality company(and i love there stuff) and it comes in right around a grand. i think it only comes in 20" or 24" but it looks like a sweet rifle.

o and factory trigger pull is 3 and 3/4 lb
 
Handled some featherweights at a LGS. Most felt about as heavy as the Ruger GS, which is to say a little bit heavier than the Steyr. Also all the barrels were too long.

Also handled a few surplus bolt action carbines, all too heavy.

I guess it will be a Steyr and a Leupold VX6. I already have a M1A with a "scout" scope (actually a Burris 2-7x pistol scope) and I'm not too impressed with the FOV.
 
Before you make the purchase, you ought to check out an old Remington Model 600. Chairman Jeff was quite fond of them.
 
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