Description
The .308 Winchester has been the default general purpose hunting cartridge in North America for seventy years, and a twenty inch barrel is where it gives most of its velocity without becoming unwieldy. The Springfield 2020 Redline 308 Win pairs that barrel length with a skeletonised Grayboe stock and a carbon jacketed tube, producing a rifle that carries like a hunting gun and shoots to a three quarter minute guarantee.
Twenty Inches Of 308
Twenty inches is the length at which .308 stops leaving much velocity in the barrel. Against a twenty four inch tube the loss is small, and against the sixteen inch version of this rifle it gains back roughly a hundred and fifty feet per second. For a shooter who wants the cartridge to perform out to four hundred yards rather than three hundred, this is the version to buy.
The carbon fiber jacketed barrel is a BSF unit, a thin fluted steel core inside a roll wrapped carbon sleeve, free floated and threaded at the muzzle with an SA radial brake and a thread protector supplied. Carbon jacketing gives stiffness at a fraction of the weight of comparable steel, and the flutes under the sleeve shed heat faster than a solid profile would. It also moves the balance rearward, so the rifle points more naturally than its length suggests.
The Grayboe Trekker stock weighs twenty eight ounces, skeletonised with lightening cuts through the forend and buttstock. Grayboe builds fibreglass composites rather than injection moulded polymer, so the stock does not flex under a sling or shift with humidity across a season of changing weather.
Action, Trigger And Fitment
The Model 2020 action is stainless steel with dual locking lugs on a fluted bolt, EDM cut raceways and an optimised extraction cam. EDM machining of the raceways gives the bolt a consistent feel across the stroke, a process normally reserved for custom actions. Springfield built its accuracy reputation on this action in the Waypoint line, and the tolerances here are the same.
The TriggerTech Frictionless Release trigger adjusts from roughly two and a half to five pounds. A free floating roller between the sear and the trigger removes almost all creep, producing a break that feels like snapping a glass rod. A low profile non snag safety sits alongside, shaped so it does not catch on clothing or a pack strap when the rifle is carried slung.
Fitment details are well judged for field use. Length of pull adjusts from 13.25 to 14.25 inches in quarter inch steps and extends to sixteen inches with spacers, so the rifle fits in summer clothing or a heavy winter jacket. Three sling studs mean a sling and a bipod do not compete for the same stud, and an integral bubble level doubles as a thumb rest at the rear of the action. Feeding is from an AICS pattern magazine.
Springfield 2020 Redline 308 Win Specifications
- Caliber: 308 Winchester
- Model number: BAT920308CFGC
- UPC: 706397970611
- Barrel: 20 inch BSF carbon fibre jacketed, fluted steel core, free floated, threaded
- Muzzle: SA radial brake with thread protector included
- Action: Model 2020, dual locking lugs, fluted bolt, EDM raceways
- Trigger: TriggerTech Frictionless Release, adjustable 2.5 to 5 pounds
- Stock: Grayboe Trekker skeletonised, 28 ounces
- Length of pull: 13.25 to 14.25 inches, extendable to 16 inches with spacers
- Sling studs: three, one rear and two front
- Integral bubble level and thumb rest at the rear of the action
- Magazine: AICS pattern
- Accuracy guarantee: 0.75 MOA for a three shot group at 100 yards
Two honest points. The radial brake makes this rifle noticeably louder at the bench and for anyone beside you, which is the cost of the reduced recoil; a suppressor is the better long term answer where state law allows, and the threads are already cut for one. And a light rifle is harder to hold steady offhand than a heavy one, so practise from field positions rather than assuming bench groups will translate.
Why Buyers Choose The Springfield 2020 Redline 308 Win
Cartridge availability is the first argument for this version. .308 Winchester is stocked in every gun shop and hardware store in the country, in everything from inexpensive soft points to serious match loads, and brass and components are equally easy to find. For a hunting rifle that may need ammunition in an unfamiliar town, that matters.
The second argument is that the weight savings do not cost accuracy. A carbon jacketed barrel is stiffer per ounce than steel, and the Model 2020 action with a TriggerTech trigger behind it is the same combination Springfield uses in rifles twice this weight. The sub minute guarantee is not a marketing figure attached to a compromise.
The third argument is the parts ecosystem. AICS magazines and a standard optic base pattern mean nothing is proprietary, so the rifle can be set up exactly as you want and serviced in ten years without waiting on a single supplier. Lightweight rifles built around clever proprietary chassis rarely age as well as this one will.
Who Should Buy The Springfield 2020 Redline 308 Win
This suits the hunter who covers ground on foot and wants a rifle that shoots to a guarantee, and anyone who prefers .308 for its availability over a newer cartridge. Twenty inches is the sensible middle ground for the calibre. Choose the sixteen inch version if packability matters more than the last hundred and fifty feet per second, and look elsewhere if you shoot mostly from a bench where a heavy rifle would serve better.
Learn more about this lightweight hunting rifle from Springfield Armory, or browse our full firearms range.
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