I was really quite surprised when I received the email on this rifle because I really like the Scout concept and have used one extensively but to date there has not been a durable and reliable commercial version (the Steyr has bolt lift and light primer strike issues/the Savage is delicate--bolt retaining pin, scope mount, magazine, etc) other than the Frontier but the 16.5 barrel kept me away. This new rendition is durable/reliable, has iron sights and most importantly, an apparent reliable box magazine but the barrel is only 16.5 inches! The muzzle blast must be tremendous. Am I right? If so, will the flash hider in any way attentuate the blast and noise?
