Mossberg Patriot Revere Rifle

Mossberg’s new top-shelf hunting rifle gives expensive looks, quality and performance at an “every-guy” pricetag

It’s not very often that we get caught with off guard when it comes to new rifles, especially traditional bolt-action hunting rifles chambered in standard short- and long-action calibers. But I just got nailed by a new Mossberg rifle, called the Patriot Revere model, that upon first blush anyone would have taken for a custom American or European rifle with more good looks than you could shake a stick at. Or maybe a top-shelf Remington Model CDL SF, except with better wood.

The Patriot Revere’s dual-lug, spiral-fluted bolt cycles exceedingly smooth within its action, and it’s thumb-actuated, two-position safety locks positively into either position. One of the highlights of the Patriot line is its 2-7 pound user-adjustable LBA Trigger.

Gunmakers have long histories of being pigeon-holed into quality categories. For the most part, those categories hold true—it’s not just a matter of perception—hunting rifles are built to meet specific price points, and those price points keep getting lower every year. Mossberg introduced its Patriot bolt-action rifle in the fall of 2015, ostensibly as a SHOT Show 2016 release, to meet a pretty low competitive price point. The race to the bottom among the top five or six bolt-action rifle makers has been fast and furious over the last few years, but they are all still very good quality rifles. The Patriot came out the door priced at $386 with a black synthetic stock, $438 with a plain-Jane walnut stock, and $584 with a laminate stock and Marinecote finish. It was a price gun, designed to compete favorably with the cheapest bolt-action competition, and it got good reviews at its introduction.

We had no complaints with the detachable, polymer 5-round magazine; it loaded with ease, inserted positively—and with the push of the release button—dropped free from the action with no outside assistance needed.

All things change with the passage of time, and two years later the Mossberg Patriot Revere rifle has evolved into a top-quality semi-custom hunting rifle that rivals custom bolt-action rifles in terms of wood quality, CNC-machining attributes, overall quality and features that make a bolt-action rifle a true hunting rifle.

The Patriot Revere is fitted with a gloss-blued, medium-contour 24-inch (the only length available among all-six caliber choices) barrel with a recessed target crown. The stock’s rosewood forend cap gives a timeless and unmistakable high-end look.

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