New rifle advice - Ruger Scout and Mossberg MVP

[SteamedHam]

Hello everyone, I'm glad I stumbled upon this forum, i've been lurking for a few days now and I really like what I see.

My hunting experience has been limited to private properties in Southern NSW (I'm a Victorian) with my Dad and Uncles, which is great fun - but they are all starting to get a bit old, and while i'm really keen to get out for a walk they just want to eat yabbies and sink tinnies

So I want to get out on my own in State forests etc. I own an ancient .243 that is sporterised from who-knows-what and is a really heavy. Because I want to shoot deer as well as other feral critters I have been looking at:

Ruger Gunsite Scout .308 for Deer shooting and a;
Mossburg MVP in .223 for smaller varmints and as a semi replacement for the .243 (which i'll still keep)

Does this combination make sense? Are there any other combinations that would better suit me?

Thanks in advance.

[Yelp]

That all makes enough sense.

Your .243 is legal for Fallow, Chital and Hog but not Sambar, Rusa and Red so you'll need something bigger if you want to hunt then. That'd be the .308.

.223 is great for vamints. Cats, foxes, rabbits etc. out to a few hundred metres.

Those calibres in your preferred rifle brand/model both make sense.

[sandgroperbill]

Have you handled each of these rifles? The scout is, well a scout design. Some people love them, others hate them.

Caliber choice is fine, but try to shoulder as many rifles as you can. You'll know when you've found the rifle for you.

[Combat_Wombat]

What model MVP are you looking at? They have a pretty big range these days.

[Baronvonrort]

Ruger Gunsite Scout .308 for Deer shooting and a;
Mossburg MVP in .223 for smaller varmints and as a semi replacement for the .243 (which i'll still keep)

Does this combination make sense? Are there any other combinations that would better suit me?

Thanks in advance.

The .223/.308 is a good combination,if you don't reload there is plenty of ammo around.

I would prefer a .223/7mm-08 or 22-250/7mm-08 combination

As for which guns I think personal preference should come into it,the Ruger and Mossberg are ok of you like that type of thing,pick them up and hold them to see how they feel.

[FuzzyM]

Savage scouts are available in 308 too. Ugly stock, but affordable and we'll built.

[Heckler303]

Welcome to the forum.


The .308 is a great caliber. In fact, its probably my favorite one I've been able to shoot with. Its definitely going to be a deer gun if you already know where to place shots. Meanwhile, 223 isnt bad either. Lighter recoil and it's better for smaller game.

You could always get a Remington 700 or a savage for a decently priced 308. I've tried neither, but the reviews say both are good rifles to have.

[Arth]

Have you handled each of these rifles? The scout is, well a scout design. Some people love them, others hate them.

The Scout is so heavy I thought

That's what put me off straight away.

[SteamedHam]

Hi all, thanks for the replies.

The Mossburg i'm looking at is this from my local(ish) shop http://gunco.com.au/shop/prodct/5756/mo ... -27755-mvp

I'll most definitely see if I can shoulder them and other types of rifles at the shop, but i'm very certain any new rifle will be 10x more ergonomic than what i'm used too.

[Wes]

Savage scouts are available in 308 too. Ugly stock, but affordable and we'll built.

Ugliness aside, is the stock good quality too?

It's hard to tell from the picture (http://www.savagearms.com/firearms/model/11Scout) but looks like that plastic might feel cheap?

I'm going entirely by the picture here so could be way off.

[sandgroperbill]

16.25" medium bull barrel...

What sort of ranges can you foresee yourself hunting at?
What sort of terrain?
What are you looking to harvest?
Are you going to be walking around carrying it?
Which rifles fit your shoulder best?
Does a forward scope position (scout) suit you and your eyesight?
Will you be using scope, holo, open sights?
What is your general budget?

If you fill in a few more details we can definitely fire some suggestions your way, but the most important thing is that the rifle feels right and balances right for you and is capable of doing what you need.
You could do all the research in the world, but the rifle has to fit you and be your rifle. Nobody elses. Yours.
Just some suggestions for light weight hunting rifles to get started though, check the weatherby vanguard, ruger american, browning x_bolt and sako finnlight...

[Joom]

What sort of ranges can you foresee yourself hunting at?

Ruger say their Scout is hunting accurate to 300m.

Just FYI for OP.

[FuzzyM]

Savage scouts are available in 308 too. Ugly stock, but affordable and we'll built.

Ugliness aside, is the stock good quality too?

It's hard to tell from the picture (http://www.savagearms.com/firearms/model/11Scout) but looks like that plastic might feel cheap?

I'm going entirely by the picture here so could be way off.

The current model Savage scout has heavy duty aluminium bedding, making it a good rigid stock apparently.
There has been a couple of minor updates over time so reviews can be confusing, as some things have been changed over the years, stock, mag etc.

[Browning]

Mate, just bought a Ruger Scout and gotta say I love the thing already... Don't find it heavy at all and mounted with an aimpoint micro its a great scrub/close range/quad bike rifle..
Tough as nails and even with the aimpoint it's still very accurate. Can top load the polymer mags as well..
Having said all that, it's my scrub gun, and I'm fortunate to own a nice Tikka Hunter .308 as well with a nice scope that is used for those longer shots on bigger game...
Thumbs up though for the scout...
Ps. Don't mess around with a .223. Get yourself a 22-250!! I'm biased though.

[Fujix]

Tough as nails and even with the aimpoint it's still very accurate. Can top load the polymer mags as well..

Which mag?

Cause you can't load the factory steel one, yeah?

[Browning]

Yeah the after market ruger polymer mag can be loaded.. Pretty sweet and also a reason why I stayed with the forward mounted option for the red dot

[Bourt]

Yeah the after market ruger polymer mag can be loaded.

I've read a lot of Ruger enthusiasts who liked the Hawkeye with the internal top loading box mag give the Scout the because of the steel one.

[Browning]

The only thing wrong with the steel mag is when you occasionally push a round a down to feed the next one, if you push down with a backwards motion, the previously fed round can pop out the back... Easily rectified cos u can see it happening...

The polymer magazine is also a bit shorter so it doesn't sit as low as the steel.. On the quad and walking the scrub I use the polymer one and just have the steel mag in my pocket as back up...
No complaints at all from me with the ruger so far. Accurate, easy to use and we sure do put the rifle through its paces regarding dust, and being knocked around on a quad...
The action no where near the buttery smoothness of the tikka but hey.... That's not why I bought a ruger..

[sandgroperbill]

That's what Rugers are designed for. Simple, solid and reliable. I have a couple and love em. They're not bench rest rifles, they're hunting rifles designed as such.

[Oldbloke]

http://www.centrewayfirearms.com.au
Try here, prices are usually ok and not far from where u are looking.

[bigtone]

I bought a mossberg mvp 223 with a 24 inch barrel last week and took it out culling. Put 1770 rounds through it in 4 days. after about 1000 rounds the harshness of the bolt's action starts to polish up a bit and gets a bit smoother. I have 2 polymags for it which feed nicely. The factory steel mags are a bit harsh feeding even though they appear to be of acceptable quality. The staggered round mags (AR style) are easy to load and can be used with a mag charger if needed. The rifle shoots like a laser with my 3-12 x 50 Zeiss Duralyt on top. Has a threaded barrel for no reason in Oz because silencers are not permitted. The butt pad is totally horrible and will be changed tomorrow for something more rounded, problem solved. My only real gripe is with the bolt which really can be overcome with the technique of closing the bolt with your thumb at the base of the bolt handle before latching the bolt normally. Its a great thrasher otherwise. 8/10.

[Browning]

Wow!! That's a lot of rounds in 4 days!

[Supporter]

That's what Rugers are designed for. Simple, solid and reliable. I have a couple and love em. They're not bench rest rifles, they're hunting rifles designed as such.

Yep they're a workhorse.

NFI about the people who bought a Gunsight Scout for the cool factor then only shoot it off the bench