I was trying to find out something about the Mossberg Patriot today, an inexpensive bolt action that competes price-wise with the Savage Axis and Ruger American. There were a few write-ups from back when it first came out, and a half-dozen or so YouTube videos, but over-all I was not happy with the information out there.

I enjoy writing about firearms about as much as I enjoy shooting them, so I decided to risk a few bucks and ordered one for myself. It ought to be here tomorrow sometime. I'll take a series of good images, bore-scope the bore, take the gun apart so I can see its guts, then I'll put an appropriate scope on it, a Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 BDC model. (Cheap but good scope) - and then I'll be ready to do a range report too. I already have 30-06 loaded ammo and dies on hand.

So, there will finally be a comprehensive review of the Mossberg Patriot out there with lots of images that will answer questions that I was wanting answered, but couldn't find answers to. I will not be in cheerleader mode, so it will be warts and all, straight from the shoulder.

What I ordered was a 30-06 with the grey laminate stock and marinecoat finish, which I understand to be either a Robar NP3 coating (nickle and teflon) or something very much like it.

Article on NP3 coating tech

Hi-Res image of the rifle ordered

It is supposed to weigh 7.25 pounds nekkid, and has a 22" fluted barrel with a 1:10" twist. I'll weigh it again after I get a scope mounted on it.

As is my habit, I'll be keeping the rifle for six months, maybe a year and then I'll sell it unless my son gets attached to it, in which case I will keep it for him.

Since I dunno nothing about the Mossberg Patriot at this point, I'd be glad to hear from any Patriot owners here. What do you think of it, and how does it compare to other inexpensive rifles?

When I get my review written up, a couple two or three days from now, I will post a link here.

I was interested in the 375 Ruger offering but it seems only a few made it out and Mossberg must have dropped that cartridge from consideration.

I was interested in the 375 Ruger offering but it seems only a few made it out and Mossberg must have dropped that cartridge from consideration.

Mossberg has several models listed in 375 Ruger, but I'm not seeing a lot of them online. If you still want one, PM me about which one you want and I'll see if I can track one down.

Geez, did you have to comment about scopes !!! Just joshing...

I thought the Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 would be representative of the kind of scope that would go good with the Patriot.

I've had three of them so far, it's my go-to scope when I want something reliable that doesn't cost too much. The first one I ever bought is still mounted on my Savage 17HMR. - A really outstanding scope for the money.

I have fancier scopes here, but they're waiting for fancier guns, you know how it goes.

My BIL purchased one in 308. He has nothing but good things to say about it. he put a 30mm scope 4-12 x 50 on it.

Don't own one. If I were buying a budget rifle I'd get a Patriot before I'd get a RAR or Axis.

I have one in .270. It is very accurate and I'm happy with it.

The theory here is that the Patriot may be significantly better than the Ruger American, or the Savage Axis - for about the same money.

By 'significantly better" I mean the Patriot's feel, appearance, and overall quality. They are all accurate rifles.

This is quite a turn-around for Mossberg, who is famous for making rifles that function well, but look terrible. - The 4X4 for example, with its 'pregnant guppy' look. It was a good rifle by all accounts - but who would want to own one?

The images of the Patriot that I see online are promising, but without holding one in my hands, its kind of hard to make a call on a firearm's looks. One thing I intend to do is take more and better images than I have seen online. I got an eMail today that says it should be here by the end of the day on Thursday.

So, I've got a day or two to load up some more ammunition. I already have the scope and mounts set aside, ready to go on the rifle not long after it is unboxed. Before I mount the scope though, I'll take a few pictures of it as it comes. I'll clean the barrel, run a few dry patches through and borescope it before I consider dragging it out to the range.

The barrel is what I am most curious about. - What the rifling and throat look like, and of course how it shoots.

It has been quite a while since I have been this excited about a new rifle. - I've scrounged up 80 rounds of various 30-06 ammo and loads to try out, while waiting for delivery sometime tomorrow.

Any NEW gun is exciting to get no matter what brand it is. Even just buying at the store can't wait to get home and stroke it.

I think what interests me the most is writing up the review, that and the idea of shooting something with a little bit of grunt to it. - I've been kind of obsessively shooting .223 for a year or so, now.

I have a box of Remington core-loct 180's. That's what I'll use for the initial barrel break-in. The long bullets will do a better job of wearing down any high spots or tooling marks in the barrel. It won't be like shooting a 300 magnum, but it will still be a big change from shooting 223's. It will be good for me to shoot something different.

One thing I may regret is ordering the rifle with the marinecoat finish. Reading about the Mossberg lever-action, there were more than one report of the factory getting the marinecoat inside the action, where it caused problems. The stuff is apparently tough enough to be hard to get rid of, if it winds up somewhere where you do not want it. - But I didn't order the marinecoat for myself, my son expressed an interest in it. Personally, I'm a meat and potatoes man who prefers blue or stainless with walnut or maple. I know that I'll like the laminated stock though, I've never had one of those that I didn't like.

I have a theory that the Patriot is a better rifle than other guns in that price zone - but shooters are leery about it, and there are no in-depth reviews out there to look at, at least not that I've been able to find. I have a website that I need to re-task, and I'm thinking of using it as a library for articles and reviews, kind of like Chuck Hawks but with more images, and on a smaller scale. A useful review on the Patriot would be a good way to get that project off the ground.

The rifle arrived today. I took a lot of pictures, including borescope images of the inside of the receiver, chamber, throat and barrel. I mounted a Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 BDC scope with Millet rings, used Renaissance Wax on all external surfaces, and took it to the range to sight it in at 50 yards - and develop some first impressions:

* The stippling never looked good to me in the photos and YouTube videos, but in real life it looked pretty good. I like the laminated stock.

* As I hoped, the main difference between the Savage Axis, the Ruger American, and the Mossberg Patriot is that the Patriot looks a heck of a lot more like a regular sporting rifle. Nothing really looks outstandingly cheap or hokey about it, but no-one will mistake it for a Winchester model 70, or a Remington either. There is still a difference, but it is not as stark a difference as exists with its competition, the Axis and the American.

* On the strength of fifteen rounds of Remington core-loct 150 grain rounds fired, it appears to have accuracy potential. The first five-shot group was roughly 2" at 50 yards, the second 1.75", the third 1.5" with three rounds in the same hole, and two flyers. I cleaned the rifle prior to taking it to the range. It was dirty from test-firing at the Eagle Pass, Texas factory, I assume. Pictures of the groups will be in the review.

* Avoid the marinecoat finish. In the review there will be an image showing where a small chunk of it chipped or peeled off of the face of the muzzle, from the muzzle blast I would guess. This verifies my opinion of "coatings', but it does not significantly affect the appearance of the gun. As I expected, there is coating inside the action and I can see where the bolt head has scored some of it off of the metal in the raceways. Later on I will remove the coating from the raceways with Scotchbrite, as owners of the Mossberg lever rifle have had to do for that gun.

* The rifle handles well, and feels good. Note that for a year or so, all I have shot have been ten-pound .223 varmint/target rifles. The Patriot in 30-06 seemed to kick a lot, but that is only to be expected from a lighter gun than I am used to, firing a much more energetic cartridge. There was no actual discomfort to my old man bony shoulders. The recoil pad is a good one. The stippling gives a more positive grip than checkering does.

* The magazine works well, and holds an honest five rounds. When the fluted bolt rides over the empty magazine's follower, there is a bit of a plasticky "cheap feeling" that goes away if there is ammo in the magazine. Feeding and extraction were flawless - until I ran across a bad round that had the neck messed up on one side. (Picture in review) that would not chamber and had to be discarded. Poor QC at Remington I guess. I have had the box of ammo for at least four years and never noticed the bad round.

* The action is reasonably smooth, especially for a skinny bolt gun - but nobody is going to mistake it for a Tikka. I did not notice a lot of slop in the bolt, but I am sure that some is there. The bolt handle and knob are very good, the gun cycles well, even from the bench where I was shooting it.

It will take me a day or two, maybe more to get the review put together. I'll be out at the range tomorrow morning when the air is still and cool. This afternoon it was windy, and around 100 degrees of dry desert heat. Tomorrow: The 180 grain loads, and I'll move the targets out to 100 yards.

Overall, I am much more impressed with the Patriot than I am with either the Axis or the American. Next time, I will get either the walnut/blue version or the synthetic/blue version, I've learned my lesson about marinecoat.

Coatings... Eeeuw!

I like the look of it. Thanks for testing and reviewing it.

I'd be interested in your opinions in a head up comparison of the Patriot and a TC Venture.

I also looked hard at a RAR when they 1st came out ...and passed w/TMI for why, for here...

Looked briefly at a Patriot in an Acedemy store but they did not have a caliber I wanted at the time, uhh? 18+ months ago as I recall ...and had no idea of when or if they were gonna get any more of them, other than the wood/blue's on the rack in 30'06.

IMO FWIW Your writing style is 1st rate, and ought to be submitted to some of the gun rags. Keep it up.
Ron

The TC Venture costs about a hundred bucks more than the Patriot - but you get what you pay for. It is a better firearm, all around. I am comparing the Patriot to rifles that cost about the same, the Ruger American and the Savage Axis.

A customer once remarked that his TC Venture and his Tikka T3 Lite were "the same thing", and after comparing the two, I've got to admit that they are much closer to each other than I would have thought. The TC Venture is an American-made sleeper that does not get a fraction of the credit that it deserves.

I appreciate your kind words about my writing style. Most of what I write is either fiction, or technical articles about amateur radio digital networking. The problem with writing for a gun magazine is that along with your first paycheck, they start telling you what you can and cannot say. I am following Chuck Hawks' lead in this, publishing on my own web-site so I can call things as I see them. That way, if somebody's feelings get hurt by one of my opinions, well that's just tough toenails.

To do this, I am re-cycling my old ballisticprecision.com web-site. Right now there's nothing to see there, it's all under construction. I am kind of a web-weenie, and roll my own html most of the time. For this though, I am using forum software contrary to its intended use, setting it up as a read-only server for gun articles and reviews. - No membership or discussion there, that's already covered very well by web-sites like this one.

After having bought a 308 TC Venture Weathershield with a Real Tree AP camo wrap 2 years ago at a net net of barely more than a RAR blue, and not ever getting to shoot it, it went down the road at a profit.

Then I saw their $75 Rebate Program again last Spring and picked up a RAR priced blue 270 Venture. It is also still unfired, but then with all the DIL's medical issues and commuting to Dallas 2/3 - 5 days a week managing her surgical & medical schedules and followups, my getting any range time was not a high priority last year.

This year we've sold the Texoma lake house, and found this place in Palestine after a dedicated 8 month search. NOW that I am 20 minutes away from a 200 yard range - instead of 65 miles to Fossil Sumthin over by Decatur, after we get past the after move settling finally completed in the next month or so, I will now have a dedicated reloading shop building to put together ...and begin to be able to do the comparisons 'tween my nearly new T3 260 and the Venture 270 head to head....that was the reason for my asking for your opinions about a head to head comparison with the Mossberg Patriot x's a same dollar cost base model Venture. Too bad TC apparently has discontinued the Rebate on Ventures, it made the difference in covering shipping & transfer fees since none of the local shops carry them on the rack.

I'll keep you posted on the results after I can generate some trigger time. I really like the fit and feel of the Ventures, and see it as a better quality replacement for the current crop of "beginner guns" although I've heard this $$ class of rifles referred to as "Peasant guns " too. Call 'em what you want... if they shoot good enough I'll wind up with a golf bag full, with a caliber for every occasion & all of 'em wearing the same style Boyd's plain vanilla stock for about the same $$ as a base T3.
Ron