Ruger is ready to take on the 2021 competition rifle season with an out-of-the-box race-ready Custom Shop Ruger Performance Rifle. Complete with a competition-friendly price tag, this bolt-action rifle only needs glass and ammo to get in the games.
Precision rifle competitions are becoming a lot more popular and to ensure that competitors rely on skill rather than a financial advantage, many shooting competitions put a price ceiling on certain rifle classes. With its $2,399 suggested retail price, the Custom Shop Ruger Performance Rifle showcases how a company can squeeze the most gun out of every dollar and cent.
On the surface the Custom Shop Ruger Performance Rifle, or RPR, looks similar to a standard model, with added flair by way of its bright red highlights. But a closer look shows Ruger’s attention to detail with the Custom Shop RPR.
Starting at the front the Custom Shop selected American Precision Arms for the muzzle brake instead of going with a generic in-house design. It’s their Gen 2 self-timing brake which can be adjusted, if necessary, and easily replaced should the user want.
The brake is connected to heavy stainless steel cold-hammer-forged 26-inch barrel. Chambered for 6mm Creedmoor, the barrel uses 5R rifling for less bullet deformation and better down-range performance.
The Custom Shop RPR of course features a free-floating barrel and handguard and the handguard predictably is modular with full-length M-Lok slots on all sides. One really neat little touch is that Ruger included M-Lok slots on the sides of the magwell for shell carriers or any other single-slot accessories right next to the action for quick and easy access.
Fixed to the lower receiver assembly is a textured red anodized stand-off for extra stability when shooting from barriers and for a little extra grip upfront to quickly switch between positions.
The red standoff matches the red trigger and ambidextrous safety selector. Like with the muzzle brake, Ruger tapped the aftermarket and included a flat-face trigger from TriggerTech that’s adjustable with (included) adjustment screws.
Underneath the rifle has a Magpul MOE K2+ pistol grip with a small compartment for an oiler, pull-through cleaning kit, extra batteries or any other small accessories. The Custom Shop RPR also has a huge, interchangeable turned-down bolt handle for easy manipulation, and the upper receiver has a 20-MOA rail, which can be removed if the user is looking for a different style of scope mount.
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Rounding things out is a fully-adjustable, side-folding stock with a bottom M-Lok slot for a monopod and a soft rubber recoil pad. Like the pistol grip, the stock mounts using a standard AR buffer tube and can also be switched out if it’s not exactly right for the shooter.
If there’s one thing it’s hopefully, down the line, the Custom Shop will add more chambering options. For now the barrel can be swapped out pretty easily just the same. That being said, 6mm Creedmoor is a solid competition cartridge with a huge following despite being relatively new. Included with each rifle is one 10-round Magpul magazine.
Ruger’s played around with improved Performance Rifles since their introduction but the Custom Shop model goes all-in with these tweaks and improvements, ensuring that this model will show up on shooting mats across the country.
For more information about the Custom Shop and Ruger’s latest competition-ready firearms, visit Ruger online.
This looks top notch. The fact that they went with an APA muzzle brake just shows that they thought this one out and asked REAL competition shooters what they wanted. Take my money!
Where is the venerable 308 ? I can find this caliber in a gas station in the woods if need be. I’m tired of having to inventory another redundant caliber. Enough already. We can’t even find 5.56 much less these new flavor of the year bullets
I wish they would throw a bone to us old schoolers with a long action model just like this in .30-’06. It will match the Creedmoors with heavy for caliber bullets all the way out. There are millions of guys with rifles in this caliber already who do NOT want to go .300 Win Mag or the other new whiz bang .30’s which are all good, but to ignore a base of millions strikes me as odd.
I LOVE THE 30-06 CAL. 125,145,165,180, grams shoots great ? ? ?
Where can I find the red magazine hand piece in the picture in the article?