What's so bad about Ruger?

[miningshawn]

Thanks for the comments! I think I may have a theory.

I've seen this before. I used to be a Jeep guy (I still am but my Jeeps aren't as hardcore as they used to be, it gets in the way of my range time and gun budget). I remember when the Jeep Rubicon hit the dealers...

All of a sudden any Joe Schmoe could have lockers, axles, capable tires, and a trail-worthy vehicle driving off the dealer's lot. It wasn't about talking to your mechanic and wrenching late into the nights and weekends after doing tons of research and buying then installing an improvement with your hard-earned money and testing it out. Now anybody could hit the trails and follow along without pouring money and sweat into their new hobby.

Guilty as charged. I was skeptical of the Rubicon and the crowd it brought. There were mall-crawlers and outrageous claims; but, there were also solid, honest people that wanted to get out there in a vehicle they didn't have to worry about. The entire scene changed over two years after the introduction of the Rubi - and almost always for the better. Jeep clubs grew and trails got better.

There is still to this day people who hate seeing a new Rubi on a trail ride. They instantly discount the operator as an untrained newb and talk down to them - even if that newb has more actual experience under their belt and has worked just as hard or harder developing their ride and skills. Try finding a 4 year old Rubicon without modifications...

There are far more capable 4x4's out there but not a single one in the price bracket and with the capabilities. I think this is eerily similar to what I am seeing with the RPR.

I'm going to enjoy my rifles, don't doubt that. I'm also not a jeeper any more because of the politics that grew up around my local club. If it turns out that PRS and other events are only about the gear and the latest hot topic in Recoil magazine I imagine that I will do the same thing I did before - quit the club and hang out with my friends instead. I will still spend three out of five of my days off developing loads or ringing gongs at the range.

I'll just do it at 10 in the morning on weekdays before the gun bigots and haters arrive!

Thanks for the replies! It turns out there was the usual mix - good solid advice based on the community and a few "never-nellies". At least I have a correlation and can rest a little easier when I pull my black rifle out at the range next week.

 

[scubohuntr]

Ruger has never claimed to be competition accurate. They make good quality firearms for the regular guy. They have found a similar niche in almost all types of firearms- the 77 will never be a 40X, but it's plenty accurate for most people. The 10-22 will never be an Anschutz 64, but it shoots better than 95% of shooters can hold. Likewise with the Mark I, Blackhawk, GP-100, Red Label, and the rest of the current and historical line. Almost anyone can hold better than a Mini-14 will shoot, but really, they are made for Joe Mag Dump, and to be truck rifles. I don't know much about the RPR- I don't own enough ballistic nylon stuff with "tactical" stamped on it to shoot PRS.

 

[ryewhiskeybent]

Don’t have an RPR but do have a few Ruger pistols, a PC9 and own stock in the company. Pretty happy with all of it. Have shot a RPR and it was a tack driver but the aesthetics aren’t for me. I also enjoy taking a platform from “not so great” to “pretty darn good” so that precludes the RPR but brings me to a question.

Why all the hate on Savages? I know more and more manufacturers are moving to a barrel nut but for a long time Savage was the only game in town. I enjoy being able to do it all on my bench at home and Savage fit that bill. I’m not a BR shooter and generally only concern myself with practical accuracy but I can get pretty consistent moa/sub moa on these cheap rifles, out to 800. One of them is still rocking the plastic fantastic non accustock, with lead fishing weights silicones in. Makes me giggle when I’m hitting the same piece of steel as my buddy who spent WAY more than double, before we factor in glass.

 

[MislMan]

My wife and I both have RPR’s in 6.5 Creedmoor and we love them! Love the looks, adjustability, and accuracy from the stock barrel. Have recently changed barrels to Kreiger in 6.5 Creed since to factory barrels had over 2200 rounds each and we thought we’d see if Kreigers would do better. The factory barrels were still shooting 5-shot groups of 0.8 MOA. Not benchrest accuracy but then not benchrest rifles. RPR’s ROCK!

 

[joshb]

I thought I’d come back with a few more comments. I was thinking about your situation while I was shoveling snow. Your path in search of accuracy mirrors my first steps. I started with my various hunting rifles, then bought an M1A. It’s a fun gun but not a great shooter unless you dump a ton of money into it. A buddy suggested a Remington 5r. I bought one. Using my meager loading skills, that gun shot great and still does. It shoots so well, I haven’t touched it, mechanically. My next purchase was a TRG 42 in 300 Win Mag. I wanted a top quality “spoil me rotten, I deserve this” gun. It shot OK. I spent some time trying to find a good load for it. It was frustrating to wind up with 1/2” groups so I tucked it away and went back to the 308. Then I found a deal here on a Remington barreled action in 6br. The action hadn’t been touched. Just a good Krieger barrel on it. I got some Berger 105s, some Lapua brass and started loading. Bazing!!! First time out, I was shooting .4, .3 and a couple lucky .2s!
The guys on here talk about “inherently accurate cartridges”. Thank God I listened!
I’m a firm believer in good loading skills being the biggest step forward towards accuracy. The next is a good barrel and bedding. Then get a Jewel trigger. That gets you 80% there. The last 20% is a black hole. Get sucked in like I did and be ready to take out a second mortgage!
Good Luck!
Josh

 

[WyleWD]

THE TRUTH IS ------ Ruger bashing started a long time ago and it has absolutely NOTHING to do with quality or accuracy. When this assault weapon crap started, (in the 70s?) Ruger caved in to the anti-gun crowd and agreed not to make high capacity magazines and their govt. model mini-14 available to the general public. This was the start of all the Ruger bashing. It has carried on ever since and grown through the generations, though most don't even know why they are bashing them. Their quality has usually been top notch. When others bash Ruger, try to pin them down on specifically why. Usually they can't come up with an intellectual rerason - if they can answer at all.

+1^^^.

I've shot one of the Ruger VT's in 6ppc off and on for the best part of 20 years. When it shoots well enough to make the top 5 or higher…. Just smile, take it home, clean it and do it again. JME. WD

 

[rjtfroggy]

I have never seen Ruger's take a bashing here, but own a few Savages and look out.

 

[F Class John]

I owned one RPR in .308 and two in 6.5. I even fully modded one of the 6.5 with every part possible to help improve it. New Barrel, Timney, LRI bolt, new fore end etc.. they’re great guns for the money like everyone said. But you have to know what you want from from your time on the range, your goals and what your weakest link to accomplishing them is. That rifle will take you 98% of the way but it’s that last 2% that you have decide what it’s worth to you and for many it’s fine to stay at 98%, but for countless others they want that last 2% and it just won’t happen with an off the shelf rifle. Can Tiger Woods shoot under par with a set of Big 5 clubs off the shelf, sure but I guarantee he ain’t winning a match with them. Just the way it is. Custom is custom for a reason and it’s totally cool that it’s not for everyone, it’s nothing to be ashamed of and certainly no reason for people to bash anyone over. On any given day somebody on my line with an RPR could best someone with a $5,000 custom but it’s rare with all other things being equal.

Someone comes to my line with an RPR we say welcome and have fun!! But if they ask for opinions we ask what they want to accomplish. We don’t put down Ruger or any other similar platforms, we just educate the differences and let people make their decisions. There’s things it can do and things it can’t. Either way we help them be the best shooters they can be and the rest is up to them. In my experience people with off the shelf platforms understand they don’t have custom rigs and I don’t see any reason to exacerbate the divide by making them feel bad for some reason. In the end any trigger time is better than no trigger time so buy something and start practicing.

 

[hpshooter]

"In my short journey I have found that mechanics and habits of shooting (thank you Uncle Sam!) followed by handloading make the most difference for me. Everything else is incremental improvements. "

Amen!!

 

[Bc'z]

I owned one RPR in .308 and two in 6.5. I even fully modded one of the 6.5 with every part possible to help improve it. New Barrel, Timney, LRI bolt, new fore end etc.. they’re great guns for the money like everyone said. But you have to know what you want from from your time on the range, your goals and what your weakest link to accomplishing them is. That rifle will take you 98% of the way but it’s that last 2% that you have decide what it’s worth to you and for many it’s fine to stay at 98%, but for countless others they want that last 2% and it just won’t happen with an off the shelf rifle. Can Tiger Woods shoot under par with a set of Big 5 clubs off the shelf, sure but I guarantee he ain’t winning a match with them. Just the way it is. Custom is custom for a reason and it’s totally cool that it’s not for everyone, it’s nothing to be ashamed of and certainly no reason for people to bash anyone over. On any given day somebody on my line with an RPR could best someone with a $5,000 custom but it’s rare with all other things being equal.

Someone comes to my line with an RPR we say welcome and have fun!! But if they ask for opinions we ask what they want to accomplish. We don’t put down Ruger or any other similar platforms, we just educate the differences and let people make their decisions. There’s things it can do and things it can’t. Either way we help them be the best shooters they can be and the rest is up to them. In my experience people with off the shelf platforms understand they don’t have custom rigs and I don’t see any reason to exacerbate the divide by making them feel bad for some reason. In the end any trigger time is better than no trigger time so buy something and start practicing.

Very well written.

 

[69mach]

.3 is tough for even a Br, check the results on the competition page. When you look at the heavy gun aggs there isn’t that many shooters under 3.00 at 600 yards

I never said they shot that good. I said they shoot very well for a cheap factory gun. It seems unlikely they shoot .3s but I’m not about to call someone out I don’t know. Weirder things have happened. I said I would
Be impressed if they held a half inch.

 

[JFrank]

I never said they shot that good. I said they shoot very well for a cheap factory gun. It seems unlikely they shoot .3s but I’m not about to call someone out I don’t know. Weirder things have happened. I said I would
Be impressed if they held a half inch.

I would agree with you, we have a fella at our range that has put out a 2 3/4 10 shot 600 yard group with his RPR 6.5 , very impressive

 

[sambokills]

Love my RPR, and my Remington, and will my Curtis Axiom..... Frank from Snipers Hide sure likes his too. I don't care what people think. Run your gun and be happy.

 

[JFrank]

Run what ya brung

 

[Delfuego]

If you like it, shoot it! Don't worry about what someone at a match might think. Most every person at any match I have been to has been nice, they will be happy you "showed up". Bring it, shoot it, have fun and come back.

 

[urbanrifleman]

I have a gun safe full of custom rifles, my FAVORITE walk around varminter is and always has been the Ruger VT. I have had three of them and literally hundered of groundhogs fell to my VT.

My FAVORITE plinking rifle is my Mini 14 (I have a collection of Minis) that was traded for 500 rounds of 223 ammo from the trunk of guys truck. It is the oldest version with the wood hand guard and it had some rust so I parkerized after adding a mini 14 flash hider from Choate it and it is the SEXIEST Mini 14 you have ever seen.

I recently bought a Talo Ruger 10-22 special edition walnut stocked M1 Carbine and and every single person that has seen it wanted one.

I love Ruger. They probably make the nicest Ar15 on the market too.

 

[LCazador]

The words Ruger and Savage with the word Precision is an oxymoron, LOL! And so is any other factory rifle. That one word precision is nothing more than a marketing ploy to get another few hundred more for the same basic rifle.

 

[GSS]

Sorry, Off topic but;
The Jeep and Tiger woods analogy's are both awesome!

The same could be said about Harley Davidson Motorcycles as the Jeeps.... And I have an 86 Evo stroked out to 96 CI... lol

I'm just a service rifle shooter cuz I like the challenges of sling shooting with a basic 223 AR rifle with a 20" barrel admitting I'm the weak link if it's not a 10 or an X out to 600 yards so I can't contribute to the Ruger vs Savage vs High Dollar custom options either.

 

[IdahoSharpshooter]

one of the issues with Rugers is the fact that they were made from castings, and a lot of them have a plum color. Another issue was the angled action screw. I saw many of them in the 1970's that people tried to build a custom based on a 77 that never did achieve a nice rust blue color the same shade on the entire action. The killer for a lot of shooters was Bill Rugers eagerness to climb in bed with Clinton and hi-cap bans. He had issues with S&W and many saw Ruger as a sell out to the anti-gun crowd as a way to strike back at S&W over the fact that some of their models magazines held one more round than the Ruger. In some shooters opinion that extra round might have made a difference in a shooting scenario. Many felt that Ruger shortchanged mini-14 owners by refusing to make hi-cap magazines available to the general public for some while.

A lot of it is personal preference, but statistical data shows a distinct lack of Ruger based (action) competition rifles in any winners circle in BR or other serious accuracy competition involving a target that is scored based on group size or center hits.

As far as Savage bashing, they do well in competition, like owning all the group and score records in the Cast Bullet Assn factory class. They also have a much better record in the 600/1000 yard matches. Their website shows results, if you care to look.

 

[urbanrifleman]