Mossberg MVP Varmint - Range Report posted

[Cadre]

Congrats she's sexy.

[kowalski]

will probably get one when this madness is over.

same here.

I really want a ruger scout, but can't justify spending $900+ on a rifle that should cost $600 or so.

[jvpark]

Imhave the 24" MVP and love it.
The general complaints are the wobbing magwell (which does not affect functioning), wobble in bolt when cocked open (which does not affect functioning) and short lengthen of pull (I took the rubber recoil pad off my Mossberg 500 and screwed it on, it's a close fit) and now it's much better.
Great trigger (adjustable), managable recoil, and very accurate... I recommend you reload if you do not.

[Grumpyoldretiredcop]

I do reload... or rather, I have in the past and have all the gear. It's probably past time I got back into it. Working up a really good load for this rifle will be fun.

No magwell wobble on this one. I noticed the bolt wobble when open, didn't bother me much except when I don't get the bolt draw straight and the bolt drags. That should clear up with more practice, I haven't fired any bolt action in quite some time.

The length of pull is just right for me, but I've always liked a shorter LOP than my physical build would indicate is correct.

same here.

I really want a ruger scout, but can't justify spending $900+ on a rifle that should cost $600 or so.

There was a Ruger Scout right next to my rifle. Took a look at both, went home and did the research. I pretty much agree with you, except that if Ruger had made it to accept M1A mags, I'd have paid the just under $900 that Big 5 was asking. No way I'd do that for a rifle that needs proprietary mags.

[gorenut]

I really wish the MVP was available with iron sights and a synthetic stock.

[3006mv]

I really wish the MVP was available with iron sights and a synthetic stock.

and in .300 aac blackout (7.62x35)

[jvpark]

There is a guy who makes 300 AAC barrels for the MVP.
I agree on the iron sights. I'm sure it's in the works...

I really like mine and its a GREAT VALUE. I suspect I will be shooting it a lot...

Just had a badger bolt knob added by Randall.

[Grumpyoldretiredcop]

Got out today and fired the MVP today, here's the range report:

Prior to heading to the range, I had obtained a set of inexpensive medium height Leupold rings to replace the see-through rings, which were much higher than needed, and again bore-sighted the rifle.

Fired approximately 60 round of Federal 55 grain bulk pack ammo, using three different magazines; the factory mag, a well-used 20 round mil-spec aluminum mag blocked to 10 rounds (for use in an AR pistol in CA) and a 20 round Pmag.

Arrived at the range around noon; conditions were partly cloudy, wind about 5-10 MPH, variable direction, and COLD. OK, cold by California coastal standard, in the mid 40's. Even though I was born in New England, I've become acclimatized to the usually mild Northern CA winters... the last few days have been a bit colder than usual. Set up the rifle, set up magazines, range bag, and started to set up my spotting scope when the tripod brutally attacked me, slicing a chunk out of my right middle fingertip. Of course, this occurred right as the rangemaster was calling "safe to go downrange", and so if you see a blood spot amid the mud on the target photos, you know where it came from.

Set the rifle up on the bipod with the butt supported by a couple of ammo boxes, loaded the factory mag, inserted it, worked the bolt, got on target and... click. Failure to feed. Executed a "tap rack bang" drill, paying careful attention to the bolt head as it closed. This time, it picked up a round and fed it smoothly into the chamber. Having bore-sighted the rifle, I was on paper, needing only a few rounds to get on target (Target 1 photo below). The hits on the larger Shoot-N-See over the paper target's bull were made as I sighted in and became accustomed to the rifle.

The bolt action was initially a little rough, but seemed to smooth out after the first few rounds. Once I felt that I had the feel of the rifle, I fired for group on the small target at the bottom of the photo. The 10 ring on that target dot is about 1" in diameter. It's probably the best group I've ever fired at 100 yards.



I continued to fire, testing each magazine in turn. Both the factory magazine and the 10/20 mil-spec magazine fed flawlessly, aside from the factory mag's first failure to feed. The Pmag was a little more problematic; unless I worked the bolt slowly it would sometimes not pick up the next round. As long as I didn't try any speed records with the Pmag, it fed fine. I don't think I'll use Pmags in this rifle though, as I have numerous aluminum mags that will work without problems.

As I continued the process of getting accustomed to the rifle, I made another important discovery... important for left-handed shooters like myself, anyway. In order to fire this rifle, I have to grasp the stock with my left (firing) hand with my thumb on the left side of the stock. At one point, I carelessly let my thumb move too far across the stock while cycling the bolt with my right hand, and the razor-sharp edge of the bolt's cocking piece neatly sliced a collop out of the tip of my left thumb. More bleeding ensued... at least this time I had a Band-Aid on hand!

Not withstanding the accumulation of injuries, the first firing session continued. The wind began to pick up and the temperature fell, and I felt it was time to wrap it up. I fired once more for group, this time in about 10MPH gusty crosswind, obtaining the group below.



The last group that I fired was with 45 grain Remington HP varmint ammo. That group (sorry, no picture) was equally tight and about 1" below point of aim.

Altogether, I'm pleased with my MVP. Now that I have it sighted in and know where to keep my appendages away from, I wouldn't have any problems depending on it to take any game available in my area of the country.

[Cummins_Powered]

Good review. I wish my savage axis could use ar mags. Makes the mossberg very appealing. Congrats on the new rifle.

[bombadillo]

Try some 55gr V-Max next time you're out. If you do your part, your 5 shot group should fit in a dime.

[Cadre]

Nice painful review. MVP's are pretty solid. congrats again.

[Iskra]

You're a reviewer I trust. Thank you for your posts and your honest assessments. I'm very interested in an MVP - was before, and even more now.

[shadowofnight]

One other really nice touch, since the inletting in the forend area is flat under the barrel...you are just 2 T-nuts away from mounting any type of rail you want to very easily.

I use an Atlas bipod, with the quick release picatinny American Defense mount...so I mounted a picatinny rail on my MVP. The stocks design made this extremely easy to do, now if only my 20 moa EGW rail would get here sooner.

[bombadillo]

Got my EGW base today. I got it as a freebie being a mod on mossbergmvp.com, but it would have been well worth the money if I were having to spend it. I've kind of used this as a budget tack driver .223 rifle. I can't ask for any better by any means from something in this price range either. Its consistently delivered 3/4" 3 AND 5 shot groups with Hornady V-Max 55gr rounds. Bang for the buck, for under $700 for my whole setup, I don't know that you can get another centerfire rifle to shoot better.

Here she is with the new base:

[bombadillo]

Almost forgot to mention, there is a new MVP variant called the MVP FLEX. We'll see if they put it into production, but it is definitely a prototype at this point.