Scout rifle, circa 2016

[GJM]

Are you handicapping the 30-06 at all with an 18-20" barrel?

Perhaps, but this is more a walking around, general purpose rifle, where I value a smaller package. I do think my sighting choice is more of a compromise, and Jim Brockman and I decided to put Talley bases on, so I can run either a LPV or 30mm Aimpoint. This will necessitate a switch to open sights on the barrel.

[Lost River]

Probably not a 20" barrel.

In fact I have a nice old J.C. Higgins Model 50 30-06, which is a 1950s FN Belgian Mauser, with a slim 22" tube on it. It would make a fair donor for what GJM is discussing building at Brockman's (which is about 30 minutes away).

I have been wondering what to do with that gun for a while now, as I am trying to consolidate, and I am strongly considering divesting myself of my 30-06s and just run 308s and 300WMs exclusively for BG.

[John Hearne]

He originally meant the "psuedo-Scout" to be any good attempt that fell short, usually something using an '03 Springfield action, but it ultimately came to include stuff like a Mosin-Nagant M91 with a variable pistol scope in a B-Square mount and a laser.

I seem to recall that the most common "failure" in the concept was not making weight. I always thought that by setting a very low floor, Cooper hoped to force some innovation that never really materialized. There are also those who said the weight limit was there to keep semi-autos out of the class.

[GJM]

I seem to recall that the most common "failure" in the concept was not making weight. I always thought that by setting a very low floor, Cooper hoped to force some innovation that never really materialized. There are also those who said the weight limit was there to keep semi-autos out of the class.

The dirty secret of API 270, was a decent guy with an M1A or FN would invariably win the shoot off, even against better shooters with a bolt action scout rifle.

[Inkwell 41]

I found this video a couple years ago.



A featherweight, in .308, with an 18" barrel, and one of Brockmans pop up peep sight/ Talley base, would make a nice practical rifle.

[okie john]

I seem to recall that the most common "failure" in the concept was not making weight. I always thought that by setting a very low floor, Cooper hoped to force some innovation that never really materialized. There are also those who said the weight limit was there to keep semi-autos out of the class.

Yes. He beefed a lot about overweight Scouts.

I also agree that he wrote the rules to drive innovation—he certainly wasn’t shy about tipping the playing field to enforce his ideas in other areas. Several times he wrote that any semi-auto could be considered, but that none of them made weight, so you may be right on that account.

He also liked concise language, such as saying that a Scout should be one meter long and weigh three kilograms. The idea was to force shooters to study shorter, lighter rifles, and that only worked if he enforced the rule, so why not have a rule that’s kind of snappy?

I think that some of the innovations did materialize and that others still materialize. He would have loved the Kimber Montana and the Remington Model Seven. He might have groused about the Picatinny rail’s inelegant appearance, but would have been delighted that it frees us from the tyranny of custom bases and expensive pedestal barrels.

Some of these elements, such as the red-dot sight, are still coming into alignment. Unfortunately, it may take a hostile White House to create the conditions under which the Scout and its descendants can really flourish.


Okie John

[okie john]

If anyone is interested in reading original material about the Scout, here are the references that I've used for some time now:

• Aagaard, Finn, "The Scout Rifle Concept: Does It Work?", Guns & Ammo, March, 1996
• Aagaard, Finn, "My Rifle", Rifle & Shotgun Annual, Los Angeles: Peterson Publishing, 1996
• Clifton, Brent, Clifton Arms Catalog, Medina, TX, n.d.
• Cooper, Jeff, To Ride, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth, Paulden, AZ, Gunsite Press, 1990
• Cooper, Jeff, "The Scout Rifle", Guns & Ammo, April 1987
• Cooper, Jeff, "Cooper's Scout Rifle: A Gun for All Reasons", Guns & Ammo, July 1994
• Cooper, Jeff, The Art of The Rifle, Boulder, CO, Paladin Press, 1997
• Cooper, Jeff, "The Scout Rifle: Some Simple Principles", Guns & Ammo, July 1998

To get a good idea of the general development of the all-purpose rifle, take a look at

• Sharpe, Philip B., The Rifle in America, New York: William Morrow & Company, 1938
• Truesdell, S.R., The Rifle: Its Development for Big Game Hunting, Long Beach, CA Safari, 1992

There are also dozens of references scattered throughout "Cooper's Commentaries", which you can find online. I read most of this stuff as it was published, so I got to appreciate it and understand it over time. I also exchanged letters with Cooper and Aagaard about it, and built a pseudo Scout that I used for several years. I think that the Scout was well ahead of its time, but that we've moved past it, which is much of what Cooper really hoped that we'd do--despite a certain amount of clinging, he was really more interested in advancing the art of shooting and the understanding of it than anything else.


Okie John

[GJM]

One of my all time shooting highlights, was breaking two consecutive clay pigeons launched from a skeet thrower, using Finn Aagard's Mauser .30-06 with a Leupold 1.75-6, at a Cooper reunion at the Whitington Center in Raton. Wished I stopped at two, as I missed the next clay pigeon.

(The reason I borrowed Finn's rifle was I found the LPV easier than my scout scope on aerial targets, but that is another story.)

[ReverendMeat]

Okie john, when you say that we've moved past the original concept, what do you mean?

[Dagga Boy]

Okie John, if there is a way to get an electronic copy of the Clifton catalog, I would appreciate it. I have a full house Brent Clifton scout from the 80's I got back then that is based on a LW Ruger 77. It makes weight and is a textbook Scout. It is a stellar rifle I sold once, and got back fairly quickly with horrible seller's remorse. It is one of my favorites.

Current climate. I love my Brockman lever guns. The 30/30 just spent the last two months in the truck traveling to both coasts. The future may bring a Magpul stock based bolt, but for now the levers are working for the times I can't carry an AUG or AR. On a side note, I found a Remington Model 8 and an old Remington 600 with the vent rib. I could only afford one and the Model 8 won, but the 600 would have made a cool build up.
I've also always liked the idea of an 03 in a Clifton stock as well.