First LR hunting rifle

[wstribling]

I am looking at starting this from an already built factory rifle (that I dont own yet) but I want something that I can hike 12 miles with, so light weight but I can take to than range and have fun with as well. Leaning towards a 300WM. I am not stuck to any one brand and Im looking at starting the process relatively slowly. I know any rifle I get will out perform me but if I could ring steel at 1200+ meters that would be awesome. For hunting purposes Im not too sure as everything I have hunted has been >500 meters.

Main questions would be:
What is a solid rifle to start with
What has someone else "built" similar to this
What has been any big issues or "tips/"tricks" that you learned a long the way
Bonus question would be what is your favorite lighter weight glass for a build like this

 

[TacoHunter]

Honestly it will come down to how much you want to spend for rifle and glass. You can get a factory Tikka with decent glass in that weight range, or you can go full custom or anything in between . All comes down to what you want to spend.

I’ve got a 7saum on a tikka action, 22” carbon barrel, McMillian stock that shoots a 180 Berger at 2900fps. With a Leupold VX6, it weights in at just over 7lbs. Stupid accurate and light to carry.

 

[Antares]

A lightweight 300WM is going to be tough on your shoulder and wallet, neither of which are conducive to practice. A 6.5 Creedmoor might be a better place to start. Just a thought.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Buy a Tikka customized to your liking, or a Sako. Chambering for your stated purposes would be a 6mm or 6.5mm variant.

Sako 90 Quest and Quest Ultra should be available in stores this Summer. Give one of those a try if budget allows. Incredible rifle.

 

[pacoalcracker]

Kimber 8400 in a 300 WM with a muzzle brake. Fairly light, flat shooting with plenty of energy at long range, typically accurate enough and factory ammo/reloading components are abundant and not expensive. The brake lessens the hit on the shoulder and enables a suppressor.

 

[JohnJohnson]

light weight but I can take to than range and have fun with as well. Leaning towards a 300WM.

A lightweight 300WM is the opposite of fun, so definitely reconsider the cartridge. What is your budget?

 

[wind gypsy]

Agree with others. For the most part first long range rifle, light weight, and 300 WM don't go together well.

 

[Article 4]

The venerable and proven 300 WM is a great place to start. If you are dead set on the 30 cal, the 300 PRC is going to be as ubiquitous as the WM here soon.

You may want to consider something in the newer 7mm series of calibers too. The 7 PRC would be great, a bit less kick on average and plenty of choices in ELR bullets and fun.

Everyone here seems to love Tikka which are just fine. For a first rifle,I generally recommend one that uses the Rem 700 footprint. Upgrades will inevitably come and finding parts is going to be easier with the R700 based models.

 

[wstribling]

A lightweight 300WM is going to be tough on your shoulder and wallet, neither of which are conducive to practice. A 6.5 Creedmoor might be a better place to start. Just a thought.

I agree and thats another one im looking at -leaning towards the Springfield 2020

 

[wstribling]

Honestly it will come down to how much you want to spend for rifle and glass. You can get a factory Tikka with decent glass in that weight range, or you can go full custom or anything in between . All comes down to what you want to spend.

I’ve got a 7saum on a tikka action, 22” carbon barrel, McMillian stock that shoots a 180 Berger at 2900fps. With a Leupold VX6, it weights in at just over 7lbs. Stupid accurate and light to carry.

I figure under $2k total for the rifle as I would like to start with something that I can build up and get expensive along the way and glass would be around $2k but I would love to be closer to $1k

 

[wstribling]

A lightweight 300WM is the opposite of fun, so definitely reconsider the cartridge. What is your budget?

My main goal for this is something in the 30 cal range that I could buy anywhere in the world and for the rifle id love to be in the $1k-$2k range as I would like to add components along the way to make it what I want

 

[JohnJohnson]

I figure under $2k total for the rifle as I would like to start with something that I can build up and get expensive along the way and glass would be around $2k but I would love to be closer to $1k

For a rifle you can build up over time under $2,000 then probably grab a Tikka of your preferred flavor I suppose. Seekins PH2 rifles are nice under $2000 but they're not as lightweight as you seem to want (7 pounds) and the way the action is you can't easily use the R700 ecosystem of stocks/chassis. If you're looking to tinker with it and maybe experiment with stocks/chassis/triggers etc and you want to keep it below $2,000 Tikka would be the move. For under $3,000 I'd start involving the R700 pattern custom actions but that's not as feasible under your pricepoint.

Do yourself a big favor and don't go with a big boomer like a 300WM for this sort of rifle. You won't enjoy shooting it and the ammo costs more than smaller cartridges, so you'll shoot it less. Then you won't be as good with it. In my admittedly useless opinion, don't go with anything bigger than a 6.5PRC for this.

For the scope an easy button you could do for under $2,000 would be a NX8 4-32x50. People seem to like them a lot. If you're a godless heathen that likes MOA, there happens to be a like-new demo on sale at EuroOptic for $275 off if that makes a difference.

Nightforce NX8 4-32x50 MOAR Like New Demo Riflescope C624

FREE SHIPPING on Nightforce NX8 4-32x50 MOAR Like New Demo Riflescope C624

www.eurooptic.com

 

[WyoKimber]

I have a seekins ph2 in 7mm rem mag that I have been really impressed with. It is extremely accurate and it's given me a lot more confidence at longer ranges. I have a trijicon credo 2.5-15 on it and for the money I don't think you can do much better for a durable scope. The only downside to the ph2 for me is the barrel length. I have my first suppressor on the way and would prefer a shorter barrel.

 

[cowdisciple]

Stainless Tikka is pretty dang tough to beat, both from a value and functionality standpoint. Maven RS1.2, maybe a RokStock.

Like others, I'd get something with less recoil than 300WM, probably a lot less. More info on your specific use case would help.

 

[sodaksooner]

My PH2 is a shooter in 300WM. half MOA groups, under 9 lbs total and Ive rung a 6" gong at 680 yards (Max at our range) Recoil isn't bad for a quasi light long action. No brake either. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another, and almost did!!!

 

[Antares]

My main goal for this is something in the 30 cal range that I could buy anywhere in the world

Respectfully, this premise is way overblown. Don’t make decisions based on some fantasy “what if I have to buy ammo at a gas station in Bishkek” scenario. Build the rifle for what is going to do 98% of the time, not what it might do 2% of the time.

If you're stuck on a wanting a common, 30 cal cartridge, think about a .308 Win. However, I'd still recommend a high BC 6mm or 6.5mm, as @mxgsfmdpx said.

 

[wstribling]

My PH2 is a shooter in 300WM. half MOA groups, under 9 lbs total and Ive rung a 6" gong at 680 yards (Max at our range) Recoil isn't bad for a quasi light long action. No brake either. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another, and almost did!!!View attachment 706058

A couple questions:
What scope is that?
How can you handle the double sided bulge? I loved everything on the PH but pistol grip double bulge threw me off.
Besides the length of your range- do you think there is any other reason this couldn't shoot further? 1000?

 

[WyoKimber]

A couple questions:
What scope is that?
How can you handle the double sided bulge? I loved everything on the PH but pistol grip double bulge threw me off.
Besides the length of your range- do you think there is any other reason this couldn't shoot further? 1000?

I was not a fan of the ph2 grip until I shot it, now I really like it since it puts you in a much more ergonomic shooting position. I shoot mine regularly at 1000 (my range's max) with exceptional accuracy.

 

[wind gypsy]

The double bulge! What about it is hard to handle?

 

[JohnJohnson]

The double bulge! What about it is hard to handle?

Man I should be given an award for the amount of self control I'm exercising right now.