Ruger American Compact 308

[Judas530]

Could just be that your stock doesn't fit you. Compact is made for children and women not a full grown adult male. They feel comically small compared to a full size stock.

I just bought the full size American and shot 2 boxes of 165s and a box of 20 gauge slugs this last weekend. No bruising and I felt great the next day. I think that gun is just too small for you.

[splithoof]

Everything that “1859sharps” has posted is right spot on.
I’d also look up some of the writings of Richard Mann; he has been at the forefront of “Scout-type” rifles and their use since the Cooper days. I know him personally, and know him to be very knowledgeable about how to really use a rifle to make solid hits in the field under time pressure, as is most often found in hunting scenarios.

[dogrunner]

Y'take a light hunting rifle.......primarily designed for ease of carry .......stoke it with full powered loads and it's gonna kick, especially when you shoot it off a bench.

I have a featherweight M/70 in'06 that is far and away the worst 'kickin' piece I've ever owned since I was 12 and a .12 antique single knocked a tooth loose......that rifle shoots great, but it is truly an OFFHAND piece...not a bench gun. Use it for what it's designed and it'l do its job just fine, offhand in a hunting situation. Just like grandpa's old .12 with it's exaggerated stock drop that magnified the recoil impulse when my 12 year old self shot it sitting while atop a salt shed..........never did that again!

[sigstroker]

Yes, I had a Featherweight in .308. It got my attention, especially prone.

[200Apples]

Don't lose perspective regarding this rifle.

It is a hunting rifle, meant to be used from the field where it is carried more than shot. At 6 pounds + weight of scope and sling, you have darn near scout rifle weight depending on the weight of the scope.

It is a rifle designed to hit a 6" target zone (area of vitals on most large game animals) on demand, from field improvised shooting positions. It is not a precision target rifle used for shooting the smallest possible group.

Everything that “1859sharps” has posted is right spot on.

I’d also look up some of the writings of Richard Mann; he has been at the forefront of “Scout-type” rifles and their use since the Cooper days. I know him personally, and know him to be very knowledgeable about how to really use a rifle to make solid hits in the field under time pressure, as is most often found in hunting scenarios.

I have always liked every word of every 1859Sharps post I have ever read, practically. This quoted post is no exception.

Too, corroboration from splithoof is valuable, as the latter has made annual pilgrimages to Gunsite Academy for many years (sometimes several times per year).

To quote (paraphrase, forgive me) The Guru:

"If that rifle were half as accurate as it is, it would still be twice as accurate as it need be."

I post also to include the fact that Cooper not only himself thought that a scout rifle makes a great hunting rifle and for obvious reasons, but I have personally read many accounts among his Commentaries/GunsiteGossip of folks writing in to Cooper when he was alive to say the same thing: They took their scout rifles hunting and achieved wonderful results, short barrels and all.

[plumbum]

Agree with what's been said - do what you can to stay off the bench with a light rifle, they'll punish you. Maybe try some shooting sticks from a kneeling position - when I was young and invincible I would shoot that way and even when I had a Mosin that had been cut down to 18" it wasn't as terrible when shooting offhand (yes that was stupid and I learned my lesson).

[ACfixer]

Don't loose perspective regarding this rifle.

It is a hunting rifle, meant to be used from the field where it is carried more than shot. At 6 pounds + weight of scope and sling, you have darn near scout rifle weight depending on the weight of the scope.

It is a rifle designed to hit a 6" target zone (area of vitals on most large game animals) on demand, from field improvised shooting positions. It is not a precision target rifle used for shooting the smallest possible group.

Excellent post and something I always tell people around me. I don't care what kind of group you shoot from a lead sled with your hunting rifle... for the most part it doesn't matter.

Can you lean against a tree with it and hit a cantaloupe at 200 yards? Can you sit on a jagged rock and brace against your knee and do the same?

[sigstroker]

Cantaloupes no longer run free where I live. Even if you did see one, they are protected.

[ACfixer]

Cantaloupes no longer run free where I live. Even if you did see one, they are protected.

Okay then, nail a California license plate from 200 kneeling. Off the car of course...

[pennstater]

Okay then, nail a California license plate from 200 kneeling. Off the car of course...

Damn it AC! That had me spraying beer on my screen! Classic!

MLC

[Kevin11mee]

You can definitely replace the stock and that will probably make a big difference in terms of recoil. I think B&C makes a fiberglass stock for the Ruger, might add a bit of weight, but the rifle will still be plenty light enough for hunting. What scope is on the rifle?