At $848 MSRP, the Mossberg Patriot Revere bolt-action rifle may well be today's "best buy" in a traditional hunting rifle. And there's a bonus: it has a much prettier than average walnut stock.

Photo shows a Mossberg Patriot Revere bolt action rifle beside a custom rifle costing 6-times as much.

Swirled walnut in the butt of this $848 Mossberg Patriot Revere bolt-action rifle compares favorably with the grain of the $6,999 custom

Hill Country Rifles Genesis

above it, don't you think?

Classic Lines and Figured Walnut Enhance the Mossberg Patriot Revere

Classic lines and marbled walnut might be out of favor with today's nuts-and-bolts, military-look rifle fans, but anyone with an appreciation of our hunting heritage and the esthetics of form following function should appreciate the look, balance, and performance of a Mossberg Patriot Revere.

Image shows precision workmanship of the rosewood fore end tip with spacers on a Mossberg Patriot Revere bolt-action rifle.

Rosewood fore-end tip with black and white spacers captures the esthetics of many mid-20th century rifles. The checkering might not be hand cut nor fine-lined, but it is precise and functional.

I first sampled a Patriot when it came out as a basic "starter" hunting rifle with a plain Jane walnut stock. And by plain I mean flat-out flat! No swirl, no marbling, not even a hint of a mineral streak anywhere. But the lines were good. Mossberg wisely took a hint from the lines of Winchester's famous Model 70 stock. A fairly gently radius, open grip provides room for various sized hands to find a comfortable grip and finger position on the trigger. The rising comb moderates recoil, and the rounded fore-end fills the palm for a secure hold.

Photo shows Mossberg Patriot Revere supported in a bipod on the prairie while hunters sit in grass in distance, glassing for game.

The Mossberg Patriot Revere functions as well in the hunting fields as its classic stock lines suggest. While no ultra lightweight, the rifle with its 24-inch barrel is nicely balanced. It's easy to carry, quick to swing into action, yet steady and accurate enough off shooting sticks, packs, boulders, and similar rough-and-ready field supports to provide MOA hunting accuracy. This one is chambered 6.5 Creedmoor and has accounted for whitetails, mule deer, coyotes, and even Spanish ibex. BTW, that's Swarovski's new

Z5 2.4-12x50mm scope,

the brightest 1-inch main tube scope in Swarovski's line.

Field Tested for Real Hunting Performance

The Patriot's stock lines are classic because they work. They've been field tested, modified, and tweaked for more than a century. Millions of hunters have figured out you don't need a wide, flat-bottomed, benchrest fore-end for hunting. You don't benefit significantly from a steep pistol grip nor a thumbhole. And certainly not from a dropping comb. Such styles have their place in target shooting, long range precision shooting -- but not often on deer and elk hunts where a hunter walks, glasses, hikes, climbs, crawls, and takes shots from field positions that rarely include sand bags.

Mossberg Patriot Revere Makes Concessions to Keep Price Down

Many traditionalists will not appreciate the "plastic" drop box magazine found on every Mossberg Patriot Revere. That is certainly not classic. But it is convenient and popular and contributes significantly to keeping this rifle's price many hundreds of dollars below that of similar, traditional walnut-and-blued hunting rifles. Similar price savings are evident in what I would describe as the "excessively floated" barrel channel, a polymer bedding block integral with the magazine lock mechanism, and a polymer trigger bow.

Image shows drop box magazine of a Mossberg Patriot Revere standing beside the fore-end stock.

The Revere's polymer drop box magazine will not please everyone, but I've found it more durable and trouble-free than most steel drop box magazines and even some steel, hinged floorplate magazines. It loads easily, snaps securely into place and stays in place while feeding smoothly every time. I don't like the esthetics of this, but sure do appreciate the performance. It holds five rounds in 243 Win., 6.5 Creedmoor, 270 Win., 308 Win., and 30-06. In 300 Win. Mag. it stacks three rounds.

Tried, Tested, Video Proof

I've tested and hunted with two different Revere's over the past two seasons, a 300 Win. Mag. and a 6.5 Creedmoor. I could go on describing their performance for pages, but you might enjoy this video review more.

https://youtu.be/eh1BAHdf0tE

The Mossberg Patriot Revere is obviously not a top-of-the-line, custom or even semi-custom rifle. It is a dependable, smoothly functioning, work-a-day hunting rifle with more than a touch of style and class. If you've an appreciation for classic hunting rifles and would like to field something a bit more handsome than the average, give the Mossberg Patriot Revere a look.

Ron Spomer, Senior Editor and Rifles Columnist at Sporting Classics Magazine, test, shoots, and hunts with a wide variety of rifles.

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