The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Ruger American 308 review

angel71rs · July 7, 2012, 03:06 PM

Finally got it to the range again, very happy with results. Shooting at 100 yds right from the start, conditions much better than last trip. Cloudy, light wind blowing in, slightly from the right. Learned from the 1st trip and used a virgin backer so I could see any whiffs. Good thing cause 1st shot was 10" right, 5" high. Adjusted, took a shot, adjusted again, pretty much there. This was with cheap Freedom Munitions 150gr reloads. Checked all the hardware, nothing loose.

Since I had it close, switched to Federal Matchking 168gr BTHPs. POI was higher, 1st shot is upper right in pic. Adjusted left, too much, upper left shot. Brought it back right a bit, and adjusted down. Highest center line shot. Adjust down, hit the X! Took another shot, hit just above the X. Then last shot at that target wandered up, 2nd highest center line shot. Pic of 1st target:

I'd taken a lot of shots without much time between rounds, so decided to let the rifle cool off. Checked hardware, ok. Shot 1st rounds thru my new Kel-Tec P32, excellent little pistol, ran like a champ. After barrel on the American cooled to slightly warm to the touch, shot 3 Federals at a fresh target. I didn't have anything to measure with, but group looked to be under an inch. Couple of pics with a quarter for scale:

Had a couple of shooting buddies there, they wanted to try it out. Both got decent 3 shot groups. 1st guy did about 1 1/2" group. 2nd guys 1st shot was an inch low, 3/4" left. But his next 2 shots were right on the money, one right above the other, touching. After that, I tried out some more Freedom Munitions ammo. The 168gr A-Max was a waste, about as accurate as the 150gr reloads. Typically 3" groups. The 168 gr HPBT-Match was almost as good as the Federal on some shots, but then I'd get a flyer an inch or inch and a half out of the group.

Hardware never came lose, so I'm convinced burrs on bases were the root cause of problems I had last time out. Again advise anyone buying an American to give them a good eyeball. I've decided to pop off the stock and adjust the trigger lighter. I sometimes had a hard time taking the shot when I wanted to. I'd have to regroup and try again. Going to see if adjusting helps. As far as the rifle's accuracy, shoots great if you give it time to cool off a bit between groups.

July 7, 2012, 03:06 PM	#6
angel71rs Senior Member Join Date: December 4, 2009 Location: TX Posts: 139	Finally got it to the range again, very happy with results. Shooting at 100 yds right from the start, conditions much better than last trip. Cloudy, light wind blowing in, slightly from the right. Learned from the 1st trip and used a virgin backer so I could see any whiffs. Good thing cause 1st shot was 10" right, 5" high. Adjusted, took a shot, adjusted again, pretty much there. This was with cheap Freedom Munitions 150gr reloads. Checked all the hardware, nothing loose. Since I had it close, switched to Federal Matchking 168gr BTHPs. POI was higher, 1st shot is upper right in pic. Adjusted left, too much, upper left shot. Brought it back right a bit, and adjusted down. Highest center line shot. Adjust down, hit the X! Took another shot, hit just above the X. Then last shot at that target wandered up, 2nd highest center line shot. Pic of 1st target: I'd taken a lot of shots without much time between rounds, so decided to let the rifle cool off. Checked hardware, ok. Shot 1st rounds thru my new Kel-Tec P32, excellent little pistol, ran like a champ. After barrel on the American cooled to slightly warm to the touch, shot 3 Federals at a fresh target. I didn't have anything to measure with, but group looked to be under an inch. Couple of pics with a quarter for scale: Had a couple of shooting buddies there, they wanted to try it out. Both got decent 3 shot groups. 1st guy did about 1 1/2" group. 2nd guys 1st shot was an inch low, 3/4" left. But his next 2 shots were right on the money, one right above the other, touching. After that, I tried out some more Freedom Munitions ammo. The 168gr A-Max was a waste, about as accurate as the 150gr reloads. Typically 3" groups. The 168 gr HPBT-Match was almost as good as the Federal on some shots, but then I'd get a flyer an inch or inch and a half out of the group. Hardware never came lose, so I'm convinced burrs on bases were the root cause of problems I had last time out. Again advise anyone buying an American to give them a good eyeball. I've decided to pop off the stock and adjust the trigger lighter. I sometimes had a hard time taking the shot when I wanted to. I'd have to regroup and try again. Going to see if adjusting helps. As far as the rifle's accuracy, shoots great if you give it time to cool off a bit between groups.