New Ruger Hawkeye Alaskan Rifle
More news from Ruger, this time it’s the reintroduction of the Hawkeye Alaskan rifle chambered in three calibers: .375 Ruger, .338 Winchester Magnum, and .300 Winchester Magnum. The Hawkeye is based on the Ruger Guide Gun but has some upgrades. Specifically, it’s an all-stainless rifle with a Houge stock and threaded barrel. This isn’t the old Hawkeye – this is a whole new bird.
First, the Hogue OverMolded synthetic stock is only available on the Alaskan. When you think about what this rifle is intended for, this a good choice. The Houge’s grippy surface is great for wet or snowy conditions. Additionally, the elastomer material used on Houge stocks provides some sound dampening should you bump up against something readying the rifle.
The Hawkeye Alaskan weighs eight pounds and has an overall length of 42 inches, a matte stainless finish and a windage-adjustable shallow V-notch rear sight and large white bead front sight. The rifle also features the Ruger Muzzle Brake System that includes a removable, radial-port muzzle brake to reduce felt recoil.
The Hawkeye Alaskan rifle features the smooth and crisp LC6 trigger, three-position safety, and integral scope mounts for included scope rings The hinged solid-steel floorplate as found on other Hawkeye rifles.
Key Points: Ruger Hawkeye Alaskan
- Non-rotating, Mauser-type controlled round feed extractor
- Hinged, solid-steel floorplate
- Three-position safety
- Hogue OverMolded stock
- Cold hammer-forged stainless barrel
- Ruger Muzzle Brake System
- One-piece stainless bolt
- 3 round capacity
- 20″ barrel available in 375 Ruger, 338 Win, 300 Win
- 42″ overall length
At its core, it’s a stainless rifle with a Houge stock and threaded barrel. But for the application that it is designed for it’s near perfect. This is a rifle that you would use for hunting in some of the harshest conditions available. What really makes this rifle great is the non-rotating Mauser-type controlled round feed extractor. While that sounds ambiguous if you aren’t familiar with this action type, allow me to explain.
Under pressure, it’s easy to double-feed a rifle not aware that you already have a round in the chamber. The bolt of the Hawkeye captures the case of the bullet with the extractor. This is different than the push feed like a Remington 700. In a push feed system, the round is not captured by the bolt. So if you rack the rifle on a push feed, but don’t close it fully, then you can re-rack the bolt and feed another round creating a double feed. This doesn’t happen with a controlled round feed extractor.
The case is controlled throughout the forward or rearward travel of the bolt. What this boils down to is that when that Grizzly is charging, and you need to reload, there is a greater likelihood that you can chamber that next round without issue.
Jeremy Mallette is co-founder of International Sportsman. An avid hunter and outdoorsman, he has spent more than a decade in the outdoor industry, from hiking and camping to silencers and hunting. His father taught him to shoot at age six, and he received his first firearm at age eight — a 1942 Colt Commando .38 special revolver. He enjoys yearly trips to Kansas for pheasant hunting, spending time with his children at the deer lease, and collecting unique firearms.
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