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Ruger American Gen 2

  • By Chris Parkin
  • Last updated: 12/07/2024
  • Review
Ruger American Gen 2

Ruger produces straightforward rifles designed for hunting and shooting without too much unnecessary embellishment. The original American was a reliable rifle, yet the new Gen 2 has added a few more details, allowing it to stand out from the crowd while retaining a very attractive retail price.

Looks to shed the weather
This rifle is the standard model in a grey injection-moulded polymer stock with a contrasting Cerakoted barrel and action. Ruger supplies a pepper-pot muzzle brake to reduce recoil, but below this, there is a 5/8” x 24 thread for a moderator. The muzzle of the 1:10” twist rate barrel is 19mm in diameter. The luxurious tungsten colour coating used on the steel looks neatly applied and adds reassuring corrosion protection to the externals. Coupled with the spiralled fluting, this raises the rifle’s appearance far above that of a standard barrel. The rifle came chambered in .308, and at 20” long, the tube provides decent muzzle energy and effective hunting performance.

Action details
Up top, the receiver shows a pre-fitted Picatinny rail for easy scope mounting. On the left-hand side is a basic bolt release catch. Simply press this down to withdraw the bolt, exposing the three lugs that provide a 70º lift to cycle the action rapidly. The push-feed bolt face strips ammunition from an AI-type detachable magazine. A single billet of bright stainless steel is used to make the bolt shaft and lugs. The matte bolt handle measures 60mm long and comes fitted with a black spherical 21mm tip for tactile acquisition at speed. Black polymer is used for the bolt’s shroud at the very rear, and this lies just ahead of the three-position tang safety catch. To operate this, simply move it forward for FIRE, middle for SAFE with bolt operation, and fully rearward for SAFE with bolt lock.

Low friction
The stainless-steel bolt and Cerakoted action have a natural low-friction interface, meaning the bolt is slick in operation. There’s a single plunger for vigorous ejection as well as a single extractor claw recessed into one of the bolt’s lugs. Primary extraction is provided by a ramp upon which the bolt handle bears, at the very rear of the action, and I had no problem with sticky ammunition.
Ruger uses an inner safety blade on their single-stage ‘Marksman’ trigger, which is adjustable from 3 to 5 lbs (1300 to 2200-grams). It’s predictable and consistent to operate, with minimal creep, and it must be said that I can’t really fault it considering the price of the rifle. There is ample space within the stock’s integral trigger guard for gloved fingers, and the trigger on my rifle broke at 1384-grams/49oz.
The magazine release lever hangs in front of the guard, and all you need to do is push it forward to disengage the polymer mag. It doesn’t drop freely out of the mag well but has a rim allowing easy removal. The capacity is listed at 3 rounds in .308, rather than 3+1, as you can’t clip a full magazine into the gun if the bolt is closed.

Bedding
The barrelled action and stock are coupled with twin screws that are positioned fore and aft of the magazine well, and the rearward one is hidden under the magazine release latch. The reinforced stock and inlet contain a bedding block to minimize action stress, with the whole setup being very neatly designed and manufactured regardless of price. The stiff forend and solid bedding area also prevent any crushing of the stock if used clamped atop tripod sticks.

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Ergonomics
Ruger has put significant effort into the Gen 2’s stock in terms of mechanical stiffness, incorporating the magazine well, fitting sling studs front and rear, as well as ensuring the free-floating barrel remains truly floating. The grey/black finish offers a moulded stippling effect throughout, and as well as being impervious to water, ensures that you won’t lose your grip at any time. There is additional contouring on the forend whose radiused underside offers hand-filling proportions without becoming excessively bulky. The average width is 40mm, and there are twin finger grooves for additional support.

Integral moulding
The open-radius pistol grip features ambidextrous palm swells, and Ruger has angled the rear sling stud to keep it clear of a supporting hand when shooting prone. The recoil pad is 30mm thick with ‘ventilation’ slots to enable greater deformation and recoil absorption. The material grips well in the shoulder pocket and in terms of subtle detail, avoids being too spongy. Also, there are no angular corners that could snag when mounting the gun. It’s not a big cartridge, but .308 Win has a spiky recoil character, and I was impressed with just how well the American Gen 2 transfers recoil with minimal rifle reaction and muzzle jump.
The stock uses a spacer system which can even be removed to drop the length of pull (LOP) to 12” if desired, and this clearly demonstrates Ruger’s attention to the US home market where shooter age and height are no limit to hunting. Additional spacers are available from Ruger, but I think it would make sense to include them given it’s comparatively small for what might be considered the main market in the UK.

Comb over
The comb is also an additional fitment, and the rifle is supplied with the low unit most suited to lower scopes, but medium and high options are also available. It’s narrow, fitting under the cheekbone, and it won’t displace your jawbone. Also, with a smooth texture in contrast to the gun’s stippled finish, it offers superb comfort against your skin.

At the range
I used a variety of ammunition as proof of capability on target. I had no problems when loading, extracting, or re-fitting the bolt for bore sighting. Loading the mags was problem-free as well. The bolt operates without any stuttering or jerkiness, and I think this is a great selling point. The handle is not bulky and suits a hunting rifle, and ammunition flows smoothly from magazine to chamber without any undue effort. Similarly, it extracts and ejects without malfunction. My only hesitation is that the short length of pull made the gun feel small, and those with larger hands will similarly find the grip quite small relative to German or Scandinavian designs. However, it’s certainly not unusable.

Paper test
The accuracy settled down after the first few boxes of ammunition and it showed sub-MOA performance on target. I felt comfortable that all was in order and there was no significant point of impact shift as the barrel heated up. With a moderator fitted, the rifle’s recoil was notably gentle, and I feel Ruger has put a lot of thought into the polymer stock, which doesn’t transmit vibration or resonate if bumped.

Cleaning
After use, I inspected the cleaning patches and couldn’t find any shaved fragments of copper anywhere. The barrel seemed to clean easily, and when I checked bullet feed and fired cases, there was no evidence of damaged meplats or badly scored cases.
Ruger offers the Gen 2 in this ‘Standard’ format as well as the ‘Ranch’ and ‘Predator’ variants. The former has a flat dark earth stock, a 16.5” barrel, and features Cobalt Cerakote. The latter has a bronze Cerakote finish, a green stock, and a longer 22” barrel to generate more muzzle velocity. Personally, I think the Standard rifle seen here has the nicest looks and is probably best suited to UK hunters. It also boasts a generous range of calibres that include .204, .223, .22 ARC, 6mm ARC, 6mm Creedmoor, .243, 6.5 Grendel/Creedmoor/PRC, .270, 7mm-08, 7mm PRC, .30-06, .300 WinMag, .350 or .400 Legend, and .450 Bushmaster.
This standard-length action (103mm bolt travel) has no issue with excessive bolt travel coupled with the short length of pull, but I would like to see the long action in the flesh before I recommend it.

Conclusion
It’s great to see a reasonably priced rifle that has made its way to the UK without a significant financial penalty, considering the relatively small market from an American perspective. The gun feels solid, resists mechanical damage, and holds zero throughout regular day-to-day bumps and bangs when transported and handled. In fairness, it is a bit small for me yet still shoots reliably and handles without any failings. The balance point will be affected by moderator size and weight, but the gun has an inherently neutral feel and still transfers recoil with a deft character that I wouldn’t mention if it didn’t. Ruger’s decision to include a muzzle brake might appeal to the US market more than here, as we have easy access to sound moderators. However, in the bigger calibres, it might be a swaying factor for some shooters. I must admit, I’d really like to get hold of one of these in the .20 or .22 calibres because, with a Picatinny rail for simple scope mounting, and thermal or night vision, it will make a compact and handy foxing rifle. The Cerakoting looks well above the price point, and although I’m not going to say fluting does much more than reduce weight, it certainly adds immeasurably to the looks.

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gun
features

  • Name: : Ruger American Gen 2
  • Calibre: : .308 (on test)
  • Barrel Length:: 20”
  • Overall Length: : 41.25”
  • Weight::  6.2 lbs
  • Length of Pull: : 12-13.75”
  • Magazine Capacity: : 3 (DM)
  • Price: : £825
  • Contact: : Viking Arms - www.vikingarms.com
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