For some time I've been thinking about a compact, lightweight, intermediate-caliber mountain gun. Outside of California it would be easy to adapt an AR in any of several calibers for that role, here it would be a bad idea; lets just say compliance is a whole different topic. I don't really need a semi-auto for this role anyway, so have been considering lever guns and bolt guns. This originally came up a few years ago when I was doing permitting on a clients property in Sonoma County and there was plenty of evidence of a feral pig problem; they have a depredation permit, but I kind of wanted a little more than the pistol I did carry or the 5.56 that I didn't. Then last year we did a project on a really remote and rugged site further north, and I was out there for days at a time stepping over fresh black bear scat every day, two mountain lion encounters, and one pig. This was private land, so a long gun would have been fine with few restrictions other than all day carry comfort and the ability to go up and down 2,000 feet of elevation range on often steep slopes with dense conifer and brush interspersed with large grassland openings.
I settled on going with a bolt gun and the caliber first, and decided to try 6.5 Grendel because it gives a little more punch while having the ability to reach out to moderate-longish ranges. From there the criteria were light weight, a 16 or 18-inch barrel, and magazine fed. That left three main choices. I ruled out the Howa mini pretty quickly because although there are many good reviews of accuracy, the mag release in front of the mag would be asking for trouble in dense brush (why did they do that?), the 20-inch barrel was a little longer than I wanted, and the proprietary mags didn't help. A CZ 527 was a serious consideration, some report needing to bed the action but that by itself wouldn't have been a deal killer; the wood stock version currently shows only with the 24-inch barrel in 6.5, so to get the shorter barrel would have meant the synthetic stock version. Again there's the proprietary mag thing, and five round capacity. It was still a maybe, although finally I decided to go with a Ruger Ranch. Reasons: 16-inch barrel, 6 lbs, AR-pattern mags available from at least two manufacturers, 10-round capacity, in stock nearby (which the other choices weren't), comes with a rail, medium-heavy barrel, and I could use it out of the box with no modifications. It's also the least expensive of the the three by a fair amount, at about $460. At that price, I expected a few compromises.
Pickup was a couple days ago. First impressions:
- It handles and balances nicely. About the same length as my 1943-vintage M1 carbine, a little more robust in the stock and not quite a pound heavier.
- The synthetic stock was better than expected; there's a little flex but not enough to be a problem, and the barrel really is free-floated.
- There's a little front-back play in the magwell, a bit of space to rock the mag back and forth, although it tends to settle in one spot. Laterally it's tight.
- The biggest issue is the bolt. Mine's not as bad as some I've read about, but there are lots of sharp edges and tool marks. C'mon Ruger, seriously? This is the best you can do? As new, it's hard to work the bolt quickly without it hanging up, especially at the front and back of the cycle. Debating whether to just let it wear in, or lapp it in a little.
- The trigger is smooth, currently a little heavy although its supposed to be adjustable and I haven't messed with it yet.
I had some ammo loaded up so this morning I took it to the range. The only spare optic at the moment is an Aimpoint Micro so that went on the rail. It shoots nicely. At 100 yds it's easy to stay in the black, some of the holes were touching; and at 200 yrds I was able to shoot a 4-inch five round group despite the dot covering most of the bullseye. With magnification and good ammo I wouldn't be surprised if this really is an MOA gun as advertised.
Here's the part where I'm open to opinions: Next I need to decide whether to keep the Aimpoint on it and use it as a perfectly capable 200-yard gun; or, put some sort of lightweight scope on it for greater accuracy and distance. Please do not suggest some big heavy optic, that ain't gonna happen, it would defeat the entire purpose. I'm talking under a pound.
If I can get the bolt to smooth out I'll be reasonably happy.