Purchasing a Rifle/Scope

[Hopeful Hoya]

A little background. I'm looking to purchase my first firearm, and no one in my family is really knowledgeable about guns so I can't really turn to them for advice.

Anyways, I wanted to buy a long range bolt-action centerfire rifle that I only plan to shoot at a range at this point (no hunting), so mobility isn't a factor. Most ranges near me top out at around 300 yards, but I would like to have the ability to go farther out in the future. Budget is around $1000.

I was looking at a Remington 700 chambered in .308 Win, everything I read said that this is a great platform with a lot of aftermarket options for mods. I like the .308 too because I don't wanting something so small that I get bored of shooting it, but I realize that buying a .338 or .50 would probably not be a smart idea either. However, I am not sure what model of 700 to get. I figure something with a longer barrel would be better for range uses so I was looking at the standard SPS.

Scopes are really where I have no idea where to start. I went into a local hunting store and looked at some Leupold VX-2s and VX-3s and I really liked them, they seemed very clear and had a good sight picture. Not sure what magnification I need though, maybe like 10x? Also have no ideas what type of rings I should be looking at either.

TL;DR would a 700 SPS tactical and maybe a 3-9 50mm VX-2 be a good place to start for bench shooting?

 

[sodajones]

You're on the right track. A Rem 700 Chambered for .308 is going to mean easy access to replacement or aftermarket parts, which is nice. As far as rifles go. At your budget, I'd also take a look at the Tikka t3 line of rifles. They're nicer out of the box but won't have as much aftermarket support as the Remington. Get a Leopold in 3-9 and go 40mm if you plan on ever using it for hunting or 50mm if it's bench only.

It looks like you've already done your homework and have a good starting budget for both the rifle and some good glass. A common mistake made by many is spending all the money on hardware and no money/time on ammo or practice or training. Appleseed is a program designed to train people in the basics or using a rifle at various distances and positions. It's instruction structure is very similar to that used by the military. I'm sure wherever you're at you can find some good training courses. I'd get some formal training instead of relying on all the yahoos at the rifle range who would love to give you advice in between telling stories about how they use to be former navy seal ninja snipers.

 

[A7Dave]

If you want a good rifle that will take you as far as the .308 will take you, I'd look for a used Remington 700 "Mil-Spec 5R" or the "Police" model on Gunbroker or at your gun store.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=415922594
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=415838137

http://www.guns.com/review/2013/06/11/remington-700-mil-spec-5r/

You've got it right. Buying a Remington 700 is a great start. Buying the Milspec 5r or the Police model may cost a bit more, but you will get a top notch barrel and a good target stock. Both should shoot less than 1 MOA with good ammo (Black Hills or your hand loads).

Scopes? Look at SWFA's website. Their "Super Sniper" scope gets good reviews, as do Vortex. Almost all Leupold scopes are good, but if you are looking for long range, you'll want one either with easily adjustable elevation and windage (which gets pricey) or one with a distance reticle like the varmint reticle. Watch Gunbroker or ebay for deals as well as SWFA's used list.

Get the best glass you can afford, at 10X minimum. Don't bother with the 50mm objective unless you get a good deal on the scope. 40mm is perfectly adequate.

Weaver rings can be quite adequate, particularly if you're on a budget. Another good brand for heavy duty (and reasonable price) are Warne's. Do get a good scope base, I would recommend a single piece like this:

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/99...n-700-short-action-matte?cm_vc=ProductFinding

Unfortunately, they are much more expensive than the two piece. Don't get the 20 MOA base unless you have a high end scope and are shooting at 600 + yards.

My 700 has a custom .260 Remington barrel and I put it on a very cool "chassis" stock the Accuracy International:

http://www.accuracyinternational.com/aics_kits.php

It will shoot cloverleafs at 100 yards.

 

[Hopeful Hoya]

Thanks for the advice gents. I checked and there are Appleseed events near me this summer, so I'll go to one once I buy my firearm. The site strongly implied that they want you to be shooting a 22, but I assume they'll let you shoot anything?

Dave, I've been keeping an eye out for used upper end 700s, but I think at this point I would rather go with like a SPS Varmint because I believe that it has the same barrel as the Police, and I'm more into the tactical style stocks like the AICS and the XLR evolution stocks. I'd rather save the money right now because I feel like I would be upgrading the police stock anyways at some point.

Ditto for the scopes. I know Leupold has their custom dial service where they put elevation adjustments on the dial based off of ballistic measurements taken from your rifle so I was thinking about doing that. It does annoy me though that you can't get a mil-dot or similar reticle without dropping $1000+ on the Mark 4 scopes. Anyways, I figure if I go with like the VX-2 3-9X 50mm that will be more than enough for me now, and by the time I outgrow that I'll have a lot better idea what I'm looking for and I can splurge on a Mark 4 or Nightforce scope.

Thanks for the heads up on the base and rings, I'll definitely check those out. Glad to hear I'm on the right path though.

 

[Ag1998]

Hoya,

I have a . 308 700 SPS Tactical and it is a great gun. I was advised to go with the tactical due to the heavier barrel rather than the varmint. I went economical on the scope and went with a Primary Arms mil-dot. I am saving for better glass, but have had good luck with Primary Arms products on my AR platforms. You might want to look into them. www.primaryarms.com.

Save some money on the glass to start out with and buy more ammo then practice, practice. I reload my ammo, but good factory ammo is going to be $1+ per pull and shoot at longer ranges is addictive. Also look into a good bi-pod.

My range tops out at 600 yds and with the right ammo the gun has no problem hitting 12" steel with every pull of the trigger. Throw in some wind and things get sporty!

Good luck.

 

[Hopeful Hoya]

Ag, I'm curious why they told you to go with the Tactical. I looked at that one too, but the barrel is 6in shorter compared to the Varmint, which I thought would be better for long range stability, heating, and recoil control/

Thank you for the heads up on Primary Arms. I love this mil-mil FFP scope they have, I can't believe the price and it seems to have gotten pretty good reviews. I might have found my scope. People say that the reliability can be a little hit or miss, is your's treating you well?
https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary-Arms-4-14X44-FFP-Scope-p/pa4-14xffp.htm

I'm also planning on picking up a Harris bipod.

 

[Gatordev]

20" is going to serve you fine with .308 if your goal is target/tactical shooting. I've personally seen a 18" OBR reach out to 900+ with no problem.

One thing to keep in mind with Primary Arms...if you're having issues with their product, they will happily stand behind it and fix the issue.

 

[A7Dave]

By the way, a great resource for precision shooting questions is the 6mmBR.com/AccurateShooter.com website and forums. Lots of top notch competitors and shooters with a ton of good advice:

http://www.accurateshooter.com

the forums:

http://forum.accurateshooter.com

 

[AndreasW]

+1 for the 20" barrel. I have read about the 18" but no actual first hand experience. Heat mitigation shouldn't be an issue on a 20", especially since it's a bolt gun. I'm not a hunter (please correct me if I'm wrong), but I think the need for the barrel to cool faster is because of the cold bore shots that hunters take. The long range stability will only matter when you're trying to max out the distance of whatever 308 round you're shooting. As Gatordev mentioned, under a 1,000 yards you will be fine with a 20". Nikon makes some pretty good scopes at a decent price. Some come with the parallax adjustment and BDC. Sold firearms and scopes at a sporting goods store while in college, no one ever complained about the Nikon scopes. I had one for a while, but sold it (because im an idiot). Crisp and clear picture, even out to 16x. Came with interchangeable turrets and such. Good Luck!

 

[A7Dave]

And if you're stuck on mil-dot scopes, here is a good value:

http://swfa.com/SWFA-SS-MOA-Scopes-C4226.aspx

 

[Ag1998]

Hoya,

I have had no problems with the 20" as others have stated. There are so many variables in play when you get into going long range that taking any shots that would overheat the barrel would not come into play in my opinion. I will second Primary Arms customer service, if you ever have a problem they will stand behind their product. Being in Texas they are pretty popular with folks here as they have a brick and mortar in Houston.

I have hunted since I was 7 and never really got into anything other than hunting rifles, but I am having more fun with this gun and stretching my capabilities than I could have imagined. Once you pull the trigger and hear the steel ring out at a considerable distance it is addictive. I am probably going to wind up taking a long range course at some point just to learn as much as I possible can. There are no limitations with the gun, the limitations are with me the shooter.

Oh, forgot to mention. I really like the trigger on the SPS Tactical as well. I have had some trigger jobs done on my hunting rifles and I like this trigger right out of the box! It is adjustable, but I found the break to be crisp and light with the factory set up.

Just saw your question about recoil. Recoil to me is relative, I have a .300 win mag and a 7mag for elk. I can shoot the .300 all day and it doesn't bother me, the 7mag is a different story. Something about how the gun is set up leads to a heavier recoil. None the less the more you shoot the less you will be concerned with recoil. You get task saturated and really don't even notice it. 150gr .308 rounds don't really generate that much recoil anyway.

Good luck and get ready to have some fun which ever way you chose to go.

 

[BigRed389]

I have a .300 win mag and a 7mag for elk. I can shoot the .300 all day and it doesn't bother me, the 7mag is a different story.

You sir, are some kind of badass.

I put about 20 rounds through a buddy's Browning X-Bolt in 300WM and my shoulder was black and blue all over. Didnt hurt bad, but it definitely left a mark for a while.

 

[Hopeful Hoya]

Ok glad to hear that 20" is fine, guess that means a SPS Tactical for me. Also glad to hear that PA's customer service is great, I think that is the scope for me then.

I checked out the SSWA and Nikon scopes, but what I love about the PA scope is that it has a mil dot reticle but also the adjustments are in mils, so it is extremely easy to adjust the scope based off what you see. I have no preference as far as mil/mil or MOA/MOA goes, but the PA scope is the only one I've seen at less than $1000 that has either of those setups.

Also, thank you everyone for all of the advice, you've been extremely helpful helping a total n00b who at this point probably has put less than 100 rounds through any type of firearm

 

[Ag1998]

BigRed,

Far, far, from a badass!!!! It is just the gun for some reason. I exaggerate at shooting the .300 mag all day and not feeling it. You feel it but its just not punishing. For some reason the 7mag starts to get my attention after 6-8 rounds and leaves me black and blue. The .300 has a wood stock on it and is built like a tank. The 7mag is a Browning A-bolt that has a synthetic stock and just kicks like a mule. Don't get me wrong I don't shoot either for fun, they are hunting guns. 3 shots at the range to insure zero and then whatever I shoot hunting. Never feel either of them when hunting.

Hoya,

Let us know what you wind up with and how it works for you.

 

[Gatordev]

Just saw your question about recoil. Recoil to me is relative, I have a .300 win mag and a 7mag for elk. I can shoot the .300 all day and it doesn't bother me, the 7mag is a different story. Something about how the gun is set up leads to a heavier recoil. None the less the more you shoot the less you will be concerned with recoil. You get task saturated and really don't even notice it. 150gr .308 rounds don't really generate that much recoil anyway.

A brake and/or can can help, as well. While certainly not painful, my SR-25 came back at me a bit more with it's stock flash suppressor on there than it does now with a Surefire brake. Shooting that OBR I mentioned with a suppressor on it was even better...something between 5.56 and .308. I look forward to being able to do that on my SR-25 some time in the distant future. For now, I'm on month 5 of the wait.