Mossberg Patriot Walnut 30-06 Springfield Bolt-action Rifle Reviews
Mossberg Patriot Review
With the Mossberg Patriot, I believe the visitor has become a more serious histrion in the value-priced bolt action marketplace.
November 23, 2015
I have ever maintained that at to the lowest degree 80 percent of a rifle's overall visual appeal is adamant by its stock. You tin can accept the slickest barreled action on the planet, but if the stock doesn't have the correct lines and proportions, it's got two strikes against information technology from the get-go. And earlier I get to discussing this aspect with regard to the new Mossberg Patriot bolt activeness centerfire rifle, I call back information technology's worthwhile to give an example of what I'm talking about.
The best one I tin can think of was the metamorphosis in 1962 of the Remington Model 721/722 (long and short action respectively) into the Model 700. The 720 series was a remarkable gun — the product of newly applied post-state of war pattern and manufacturing processes, resulting in a solid, authentic rifle that was like shooting fish in a barrel and economical to manufacture. Instead of complicated, flat-bottomed forgings with integral recoil lugs, as seen on the 1903 Springfield, 1898 Mauser, 1917 Enfield and Remington'due south archrival Winchester's Model 70, the 720-series receiver was a simple tube with no projections with an eccentric washer sandwiched between the butt and receiver to serve every bit a recoil lug.
Merely alas, the 721/722's trim barreled action was set into a stock that had all the visual appeal of a 2x4. Non only that, information technology had a stamped sheet metal buttplate and a one-piece trigger guard/floorplate, also of stamped sheet metal. The latter served no useful purpose other than to seal off what was a blind mag, a purely cosmetic endeavor to suggest a hinged floorplate.
And so came the Model 700. It was substantially nothing more than than the 721/722 barreled action set into a sexy new high-gloss stock with a Monte Carlo comb, cheekpiece, pressed checkering and a plastic grip cap and buttplate with white-line spacers. As for the barreled action, the merely visible cosmetic change was a new, checkered commodities handle with a rearward sweep to it. Suddenly, the new Remington 700 was arguably a classier, better-looking burglarize than the Winchester Model 70, and 90 percent of this transformation was attributable to the stock.
Such is the story with the recently introduced Mossberg Patriot bolt activity. It represents not quite the dramatic transformation as the Remington story, only the new Patriot is different enough the Mossberg folks feel justified in calling it a new burglarize. I'll let you be the judge.
Mossberg, of course, has been in the thick of the boxing majestic being waged among Savage, Remington and Ruger and others to produce the nigh affordable bolt action big game rifle. I'chiliad talking guns with suggested retail prices of less than $450, with some being less than $350.
In the case of Remington and Ruger, their value-priced rifles—the 783 and the American respectively—are totally dissimilar animals compared to their corresponding flagship Model 700 and Model 77 rifles. Savage and Mossberg'due south guns, on the other paw, utilize the same basic action as used in all other models.
This by November I had the opportunity to use the new Mossberg Patriot chambered in 7mm Rem. Magazine. on a whitetail hunt in Saskatchewan where over the course of 5 days I logged 37 hours in a ground blind in temperatures that ranged from 5 degrees to xv degrees below aught. I was also able to have the same gun back domicile with me to examination and evaluate nether more controlled and pleasant conditions.
The eye of the Mossberg Patriot is, of form, the action, which is based on a tubular receiver in conjunction with a washer-type recoil lug and a barrel lock nut. Essentially, information technology's the same organization first seen on the Savage 100 series rifles and many others since. There are some who consider any rifle based on a tubular receiver every bit being somehow inferior to a forged one and therefore the mark of a, well, lesser gun. I would remind this relatively small faction that most American-built bolt action rifles today utilize tubular receivers, including the Kimber Model 84/8400 serial and the Dakota Model 97, hardly budget-class guns.
And like the Savage, the Mossberg Patrito'south commodities head is a carve up component secured to the commodities trunk by a cross-bolt with a hole through its center to allow passage of the firing pin. This arrangement allows the commodities head containing the twin-opposed locking lugs to have a few thousandths lateral play, which allows the lugs to seat themselves perfectly against their abutment surfaces. It's similar having a lapped activity right out of the box, which certainly can't hurt accurateness.
The Mossberg Patriot'southward bolt torso has six functional spiral flutes that, upon rotation, collect any clay or foreign matter, thus keeping such debris off the bearing surface. And because fluting reduces begetting surface area, friction between bolt and receiver is as well reduced. The bolt handle is a departure from Mossberg'due south previous ATR/4x4 models in that in that location is no longer a rearward sweep to it. This one niggling change alone required all stocks—synthetic, walnut and laminate—to be redesigned.
The 1 thing not changed was the bolt shroud. Before Mossberg acquired the manufacturing rights to the Patriot's action, the original pattern of the bolt shroud allowed a decocked bolt to be reinserted into the activeness. Under this circumstance, the firing pivot protrudes from the commodities face, so if the decocked bolt is reinserted into the receiver with enough force and there'south a live circular chambered, you get ignition without the commodities being in battery—which ain't adept! The electric current shroud prevents this, and while there are other ways to prevent such an occurrence, Mossberg chose to retain this rather cruddy protuberance on the Patriot.
The hammer-forged barrel, which sports six half-hearted ix.5-inch flutes, is free-floated in all three stock options. In all cases at that place is a polycarbonate bedding chassis on which the receiver sits that is integral with the magazine well. This unit drops into the stock from in a higher place. The trigger guard bow on the synthetic model is integral with the stock, while on the wood stocks there is a divide trigger guard bow that is much classier looking. But then the wood models are more expensive than the synthetic.
There's nix new virtually the Mossberg Patriot's trigger. Information technology's the company'due south LBA, which is user-adjustable down to two pounds. The two-position side safe does not lock the bolt. The bolt end/release is as simple and efficient as it gets. It'due south a one-piece pivoting blade with an upward extension jutting up but behind the left side of the receiver span.
The magazine arrangement is first-class. The entire box is of a one-slice polycarbonate, just like the well into which it fits. I've long maintained that poly magazines are far superior to metal ones because, for one thing, they are incredibly strong yet counterbalance half of what a comparable metallic box weighs. Too, tolerances can exist held extremely tight, and the feed lips are integral with the box, so at that place'southward no mode they can exist bent by a driblet on a hard surface. The only other components comprising the magazine are the follower, too of polycarbonate, and the follower bound.
If there's a magazine that'southward easier or faster to charge than this one, I don't know who makes it. I was able to stuff three 7mm Rem. Mag. rounds into this box in four seconds. In that location's no pushing downward on the follower then having to slide the round rearward under the feed lips. You simply push the cartridge straight down. And because all surfaces are then shine, and the fact there'southward a natural lubricity to polycarbonate, the effort needed to feed a round from box to chamber is silky shine, and in that location's never a slide mark on the case.
But it'southward the new stock that'southward going to win over a lot of converts who heretofore only didn't like the awkward looks of what was Mossberg's flagship rifle, the 4x4.
For the Saskatchewan hunt, I had mounted a Bushnell Elite 2.5-10x40 in Millett rings on Weaver-type bases (which come standard on the Mossberg Patriot, preinstalled), so the gun was already set up for range piece of work. As is common with these hunts where a new burglarize is well-nigh to be introduced and preproduction guns are being used, the gun arrived but three days prior to my getting on a plane. I was lucky to get in 1 short sighting-in session using Federal'southward 150-grain Fusion load, which shot pretty well for the few groups I was able to get in that day. So for formal testing I wanted to sample more of the Fusion, plus a couple other loads of unlike bullet weights.
At the range everything worked as information technology should. The trigger broke at 3 pounds, which is what I adopt on a hunting rifle, and then I left it alone. There was, nevertheless, a hitch before permit-off. It wasn't severe enough to where it affected my shooting. Accuracy was acceptable, but with this being a preproduction example, I believe it volition exist better on production guns.
I expected velocity loss with the 22-inch barrel in 7mm Magnum to be rather severe, and it was—averaging about 90 fps less than nominal. As of this writing, the plan was to fit all Mossberg Patriots with 22-inch pipes regardless of caliber. I call back that would be a mistake, and I'thou hoping Mossberg will reconsider before production begins. The 7mm and .300 Magnum models should have 24-inch spouts, otherwise you've got picayune more than than a louder .280 or xxx-06.
Other suggestions: alter the stock's stippling panels to real checkering, and the pattern on the grip should be larger and more of a traditional betoken pattern to lucifer the fore-cease.
With the Mossberg Patriot, I believe the company has become a more than serious thespian in the value-priced bolt action marketplace. The fact this rifle has gotten the company into Cabela's, Sheels and several large buying groups where heretofore Mossberg centerfire rifles were not carried certainly suggests a new and higher acceptance level. In add-on to continuing all the chamberings of the 4x4 line (it and the ATR are gone), the Mossberg Patriot volition be offered in .375 Ruger, a start for Mossberg and another stride toward broadening the gun's entreatment. It's also available in a shorter, 20-inch-barrel Bantam version, forth with scoped combo offerings.
Source: https://www.rifleshootermag.com/editorial/mossberg-patriot-review/83515
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