Proceedings of the First Scout Rifle Conference
Held at Gunsite Ranch, Arizona, on 6, 7,
8 December 1983,
under the auspices of the Ekeiboloi
Society
CURRENT PRODUCTION
Rifles currently available, complete as sold, which may qualify as scouts are the Remington Model 7, the Ruger 77 Ultra, and the Mannlicher Model L. None is properly sighted as sold, and none is designed to take a forward-mounted telescope of optimum eye relief (10 inches). None comes equipped with proper reserve aperture sights. The experience of the conference is that the Mannlicher displays the highest consistent level of accuracy, followed by Remington and Ruger. All come with conventional wood stocks. Remington and Ruger come with acceptable single-stage sporting triggers, and the Mannlicher with its excellent two-stage military trigger, though it is often found with the European double-set trigger--a complication. Of the three standard weapons, the Mannlicher is the easiest with which to hit. It is also the most expensive and the poorest handling of the three, due to its oddly shaped stock, its stiff bolt action and the difficulty of manipulating its detachable box magazine. The rotary Mannlicher magazine is the only one incorporating a "shoulder holder" to prevent deformation of soft bullet points in the magazine. It also is interchangeable with a 10-round magazine, very useful under some circumstances.