Scout rifle explained

The scout rifle is a conceptual class of general-purpose rifles defined and promoted by Jeff Cooper in the early 1980s[1] that bears similarities in the design and functionality of guide guns, mountain rifles, and other rifle archetypes, but with more emphasis being placed on comfortable portability and practical accuracy, rather than firepower and long range shooting.

Scout rifles are typically bolt-action carbines chambered for .308 Winchester/7.62×51mm, with an overall length of no more than 390NaN0, with a barrel of 190NaN0 or shorter, and less than 70NaN0 in weight, with both iron and optical sights and fitted with practical slings (such as Ching slings) for shooting and carrying, and capable of reliably hitting man-sized targets out to 5000NaN0 without telescopic sights. Typically they employ forward-mounted, low-power long-eye relief (LER) scopes or iron sights to afford easy access to the top of the rifle action for rapid manual reloading. Cooper was personally involved with the design work on the Steyr Scout, while other gun manufacturers including Ruger and Savage have since also designed rifles that roughly match Cooper's specifications.[2]

Cooper realized that rifles in the late 20th century differed little from those used by celebrated scouts such as Maj. Frederick Russell Burnham one hundred years before, and that advances in metallurgy, optics, and plastics could make the rifle a handy, light instrument "that will do a great many things equally well...".[3] Cooper's scout-rifle concept was largely influenced by the exploits of the scout Burnham in the Western United States and Africa and as such it is best suited to a man operating either alone or in a two or three man team.[4]

"The general-purpose rifle will do equally well for all but specialized hunting, as well as for fighting; thus it must be powerful enough to kill any living target of reasonable size. If you insist upon a definition of 'reasonable size', let us introduce an arbitrary mass figure of about 10000NaN0."[5]

In 1983 a conference was convened at the Cooper's Gunsite Training Center in Arizona to examine the subject of the modernization of rifle design. The members of the conference included gunsmiths, stocksmiths, journalists, marksmanship instructors, inventors and hunters. It was called the 'First Scout Rifle Conference'. A second conference was held in October 1984.[6]

Defining characteristics

Drawing inspiration from several sources, specifically the 1903 Mannlicher–Schönauer and the Winchester Model 1894 carbines, Cooper defined several distinguishing characteristics of a scout rifle:

These features dictated short, thin barrels, synthetic stocks, and bolt actions. Other optional features included a retractable bipod, detachable magazines, a buttstock ammunition or magazine holding pouch, and an accessory rail for mounting a flashlight, laser sight, among other attachments. The addition of some of these features often renders the rifle technically not a scout as originally defined, but this has come to be accepted by many as still conforming to the spirit if not to the letter of the concept.

Shooting and use

Although it is unusual in appearance and design when compared to traditional rifles, the features which set the scout rifle apart were selected for utility rather than appearance. The scope sight is mounted on the barrel both for stability, and some claim it also allows faster acquisition of the sighting line when the rifle is brought to the shoulder. It also keeps the breech and ejection port of the weapon clear of obstruction, allowing rapid top-loading of cartridges and clearance of jams or other obstructions.

Being slightly shorter than most full-caliber rifles increases the muzzle blast from a scout rifle, and being lightweight increases the felt recoil (to a significant level in the Steyr Dragoon Scout due to its .376 Steyr cartridge). Even the recoil of the .308 Winchester in a scout was described as feeling like a .300 Winchester Magnum by Gun Tests.[9]

Should the scope be damaged, it can be rapidly removed and the ghost ring sight used.

Commercial variants

For many years scout rifles were only available from custom gunsmiths. However, a number of manufacturers build scout rifles close to Cooper's specifications.

Steyr Scout

See main article: article and Steyr Scout. The version considered by some to be the benchmark is the Steyr Scout.[10]

In 1998, Steyr–Mannlicher of Austria began series production of the Steyr Scout, which is also known as the Mannlicher Scout. Jeff Cooper spent many years of reflection and working with Steyr before they began production built to the specifications developed. A heavy-caliber version is chambered for the proprietary .376 Steyr cartridge, but exceeds (by approximately one inch) the overall length limit of the scout rifle specification. This version carries four rounds in the magazine, compared to five in the standard Steyr Scout. A version is also produced in the 5.56×45mm/.223 Remington round used in various current military carbines.

The Steyr Scout features an integral bipod, as well as storage for a spare, loaded magazine. The rifle is also designed to allow either single-shot, manually loaded fire or normal magazine feeding.

In January, 2015, Steyr Arms announced that a limited edition Steyr Camo Scout would be available in three variations of hydro-dipped camouflage due to customer demand.[11]

Savage Scout

Savage Arms offered the Model 10FCM Scout with their adjustable AccuTrigger (allowing the owner to safely adjust trigger pull weight to anywhere between without the need of a gunsmith), black synthetic AccuStock with aluminum spine and three-dimensional bedding cradle, a free-floating button-rifled barrel, oversized bolt knob for rapid manipulation of the bolt, ghost ring rear sight, forward scope mount, and detachable 4-round box magazine in either .308 Winchester or 7.62×39mm with a total weight of and an overall length of .[12] It was discontinued in 2014.[13] Savage re-introduced their Scout as the 11 Scout in 2015 and improved it by adding a 3rd sling swivel, butt spacers and an adjustable cheek-piece to a "natural" colored stock.[14]

For 2018, the rifle was again refreshed to incorporate the "Accu-Fit" system as well as abandoning the proprietary magazine of the earlier models in favor of an Accuracy International AICS magazine, which provides greater compatibility across brands.

Ruger Frontier

Sturm, Ruger & Co. offered several M77 Mark II Frontier rifles in stainless steel in various chamberings from varmint to heavy game all featuring a non-rotating, Mauser-type controlled-feed extractor and a fixed blade-type ejector.[15] [16]

In a review of a 7mm-08 Frontier Model 77, John Taffin, wrote, "If it is possible to love an inanimate object such as a rifle, I am definitely in love. This Model 77 Mk II Frontier is everything I had been looking for in a lightweight, compact, easy-to-carry 7-08mm bolt-action rifle and more."[17]

Ruger Gunsite Scout

In 2011, Ruger introduced the Ruger Gunsite Scout, a re-designed scout rifle based on their Model 77 action and developed with Gunsite Training Center. The new rifle debuted at the 2011 SHOT show bearing the adopted name "Gunsite Scout Rifle" mounted on the grip cap.[10] The rifle features a matte black receiver, a cold-hammer forged alloy steel barrel, a forward mounted picatinny rail, a 3, 5 or 10-round detachable box magazine, a flash suppressor, an adjustable ghost-ring rear iron sight, a polymer trigger guard, and a black laminate wood stock with length-of-pull spacers. The rifle is chambered in .308 caliber and weighs 7lb.[18] [19]

Mossberg MVP Scout

At the 2015 SHOT Show, O.F. Mossberg & Sons introduced a scout rifle based on their MVP platform. The Mossberg MVP Scout was originally offered in both 5.56×45mm and .308 Winchester chamberings (though by 2020, the 5.56mm variant was no longer listed on Mossberg's website). The MVP platform is notable for being designed to feed from either AR-15-compatible STANAG magazines (in the 5.56mm variant) or AR-10- and M1A/M14-compatible magazines (in the .308 variant). The MVP Scout features a synthetic matte black receiver, a medium threaded bull barrel that comes stock with an A2-style flash hider, an extended Picatinny rail as well as a ghost-ring rear sight and fiber-optic front sight. The .308 caliber MVP Scout weights 6.75lb.

Howa Scout Rifle

See also: Howa M1500. Scout variant of Howa Model 1500. Comes with threaded barrel and available in .308 Winchester only.

External references

Notes and References

  1. Book: Mann, Richard. The Scout Rifle Study. Shadowland Publishing. 2018. 9-781983-512544. Princeton, WV. 21.
  2. The scout rifle: The one rifle to have if you could only have one. NRA Blog. (n.d.). https://www.nrablog.com/articles/2017/3/the-scout-rifle-the-one-rifle-to-have-if-you-could-only-have-one
  3. Scout Rifle Shangri-La – Happy Birthday Jeff Cooper. Empty Cases . 12 May 2016. Richard Mann. 10 May 2016.
  4. Can an AR be a Scout?. Shooting Illustrated. 6 June 2016. 6 June 2016. Richard Mann.
  5. The Art of the Rifle by Jeff Cooper, p. 18
  6. Web site: Throwback Thursday: The Scout Rifle.
  7. To Ride, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth by Jeff Cooper, p. 139
  8. Guns & Ammo, Thoughts From The Gunners Guru
  9. Gun Tests (January 2002), "Scouting Out Two Scout Rifles: Steyr, Savage Go Head To Head"
  10. Ordorica, Ray. "Is Ruger's New Gunsite Scout Rifle a Pretender, or Contender?", Gun Tests, May 2011
  11. Web site: Hunter Outdoor Communications.
  12. Book: Sweeney, Patrick. Gunsmithing - Rifles. https://books.google.com/books?id=zqxah-jaXf0C&pg=PA293. 1999. F+W Media. Iola, Wisconsin. 978-1-4402-2447-8. 293–298. Building a Scout Rifle.
  13. https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2010/10/28/savage-model-10-fcm-scout/ Savage 10 FCM Scout
  14. Book: Lee, Jerry. 2016 Standard Catalog of Firearms: The Collector's Price and Reference Guide. 29 January 2016. F+W Media, Inc.. 978-1-4402-4441-4. 1446.
  15. Book: Ramage, Ken. Guns Illustrated 2009. 19 November 2008. F+W Media, Inc. Iola, Wisconsin. 978-0-89689-673-4. 164.
  16. Book: Sadowski, Robert A.. Shooter's Bible Guide to Tactical Firearms: A Comprehensive Guide to Precision Rifles and Long-Range Shooting Gear. 21 July 2015. Skyhorse Publishing Company, Incorporated. 978-1-63220-935-1. 284–285.
  17. Guns Magazine (March 2007), Ruger's super scout: John Taffin: 7mm-08 Frontier Model 77
  18. Sheetz, Brian (April 18, 2011). "Ruger's Gunsite Scout Rifle", American Rifleman
  19. Book: Shideler, Dan. Gun Digest 2012. 7 August 2011. Gun Digest Books. Iola, Wisconsin. 978-1-4402-1447-9. 456.