Still a great pump gun even though it is mostly plastic, kzfaq.infoUgkxh4su9YgU1tWmjikirWcKJbjsFLEU62Bc but with care it will last a long time. It would be neat if Crosman would make a commemorative version of this with real wood stock, but of course it would weigh more and cost more, but hey, it would be cool. The included scope is more of a toy, but it does work for backyard plinking. I prefer to use pellets for greater accuracy, but BBs are just as good for plinking. This is not a Red Ryder folks; fully pumped it is 3 times the power of a Red Ryder and can be dangerous if not handled properly. Be safe out there.

I find it incredibly interesting that Vortex is able to comment on these characteristics that the manufacturer themselves may not even be aware of.

I got a Ruger American in 7mm-08 three years ago. It shoots sub-MOA with Hornady factory ammo. Between my son and me, we have used it to take 6 deer in three hunting seasons. It is nothing fancy, but it gets the job done. It was a great purchase for my son’s first rifle.

I really appreciate this conversation. There are a lot of us out here looking for that right balance between cost and "quality" (however you define it). You earned a subscriber with this one.

My first centerfire, was a Savage Mod.340D (about $69.00 in 1967-8) in .222 Rem. It had the ubiquitous barrel nut design. It was a great, accurate shooter, but with a bolt action that was anything but smooth. Did I mention lots of stamped steel parts? It didn't matter to me as a 13 or 14 year old boy. Hell, I didn't know better. As far as I was concerned, it was the finest rifle in the world! There is a purpose for budget rifles. They were great for a boy like me who saved his paper route money every week to get his precious gun off lay away! Twenty years or so ago, I walked into an old gun shop and saw an old model 340E in .22 Hornet. I bought it, and it brought back wonderful memories for me. NEVER disrespect budget rifles. When a kid making 12-13 bucks a week, can afford a good, decent entry level rifle. It hooked me into center fire rifle shooting, hunting, reloading for life! Congrats Savage, you bought me and a bunch of my future incom for $69.00 back in the day!

Howa 1500s are pretty popular here in Australia. They are a good budget rifle so much so I have two of them. My first rifle was a .223 Howa that I was very hard on and still to this day is a very accurate and reliable rifle.

Hi Guys, love the podcast. Ryan, if you are looking for a rifle with a three position safety, look no further than the Howa 1500 on the table to your left. I purchased that rifle in .308 for deer hunting and that safety has given me peace of mind when walking in the woods or to my blind.

My TC Compass in 5.56/223, printed off a bench & bi-pod under 1/2" at 100yds with bulk ammo, not steel cased. I couldn't be happier! Gabby

Bergara is where it's at. Yes I am now a Bergara fanboy and for a reason.

A good example is the Tikka T3x. Adjustable trigger, accurate barrel, smooth action. An accurate rifle out of the box. Manufactured with tight tolerances so that you can drop in an aftermarket barrel from companies such as Proof Research. The Tikka T3X is relatively inexpensive because it has a plastic stock, a plastic trigger guard, plastic magazine. Adding aftermarket "bottom metal", magazine, carbon fiber stock or stock with aluminum bedding block would more than double the price of the rifle.

Now let's hear about best budget scopes to pair with these rifles

The Tikka T3Xs are very popular around here too, together with the über expensive Blaser R8. Please do a talk about the mighty .222 Remington. Greetings from Germany.

I chose the Savage 110 Tactical (6.5CM) as a way to get involved with my local PRS crowd. Exceptional gun. Trigger can be adjusted very well. Combined with some budget glass allowed me to play the game for a very reasonable price. 😎👍

I picked up a Ruger American Predator 6.5CM in a trade, a few years ago. After adding some foam rubber and duct tape for a cheek riser, and grabbing a few boxes of the cheapest soft point ammo I could find, I was breaking clays on the berm at 600 and 700 yards pretty consistently. It made 1000 yard 10"x10" quite easy too. I've often wanted to get a nicer 6.5CM, but I think this one shoots better than I can at this point, so I just can't justify it at this point.

One of the smoothest actions for its time was on the Remington 600. I inherited one in .308 and was amazed at how smooth an action from the 1960s could be.

I have a Tikka T3X Lite after coming close to buying a Remington 700, but the sales person convince me that the Tikka was a better choice due to it's accuracy and finish for a comparable price. Glad I listened to him! What a great rifle!

Savage has really upped their game in the space. I saw one the other day, and I was really impressed with the rifle.

please tell Ryan that Howa (1500) has the safety he’s been looking for ...

Another Good Budget Rifle would be the Savage Axis. Glad that they talked about it even if they didn't have it on the table. Savage Cheaped out the trigger and the stock. An off the shelf trigger kit which replaces the spring and includes a take up bolt costs ~$20 (mcarbo) and nicer trigger groups (RIFLE BASIX & Timney) can be purchased for about $125. There are tricks for stiffening the Stock, Clear coat resin epoxy can be used to fill and stiffen but will add some weight. 1 Qt. Is ~$30 Boyds offers an impressive selection of Stocks starting around $150+ Savage kept the action, barrel, and safety all pretty good. For a little bit of work on the trigger, and some ingenuity on the stock you can have a very high quality rifle for a bit less than you'd pay for the next step up.

Long time viewer of this podcast and as someone who is getting into shooting I have learnt a lot from these podcasts so thankyou. Just wanted to bring up the mauser m18 for consideration in the budget category. Also wondering if you could do an episode on lever actions vs bolt actions for general purpose rifles. Either way keep up the great work much thanks from Australia.

I have vortex from my Barrett m82a1 down to my most Budget guns. It's what I tell everyone to get an I will continue to get. Keep doing what you're doing and I'll keep pushing your products. No issues this far.

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thank you gentlemen

I like the 3 position safety on the TC Compass.

As with most things I started off with more budget rifles, in my case Savage model 10 Trophy Hunters (243 and a 6.5 Creedmoor), did try a wood stock Mossberg Patriot in 30-06 for a while, then Howa 1500’s (243 and 7mm08) plus a Weatherby Vanguard in 308. They all had things I liked and disliked but I always came back to the Tikka’s once I handled them. I now have a T1x MTR in 22lr, T3x lite compact in 223, T3x superlite in 243 and a T3x lite in 308. They all have Vortex Diamondback scopes on them and they’re all incredibly accurate. They do everything I ask of them during various hunting seasons and for different tasks (plinking at the range with the 22 and 223, as well as hunting rabbits, squirrels and coyotes). They’ve also never malfunctioned or let me down. I definitely feel like you guys said it right when you talked about stepping up to the next price point of rifles, you get a lot more for your money.

Awesome show, thank you, very very informative, love this channel

I like the lighting a lot more! Great job fellas keep up the great work!

I just got done doing a TC compass budget build since I was able to pick up a 6.5CM on sale for 259 at academy. After bedding the stock and stiffening it on my own, installing a $30 muzzle brake, adding a $20 mcarbo trigger kit, and good glass, it’s a consistent .5MOA gun that has no problems ringing steel out to 600 (as far as I’ve been able to shoot it). It will never be a custom gun, but it’ll hold its own with guns that cost 5x as much. Cheap definitely isn’t synonymous with inaccurate.

I really like the rugers, i have one. It definitely is on the same level with my savage 110, but the ruger is probably the best bang for your buck rifle.

Love the new lighting, part of the reason I love my percision stevens 200 build a.k.a. savage 110. Is that the initial $300.00 price point allowed me to shoot it regularly while I was adding McMillan, McGowen, timney, and the other goodies during the build.

I have always bought the budget rifles and neither have failed me. I like my Savage Axis .270 and I love my Ruger American. 308. I am at the stage of my life where I want to splurge a few thousand dollars on a gun and optic though and the Tikka T3X is the manufacturer I have decided on. Now, I can't make up my mind on caliber and optics though.

Love my budget compass. 15$ mcarbo spring kit and I have a 2lb trigger. Have vortex crossfire ll 6x18 and shoot 600 yards hitting 8 inch steel all day with factory ammo. Stocks not the best but it's a shooter.

The thing I like about the budget rifles is one of the first things they discussed and thats the variety of cartridges they are available in. What they did not touch on is connected to that fact, they come in a ton of different bolt heads. That means that if you can't find the chambering you want you might still be able to find the right bolt head then all you need to do is get a new barrel and head space gages. I'm planning on building a 6arc bolt gun the problem is no one makes the right bolt head for it so I'm getting a Ruger American in 6.5 Grendel and a barrel in 6 arc.

One of the best bolt lug patterns I have ever seen was an older Remington 788. I had one in .243 and the bolt lug design different from anything I've seen before. It had ( my memory may be off here, I sold the rifle years ago) 9 locking lugs toward the end of the bolt as they say here. It was a damn strong lockup. Smooth as hell too. Wish I still had that rifle.

How can you do a video on budget rifles and not have at least one Savage rifle on the table? The Savage Axis is the best budget rifle out there (bottom tier of your span).

Let’s not forget, initial purchase price vs accuracy. The ruger American has shown up many custom built guns. I’ve done it myself on a stock one. Once the initial purchase is made you can literally go shoot any distance you want for such a low price. Then in a month or 5 you can buy a new drop in trigger, stock, bipod, new scope etc. It’s always hard for me to bring my hand-me-down Remington 700 bdl deluxe .270 into the woods vs a new ruger American. I only can make myself do it when I go hunt a nice deer stand with an office chair that I can drive my truck to.

My honest opinion is most factory stock rifle out shot the shooter now days. We live in a world that the perception is the more it cost the better it is! This is certainly not the case. To be able to own several calibers brands is within grasp more so these days... than pretty much any era. One thing that I myself noticed is the used rifle market is HUGE. That being said... you certainly can get more bang for the buck looking there as well. Closing thought... you all did touch base on handing firearms down... and in my opinion... the classic wood stock blued steel will always hold more value than a synthetic stocked rifle. They look great too 🙂

I love my savage 12fv cabelas special ! Got it on sale for 329.99 heavy barrel but crap stock. Clipped 3/4 coil out of the trigger spring and shoots lights out! JB weld in the forend stiffened up the stock.

Well said all. In the end, how much you spend should be relevant to application and budget. For me being a lefty who needed a deer rifle capable of 100 yards average with 150 max...The Ruger American .308 with a cheap 4x Bushnell scope is the perfect platform. Hand loads using 180 Hornady round nose bullets. All in for under $500 bucks. Plus I had no qualms about sanding the stock to ensure zero barrel interference...and a custom camo paint job. Plan to cut the barrel down to 18 inches this winter. My son is right handed...so it probably won't get handed down.....so I bought him a Remington 760 gamemaster which we will restomod this spring.

I bought a savage axis in 6.5 creedmoor. We put a mcarbo trigger spring kit in it. We put a one piece base with vortex precision rings and a crossfire II 4-12x44 scope on. And put a Boyds spikecamp stock on it. It shoots so nice. Nice light trigger pull and super crisp. It shoots sub moa with lots of different kinds of factory ammo. By the time we were done putting it all together. We could've bought a bergara or a Tikka. But in the end this one means more to him. Cause it's the first one we customized that much.

I got my remington 770 chambered in 30-06 back in 2015 and loved it ever since

This was awesome I'm a walnut stock fan myself 👌 I have a mossberg patriot in 270 win and last week I upgraded to a 300wsm tikka T3 hunter the patriot had a vortex combo and was an amazing gun for the price it will be my son's first gun soon!

I have Sako A7 soft touch with a Vortex Diamondback hp 4×16,42mm. It's my favorite gun, chambered in 25 06 Remington. Smooth bolt, great trigger, match grade real stainless steel barrel. It does have the bolt button on top that allows you to cycle the bolt while the trigger remains locked. Great gun I paid 1200 for it in Canada with a Burris E1 fullfield 3×9, 40mm included. Swapped out the Burris for the Diamondback and I couldn't be happier they're a match, great deer, pronghorn rifle.

I had a Savage Axis 6.5CM which had an action that had the clunkiest bolt I've ever cycled and I thought I made a huge mistake buying it. I picked up a variety of factory load offerings and headed to the range. Well, that rifle made one little ragged bughole at 100 yards! I couldn't believe my eyes! I think I gave $279. Apparently that ugly-feeling floating bolthead design is why it is so accurate and is intentional with Savage. I've since swapped it out for a 6PPC Shilen barrel and a chassis and my daughter handloads and shoots with that action. She's made a lot of guys mad with that rifle. I haven't put a dime over $1000 in that and that includes Vortex optics on top of it.😁

01:02:00 James was thinking of the Mossberg LC series. Stands for Light Chassis, specifically built for long range with handguard with picatinny rail on top for adding other stuff. Adjustable cheek rise and length of pull. I have the Mossberg MVP Long Range Thunder Ranch Kuiu Camo in .308 Win (the barrel is stamped 7.62 x 51 mm NATO.) Edited to add, I just took my Mossberg Patriot and put it in an MDT Chassis, LLS gen 2 (the same one they use for the LV rifle system.) A lot of budget rifles don't have much bedding and there is certainly not exact fitment in seating the action in the stock. In go the two action screws, tightened to spec and on you go. So, then, one should pay attention to spec. A really cheap rifle that is made well is the Thompson Center Compass and now, Compass II. They have aluminum bedding blocks and pillars in set in the plastic stock. So, you get the inexpensive stock, but you do have a better seating and they guarantee 1 MOA on the first 3 shots (before the barrel heats up.) The threaded barrel is heavy, which will stand up to repeated fire better.

Love my HOWA’S. But I’ve also got a Ruger American in 22-250 that shoots around 1/2 MOA, plus an old CMC Australian Mountaineer (essentially a HOWA before they really kicked on as HOWA) in 223 that does the same. I’m even trying to get a Mossberg Maverick in 30-06 that I’ve had for a while to turn into a shooter; I know it has potential. Point is these are all “budget” rifles with “cheap-ish” hunting scopes and all with home-loads. It goes to show that you don’t have to spend huge money to get good results. People seem to think that big money guarantees good results, and this is just wrong, and it always will be. Gun shops love these people. Cheers from Down Under.

Howa is simply amazing value for money when you see the quality of them. What's even better is they also offer them just as a barrelled action for you to install into whatever stock or chassis you want. They are tremendously popular in Australia. A few years back I build a rifle on the 308 sporter action in stainless for a friend. He wanted it in one of those nice Boyds laminated stocks (the red patterned kind). I bedded the action with the barrel free floated, added a mount and plonked his choice of scope on top. We took it out to zero and after initial bore sight and zeroing at 25m we took it out to 100m for final tuning and it delivered a single ragged 50c piece sized hole with 5 shots. This was with bog standard budget Federal 150gr soft points. I have to get around to building myself one sooner or later. Probably in something like 7mm Rem Mag because I already have a 308.

I've looked at ( and shot with) quite a few cheaper bolt guns lately. TV compass, tikka, mossberg, ruger, Savage... and then I shot the CVA cascade rifle. Honestly speaking, what a rifle! Seriously, a great gun. Compared to the rifles mentioned above, it's in a different league. It's around 450 bucks. I also have a weatherby mark V in 300 why mag, on the ultralight platform, and to be honest, I like them both equally and that gun is 2 grand... if you're looking for a really nice quality gun that's cheaper, the cva cascade is probably your best bet, at least for now

I handled a bunch of rifles, looking for something for my dad for a new deer rifle. Family wanted to get him one for Christmas and I was in charge of finding one. I kept coming back to the winchester xpr in that price range. The stock feels nicer than most budget stocks, the trigger, while not as light as some, has absolutely zero creep, and the factory cerakote barrel and action looks great and keeps rust away. It shoots .75 MOA steadily and dad loves it. However coming from an older model 70, he could definitely feel they aren't made as well. But it's a whole 2 pounds lighter, so for him it's worth it

Bergara is doing alot of things right lately. Nice rifles!

Although it’s unrelated to this particular video, I know you guys always mention that you never get requests for the larger calibers. Could you please do a talk about the 444 marlin?

the safety on the blaser r8 is a big reason why that's my next rifle. if you manipulate it a certain way you can open the bolt without taking it off safe. it's also a decocker, so when it's on safe, it's very safe. also, when it's moved to the fire position it activates an illuminated reticle on compatible scopes (blaser/zeiss/swarovski)

Ryan’s safety is on every Sako 85. All the best bits of a Tikka, with upgrades.

The Mossberg Patriot is one hell of a rifle imo.

Own several Savage Axis & II's. All in factory stocks though none of them "stock". Bolts all have been upgraded with bolt lift kits, extractor/ejector upgrade kits, and bolt handles changed out to tactical style. All total on bolt mods $100. A little Arkansas hard stone work on the race-ways and polishing of lug bolts lead locking / aft crown edges and now the bolt freely opens and goes to battery (less cam-locking) with simply rocking the firearm to-and-froe. Feed ramps radiused and polished. The factory stock fore ends were filled with ROCKITE to remove fore end flex and are as rigid as you could want. The barrel channels were bedded 1 1/2" ahead of the recoil lug. All mounts were changed to EGW rails and then bedded. Rings were lapped to 80% minimum contact. A $10 LIMBSAVER barrel tuner goes a LONG way in achieving maximum accuracy with "factory" ammo also. (You'll have to re-tune the barrel each time you change ammo / manufacturers so keep records). Budget gun ($300-ish) yes, with ~ $160 in upgrade "parts", a little sweat equity and your pew-pew will be in the $1K range. I KNOW.., I've DONE it.., REPEATEDLY.

Guy's, where's the Savage ? I own a M700 Tactical in 308, a T3x in 7mm/08 and a Ruger American Ranch in 450BM so when a friend offered me a worse for wear standard Savage Axis in 270 Win I was a little hesitant until he mentioned the $125 price. I figured a quick flip until I cleaned it (multiple applications of JB Bore Paste), worked the bolt (smooth as butter) and shot it, groups at 100 that you could cover with a quarter. I had to see what I could do with it. A new 4x12 Diamondback went on top, a $20 trigger kit from M*Carbo in Clearwater, Fla. dropped the trigger from 5 lb. to 2.5 lb. and I removed the barrel and action from the stock, drilled holes through the webbing in the forend and filled it with liquid epoxy. Besides the scope, $50 in parts and a couple hours of work and that Savage ended up shooting lights out, very sub-moa. The nice part is I bought a 243 barrel for it, installed it in less than an hour with a precision ground recoil lug ($40) and I was out after groundhogs. It received a cheap camo job with cans of bow paint and now sits behind the seat of my truck. The point is that highly accurate rifles are available today for hunting at rock bottom prices and at least for the Axis there is a cheap remedy for a heavy trigger that takes 1/2 hour to install. My other rifles came ready out of the box but at a much higher price point which would be the way to go for the average guy but even an entry level firearm can give great performance especially compared to 20 years ago. Now I just need that 26" heavy barrel in 6.5CM ........

My very first rifle was a Ruger American in .243. I got it all setup, took it to my range, and found out that the bolt wouldn't close on a chambered round due to improper head-spacing. I was so disappointed. Ruger sent me a replacement rifle (had to pay FFL fees again) that worked, but the trigger was over 5lbs in pull weight and would not adjust any lower. I sold it for a Weatherby Vanguard and it was the best decision I ever made. If I was giving advice to a new rifle owner: spend at least $500-600 USD.

My build is a gen 1 Savage Axis Heavy Barrel 308. I consistently out shoot $2,000 guns with this model. Timmy trigger and chassis system on a $200 rifle.

I remember my jump from my first bolt rifle 8mm ger.98 with almost 2" play in the trigger and the bad habits of pulling the slack out will bringing it up, my new m77 in 300 win. Mag after break in and sight in tried pull up shot and about 1-2" off the shoulder tried to take the non-slack out of the trigger. I will never forget that lesson. It is a nice trigger I just respect it more.

Buddy talking about the tikka safety I couldn’t agree more. Own a tikka, love the gun, hated making it live to unload. I also own an X-bolt love the 2 pos safety with bolt release, but I like my tikka more. I ordered a trigger from their Tac A1/arctic models, and that trigger group includes an integrated bolt release when the tikka is on safe. Best upgrade I’ve made to that gun.

Savage has a the position safety that lets you lock the bolt or unlock the bolt still on safe

I had another thought related to the video, especially when Jimmy was talking about his built up Ruger and what to do with it. My brother-in-law shoots long range competitions and used a budget Savage 110 hunting rifle (possibly his first rifle, if I remember correctly) to build a competition rifle. Different stock, upgraded trigger, different barrel, etc. Fast forward a few years and he has a dedicated/custom built gun and didn’t know what to do with the FrankenSavage. He had kept all the stock parts so he and I took it back to stock. Now he has his old hunting rifle back and quite a story to go with it…something to consider Jimmy, as it sounds like you might have moved on from the Ruger.

I bought a basic Savage Axis. To stiffen the flexible stock, I used 2 part 20lb foam. Used JB Weld to attach the trigger housing to the stock. Installed a Timney trigger. I then sanded and painted the stock. I just put 3 rounds touching at 100yards.

Tikka Tikka Tikka. I’ve had the 770s and 700s. They don’t hold a candle. The QC is also far better than I’ve seen from the Ruger precision line or the Savage 110 line. It will be hard for me to ever buy another bolt gun that isn’t a Sako or Tikka…or maybe a CZ. I’ve just been spoiled on those European rifles now.

Mauser and Winchester safety’s are nice. 3 position lock the bolt, unlock safe, and unlock fire. Great for hunting with the utes

From my experience the biggest let down of reasonably priced rifle is the stock quality and the fitment, aluminium block or not... A little work is often needed to get a "full finished" product...and that's fine with me.

Love your podcasts...pretty much always. I’ve ordered a Bergara HMR Wilderness in 6.5. Would love a follow up video on scopes to match these “budget” rifles. For many of us dropping $1k on a rifle, getting binos, range finders, etc etc etc it ends up nearly leading to divorce lol. I know depends on application, but love the conversations on value. Will be shooting deer to 300 yards, might push to 400 in perfect conditions. But also with the HMR can hit plates at 1000. Thanks!

I got a TC venture dirt cheap new but old stock. S&W sent me a free bigger firing pin spring, I bought a better bolt handle for $60 and an ebay trigger spring 1.5 pounds for $9.00. Heck of a gun now and only about $300 invested total. Very accurate, they came with MOA guarantee.

Bergara b14 and their premier rifles are the perfect example of these discussions. I have 5 now between the 2 lines

I have a Savage VT (paid $450) in 243 that I bought new 5 years ago, shot 600 yds weekly with it, mostly 6” groups. Rebarreled it in 6.5 CM for $500 this past summer. Now it shoots 3” and 4” groups. It is now me not the gun. I shoot on a bipod. Adding a quality barrel made a world of difference. Great investment. I use a vortex 6 x 20 scope, need to upgrade ... I know that will Improve my accuracy significantly.

Both my brother and I love the Savage Axis platform. Have yet to have any kind of performance issues. Only thing’s we’ve upgraded have been the scopes on them up to various Vortex optics.

Excellent, thank you.

Would love to see you explore and highlight the 338-06. Appears one of those “standard” cartridge approaching mag results. Thanks for your consideration.

Wish you guys spend more time on the Howa rifle, great workmanship, very accurate and reliable, 3 way safety and 2 stage trigger that's very smooth and light, great out of the box but better in a chassis

The Winchester XPR has a side safety with a bolt release in front that would fit Ryan’s description of a desired safety. I love mine in 350 Legend.

light is on point !!!

Although I desired a Tikka for this hunting season, I went with the Ruger and slapped a VTX Viper, haven't taken it to the range yet, but after watching this video, I have great reassurance that I didn't make a horrible purchase. Thanks Team!

Winchester XP I think has a safety that is just like what Ryan described. I personally prefer the 3 position safety of Model 70's, Ruger 77's, or Kimbers.

I have 2 Savage Axis rifles, a 243 and a 308. MCarbo makes a simple, cheap trigger spring kit that drops the trigger pull to a crisp 2.5 to 3.5# release. Both are deadly accurate. Plus a Mossberg Trophy Hunter (ATR with a. 4x4 box mag), in 270. Also quite accurate with a very nice trigger.

Love your guys videos, I love my bolt guns. Just bought a hmr in22-250. Been eyeballing the mossberg mvp in 223. Would love to see you guys do a review on it

My Ruger American Predator in 6.5 Creed with a Vortex PST gen II 5-25 will shoot a 5 to 6 inch group at 1000 yards all day every day.

T/C Compass is obviously the best bolt gun value given the price point and T/C is known for their barrels and triggers. You can put decent scope on one and still be under 700.

Yes to the lighting

I had a buddy with a Remington 700 chambered in .260. He installed a Timney trigger, and we adjusted it too about 32-36 ounces. He was in the stand, put the scope on a deer, took the safety off, and click. Gun fired. Luckily he didn't have a round chambered. But we went back and readjusted the poundage. And this man is very well experienced in firearms. So I see the advantages of a two stage, or a safety trigger for novice shooters. Great Co tent, and points here guys!

Savage axis 2 with accutrigger is the best budget rifle out there! Love mine in 270 with vortex crossfire 2 on it

I have a Ruger American, deburred the trigger and love the result. 500 yard nail driver.

For the money I love the Ruger American Predator 308. I put a thumbhole green Boyds stock on mine to give it some weight and its fast becoming my favorite gun!

I can listen to this all day

I got a timney trigger for my RAP on sale for 120, I'm pretty sure they retail for 150, the best thing imo to compare the American to is the precision, and there's a lot more you can do with the American, they're both basically the same rifle, and you can set up the American the way you want for what a precision costs right out of the box, and thats including a timney trigger, they aren't a winchester model 70 or a cheytac or barrett or anything like that, but the average person can afford it, modify it as they see fit, and have a sub half moa rifle that looks cool and feels good (if you polish the bolt) to boot

8:00 The Finnish is why it's so smooth.

Really enjoy your across the table discussions. After listening to this one regarding less than $1000 guns, it seems one of the things discussed repetitively would be an interesting across the table discussion in the future. Just load up the table with the up and down the product line-up of Savage bolt actions. Probably spent more time discussing the Savage in this video than any other brand, and there's not even one on the table. So let's do it. Fill the table with Savage bolt actions, and talk away!

Very informative!

I also own two (2) of the TC Compass. The 308 I have will put 20 rounds inside an inch with hand loads. The trigger is also more adjustable than tbe lawyers will admit. Very pleased with that piece of equipment.

I love Tikka with all it's options. Even though the Hunter model with the wood stock is just a small bit more more money, it is well worth it if you want a nice looking rifle. Added Bonus, the Tikka rifles are beautifully consistent.

Ruger Am 6.5 & Mossberg Patriot 30-06. Both with Vortex Crossfire ll. I love them both

I learn new thing every time i watch this videos.

I have more than a couple of $1000.00+ rifles. I am absolutely in “LUST” with both of my Ruger #1s, HOWEVER….I cringe, every time I grab one and expose that beautiful wood to the elements. I just bought a Ruger American in .243, so I won’t have to worry too much about dinging the finish or scraping it while climbing into the deer stand, AND…it shoots sub-inch groups with factory ammo. I couldn’t be happier with a gun that’s just as accurate as high dollar rifles for under $500.00. Just remember what you’re getting with one of these rifles. I’ve gone through my “best in class” phase of gun buying. If you were blindfolded, you couldn’t tell the difference anyway. They’re not made for beauty pageants, they’re built to be functional and reliable, and the American (Axis too) is awesomely light and accurate.

CZ 557. Around 750-800 dollar price range and it's a wonderful. I prefer the overall fit finish and feel over my tikka. It just feels right and shoots great.

I know you are an optics company but what do you guys think about open sights you walk into a gun store and you don't see any guns with open sights my father wouldn't buy me a scope until I was capable of shooting with open sights

Interesting discussion about trigger. You concentrated on adjustability and feel. You also mentioned that it might fire on closing. But you forgot to mention how a rifle might drop fire. The blade trigger is a cheap way of making sure it will not drop fire. When designing a trigger without the blade, you have make sure that by dropping it in any orientation it will not fire. The SAAMI spec for drop testing is actually fairly gentle with a foot drop on a special rubber surface with safe engaged. If you're a manufacturer you want your rifle to not drop fire in any condition otherwise you're open to litigation. When drop testing a rifle in a forensic lab I can assure you we beat the crap out of them to make sure they wouldn't drop fire and if they did we'd record under what conditions. One popular brand of rifle would discharge if the rear bridge or grip cap was given a sharp blow in almost 50% of samples. So manufacturers could choose a cheap blade system, or more expensive non blade system. All this without considering the possibility of owner adjustment.

Bought a 762 51 NATO enfield 308 made here in the US for the British! Put a Simmons 050 scope shoots very good and very accurate!