American made rifles.. what's out there

[Al Bundy]

I know a few and so far top on my list is Thompson dimension chambered in 7m 08. What's out there? I been looking but seems there are many the big box stores don't carry. Also thinking upgrade the wife's Savage axis while I'm at it. Weatherby compact seems a nice upgrade. It's time for santa to deliver...

If the new rifle works out, going to be putting my 3 yr old Savage 30-06 up for sale. Not a thing wrong with it, I dropped a nice 6 last season. 

[CharlieNY]

Dan- since you live in Cayuga County take a look at this rifle at Bass Pro Shops. It is what I have in 7mm-08. It is a fantastic shooter and the Nikon scope is crystal clear and has the Bullet Drop Compensator. It is on sale right now.

valoroutdoors.com

http://www.basspro.com/Savage-11/111-Trophy-Hunter-XP-BoltAction-Rifle-with-Scope/product/1204110500547/

[Trial153]

Take a look at the new Kimber Hunters ....

[ATbuckhunter]

I would look at the T/C compass

[Al Bundy]

I spent black Friday "shopping".. but I don't count looking at rifles shopping really. Kimber Hunter seems like an OK gun but it had a cheap feel to it, in my opinion.  I saw a whole bunch of different rifles. Tikka was a very nice rifle. Also looked at Kimber Adirondack. We walked into the gun store and my wife, very surprisingly, pointed to three rifles she said she liked. I was like OK. Then almost immediately she realized what she said and was like OH no I don't really like it.. The price tag on the Adirondack sent her into sticker shock. Nice rifle though.

[Rattler]

The Kimber Hunter is a great rifle for the money.  Maybe the best one for the money.  It may feel funny, but it has the same mini action, air gauged barrel, match chamber and match trigger as the Kimber Montana.  Stainless steel metal (all of it) is a plus as well.  The accuracy and reliability of the Kimber Hunter is excellent.  The honeycomb interior in the stock provides excellent rigidity and strength.  It's also lighter than most rifles in it's class, but still retains 22" of barrel, which is another plus.  The one thing I like about it over the Montana model is the detachable magazine.  That is another plus.

It's inexpensive for what you get, but it is very far from "cheap" in quality and value.

If I wanted another 7mm-08 and only had $900 in the budget for one, it would most certainly be the Kimber Hunter.

[Pygmy]

Dan, my friend...You may be barking up the wrong tree...

The 7mm08  is indeed a light kicker in a standard weight rifle ( 7-8 pounds)...

However, buying an ultralight rifle kind of defeats your purpose if you are trying to reduce recoil...

[Rattler]

14 minutes ago, Pygmy said:

Dan, my friend...You may be barking up the wrong tree...

The 7mm08  is indeed a light kicker in a standard weight rifle ( 7-8 pounds)...

However, buying an ultralight rifle kind of defeats your purpose if you are trying to reduce recoil...

This is not the case when the rifle has a properly designed stock with a good pad like a Pachymar Decelerator.  Felt recoil is what matters and it can be effectively managed with the right stock design.  Melvin Forbes makes Ultra Light rifles and he has designed the stock used by Kimber on their rifles.  The 7mm-08 Montana I shoot has very little felt recoil.  The fit of the stock is more important than the weight of the rifle IMHO.

[Al Bundy]

Oh Man do those Melvin Forbes NULA rifles look great. Rattler I need to give you a whupping!! I cant stop thinking about them and researching. My wife caught me checking them out last night and saw the price tag. I would have been better off if she caught me looking at porn...

[airedale]

Going by your stated criteria as per shoulder situation and it's problem taking recoil this is my recommendation, the full size Remington 700 CDL in 243 Winchester. You should be able to shoot this gun all day long without batting an eye.

Edited November 29, 2016 by airedale

[chas0218]

1 hour ago, airedale said:

Going by your stated criteria as per shoulder situation and it's problem taking recoil this is my recommendation, the full size Remington 700 CDL in 243 Winchester. You should be able to shoot this gun all day long without batting an eye.

It's crazy it took them 10 years to figure out if you add another 3/8" of an inch to the rubber pad it will help with recoil.

 

I know you said american made but there isn't much rifle wise anymore that I would buy american made. It seems the majority of american made rifles deal more with the all black guns than hunting rifles. I own a Tikka T3 hunter in .270 and it is a great shooting gun with little felt recoil.

[Rattler]

2 hours ago, Dan.NY said:

Oh Man do those Melvin Forbes NULA rifles look great. Rattler I need to give you a whupping!! I cant stop thinking about them and researching. My wife caught me checking them out last night and saw the price tag. I would have been better off if she caught me looking at porn...

Dan, check out the Kimber Montana 84M in 7mm-08.  Very similar to the NULA but much less expensive.

Chas, a lot of American rifles have wood and fine blued steel.  Some have very high grade walnut with a lot of figure too.  They may be more expensive than foreign made rifles though, but there are plenty to choose from.  I trying to think of an American rifle maker than doesn't offer wood stocks other than NULA.  Not even sure they don't offer one.

 

[chas0218]

12 minutes ago, Rattler said:

Dan, check out the Kimber Montana 84M in 7mm-08.  Very similar to the NULA but much less expensive.

Chas, a lot of American rifles have wood and fine blued steel.  Some have very high grade walnut with a lot of figure too.  They may be more expensive than foreign made rifles though, but there are plenty to choose from.  I trying to think of an American rifle maker than doesn't offer wood stocks other than NULA.  Not even sure they don't offer one.

 

I was referring to the quality of the gun. I understand most if not all offer wooden stocks but quality of the firearms has been sub par from newer american made guns. I don't shoot Savage can't stand their triggers, Remington has gone to crap with their shotguns and rifles. Until you get into some $1k+ firearms I wouldn't buy an American made gun. That is just my personal preference from what I have dealt with over my past experience. After you start getting into those $1k + why not just buy a lightweight Sako, or Weatherby.

Edited November 29, 2016 by chas0218

[Rattler]

I think American rifles compare favorably to foreign ones when they are both in the same price range.  Some people just want to buy from an American manufacturer.  Firearms, at least from most makers, are one of the only things still 100% made in America.

I have nothing but respect for all Kimber rifles and Marlins are not shoddy either.

[Al Bundy]

I happened to look at the Tikka T3x and the safety really seemed "wrong". I had some issues moving it and it was LOUD. Moving that safety in the woods would not have gone unnoticed.  I did like the bolt and action of the Tikka though. Very smooth and nice.  Is your safety loud?

While looking at the light weight rifles, I am very concerned with recoil. Not sure what to believe. I am reading as pointed out above perfectly balanced light rifles don't kick as much as one would think. I need to shoot something to see how my shoulder does though.  NULA 20 in 7m 08 (if possible) would seem to fit the bill for me, as long as the claims of recoil are true and as long as I don't mind sleeping with the dog outside.

I have read a very mixed bag about the Kimber Montanas and quality issues.  What to do. This is a nice problem to have at least.

[Rattler]

I know a few who own Kimber Montanas as well as other Kimber models.  Everyone loves them and none have had any issues with them.  They are all tack drivers too.  I'm not sure where you read about issues, but I have not seen any.  

[airedale]

Bashing Remington seems like it is the in thing to do these days and I don't get it. I have looked over the new models closely and the quality seems as good as it was when I was selling them 30 years ago on all their bread and butter arms.. Sure there are some models especially on the low end I am not too fond of but anyone that knows bolt action rifles intimately can say with pretty good certainty when it comes to the Remington 700 bolt action including today's production they have long set the standard for moderate priced production bolt action rifles. With the right ammo they will shoot as good as any and better than many. Go to a bench rest match and see what actions they are using on the firing line and also take a look at the records that have been set for decades and what was and is still winning matches today.

 

chase0218 said

"It's crazy it took them 10 years to figure out if you add another 3/8" of an inch to the rubber pad it will help with recoil."

====================================

As for their new recoil pad there is a lot more to it than just being thicker, my best analogy would be it is made from something like super memory foam. Personally I do not think it has to be quite as thick as it is. That being said if the discomfort from recoil is as bad as the OP is experiencing a 53% reduction is something worth noting.

 

Al

Edited November 29, 2016 by airedale

[chas0218]

38 minutes ago, airedale said:

Bashing Remington seems like it is the in thing to do these days and I don't get it. I have looked over the new models closely and the quality seems as good as it was when I was selling them 30 years ago on all their bread and butter arms.. Sure there are some models especially on the low end I am not too fond of but anyone that knows rifles intimately can say with pretty good certainty when it comes to the Remington 700 bolt action including today's production they have long set the standard for moderate priced production bolt action rifles. With the right ammo they will shoot as good as any and better than many. Go to a bench rest match and see what actions they are using on the firing line and also take a look at the records that have been set for decades and what was and is winning matches.

 

chase0218 said

"It's crazy it took them 10 years to figure out if you add another 3/8" of an inch to the rubber pad it will help with recoil."

====================================

As for their new recoil pad there is a lot more to it than just being thicker, my best analogy would be it is made from something like super memory foam. Personally I do not think it has to be quite as thick as it is.

 

Al

I think Remington makes a good gun I'm not bashing them just to bash them. I have several of their rifles, and 2 of their shotguns and I have had and saw some serious quality control issues that shouldn't have made it out of the factory. For example I bought an 11-87 brand new paid around $800 on sale got it cleaned up took her to the range and she wouldn't fire. Come to find out the barrel ring wasn't brazed correctly and would slid too far into the receiver not allowing the carrier to completely lock. Now here is the kicker, it was a brand new gun less than a week old and they wanted me to pay to ship it to Illion and pay ship it back to myself. They then told me it was going to take 10-12 weeks to complete the repair. It was complete bull crap that was literally the last Remington I bought. It took 9 weeks for them to order a new barrel, assemble it, test fire and send it back. When I called Remington a couple weeks after sending it in they told me because my gun was warranty work it is moved to the back of the line behind paying customers. I'm sorry I just spent $800 on a gun and expected it to at least fire right out of the box apparently I wasn't a paying customer. Another thing was that I had already taken the gun back to the dealer and we fitted another barrel from a different 11-87 and the gun had no problem hitting that snap cap. So I and the dealer knew what had to be done and when the dealer contacted Remington telling them of the situation it still had to be sent out.

My father bought one of those .308 VTR rifles mind you this gun that costs over $1k and for it to have burrs in the chamber that after firing the gun the brass would not eject and had to send that back. At least his only took a couple weeks. could go on and on but from my experience Remington's quality has gone to crap. Their QC is laughable. Once they took over the Bushmaster line that seems to be their only interest.

Edited November 29, 2016 by chas0218

[Al Bundy]

Just realized Kimber is right hand only. Since I'm a southpaw, kimber is bottom of the list. 

[cityboy]

I bought a brand new recently made Marlin 336 30-30 4 months ago. I looked it over pretty closely before I put my money down. I couldn't find anything wrong with it. It's dead nuts accurate like my 336 in 35 Rem that I've had for 25 years.

[airedale]

4 hours ago, chas0218 said:

For example I bought an 11-87 brand new paid around $800 on sale got it cleaned up took her to the range and she wouldn't fire. Come to find out the barrel ring wasn't brazed correctly and would slid too far into the receiver not allowing the carrier to completely lock. Now here is the kicker, it was a brand new gun less than a week old and they wanted me to pay to ship it to Illion and pay ship it back to myself. They then told me it was going to take 10-12 weeks to complete the repair. It was complete bull crap that was literally the last Remington I bought. It took 9 weeks for them to order a new barrel, assemble it, test fire and send it back. When I called Remington a couple weeks after sending it in they told me because my gun was warranty work it is moved to the back of the line behind paying customers. I'm sorry I just spent $800 on a gun and expected it to at least fire right out of the box apparently I wasn't a paying customer. Another thing was that I had already taken the gun back to the dealer and we fitted another barrel from a different 11-87 and the gun had no problem hitting that snap cap. So I and the dealer knew what had to be done and when the dealer contacted Remington telling them of the situation it still had to be sent out.

I will tell you had that 11-87 been purchased from the store I worked at we would have replaced that gun ourselves. There is no way we would leave a customer holding the bag for a brand new gun that would not fire out of the box. 

Remington would have been dealt with directly and they would have got an earful, there is no way we would have held the bag for a brand new defective gun either. The defective 11-87 would be sent back to their repair shop pronto and I bet it would have been repaired and repaired quickly, not no nine weeks.

 

Al

 

Edited November 30, 2016 by airedale

[Buckmaster7600]

Being a big fan of short light rifles and having a bunch of different chambering a I will say this about their recoil. I have found that light rifles don't kick as much as they jump and I think the jump is worse as far as flinching but I have never felt that the recoil hurt.


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[JimR]

I've been window shopping for a left hand bolt action myself. Any thoughts on the Browning X bolt ?

[Al Bundy]

I saw it at one of the shops I went to. I noted it looked quite nice. I didn't pick it up though. I have a bps 12. Been a fine gun for 35 years. 

[bugsNbows]

Henry has a "new" lever operated "bolt" rifle called the Long Ranger. It's available in .223, .243, and .308. It's sort of a copy of the Browning BLR wherein it uses a box mag so spitzer bullets are ok. Street price is around $850.