Heres a link to a great website that shows the life of Col. Cooper. http://jeffcooperfoundation.org/news/
One of the few things I dislike about this new forum format is that I can't ( find a way to) search within a thread. I subscribed to this thread quite a while ago with the intention of participating when I got more time (like now), but can't remember whether I've posted here yet, and -- to the point of this run-on sentence -- can't easily search this thread to see if I have. That said, I'm eager to participate here, watch the vidoes, do the reading -- I have downloaded Principles of Self-Defense (PSD) to my desktop, got this RGS page open (again) in a tab (mine -- someday -- will be in .223/5.56, which I'll explain later), and am beginning to catch up reading in this thread. (I read slowly -- about 7 words/min -- so it's gonna take some time. ) I'm working to acquire my poor man's version of a scout rifle later this year (until I can afford an RGS in the future): a Ruger American Ranch Rifle (RARR) in .223/5.56 (not the carbine mini-14, but the bolt action). Again, later in this thread, I'll offer my reasoning for 5.56/.223, but for now, I'll just let that sit. For the first time in a long time, I own no rifle. In fact, for the first time in an even longer time, I own no long gun. Only my Ruger LC9s. ("Beware the man with only one gun." <I can't remember who said that.>) Last spring, out of financial necessity to fund an important move, I sold my (once beloved) Marlin 336 .30-30 and a Remington 597 bull barrel .22LR. The latter was OK, but not what I wanted after trying it out. The 336 was a great gun -- a genuine JM rifle -- and I researched it much. (Here's a thread about it on another forum that I participate little on any more -- that's another story. It's one of the longest threads in the history of that forum, which speaks to the popularity of that rifle.) I even took it all the way down and did an action job on it; there are a series of illustrated posts deep in that thread about that process, which was a great learning experience. But I decided that: 1) I was tired of the recoil for long shooting sessions; 2) less than satisfied with the accuracy past 75 yds; 3) I wanted a shorter barrel for easier maneuvering in these north woods (it's kind of like a jungle up here; very dense in places). I researched cutting the 336 barrel down -- and came very close. But decided to sell it to a friend's step son who really wanted a good lever. He got a great deal and I got a great price. (He got some bonuses thrown in, like some ammo.) After a ton of research over more than a year -- and any one who knows me understands how much research that really is (equivalent to preliminary research for a dissertation) -- I've decided it's replacement is going to be the RARR 5.56. I've already got a great scope waiting on its arrival: a Leupold VX-I 2-7X x 28. It's a rimfire scope that two of my rifles have worn (a Marlin 39a that didn't work for me, and that Remington), but Leupold techs said no problem on a 5.56. (I may have the parallax rest, but that's only $25.) I'm also researching ways to put some irons on it, notably a rail mountable ghost ring and a front sight; I'll discuss those options later. How soon will I own said RARR 5.56? That depends on which of my new long guns I decide to buy first: the RARR or a Stoeger Coach Gun (not supreme) in 20 ga. (I'll discuss why 20 ga another day.) It's the other gun that I'd want to own if I could only own one, and couldn't keep a rifle. But for me, it'll be part of a four gun kit: RARR, SCG, LC9s, and some .22LR pistol -- not sure which one yet; still researching those. Yes, I know for some it's 2A heresy to own only four guns, but that's just the way I am. I'm not a collector; I want to know the guns I own intimately, inside and out, the good, the bad and the beautiful. (I'll never own an ugly gun. ) I want to shoot them as much as possible in the limited (by time and money) range time I have, and be as proficient as possible. And, I'm quasi-nomadic -- though I swear, nothing could get me to move again for at least a year! -- and don't want to lug around a bunch of guns. (Most of what I own and truly want to keep will fit into a full-sized pick up truck or van.) OK, that's it for now. Even though it's inauguration day, it's a work day for me (noon to 6 today), so I'll postpone more comments about the RARR, and why I think it fits the scout rifle concept fairly well, though far less than the RGS or a Steyr Scout. (Here's another good article on the latter, and yet another on the general concept of scout rifle.) But I'll end with a question: given the price of that Steyr , does it come with a free Expat cleaver **? ** PS: especially if I let Expat borrow the Steyr for a couple months.
Just for grins, I priced that RGS. MSRP is $1139, but on the street, it can be had for less than $850.
I´m with a very similar thought about guns. But I´m thinking about the possibilities and where I used it. I choose the calibers. 38/357 and 9 mm for EDC/CCW, 44 mag for Hunting Backup, 12 ga for Hunting and Property Defense and MAYBE a .308 Rifle for hunting.
At onetime I was a user / collector. I sold many guns so I could walk away debt free from my ex. In fact I sold a lot of valuable things. The freedom of a simple life is nice and I realize nothing goes with me when I pass on. Yes, firearms can be an investment but money that isn't tied up is nice. At the end of the day get to know your firearms you have and enjoy them.
^ Well said. I think this whole line of reasoning gets right to the heart of the scout rifle concept. And if my view of the future is correct (which I don't intend to discuss here, BTW), I suspect a lot more people are going to be (quasi-)nomadic, moving around lots, and needing a good single rifle to get the jobs done. I watched several videos last night about the Ruger Gunsight Scout Rifle. (Some of these may have been posted earlier; I'm still working through the pages of this thread.) Here's one pretty good one by Gunscom. Here's a really long one (45 min!) by Mr. Nutnfancy on the .308 with synthetic stock (see below) v standard laminated stock. Hickok 45 has two on the .308 shooting with iron sights (along with some interesting observations). Here's the first. Jeff Quinn has several pretty good ones (which suggests he really likes that rifle) -- one (that I can't find again this morning) on the .308 right handed with regular mounted scope (along with his explanation of why he prefers that to a scout scope), one on the .308 left hand with forward mounted scope, one on the 5.56. (I always enjoy his videos.) I learned from him that Ruger offers the .308 with a synthetic stock that reduces the weight of the rifle by nearly a pound! (From 7.1 to 6.2). But the 5.56 is not yet produced with that stock, so it's stuck at 7.1. That's a deal breaker for me right now; I'm not interested in toting that extra pound around. Maybe by the time I can afford one, the 5.56 will be available with that lighter stock. Another overview of the scout rifle is an 8-part (!) series by James Yeager about the Gunsight Rifle Conference, seemingly focused on the Ruger. I haven't watched this series yet, but will. Here's part 1. Watching all this and reading some stuff has made me think that even though the RARR 5.56 does not fit several important criteria that Jeff Cooper specified (forward scope mount; .308 most notable among them), I think it's going to work well enough for my needs, and it meets one of my most important criteria (and Cooper's) of light weight (6.1 lb). I wonder if someone will eventually produce a 10-rnd magazine for it.
Not really a scout rifle and I don't think it's what you're looking for but just to make sure you don't overlook it, you may want to check out the Tikka CTR. It has a synthetic stock, Picatinny rail, Teflon bolt, 20" semi heavy contour threaded barrel, and 10 round detachable magazine.
If I had to go out the door with only one rifle, it would be the 16 inch barreled GSR. My standard hunting load is the 168 grain Hornady A-Max at 2560 FPS. I use the 174 grain cast Lyman at 1316 FPS for small game and plinking. I know some people do not like the scout rifle concept but it works for me.
Without wanting to read through 8 pages, can anyone explain to me why a bolt action fits this role better than something like a light weight AR10 with a mid power optic? Not looking to debate, just looking for the actual pros/cons of this type of setup.
I think I answered this somewhere previously but it is a question of reliability. AR style rifles are pretty reliable but get a bad round get stuck or have something break on it (there are more things to break first of all), and you're pretty much done. If you're at the range, no big deal. If you're in the middle of Africa or the SW desert on your dream hunt, you're sort of out of luck. You tend to waste less ammo in a bolt gun also. I once had a high-dollar LMT AR and of all things that broke on it, a piece inside the forward assist that contacts the bolt broke. it jammed in there and several of us couldn't get the bolt carrier group out. We couldn't even move it. Eventually we had to split the upper.
Ah. Makes sense. I've also noticed that most bolt actions are lighter than even the lightest AR platforms. I figured I'd get a straight answer to my question. Thanks Chris
Great stuff from all. If I ever return to the US I know I will add a scout rifle to my small collection and you all have helped with valuable information, thank you. Did The Col. Ever discuss the Scout rifle and suppressor use? Thanks all, -Cooter
Finally got my Ruger GSR out to the range today and I absolutely love this thing. Dead on from 20-50 yards, I had about a 7" group at 100 yards, not great but good enough to hit a moose. I only put two boxes of shells through it so I'm sure I'll get better with it, but it's also my first with ghost ring sights, and I definitely like this as a short-range sight. I found that at 100 yards the site itself somewhat obscures the target though. I've got no plans to put a scope on it, but thinking about upgrading the sights... any suggestions for a better iron sight setup?
So who makes a left handed bolt action scout rifle? Preferably magazine fed. I don't think they make the GRS lefty, not sure about the Mossberg MVP.
