The 60 degree bolt throw on the Browning is a very big plus to me. That plus light weight, bedding, better trigger and detachable mag are my likes. The Ruger is tough and will shoot fine (maybe with some tinkering, maybe not). I'm thinking you would need the medium rings for most 3-9 X 40 scopes. My wife has a Hawkeye Compact 7mm-08 with a Leupy Ultralight 2-7 X 33 (in low rings) and there is only about 9-10 mm clearance between the objective lens and the barrel. However, it is a shorter tubed scope altogether so longer tube scopes MAY just barely clear (if so it will be close). The bolt clears the eyepiece well, but this Leupy has a smaller eypiece than many other scopes typically used. I still think mediums would be the answer.