Model 52 Open Country Long Range

A New Cooper .300 Winchester Magnum

- John Haviland

The age of specialized hunting rifles is upon us. No longer is a basic bolt-action rifle topped off with a variable-power scope sufficient to hunt big game. Up-to-date hunters now require a rifle with specific qualities, and by extension believe they possess those same merits.

One such specific rifle is Cooper Firearms of Montana’s Open Country Long Range. The rifle is built with features to assist connecting on a distant shot, from a good trigger to a large stock that supports the shooter as much as it does the barreled action. The Open Country is based on the Model 52 action Cooper introduced in 2007 and handles cartridges in lengths up to the .300 Remington Ultra Magnum.

The Open Country is chambered in a choice of 36 standard and magnum-length cartridges, from the .240 Weatherby Magnum up through the .35 Whelen and Norma, Remington, Weatherby and Winchester magnum cartridges, along with the .26, .28 and .33 Nosler cartridges. Ian Vivero is an engineer and heads up Cooper Firearms, which is owned by his family. “The .300 Winchester Magnum is the most popular cartridge chambered in the Open Country,” he said, “And the 7mm Remington Magnum is always in the top four. There is some interest in the .280 Ackley Improved, and the 6.5 PRC is gaining in popularity.” Encompassing all Cooper rifle models, the 6.5 Creedmoor is by far the most popular cartridge. The cartridge’s acceptance has taken over to the extent that Cooper receives very few orders for rifles chambered in .308 Winchester.