How do I build my own rifle?

[Havuhgooday]

OK.

I'm not gonna be that Rokslide guy to say you need a 223 or 6mm, if you want a custom 7prc that's fine.

However, if you want to even consider 400+ yards on animals, you need to shoot more than twice a year. A new gun isn't going to automatically take you to 800yd proficiency. You need to fully understand the entire system and put a lot more time into practice. It sounds like you already are recoil sensitive to your current gun and likely have a flinch issue.

A training course or finding a good mentor is probably what you should focus most of your effort towards. That and ammo / range time.

I shot an elk at 450 yards with my 300 winmag with a 10x zoom Swarovski z3. It was almost too far for me to feel comfortable shooting with that optic.

I don’t have a flinch issue, at least I don’t think I do. I just leave with a bruised shoulder after 20 rounds, it’s not fun.

My hope is to build this gun and since I’ve put effort into building it, I will be more excited to shoot it and practice with it. Hopefully I can build it heavier and a muzzle break to help recoil. I dunno maybe it’ll be a waste but maybe not

 

[Marbles]

Unfortunately I am in California so no suppressors allowed here. Muzzle break is as good as it’s going to get.

That is too bad. A break will reduce recoil more than a muffler, but the blast will add its own complications and trash hearing faster, particularly on a magnum.

Other than a break, you get less recoil by adding weight, or by decreasing velocity or powder charge weight, or bullet weight.

Given CA's copper requirements, you really need to step down in caliber. If you really want 800 yards with copper you likely need a 6mm magnum, like 6 UM or a 6-6.5 PRC. Even then you might not be pushing acceptable impact velocity at 800.

At sea level:
-A 6mm 95 gr LRXBT started at 3400 fps drops below 2200 fps at 525 yards.
-Looking at Barns and Hornady CX specs looks like a 7 PRC with a 160 gr will get you to about the same distance.
-Also from looking at Barns and Hornady CX specs the 6.5 PRC will come up short of 500, but get you passed 400.

At higher elevation you will have a longer effective range.

For an 8 lbs rifle, recoil will look like
-7 PRC 27.3 ft.lbs (using 64 gr charge, 160 gr bullet, 3050 fps)
-6.5 PRC 20.1 ft.lbs (using 61 gr charge, 130 bullet, 3010 fps) Adding 1 pound to the rifle drops recoil to 17.9 ft.lbs.
-6-6.5 PRC 18.7 ft.lbs (using 61 gr charge, 95 gr bullet, 3400 fps)

Based on Barns listed specs, your 300 win mag is dropping below optimal velocity before 400 yards for 33.6 ft.lbs recoil in an 8 lbs rifle (190 Barns, assuming 74 gr charge, 2880 fps).

You can play with how adding rifle weight effects things here https://bisonballistics.com/calculators/recoil

 

[Darkone1221]

This is exactly what I was hoping for when I asked the question. I’m leaning on a high end build.

If I purchased all the parts you listed I’ll need a gunsmith for bedding the action and shouldered barrel and barreled action? Everything else I can purchase as long as it all jives, right?

It is really good to have someone who has done it before with you, in fact you’ll want to do extensive research or show you techniques for bedding actions. The rest is easy, if you have to clearance the stock, have someone show you that too. But none of it is difficult. You must be meticulous, and don’t settle with good enough. If you half ass it, you just spent 4 grand on parts that won’t shoot better than a factory rifle. If you do it right, you’ll have a rifle that’ll shoot through the same hole at 100 yards. (With load development). Actions are typically bedded with grey Marine Tex putty epoxy, using a release wax so that the action is not a permanent fixture, put a piece of tape on the recoil lug on the action side, once the epoxy is set remove it. If you have a torque wrench putting the barrel on the action is easy. DO NOT EVER SHOOT A RIFLE BEFORE TESTING HEADSPACE. I forgot to add, you’ll have to find a trigger guard mag well. If you buy an action, ask the manufacturer which one they recommend to go with the action.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Darkone1221]

This is exactly what I was hoping for when I asked the question. I’m leaning on a high end build.

If I purchased all the parts you listed I’ll need a gunsmith for bedding the action and shouldered barrel and barreled action? Everything else I can purchase as long as it all jives, right?

Also, if you want the best, pay the gunsmith to chamber the barrel for you rather than buy a prefit, but at that point it’s super expensive and they’re going to be building it more than you. If you want to be the one to build it, prefit barrels have a lot of customization especially preferred prefits, but they don’t always stack up with an accuracy based gunsmith cutting the barrel. They usual have their own freebore and chamber the barrel strait within 1 ten thousandth of an inch.

 

[eric1115]

OP I have a couple questions ...

-what is your real, no BS goal?
-do you plan to hunt primarily in CA or will you be mostly hunting in other states where non-lead can be used?

I would say very confidently that going from your 300WM to a 7PRC will make, at best, a very small improvement to your ability to kill game at range. Slight recoil reduction (but not much), better stock design (maybe), will make it more pleasant to shoot by a small margin. You're not out-shooting your current rifle, you're fighting with it.

If you get to the range every 6 months, there is zero chance that the rifle is the limiting factor in your effective range (other than being too much recoil). You need skill, not gear, to get proficient.

That said, the skill is VERY hard to develop if a 300WM or 7PRC is what you're trying to train with. You need a lower recoiling rifle in order to learn to shoot.

If the answer to question two is that you'll hunt CA a bunch and need excellent non-lead performance at long range, and the answer to question one is that you want to be effective killing animals at extended range, you really need two rifles. Monos need speed to kill well, and from what (limited) experience I have, larger ones do tend to work better than smaller ones. You don't get big bullets and high speed without stout recoil. You don't get good training value without low recoil.

If you were to pick up a pair of semi-custom Tikkas (one in 6mmARC or .223 and I e in something bigger, I would not go 7PRC but maybe 6.5PRC?) and plan on upping your range time dramatically, shooting at least a thousand rounds a year out of the smaller rifle and a few hundred out of the larger one, you will absolutely be a more effective killer at any range than you will be if you buy the very best 7PRC in existence even if you shoot it twice as much as your current 300WM. You'll also have more fun. The Tikkas might not make all the other girls in class jealous the way a Defiance action custom will, but you'll be a 10x better rifleman.

If you mostly hunt out of state, maybe it's a different story. A full custom super sexy 6mmCM and a new barrel every year or two could be a "one rifle" solution. I'd still 100% recommend a .223 training rifle, but if you have deep enough pockets to buy 1500 rounds of 6CM ammo and a barrel every year it's a viable option. 108 ELDM's started at 3k fps (possible with a 24" barrel) will kill very well a long ways out there. Monos and reduced terminal performance for in state hunts and ELDM for practice and out of state hunts could work very well.

On your specific questions, skip the carbon barrel. It's heavier and doesn't deal with heat as well as a good steel barrel.

What is your general level of comfort doing mechanical or "buildy/crafty" things yourself? Do you work on cars, bikes, electronics, woodworking, or other similar things?

It's not rocket surgery, and you don't need to be a master craftsman, but a general sort of competence in working with your hands is very helpful. Putting a barreled action in a stock and mounting a scope correctly is within the ability of just about anyone who can be trusted with a sharp pair of scissors (lots of guys screw it up from lack of knowledge but not lack of ability).

Sorry for the long post/rant, but I think it's really important to help you achieve your real goals, a lot of us have made some of the mistakes that are really easy to fall into when we were where you are now. Productive practice and training (in field positions) is what lets you be an effective killer past 300 yards, not a more "capable" rifle. I don't know if you're a motorsport guy, but it's the equivalent of "I can't ride my liter bike/450MX bike/Z06 Vette as fast around the track as the guy on his 400 sport bike/250 MX/Miata, so I don't actually go to the track very often." The answer is not to get a full custom race car that is essentially the same as the big bike/fast car, it's to get a great training tool like the fast guys are riding, and actually go to the track more often. The Zen-like bonus is that in time you'll learn that the "training tool" is actually also a great "doing it for real" tool.

 

[TaperPin]

The difference in recoil between a 300 wm and 7 PRC will hardly be noticeable. Rarely do I ever suggest keeping a rifle you don’t like to shoot, but as long as you are accurate with it, a better stock for it, and a second rifle in a smaller caliber like 243 for 95% of your practice/plinking is a common path. Don’t confuse a good training rifle with a hunting rifle - nobody enjoys shooting large amounts of 7 mag or 300 mag.

 

[Havuhgooday]

The difference in recoil between a 300 wm and 7 PRC will hardly be noticeable. Rarely do I ever suggest keeping a rifle you don’t like to shoot, but as long as you are accurate with it, a better stock for it, and a second rifle in a smaller caliber like 243 for 95% of your practice/plinking is a common path. Don’t confuse a good training rifle with a hunting rifle - nobody enjoys shooting large amounts of 7 mag or 300 mag.

I guess what I’m learning is having a second rifle at smaller caliber is ideal for practice. Seems like a no brainer after hearing it from you guys but didn’t think about that option on my own.

Thanks for the feedback

 

[Havuhgooday]

The difference in recoil between a 300 wm and 7 PRC will hardly be noticeable. Rarely do I ever suggest keeping a rifle you don’t like to shoot, but as long as you are accurate with it, a better stock for it, and a second rifle in a smaller caliber like 243 for 95% of your practice/plinking is a common path. Don’t confuse a good training rifle with a hunting rifle - nobody enjoys shooting large amounts of 7 mag or 300 mag.

I guess what I’m learning is having a second rifle at smaller caliber is ideal for practice. Seems like a no brainer after hearing it from you guys but didn’t think about that option on my own.

OP I have a couple questions ...

-what is your real, no BS goal?
-do you plan to hunt primarily in CA or will you be mostly hunting in other states where non-lead can be used?

I would say very confidently that going from your 300WM to a 7PRC will make, at best, a very small improvement to your ability to kill game at range. Slight recoil reduction (but not much), better stock design (maybe), will make it more pleasant to shoot by a small margin. You're not out-shooting your current rifle, you're fighting with it.

If you get to the range every 6 months, there is zero chance that the rifle is the limiting factor in your effective range (other than being too much recoil). You need skill, not gear, to get proficient.

That said, the skill is VERY hard to develop if a 300WM or 7PRC is what you're trying to train with. You need a lower recoiling rifle in order to learn to shoot.

If the answer to question two is that you'll hunt CA a bunch and need excellent non-lead performance at long range, and the answer to question one is that you want to be effective killing animals at extended range, you really need two rifles. Monos need speed to kill well, and from what (limited) experience I have, larger ones do tend to work better than smaller ones. You don't get big bullets and high speed without stout recoil. You don't get good training value without low recoil.

If you were to pick up a pair of semi-custom Tikkas (one in 6mmARC or .223 and I e in something bigger, I would not go 7PRC but maybe 6.5PRC?) and plan on upping your range time dramatically, shooting at least a thousand rounds a year out of the smaller rifle and a few hundred out of the larger one, you will absolutely be a more effective killer at any range than you will be if you buy the very best 7PRC in existence even if you shoot it twice as much as your current 300WM. You'll also have more fun. The Tikkas might not make all the other girls in class jealous the way a Defiance action custom will, but you'll be a 10x better rifleman.

If you mostly hunt out of state, maybe it's a different story. A full custom super sexy 6mmCM and a new barrel every year or two could be a "one rifle" solution. I'd still 100% recommend a .223 training rifle, but if you have deep enough pockets to buy 1500 rounds of 6CM ammo and a barrel every year it's a viable option. 108 ELDM's started at 3k fps (possible with a 24" barrel) will kill very well a long ways out there. Monos and reduced terminal performance for in state hunts and ELDM for practice and out of state hunts could work very well.

On your specific questions, skip the carbon barrel. It's heavier and doesn't deal with heat as well as a good steel barrel.

What is your general level of comfort doing mechanical or "buildy/crafty" things yourself? Do you work on cars, bikes, electronics, woodworking, or other similar things?

It's not rocket surgery, and you don't need to be a master craftsman, but a general sort of competence in working with your hands is very helpful. Putting a barreled action in a stock and mounting a scope correctly is within the ability of just about anyone who can be trusted with a sharp pair of scissors (lots of guys screw it up from lack of knowledge but not lack of ability).

Sorry for the long post/rant, but I think it's really important to help you achieve your real goals, a lot of us have made some of the mistakes that are really easy to fall into when we were where you are now. Productive practice and training (in field positions) is what lets you be an effective killer past 300 yards, not a more "capable" rifle. I don't know if you're a motorsport guy, but it's the equivalent of "I can't ride my liter bike/450MX bike/Z06 Vette as fast around the track as the guy on his 400 sport bike/250 MX/Miata, so I don't actually go to the track very often." The answer is not to get a full custom race car that is essentially the same as the big bike/fast car, it's to get a great training tool like the fast guys are riding, and actually go to the track more often. The Zen-like bonus is that in time you'll learn that the "training tool" is actually also a great "doing it for real" tool.

My goal is to have a rifle that is capable of putting down an elk out to 800 yards if I needed it to. I’ll be hunting the western states, been to Idaho and New Mexico multiple times.

I am not experienced in gun builds but I figured if I start fresh maybe I can make the 7prc not as bad as my 300 winmag as far as recoil goes.

From what keep hearing it’s better to have a smaller caliber gun for practice. I do have a 223 gun but I think 6.5 creedmore or prc could be cool as a practice rifle.

I’m a little lost after everything I’ve heard. I still want to build a damn 7prc tho haha

I can build stuff, nothing to worry about there however would rather a pro handle the barrel action connection.

Not taken on the carbon barrel, many of you guys have been saying not to go that route.

Thanks for the in-depth response

 

[Pilsner]

Brownell's has several videos on YT about assembling your own rifle using barrelled actions. The entire video I just watched started with a pile of parts and ended with test firing the completed rifle and zeroing the optic. Even with talking through what he was doing the entire video is under 20 minutes. That should give you an idea how fast and easy it is to do if using a barreled action.