Ruger Compact 308

[bcraig]

Hi, does anyone here have a Ruger compact 308? I would like to know about the rifle .likes and dislikes.accuracy etc.Also has anyone actually cronographed this rifle and compared the velocities to other rifles in the same caliber for a meaningfull velocity loss figure? Thanks Craig

[charles p]

I have a Rem Model 7 in .308.  Very accurate. 

[diggler1833]

Keep your shots on game to under 500yds and you should be fine.  There is a rather successful guy in the shooting business who has taken his 18.5" barreled .308 to 1K.

[wareagleguy]

I don't own one but worked on one for a friend.  I spent days working on a load getting it to shoot.  For the money I never thought much of the rifle.  Trigger is crap, groups are not very good.  I was able to find a load that would shoot about 1-1/4" groups but never found a factory round that was all that great.

With some work you can get a fairly good rifle but for the money those things cost it should do that out of the box.  For about the same money a Remington, Tikka, or Savage would do MUCH better.

[ECVMatt]

Here is a pretty good write up on the .308:

http://www.realguns.com/archives/181.htm

I just picked up a .223 for coyote calling, but have not had time to get it to the range. I hope to get there soon.

Overall it is a great little rifle. Fit and finish are very good, trigger is much better than the older MKII's and equally as good as a Remington X-Pro and I am very happy with it.

Hope this helps,

Matt

[ECVMatt]

Here is the first part of the article:

http://www.realguns.com/archives/180.htm

Hope this helps,

Matt

[bcraig]

That site was very informative ,thank you,Craig

[btr568]

well I don't have a 308,it's a 7mm-08 stainless model.And IT ain't rightly mine,but I paid for it as a wedding present for my wife ::)it shoots Light mags the best,next in line would be ballistic tips(all brands)Corloks are the worst,if ya shoot at a barn door,you might hit once or twice.Out of the bags @ 100, she can shoot a 4 round group and cover it with a quarter on a off day.If she's paying attention to how she was taught to shoot,and the Rifle god is smiling at her she can cover it with a nickel.
Now to be totally honest if you really really want to make any Ruger shoot and shoot well,you'll need a trigger job done on it(even 10/22's have a heavey trigger),hers is set at 3 pounds,that and some decent glass stuck on top of it.I highly recommend Nikon.
Also I have to warn you,with that short arzz barrel it's got a wicked blast to it,but it's handy as all get out tot'en it thru the woods and every better out of a tree climber.I also would believe there would be some speed bled off cause of the short barrel,308(7mm-08) actually do pretty good out of a 20 inch.
Oh and the best advice is,if your buying one as a gift for your wife,buy two.It sure is humbling to ask your bride if you can borrow HER rifle

[Bigeasy]

Own one in 7mm/08.  Very well made, accurate, smooth controled feed action.  Of course you will loose a few FPS with the 16.5 inch barrel, but not enough so that any deer size animal is going to notice inside any normal shooting range.  I am 6'3, and the stock seems like it might be too short at first, but after you properly mount a scope, no problem.  Heavier clothing during hunting season also helps.  Recoil of the .308 class rounds is not so heavy unless you really crawl your stock from the bench, and use a scope with poor eye relief.  All in all, I am very happy with this rifle.  Like too many of my rifles, I bought it because it had a real pretty peice of wood.  But unlike some, that are safe queens, this rifle is a real user.  Balance is more like a shotgun; quick in the hands.  This rifle is designed for carrying and woods hunting.  If you shoot mostly at long range, and don't carry your rifle far, you may want to look at a heavier, longer barreled rifle.

Larry