First bolt action...

[Jarrod Renaud]

Okay. Let me know if Im on the right track here. I'm looking to get my first bolt action and start in some long-ish range shooting. I have access to a 1000yrd range but as of right now, 300 yards seems long to me since most of my rifle experience is with a 45-70 lever action & open sights.

I recently shot a friends Savage 111 300 win mag and put 3 holes within 1/2" of each other at 100 yards. Damn! That was fun! This has got me on the road to stretching out my hunting season by adding in some late season rifle hunts.

I quickly delved down the rabbit hole and noticed how expensive it can be to build a rifle and I dont want to get ahead of myself.

My idea is to get the Savage 111 300wm package (so-so nikon scope) since I shot it, the trigger felt great, it shot well. From what I read and from what I felt with his rifle though, the stock is flimsy, the barrel was even touching one side of stock. I love the look of the Mcrees chassis, love the fact that its drop in and shoot. I don't mind the extra weight of it being aluminum.

Figuring this setup will get me by with dipping my toe in the water, it should land just under $1000 for a shootable gun... then within the next year I'd save to upgrade the scope. This way I have a rifle that I can learn on and hopefully reach out to 400-500 yards on an animal next October.

Any thoughts? I don't know what I don't know so I want to see if there are any routes I may be missing here. Thanks!

 

[Kay9Cop]

I would check out the Ruger Precision Rifle. Nice trigger and comes with an adjustable stock. It's a hair over a grand retail.

 

[Jarrod Renaud]

I would check out the Ruger Precision Rifle. Nice trigger and comes with an adjustable stock. It's a hair over a grand retail.

I saw that, but looks like they only have it in a few calibers :/ 308 with a 20" barrel, 6.5 CM at 24" and a .243. Seems like it'd be great for targets and varmints but not necessarily deer or the occasional cow elk?

 

[kpk]

Sounds like you need to decide whether you want a hunting rifle or a true long range rifle dedicated for range use. The 2 really aren't interchangeable IMO. Just about any factory rifle would work for 300 yard shots. Once you start trying to reach 1,001 yards you're typically talking a seriously heavy rifle. My long range gun is probably somewhere in the 15+ lb range. You probably dont want a 300 wm for bench work either, if you're looking for just a bench gun go with anything in the 6mm family....243 6.5 creedmore 6.5x47 lapua etc.

 

[Jarrod Renaud]

Sounds like you need to decide whether you want a hunting rifle or a true long range rifle dedicated for range use. The 2 really aren't interchangeable IMO. Just about any factory rifle would work for 300 yard shots. Once you start trying to reach 1,001 yards you're typically talking a seriously heavy rifle. My long range gun is probably somewhere in the 15+ lb range. You probably dont want a 300 wm for bench work either, if you're looking for just a bench gun go with anything in the 6mm family....243 6.5 creedmore 6.5x47 lapua etc.

Yeah I guess I should be more clear.

Maybe Im being too idealistic but I'd love a rifle that I can hit a plate at 1000 yards and be accurate enough to set up on an animal at 500 if need be. I guess that'd be more of a mid-range rifle.

Am I being too ambitious thinking a factory rifle can shoot 1000 yards and make 500 feel like a chip shot? (in perfect conditions)

Thanks guys for chiming in

 

[mt100gr.]

http://www.rokslide.com/forums/showthread.php?16027-Tikka-T3-Super-Lite-7mm-Rem-Mag-Mountain-Rifle

Check out this thread. There are some frills you could forgo on this set up and not be to far over budget. I have stretched mine out to 870 and if the wind hadn't been so rough that day, I would have been attempting 1120 yards. ....the second most expensive part of this equation is handloading. But it's very enjoyable as well if you are a "details" guy.

 

[kpk]

For a factory rifle (excluding high end stuff) your best bet is probably a savage long range model. The ruger mentioned above is pretty new but proving itself well.

If you want a dedicated gun for extreme long range, prices add up fast. You can drop 200 on rings and base, custom action is 1,000+, barrel 400, stock 3-700, bipod, handloadin ammo, the list goes on and on. I'd say on a dedicated long range gun you'd also be looking at 750 and up just for glass.

Can you buy a factory rifle that will shoot excellent at 500 and still be fun to try and reach 1,000? Absolutely.

Not trying to dissuade you but there's a lot that goes into long range. It's also very addicting and very expensive. You sound like you're pretty new to rifles, so just stay realistic about it is all. You could easily drop a fortune in a long range at up only to realize you think it's boring and you dint like punching paper.

 

[MontanaMarine]

If you want a 300 WinMag, you might consider a Remington Sendero SFII. Then put a SWFA 10X MQ scope on it, using a quality picatinny rail and rings. You could be all in for around $1600 or so.

The only mod's I would eventually do on the rifle would be a brake, and a Timney trigger.

You would also want a decent bipod, maybe a Harris 9-13 swivel/notched, and a laser rangefinder.

 

[Jarrod Renaud]

For a factory rifle (excluding high end stuff) your best bet is probably a savage long range model. The ruger mentioned above is pretty new but proving itself well.

If you want a dedicated gun for extreme long range, prices add up fast. You can drop 200 on rings and base, custom action is 1,000+, barrel 400, stock 3-700, bipod, handloadin ammo, the list goes on and on. I'd say on a dedicated long range gun you'd also be looking at 750 and up just for glass.

Can you buy a factory rifle that will shoot excellent at 500 and still be fun to try and reach 1,000? Absolutely.

Not trying to dissuade you but there's a lot that goes into long range. It's also very addicting and very expensive. You sound like you're pretty new to rifles, so just stay realistic about it is all. You could easily drop a fortune in a long range at up only to realize you think it's boring and you dint like punching paper.

Thanks guys! And yeah, I went down the rabbit hole quick and realized how expensive this can get. Started looking at custom actions etc...Now I see why these rifles easily reach $6000. My problem is I tend to want the best of the best but in LR that's just not possible or practical for me right now

I'm reloading for my 45-70 and love the process. I could see me taking steps to reload for LR at some point but luckily my brother works at HSM and will help me out with custom loads.

Looks like I'll be taking small steps and I think if I can shoot consistently at 500 yards I'll be pretty happy for a while until my "fun stuff" savings account grows.

 

[Jarrod Renaud]

http://www.rokslide.com/forums/showthread.php?16027-Tikka-T3-Super-Lite-7mm-Rem-Mag-Mountain-Rifle

Check out this thread. There are some frills you could forgo on this set up and not be to far over budget. I have stretched mine out to 870 and if the wind hadn't been so rough that day, I would have been attempting 1120 yards. ....the second most expensive part of this equation is handloading. But it's very enjoyable as well if you are a "details" guy.

Looks like a great setup! That gun is doing exactly what Im wanting. The Tikka was on my radar also. Im thinking I'll start out with either the savage or tikka, a good scope, bipod and brake. That'll get me shooting and then go from there.

 

[COlineman78]

Jarrod, for the money I just don't think the weatherby vanguard can be beat. Ruger American if you want cheaper. A lot of guys at my club shoot savage 243 and it's a great range/varmint gun. 308 is fine for elk out to 500 imo. I'd go either 300 win mag or 7mm if you want to reach 1000. You could start with a 12x Nikon pro staff and upgrade later once you start reaching out past 500. I have a Weatherby Mark V in 300 Wby and the thing is dead accurate but from the vanguard's I've seen they're almost as good and less than half the price.

 

[kpk]

There's another brand out there that's basically a Weatherby without the Weatherby badging and for the life of me I cannot think of it. I believe they're made in Japan and are supposed to be a hell of a lot of gun for the money....can anyone refresh my memory?

 

[kpk]

Remembered....its the Howa 1500. Give them a look also.

 

[COlineman78]

Remembered....its the Howa 1500. Give them a look also.

I believe Howa actually makes the Weatherby Vanguard and the 1500 is practically the same gun. Weatherby may make them put a better trigger on it and they make the wood stocks for the sporter and deluxe. If you're a fan of wood stocks check out the lazerguard (cabelas exclusuve) laser engraved vanguard deluxe, but not many options as far as caliber.

 

[rileybassman]

I have a savage 116 weather warrior and put a bell and Carlson medalist classic stock on...I love it! It is a 30-06 and this week I just shot a whitetail at 562 yards. Wife also has a 116 in 30-06 and dropped a whitetail at 300 yards. They are great guns.
Dad has a weatherby vanguard 2 and it is a great shooting gun as well. There are many great guns out there. My criteria when deciding was 3 position safety, and stainless... And not break the bankI spent about a grand for my set up.

 

[Muttly]

Might be a total swing and a miss, the CZ UHR has always kinda interested me.. 300 Win Mag, walnut or Bell & Carlson stock, guaranteed moa to six hundred yards, msrp around 1300, think around 7.5 lbs bare gun... Having thrown that out there, hafta admit to having almost no long range shooting experience, so readily defer to the experience of others..
The Winchester Model 70 Extreme Weather in 300 Win Mag would be almost identical, but in stainless, slightly thinner barrel, and odds are a smoother bolt. I like Mauser type actions... If you are looking at a somewhat lighter rifle for hunting, and reaching out a little ways, might be worth a look.

 

[6mm Remington]

Might be a total swing and a miss, the CZ UHR has always kinda interested me.. 300 Win Mag, walnut or Bell & Carlson stock, guaranteed moa to six hundred yards, msrp around 1300, think around 7.5 lbs bare gun... Having thrown that out there, hafta admit to having almost no long range shooting experience, so readily defer to the experience of others..
The Winchester Model 70 Extreme Weather in 300 Win Mag would be almost identical, but in stainless, slightly thinner barrel, and odds are a smoother bolt. I like Mauser type actions... If you are looking at a somewhat lighter rifle for hunting, and reaching out a little ways, might be worth a look.

I like your thinking. Another Mauser to consider would be a Montana Rifle Company bolt action. They combined the best of the 98 Mauser and the Model 70 into one action. A .280 AI or a 300 WSM would be make a fantastic rifle. Top that with a Zeiss Conquest with the 3-15x44 or the 2-10x42 with the Z600 Reticle would be sweet. As would a 4.5-14x40mm Leupold with the B&C reticle.


http://montanarifleco.com/?page_id=180

http://montanarifleco.com/?page_id=1014

Only thing I don't care for is the muzzle brake.

 

[Jarrod Renaud]

So in reality looks like so many dang options! Haha. I'll have a to make a concise list and start looking for the best deal on things.

 

[COlineman78]

I like your thinking. Another Mauser to consider would be a Montana Rifle Company bolt action. They combined the best of the 98 Mauser and the Model 70 into one action. A .280 AI or a 300 WSM would be make a fantastic rifle. Top that with a Zeiss Conquest with the 3-15x44 or the 2-10x42 with the Z600 Reticle would be sweet. As would a 4.5-14x40mm Leupold with the B&C reticle.


http://montanarifleco.com/?page_id=180

http://montanarifleco.com/?page_id=1014

Only thing I don't care for is the muzzle brake.

So much for $1000 budget. Almost all of that in those Zeiss scopes. My dad has an old interarms Mark X. Mauser action, cheap and has lasted forever; although not going to be a long range gun but plenty good for elk out to 400.

 

[HOT ROD]

I have a savage 116 weather warrior 270 wsm. And a tikka t3 300 wm. They both shot really well. If U liked the savage go with it. Look at the long range hunter. In the 300 wm.