Rifle & scope review: The Maral Composite Brown and Toric scope make for speedy action

As a Canadian outdoor writer, I have a genuine soft spot for hunting equipment made in this country. I would even extend that to European-made gear when it’s sold exclusively in Canada—and that’s what clinched the deal when I was asked to review a new addition to the Browning Maral line, the Composite Brown.

While straight-pull rifles have been around for more than a century, improving their design has been an ongoing process. The Maral is a good example of such improvements, and it’s all about speed. This rifle may not be as fast as Browning’s semi-auto BAR, but it certainly leaves standard bolt-actions in the dust.

The Maral employs what’s referred to as a “pull-and-let-go” system. When the bolt is pulled straight back, the fired case is ejected while an internal spring is put under tension. You then simply let the bolt go, and it snaps closed with sufficient drive to pick up a new cartridge and lock the seven-lug rotating bolt into position. According to Browning, this makes the Maral the fastest straight-pull on the market.

Other features include a 22-inch, fluted, hammer-forged barrel with a matte blued finish; it’s threaded M14x1, and includes a muzzle brake. Then there’s the composite brown stock, two-stage trigger, adjustable cheekpiece, Nomad hybrid scope mounting rail, and detachable flush magazine for .300 Win. Mag. (two three-round magazines are included). Rounding out the features are front and rear fibre-optic sights, three rubber recoil pads of different thicknesses, and QD mounts with included sling swivels. A hard case is also included.

TEST RESULTS

The reason most straight-pull rifles originate in Europe is the continent’s tradition of driven hunts, where game is pushed past shooters on stands. Since any number of animals may be driven by a stand in rapid succession, cycling speed becomes essential. Enter the straight-pull, which cycles faster than a standard lift-and-pull bolt action. But when would that design apply in North America? For me, that would be on hunts that may require fast follow-up shots, or on any hunt you might consider using a semi-auto, but want the accuracy of a bolt-action.

As for the Maral Composite Brown specifically, my test rifle weighed a reasonable seven pounds, with a trigger-pull weight that varied between two pounds nine ounces and two pounds 10 ounces. This is not your typical bolt-action, however, so spend some time reading the instruction manual and learning how to use the rifle before heading off to the range.

Among the differences, this rifle is cleaned from the muzzle, and it does not have a safety per se, but a cocking or decocking button instead. While precise, the large manual cocking system is very heavy, requiring considerable finger strength to manipulate. A decocked rifle can be safely carried with a live round in the chamber, as the rifle can only be fired when cocked. As well, an empty magazine acts as a bolt stop.

When mounting the Toric scope from Tract Optics, I immediately encountered a minor glitch. In order to avoid the bell of the scope coming to rest on the rear sight of the rifle, I needed to use high scope mounts. Fortunately, that was not an issue, as the rifle’s adjustable comb provided adequate height for eye-to-scope alignment, despite the high mounts. On the whole, the scoped rifle balanced well, and with the comb raised, it was reasonably quick on point.

The scope itself offered sharp optics, and I really liked the illuminated BCD reticle, 6x magnification range (2.5-15x) and parallax adjustability from 10 yards to infinity. I also appreciated the highly visual numbering on the large turrets, and the precise and audible 0.25 MOA click adjustments. The Toric is decidedly a quality scope, but with a reasonable price point.

On the range, I shot factory ammo from seven manufacturers—Hornady, Federal, Gunwerks, Barnes, Fusion, Remington and Sako—in grain weights 150 to 200. Of note, this was certainly the fastest straight-pull I’ve ever encountered. And while the muzzle brake reduced felt recoil, it was loud, so be sure to wear adequate hearing protection.

The rifle clearly had its preferences in ammo, but the results did include five sub-MOA groups, three of which bettered three quarters of an inch. For larger game such as moose, Hornady’s 200-grain ELD-X Precision Hunter (shooting 0.902 inches) would top my list, followed by Hornady’s180-grain SST Superformance (0.748). For other game such as mule deer, caribou and elk, Barnes’ 165-grain VOR-TX TSX BT (0.715) and Hornady’s 165-grain Custom InterLock BTSP (0.728) would make good choices.

THE RIFLE SPECS

• Calibre: .300 Win. Mag.
• Barrel length: 22″
• Total length: Adjustable with recoil pad interchange
• Weight: 7 lb 8 oz
• Length of pull: Adjustable with recoil pad interchange
• Drop at comb: Adjustable
• Magazine capacity: 3 rounds
• Rate of twist: 1/10″

For the complete range test results, go to www.outdoorcanada.ca/maral.

TORIC 30MM 2.5-15X44

To get the most out of this rifle and its chambering, I looked for a scope that could handle diverse hunting scenarios, from whitetail woods to open fields where longer shots might be in the offing. Tract Optics’ Toric 2.5-15×44, with its SFP illuminated BDC reticle, met that prerequisite. It features fully multi-coated Schott high-transmission glass and an extra-low dispersion lens, which make up Tract’s advanced Ultra High Definition optical system. To quote Tract, “You’ll experience brighter images and a more superior light transmission than any other rifle scope in its class.”

Among the features is a second focal plane, illuminated, glass-etched BDC reticle with 11 different intensity settings (with an on/off between each setting). Then there’s the large eyebox design, quick-focus eyepiece, four inches of constant eye relief, side-focus parallax adjustment, and ¼ MOA windage and elevation adjustments. Fully fog- and waterproofed using O-ring seals and purged with Argon gas, the Toric also includes a three-inch sunshade and Tract’s Trust Assurance warranty, which guarantees lifetime functionality, regardless of ownership.

THE SCOPE SPECS

• Magnification: 2.5-15x
• Length:13.8″
• Weight: 27.2 oz
• Tube diameter: 30mm
• Objective lens diameter: 44mm
• Eye relief: 4/3.9″
• Field of view at 100 yards: low 41.7’/high 7.1′
• Elevation adjustment: 100 MOA
• Parallax adjustment: 10 yards to infinity