On this week's #SundayGunday, we’re taking a look at the Mossberg Patriot Carbine, a shorter length version of the company’s beloved bolt-action rifle. Available in 8 short or long action calibers, the Patriot Carbine is ready for your next back 40 hunt, backcountry adventure, or to ride around as the perfect truck gun. No matter how you press it into service, the Patriot Carbine is sure to deliver.
Here at American Hunter, we have a little more experience with this particular model than is common for our #SundayGunday tests. Associate Editor David Herman took a .308-chambered, 16.25 -inch barreled variant afield to South Africa and, in addition to functioning flawlessly, reports that it can effortlessly drop game from inside 100 yards, to out past 350.
The rifle sports either a 16.25, 18, or 20-inch Medium Bull profile barrel, making it effortlessly portable whether stalking through the woods, or maneuvering it within the confines of a blind. Even better, the barrel is threaded to 5/8x24 TPI with an eleven degree target crown, making it easy to attach a brake or suppressor. In the latter case, the gun’s short barrel provides an additional boon, as the gun maintains a length that is barely longer than a standard, unsuppressed hunting rifle. Indeed, with a 5.5-inch long Silencer Central Backcountry Banish attached, our editor’s test model was still short enough to carry slung-up with muzzle down through dense brush.
The action is fed by a flush-fit, detachable box magazine, holding either three or five rounds depending on chambering. A spiral fluted bolt and oversized bolt handle runs free and smooth, chambering cartridges and removing spent shells with ease. Above it sits a stretch of Picatinny rail, for the easy attachment of an optic, while below, an LBA user-adjustable trigger breaks with clean consistency, and can be set anywhere from two to seven pounds.
The stock, which is equipped with standard fore and aft sling swivel studs, has a 13.75-inch length of pull with a soft rubber buttpad. One note, the rifle’s stock is not generally available finished in FDE as our test model is, but comes in standard black.
For more information on the Mossberg Patriot Carbine, which weighs between 6 and 6.5 pounds depending on barrel length and chambering, and retails for $515, visit mossberg.com, and for more #SundayGunday any day of the week, check out our playlist on YouTube, where all previous episodes are archived.