Ranking 10 Common Bolt Action Hunting Rifles Under $750

So I'll touch on one of the rifles the OP mentioned that hasn't been brought up very much. The Marlin X7

Back in 2009, I decided to get my dad a new rifle for Father's Day so I could do what I could to get him back into hunting. I spent a lot of time browsing our local gun shops and seeing what they had. I wanted to get him something with a decent walnut stock that wouldn't destroy my college student budget. Had it narrowed down to a Savage 114 and a Marlin XL7W, both in 270. The Marlin looked great and the bolt was buttery smooth. It's not an exciting rifle, but it has been very accurate with everything we've fed through it.

Long story short, if you can find a Marlin X7 housed in a factory walnut stock, you shouldn't be disappointed.
 
I have a tikka t3x lite in 300WSM that I love. Feels good, super smooth action and puts tight groups down range to 300 yds. My son has a Patriot in .308. He loves it and shoots it well. I hate it. He hates mine. We both put bucks on the ground last year. It’s all what you’re comfortable with and confident with and willing to put LOTS of rounds thru in the offseason.
 
Found this thread doing a search for T/C Compass info. In regards to @LittleBill on the X7, my first rifle was an XL7 30-06. I still have it and still love to shoot it. I am a cheap rifle addict. I am eyeballing a T/C Compass in 7mm Rem Mag right now for 239. I may buy it but I am also toying with getting on the 350 Legend train. I am toying with the idea of my first AR style rifle being in that caliber. IF times weren't so tough I would try to spring for both. Darn COVID-19 ruining all my gun buying fun!
 
I think the run of inexpensive bolt guns has a lot to offer, aesthetics not being one of them. The bargain guns that I have include Ruger American, Remington 783, Remington 700 adl, Howa 1500, Thompson Compass. These are all seviceable guns for someone who doesn't want to spend that much money. Does one stand out as clearly better? I don't think so. Some are better for certain applications. Generally they come with flexible plastic stocks, little to no polish and finishes that rust easily. They are also often accurate and come with a decent trigger, with the exception of the compass, which has a really heavy trigger that needs a spring kit to make it at least bearable. Its funny how much criticism these guns get. I recall when the American came out and many people slammed it because it wasn't a 77. Then the reports came in about how accurate it was. I've been happy with mine. IMO these rifles represent a great gateway into rifle shooting. Out of these i think the 700 is my favorite with the howa a close second. If i was just target shooting then the howa. The ruger american is very light so i like it iff i have to hike. The 783 IMO does better for heavier cslibers because it weighs more than some of the others. Mine shoots about .75 with federal blue box, the only one i tried. Good trigger and a solid rifle that follows a savage pattern.
 
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Don Fischer said:
The best rifle is the one you like looking at and carrying around! In my experience most rifle's can be made to shoot. Two I would not have again because I couldn't make them shoot are the Rem mod 7 and Ruger. That Ruger was one of the original M77's tang safety. Now if Ruger still looked like that rather than these plastic stocked night mares, I'd probably try another. Wouldn't do another mod 7 though, worst shooting rifle I ever used and I really found I didn't like carrying it round. That said I really do like 700's! I like all rifles I like to look at really!
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My walnut, tang safety M77 .30-06 shot lights out, right out of the box with any 180 grain bullet I put through it. 30 years later, with a pitted bore, it still shoots. I have one of the new stainless and composite Mk ii Rugers too. After some fit and finish work, trigger job and bedding, it shoots sub MOA also.

Each to his own. I have never liked 700's. I just added a Winchester M70 to the stable today.
 
My list would be Tikka t3x ,howa and model 70 ,have all three and they are very good rifles IMO.
 
I have no experience with the majority of rifles on this list but I have a T/C Compass in .300 Win Mag that I got on sale 2 years ago. It has been excellent for me and extremely accurate out of the box. The only major drawback for me is the crappy trigger that is not easily adjustable.
 
trb said:
I have no experience with the majority of rifles on this list but I have a T/C Compass in .300 Win Mag that I got on sale 2 years ago. It has been excellent for me and extremely accurate out of the box. The only major drawback for me is the crappy trigger that is not easily adjustable.
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I bought 2 of these for my boys. They are very accurate and i like how the stock fits and the 3 position safety locks the bolt. The triggers are heavy. MCARBO sells a trigger spring kit that improves the pull. I got them for our rifles. The kits come with two springs, a heavier hunting spring and a lighter target only spring. I put the hunting spring in. They do help but i wouldn't call the triggers great but i can live with them now.
 
If you can find one, the Sauer Classic 100 XT is pretty outstanding at its street price of around $500-$600. I think MSRP on them is around $750. I paid $450 for mine in 7mm mag.
 
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I paid $300 for a Marlin X7 in .223. Great gun for the money shoots well under an inch with some ammo and about an inch with several other factory loads. I wish Marlin still made them I would like to have one in 7mm-08.
 
Two7D said:
I paid $300 for a Marlin X7 in .223. Great gun for the money shoots well under an inch with some ammo and about an inch with several other factory loads. I wish Marlin still made them I would like to have one in 7mm-08.
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The Remington 783 is supposed to be kind of but not completely the successor to the X7. The 783 does use the same adjustable trigger from what I have read. I have an XL7 in 30-06 and love it.
 
RaiderRich said:
The Remington 783 is supposed to be kind of but not completely the successor to the X7. The 783 does use the same adjustable trigger from what I have read. I have an XL7 in 30-06 and love it.
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That's good to know. Maybe I'll check one out.
 
Two7D said:
That's good to know. Maybe I'll check one out.
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I've said it before but I love my 783 in 308. MOA if I do my part at 100 yards all day long, with various factory ammo. I put a Vortex diamondback 4-12 on it and I can shoot lights out for a really cheap setup.
 
There are too many nice rifles made to own anything past number 3 except for the 700 and it’s not even currently in production that I know of during this merger / buyout process. My brother has a Savage Axis and yea it’s a rack driver but it’s also ugly. Do yourself a favor. Go to a gun shop with this budget and buy something that was made back when people still cared and took a little pride in their work.
 
44hunter45 said:
My walnut, tang safety M77 .30-06 shot lights out, right out of the box with any 180 grain bullet I put through it. 30 years later, with a pitted bore, it still shoots. I have one of the new stainless and composite Mk ii Rugers too. After some fit and finish work, trigger job and bedding, it shoots sub MOA also.

Each to his own. I have never liked 700's. I just added a Winchester M70 to the stable today.
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When the M77 first came out absolutely loved it. Had a friend working in a gun store in Kalispell, Mont and he got word of Ruger chambering it in 7x57. Well couldn't afford it but ordered one anyway. I got the first one to come into the state and the friend took #2. Then the nightmare began as I couldn't get anything to shoot well in it. Finally tried a 154gr Hornady RN and that one finally shot very well. Problem was it was the only bullet that shot well! Actually wouldn't bother me today as I work mostly with one bullet weight only in all my rifles. I did have a M77 in 338 Win Mag and it shot very well. Love the lines of those first M77's. Have never cared for the plastic stock Rugers even a little, terminal ugly in my view.

Nice thing about gun's is they pretty much all shoot well today. There is no need to be shooting a rifle you think is ugly! I really like a number of different brand rifle's but have more 700's than anything! Big reason for that I think is how easy they are to go through the bedding. Sort of imagine other round action's would be the same. The Tikki has lot's of follower's but I'm not one of them. I think that the one with the magazine extending below the stock? Just turns me off. Pretty easy these days to find a rifle that shoot's more than well enough for a hunting rifle and bolt smoothness is more bout splitting hairs than anything. Needing a second shot at an animal most of us have no recollection of loading the next round and how smooth it was or wasn't. As for trigger's, most rifles come with good trigger's. Even the one mod 70 I have came with a 5# trigger and it works very well. I did get caught up in trigger's years ago and all my mod 700's have a 3# trigger on them. Sounds heavy to some people but most people that have shot mine the first time don't think they pulled the trigger! Beside that, I can'r get them lower than that without problems! How can that be? My Mossberg Patriot's have 1 1/2# trigger' and they are very nice but no nicer than my old 700 trigger's at twice the weight. I recall shooting a friends old Savage 110 many years ago Had a 9# trigger and was pretty hard to pull smoothly. So I backed up a bunch and worked on my trigger release. Know what, trigger didn't get any lighter but I shot it better. Don't care for those old Savage trigger's but those old Savage's with that junk trigger are what gave Savage the reputation for accuracy they have! So much for great trigger's! For the most part, I don't think America is the nation of riflemen we'd like to think we are. Come on, how hard is it to hit a standing deer at even 200yds? Gonna go get a new rifle, buy one you like holding and looking at, Everything else is most likely workable!
 
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Don Fischer said:
When the M77 first came out absolutely loved it. Had a friend working in a gun store in Kalispell, Mont and he got word of Ruger chambering it in 7x57. Well couldn't afford it but ordered one anyway. I got the first one to come into the state and the friend took #2. Then the nightmare began as I couldn't get anything to shoot well in it. Finally tried a 154gr Hornady RN and that one finally shot very well. Problem was it was the only bullet that shot well! Actually wouldn't bother me today as I work mostly with one bullet weight only in all my rifles. I did have a M77 in 338 Win Mag and it shot very well. Love the lines of those first M77's. Have never cared for the plastic stock Rugers even a little, terminal ugly in my view.
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This was my epxerience with a 7mm Mauser Ruger Tang Safety as well. Dad traded an old Remington Rolling Block in 45-70, and a Model 12 Winchester for it. I wish he would have kept those two instead. I ended up rebarreling the tang safety to 7mm Mauser AI and it's a sub MOA gun now. I think some of those early Ruger bbls were outsourced and crap. I also had a 300 wm Ruger Hawkeye that I could not get to shoot below 2" at all, regardless of bullet/powder choices, so I traded it for a pre-64 winchester model 100.

Then I took a massive leap of faith and bought a used MK II Ruger M77 in 30-06 and it shoots under an inch all day long. Rugers make a great platform for a custom project, and it's a cheap way to get into a left handed CRF action. If your gun shoots, you'll love it. If it doesn't, make it a project & put another bbl on it.
 
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