Guns 2011-11.pdf - Jeffersonian

those characteristics as they appeared inCooper’s writing.Above all, the Scout rifle should behandy — shorter, lighter, quicker tooperate than a conventional sportingrifle. Cooper credited the Mannlicher-Schoenauer 6.5x54 carbine, WinchesterModel 94 carbine, British Jungle carbineand the Remington Models 600 and 660as rifles that reflected many of thosedesirable characteristics.The rifle should be no more than 1meter (39") in length nor more than 3 kilos(6.6 pounds) in weight when completelyoutfitted, minus ammunition.The barrel should be as light and asshort as possible while retaining theballistic performance of the cartridgeselected. A stainless steel barrel is favored.The bolt action should be a short actionwith a two, 90-degree lugs, Mauser-typeextractor and ejector, smooth bolt handle,crisp 3-pound trigger and a tang safetythat disconnects the trigger from the sear.The magazine should be capableof being reloaded with a charger orbe detachable. It should incorporateshoulders that prevent cartridgesfrom moving forward under recoil anddeforming the bullet points; and it should,through the use of a magazine cut-off orother design permit single rounds to beloaded and fired while retaining the fullcapacity of the magazine in reserve.For the qualities of light weight,strength and stability, a synthetic stockwas specified, ideally incorporating aretractable bipod and a rounded butt thatwould not hang up when mounted.The sling system should combine thequalities of a carrying sling and a fast,stable shooting sling. The result of thatrequirement was the development of the3-point, Ching sling.The Scout rifle should utilize a dualsighting system — an optical sight plusreserve iron sights. Cooper selected aforward mounted, 2X or 3X, intermediateeye-relief scope that would not obscurethe surrounding landscape and activityas aim was taken. Early prototypes of theScout rifle used the Brno action with itsrear bridge-mounted, pop-up, peep sightand that auxiliary iron sight system wasdeemed ideal for future development.Do these qualities seem like thoseof a modern, lightweight, sporting rifleor carbine with a few tweaks? Yes, andRuger had much of that platform alreadyat hand.stainless steel bolt with a Mausertypeclaw extractor and receivermounted blade ejector is a provenperformer. The Scout is marked“RUGER GUNSITE SCOUT” onthe left receiver rail and is availablein either a right- or left-handedconfiguration.In the Scout model, the cartridgefeed lips are removed and replacedby an “Accurate-Mag” brand, 5- or10-shot box magazine riding in atriggerguard/magazine assemblymade from glass-reinforced nylon.Normally, the action would functionas a controlled-round-feed action.With the box magazine system, theScout action functions more like apush-feed design with the rim ofthe case being fully captured by theMauser-type extractor only justbefore the cartridge is seated in thechamber. The action still functionslike a charm—feeding, firing,extracting and ejecting without ahiccup. The magazine release is aMini-14/AK-type paddle in front ofthe triggerguard which releases themagazine when pushed forward.The IronsSights? The little, detachable,factory peep sight screwed into therear bridge is fully adjustable forelevation and windage and offers a“ghost-ring” sight picture. It’s a neatas a bug in a rug, simple, rugged and agreat back-up to failed optics.The Scout offers two options formounting a scope. The factory ringsfit the receiver’s integral mounts andaccepts any 1" conventional scopewith a small objective or straighttube that will clear the Picatinny rib.COMPC3MAKER: Aimpoint AB, SwedenIMPORTER: Aimpoint Inc.14103 Mariah Ct.Chantilly, VA 20151(877) 246-7646www.gunsmagazine.com/aimpointLENGTH:4.9"HEIGHT:2.2"WEIGHT:7.1 ouncesFINISH:Semi-matte blackMOUNTING:Single 30mm ringDOT SIZE:2 or 4 MOADOT BRIGHTNESS:10-dot intensity settingsBATTERY LIFE:50,000 hours on No. 7 settingPRICE:$504.99Short, stiff barrels and Nosler’smatch ammunition can producebragging groups. To establish abaseline for the accuracy of theScout, Holt selected the newNosler Custom Match ammunition.Cooper favored a forward mounted,intermediate eye-relief, moderatepower scope so the shooter is visuallyaware of everything going on out therearound the target. Burris respondedand came up with their classic 2.75XScout scope which has sold like hotcakes. Now the Burris model has beenjoined with models like Leupold’sCustom Shop 1.5-4X Scout scope. It’sa sound concept.What was not fully developed toCooper’s satisfaction in the 1980s wasthe parallax-free, red-dot-type optic.Battery life was too short, and theywere a bit fragile and not weatherproof.How that has changed. With decadesmore of development, exposed to andproved under the harshest combatconditions, quality red dots may be oneof the very best optical complementsto a Scout concept rifle.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 49