When you have an area of interest, it’s a natural tendency to want to own as much equipment in that area as you can. If you’re a football fan, you likely buy jerseys and other paraphernalia. If you’re a guitarist, you probably want to buy multiple guitars and guitar amplifiers. And, if you are passionate about guns, you want to own as many different guns as possible.
But the reality is that most people can’t afford to be major collectors of firearms, so we have to think in terms of what weapon is going to give us the most use and versatility and limit our purchases to only a few firearms. Or, in some cases, to only one.
So, if you can only own one firearm, which one should you buy? Dan Zimmerman makes the case that the one firearm that you should buy might be a new version of Steyr’s Scout Rifle. Zimmerman writes,
A number of gun makers have signed onto Jeff Cooper’s scout rifle concept…a lightweight bolt action carbine chambered in a caliber (usually .308) that could take down anything in North America, and is useable with either iron sights or a forward-mounted optic. It could be the one rifle you own…if you’re only going to own one rifle.
As for popular models, Ruger, Savage and Mossberg come immediately to mind.
But one of the best (and maybe the least considered) scout rifles out there is Steyr’s version. The Steyr Scout is different in that it has an integrated bipod, pop-up iron sights, a threaded barrel, extra magazine storage in the stock and it allows you to mount a short eye relief optic in the usual position or a traditional long eye relief forward-mounted scout scope if you prefer.
Now, Steyr’s expanding their scout line, adding a model chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor.
There are plenty of arguments in favor of making a rifle your go to firearm including increased accuracy over range when compared to a pistol and higher calibers available to take down larger threats.
But this Scout Rifle has some nice features, too, so, if you can only own one firearm, this may be a weapon to consider.
