NEW Ruger American Ranch in 7.62x39

[bricz75]

Originally Posted by TruthTellers

I pretty much view the 7.62x39 as a 0-250 yard cartridge, so I don't think a high power scope is needed. A small scope would be fine.

What optics do you think would be best for this rifle?

Sited for 100 yards, bullet drop out to 300 yards doesn't seem too bad. It's quite a bit at 400 yards, though. See link below if interested.

1-4 power for a scope, I guess.


http://gundata.org/blog/post/7.62x39...listics-chart/

[Old Stony]

I don't know what they are doing for mags, but I would consider this a possible deal breaker for me. The Americans in 300 BO seem to have mag. problems and Ruger seems like they could care less. The 300 mags will only feed on a reliable basis if you are using the heavy bullets seated out sufficiently. You cannot get the lighter bullets to feed worth a hoot, and can't seat them out far enough to help.
I have an American in 6.5 Creedmore and it feeds and shoots very well, but they use a really cheap made mag.. Ruger needs to get it together for these rifles in the mag. dept.

[bamaranger]

A light handy bolt rifle chambered in x39mm is a fairly useful firearm. Yes, a "real" .30 caliber will do all the x39mm does and more, but the truth is that for what a lot of us do with a rifle, the x39mm works fine. Now that the x39mm has been integrated into the US shooting culture, good sporting ammunition is available.......we no longer have to accept only steel case import ammo. Brass is available from a number of sources, so too projectiles intended just for the cartridge. I think all the big US ammo companies load a suitable hunting round in x39 for those wanting ammo over the counter. The assorted import ammo is still out there as an option for practice or in a pinch.

I've hunted the x39mm for 15 yrs or so now on southern whitetails, and have found it completely adequate for deer in woodland settings. I rank it as a near equal to the 30-30, which is typically accepted as adequate. My x39mm rifles are a Mini-30 and a 77MkII, both of these rifles having 20" tubes. Most of my deer have been taken with a reload using the Sierra 135gr SSP bullet, but with that slug no longer available, we've shifted to the 125 gr SST from Hornady with no complaints.

Regards scopes, my bolt rifle wears a Leupold 2-7x compact (32mm?) and the Mini has a Leupold 1-4x shotgun scope (20mm). Both keep their respective rifles light and easy to carry. My x39mm shooting for deer has all been under 100 yds, and at those distances, no big scope is needed. With the x39mm being about a 200yd deer cartridge, it doesn't need a big scope period. The scopes do allow point counting on leases and state land that have antler restrictions. The bolt rifle is accurate enough that 7x allows for fine tuning loads during 100 yd zero , and accurate shooting to 200 yds. But I have never taken a deer with the scope cranked to 7x, and a compact fixed 4x, or the same 1-4x variable that's on the Mini, would work about as well afield. Plus, scopes allow shooting in poor light that would defeat the use of iron sights. I don't see the lack of iron sights on the new American Ranch in x39mm as a big deal, many of my sporters do not have irons, as I've removed them, or they came that way from the box.

[bricz75]

Something good about this new rifle and the CZ 527 is steel cased ammo is cheap for those that want to shoot a lot.

[ThomasT]

For adding open sights I would do it like this. I am willing to bet Williams makes a rear base that will fit the scope rail hole spacing and you can easily add a receiver sight so that part is done. For the front sight I would get a sweat on base and use silver solder to attach it. This not hard hard to do. Just make damn sure it is straight and exactly where you want it because removing it is nearly impossible if you did a good job on soldering it on.

The rear sight will cost you no more than $50 or so and probably less. The front base IIRC is around $20. The front blade insert will be $20 or less. I buy my silver solder from the local R/C hobby shop and it is around $15 the last time I bought some. It comes with a length or solder and a bottle of flux. Then all you need is a propane torch.

This is not a job you have to farm out to a gunsmith. If you have never soldered before then watch some youtube vids on it and practice on a couple of scrap pieces first.

I have been using solder since I was 8 years old and saw my dad do it. Its just not hard to do.

One other option is to get a banded front sight from New England Custom Guns. Brownells also sells them. This is what I did on my Ruger MKII 30-06.

They are made to be heated up and forced on the barrel. Instead I just very carefully filed the inside until it fit on the barrel. They have a set screw under the sight blade insert. I just slide it on and tighten the screw and then pop in the front blade. I bought a NECG rear peep off Ebay for $40 that fits the scope ring cut out on the MKII. It can be installed and removed and it will hold zero. Again no GS needed.

[bricz75]

@ratshooter: Thanks.

[tobnpr]

Grendel is a dead cartridge walking.

Sure thing... I'll bite even though it's OT.... what is replacing it in the AR-15 platform?

The x39 is a brick...but it's the leader of the cheap ammo pack today so I get the attraction for those that like that- but not in a bolt gun any more than I'd own a 6.5 Grendel bolt gun (different reasons, though).

Just get the Mini-30 and blast away.

[taylorce1]

Originally Posted by Old Stony

I don't know what they are doing for mags, but I would consider this a possible deal breaker for me. The Americans in 300 BO seem to have mag. problems and Ruger seems like they could care less. The 300 mags will only feed on a reliable basis if you are using the heavy bullets seated out sufficiently. You cannot get the lighter bullets to feed worth a hoot, and can't seat them out far enough to help.

That's news to me. I've ran at least 200 rounds of 120 grain OTM ammunition through my RAR Ranch and never a hiccup. It digested everything I've put through it so far, but I haven't tried anything below 120 grains yet.

[ThomasT]

@ratshooter: Thanks.

You are more than welcome.

[Old Stony]

Taylorce1.....If you check out ShopRuger.com and the product reviews concerning their 300 BO mags, you will see what I was talking about. Folks love the rifle, but hate the junky mags. I've seen it in action and can testify to the problems.
I took one mag apart for a friend, and poured the rear portion of it with an epoxy to take up about 1/4 inch of space and it put the cartridges forward enough to help...but it's not a fix like Ruger should offer. His rifle will now normally feed 4 rounds as it should, but still occasionally hangs up.
The reviews on the Ruger site show 19 negative posts out of 31 total. Not a good average.

[Ibmikey]

I have a American Ranch in 300 Blackout and just love the rifle, it has recently knocked over some Texas hogs at 100 yards (125gr Hornaday). My big complaint with the rifle is the rotary mag that does not feed reliably under any circumstances ( at least my two won't) unless I cut capacity to three rounds. This difficiency has been corrected with the 7.62x39 with the use of the mini 30 mag.
My rifle sports a 2x7 Truglo laminated scope coupled with the very compact size of the rifle makes it a lethal short range pig getter for use inside a blind.

[taylorce1]

Old Stony, I'm not saying there aren't issues with the magazines. I'm saying my magazine feeds flawless. There have been a lot of issues with the magazines and not just with the .300 BLK, the same magazine is used for .223 and .204 Ruger. For every issue you have you can usually find a fix for it on YouTube, someone has taken the time to figure it out. I also now if you call Ruger they'll usually send you another magazine under warranty, which may or may not fix the issue.

[Ibmikey]

Ruger sent me a new mag in response to my complaint, now I have three that won't work properly. If I load 150 grain bullets where they totally fill the mag cavity the mag will normally feed all five rounds, my hunting load, 125 gr, is what I have the most difficulty with.

[stolivar]

That the RAR in 7.62x39 is a 311 and not 308 barrel. That and the Ruger mini mags for it will be a winner for sure. I already have the CZ 527 in that caliber, but I would still would be willing to buy the RAR. Since I have it in ar upper for it also, the SKS is redundant and might be going on the chopping block.


steve

[Wyosmith]

I'd love to see these in 6.5 Grendel and 6.8SPC.

[bricz75]

That the RAR in 7.62x39 is a 311 and not 308 barrel. That and the Ruger mini mags for it will be a winner for sure.

Thanks for the info.

They made this with inexpensive steel-cased ammo in mind, I guess. I know that is the case with CZ 527.

Yeppers on the Ruger mini mags. 5 round, 10, 20. Take your pick.

How much will we be able to get one for when the excitement wears down? How long will it take for excitement to wear down?

[stolivar]

Right now my local fun store has one for $429.00

[TruthTellers]

Originally Posted by Wyosmith

I'd love to see these in 6.5 Grendel and 6.8SPC.

Those will come in time I think, but the 7.62x39 is a far more popular and common cartridge than both of those combined.

Originally Posted by bricz75

How much will we be able to get one for when the excitement wears down? How long will it take for excitement to wear down?

Probably December for prices to go below $400. I don't think the excitement will wear down though. There are people, myself included, that think the 7.62x39 is a phenomenal cartridge and want rifles that are more accurate than an SKS or AK, but don't want to spend more than what an SKS or stamped AK costs.

With the Ruger American's track record of excellent accuracy, I think it will prove to be so popular that Ruger will come out with an AR in 7.62x39 by the end of next year or the next presidential election.

[Pond, James Pond]

Nice looking rifle!

Agreed that irons would be nice, even if I'd fit a scope (1-4x?).
Also agree the 527 seems to be a good alternative too!

[precision_shooter]

Anyone know what the bore size is on these? Is it .308, .310, or .311? Will make a difference on what ammo the rifle may shoot well and be most accurate with.

[stagpanther]

The heck with 7.62 x 39--if I were getting a ruger ranch rifle--it would be without a doubt their new 450 bushmaster chambering.

[stolivar]

Ruger has confirmed that it is a 311 bore by phone yesterday

[precision_shooter]

Hmm, I have mixed feelings about 311 bore. Great for factory combloc surplus ammo, not so good for handloading as .311 bullet selection isn't great.

[stagpanther]

That is interesting--I think most everyone else is .310 for US-manufactured 7.62 x 39 barrels, no?

[taylorce1]

Originally Posted by precision shooter

not so good for handloading as .311 bullet selection isn't great.

Good enough for most people to find something that'll work for what they want/need the 7.62X39 to do. Most people who buy the 7.62X39 are buying it for the cheap ammunition. The majority that handload will be looking for something to hunt with, and there are enough options to handle that.

Available .310-311 bullets at Midway