Ruger American Ranch 7.62x39

Discussion in 'Reviews' started by W.Jester, Nov 19, 2017.

  1. W.Jester

    W.Jester Member

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    I got this rifle a few weeks ago and have taken it on a few range trips. I think I’m fairly comfortable with it now and have an understanding of it capabilities. Enough so to attempt a review.
    I know by now most people are familiar with the rifle- 16” barrel threaded at the end, bolt action in the familiar ak round- 7.62x39 and it takes Ruger’s mini thirty mags.
    Obligatory picture: 52B532BE-1A58-4C8C-842F-D731456F317D.jpeg

    When I got it the barrel was supposed to have been free floating. It wasn’t. I was expecting this as I had read about this issue and have had similar problems with other synthetic stocks. Two minutes with the dremel and bam- free floating stock. You can see where I widened the fore end a bit in the photo. A50EE5BB-AD24-4266-8279-9437EA2D7FD8.jpeg

    If you have picked up and cycled a Ruger American rifle before this one should be no surprise. The action is slightly sloppy and when loaded with rounds stiff to operate. This should smooth out in time. It’s not an $800 rifle with a buttery smooth action but hey I’m not afraid to get this one marred up.

    I decked the rifle out with a Nikon buckmaster II 3-9 x 40 scope I had laying around. Overall I think The rifle looks good.

    Now to the range test. All shooting was done off a bipod at 100 yards. I have shot three different brands of ammo through it and have had no issues with weak primer strikes, shell ejection, or feeding. Everything has ran flawlessly and the rifle eats it up- brass case and steel. All told I believe I have ~250 rounds through it so far.

    Tul Ammo 124 grain fmj steel case-
    I’ve been consistently getting 2”-2.5” groups with this. Smallest group sizing was around 1.75”. Photo is of multiple rounds fired relatively quickly. B6678DE4-9CD5-47C6-8435-D1964E9D2B6B.jpeg

    Red Army ammo 122 grain FMJ steel case-
    This round has surprised me. I have shot about 60 rounds of this and have been getting 1.5” groups. Point of impact is almost identical to my hunting load for this. Typical three round grouping. Not bad for surplus cheap steel ammo! 3EA47E3A-204B-4EB6-B0A9-D78ADFA2D7A0.jpeg

    Winchester 123 grain PowerPoint bullet brass case-
    This will be my hunting round for the gun. I’ve had a bit of success with this round. I’ve shot about a box and a half through the rifle. I have been consistently getting right at 1” groupings with it. Sometimes I have a flier and it opens to 1.5”. Had one cloverleaf and some .5 and .75” groups. Two photos of some groups. The first is of 5 rounds. The second is four shots think I pulled the one 5B1E8B68-4760-42E3-B643-9EAB7554C2A4.jpeg 20BEB170-840C-4AC0-A9FC-8C1F4925DD78.jpeg

    Overall I am quite happy with this gun. Got it for a cheap plinker to shoot bulk ammo out of and as a brush gun due to the light weight. I don’t think you can go wrong with it. Sure it’s not the prettiest or smoothest one but it eats up what you give it and gives damn good results.

    Hope you have enjoyed this review.
     
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  2. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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    Nice @W.Jester
    Now if only you could mount a LER scope:D
     
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  3. W.Jester

    W.Jester Member

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    Never tried a scout style rifle/scope before. It would be interesting. Long term plans is to get it to wear a nice 1-4 or 1-6 scope.
     
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  4. YN*Dotte

    YN*Dotte Member

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    Looks like a sweet rifle! 7.62x39 is a great round with a few good loads, should be great for hunting!
     
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  5. gobblegobble

    gobblegobble Member

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    @W.Jester thanks for the review! I'm glad to know you haven't had weak primer strikes with this rifle.
     
  6. Big Ol’ Hauger

    Big Ol’ Hauger Member

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    This rifle has been on my radar for about a year, now. I’ve already got a Mini-30 with a few clips, so the interchangeability is appealing. Then again, why would I need another Ruger in 7.62x39? Just because, I guess. I thought about maybe getting the .308, but I mainly hunt in the brush, and the 7.62 has served me well. I know what you mean about the stocks, though. Bought the wife an American Rifle in .243 last year, and it has the same problem. I just haven’t gotten around to sanding it down yet. I ran a box of shells through it anyway just to see, and it didn’t do half-bad. A girl at work won it at a gun bash, and didn’t really want it, so I got it for a song. The wife has never even shot it yet. I think I need a new wife, and a trip to my LGS to see how much barter I can get towards the American Ranch.
     
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