Cooper M52

Price: $1,862
Contact: cooperfirearms.com

Anyone who thinks, "They don't make 'em like they used to," needs to look at the Cooper rifle that won this year's Editor's Choice award. The impression it makes is that of a finely handcrafted rifle with such custom features as classic stock styling, hand-cut borderless checkering with nary a runover at the edges, elegantly contoured metal and slick operation, all of which usually add up to a rifle priced in the thousands. Yet the Cooper rifle we tested carries a price tag of only $1,862, which includes an extra $267 for deluxe French walnut. For the base price of $1,595, you get the same gun with a nice claro walnut stock.

The metal-to-wood fit of the action and bottom metal are as whisper- close as you'd expect from a fine custom rifle, and you even have to look closely to see the narrow and perfectly even space between the wood and the free-floated barrel. Like all Coopers, our test rifle had been accuracy-tested at the factory, and the three-shot test group was only a slightly enlarged hole. It had, however, been shot with select handloads, but we test with over-the-counter factory ammunition, which can make a huge difference in accuracy. Still, our groups with Remington and Winchester tended to stay close to 1.5 inches. Some groups, such as one by Arlen Chaney measuring .626 inches and one of mine at .847 inches, were much smaller.

Despite the beauty and accuracy of our test rifle, it was not free of criticisms, the most common being a hard bolt lift, which is a usual complaint about three-lug actions, and the steep cocking cam of the shorter lift bolt.

TESTERS' COMMENTS: Lovely wood; The bolt-throw is slick as silk; The trigger angle to the pistol grip is not great; Impressive accuracy; Cocking the action requires too much effort; Excellent design on the safety.

Editor's Choice
Workmanship:****
Performance:****
Price/Value:***