Out of the Box: Best Long Range Target Rifle/Caliber/Ammo Combo?

[DakotaGlockGuy]

Almost done!!!

Pretty hard to beat Savage rifles for out of the box accuracy.

6BR is amazing. The accuracy is scary but at 1k it starts to loose its edge. Look at the 6.5x.284 for 1k accuracy you are looking for.
I have both and love my 6br for up to 500 or so yards but the 6.5 x284 is my long range deer and antelope rifle that is good for 1k.
Either one will shoot dime sized groups at 100 yards.

Happy New Year all!

Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate all the input and experience.

I've been doing some thinking and comparing, and I think I have 2 of the 3 pieces of the puzzle done.

Caliber: I'm giong to go with the 6.5 Creedmoor. Like it Squirrelduster said, either a 6BR or a 6.5 will shoot a dime sized hole at 100 yards, but the 6.5 has the edge at longer distances. I think the other big thing for me is that the box ammo is so much more reasonable with the Creedmoor rounds. Getting some Hornaday Match Ammo is not just reasonable, but will give me the recipe I need for a starting point, along with some good fireformed brass for reloading later on.

Rifle: Savage Model 12 LRP. It's been echoed here many times that, box stock, these rifles are just too hard to beat in the price to accuracy ratio. They are also a good (from my limited experience and research) platform to upgrade later on down the road. It just doesn't seem like these could be a bad choice, especially since it's available in the 6.5 Creedmoor round already.

Glass: Vortex Viper PST Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 6-24x 50mm . This one I'm about 95% sure about, but we'll see with some more reseach. Again, I don't think this is a bad choice, but will do some more looking to see if there is a *better* choice as far as pricepoint and quality are concerned.

 

[toddc]

Re: Almost done!!!

Happy New Year all!

Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate all the input and experience.

I've been doing some thinking and comparing, and I think I have 2 of the 3 pieces of the puzzle done.

Caliber: I'm giong to go with the 6.5 Creedmoor. Like it Squirrelduster said, either a 6BR or a 6.5 will shoot a dime sized hole at 100 yards, but the 6.5 has the edge at longer distances. I think the other big thing for me is that the box ammo is so much more reasonable with the Creedmoor rounds. Getting some Hornaday Match Ammo is not just reasonable, but will give me the recipe I need for a starting point, along with some good fireformed brass for reloading later on.

Rifle: Savage Model 12 LRP. It's been echoed here many times that, box stock, these rifles are just too hard to beat in the price to accuracy ratio. They are also a good (from my limited experience and research) platform to upgrade later on down the road. It just doesn't seem like these could be a bad choice, especially since it's available in the 6.5 Creedmoor round already.

Glass: Vortex Viper PST Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 6-24x 50mm . This one I'm about 95% sure about, but we'll see with some more reseach. Again, I don't think this is a bad choice, but will do some more looking to see if there is a *better* choice as far as pricepoint and quality are concerned.

Wow you catch on quick! Great choice. Im not a creed fan but since you wont hunt with it the extra power of a 284 based cartridge doesn't matter. The gun itself and the glass you hit on the head!
I've got 3 savages that started as much humbler guns than that and they all will hold .5moa past 1k. IF I do my part. And I have less than $1k in them. Lots of free accuracy upgrades for savages though probably less for your gun since its already 3/4 of the way there. I wouldnt have a coronary if you got .5moa out of it stock.

 

[Greyfox]

Another vote for the Savage LRP. Mine is in 260 Remington with performance very close to the customs with .25 MOA , 5 shot groups, being achievable with handloads. Given the OP doesn't hand load, the 6.5 Creedmore could be a good choice. Seen a few at our club and the factory ammo and it's pretty good for long range shooting. Performance looks to be the same or better than those shooting 308's with Federal Match ammo with typical .5 MOA performance with the good shooters.

 

[roninflag]

I don't shoot competition but was wondering how the Savage rifles do in comparison to the custom stuff?

Dakota- very good choice on all three, including the scope. the good thing is you can start shooting very soon. and good factory ammo available. reasonable too. squirrel- the savages shoot good. team savage wins a LOT. with guns signed by the guys at the factory. have not shot a savage or worked with one. my experience with custom barrels on .223, 6mm, 6.5 and 7mm .........dime size groups with good loads , nickel with average loads and very small (.1) when i am shooting good. my experience with factory barrels ( not savage)... they require a lot of range time and experimentation . i am 136 miles from the range. the customs shoot everything good. fill the case crunch a bullet on it. mine are all remington 700(1500). my brothers f-class bat ( 2600+) is a true .2 gun . won everytime i shot it.

 

[DakotaGlockGuy]

Sincere thanks again!

Wow you catch on quick!

Believe me, about 98% of what I learned came from right here. I really can't say thanks enough for all the help I've gotten on this build. The depth of knowledge and level of experience is really second to none. Add to that the fact that people are very generous in sharing that wisdom... well, I'm just really greatful for all your help here.

Toddc,
I hear what you're saying about the 284 being a harder hitting round, but you nailed it when you said that it won't make a lot of difference since I'm not going to be hunting with it. The other big plus with the Creedmoor round is that the cost of good, factory match ammo is extremely reasonable. I'm not sure when I'll start reloading, but I think I'll be happy with what I can do out of the box for a while anyway.

 

[warbirdkost]

you may get acceptable accuracy from a savage. i would get a remington 700 action and put a krieger barrel on it and save your self some time and frustration. 6mmbr is an excellent choice.

plus 1. you can get barrels for remington 700 and put on your self [like a savage] one thing about a 700 you can buy a good trigger

 

[Punisher]

The best OoB rifle I have owned was a Winchester model 70 in .243. It held almost 1/4 MOA at 100. The best shooter I own was originally a weatherby vanguard 30-06. I upgraded trigger, stock and barrel. It shoots single holes at 100.

I just purchased a new remington 700 Long Range model in 7mm mag. I have not got it completely set up because it hasn't arrived yet. It's all quality components and I was pretty impressed with the unit when I handled one in Cabelas. It may turn out to be a single hole shooter as well.

As for caliber? The serious shooters use 6.5x284, 7mm mag or 6mm dashers. There is also 338 LM and 50 bmg. But I don't think you want to go that big.

Try the 700 long range, for $699.00, it is a good start at least. Save the rest for glass.

I shoot out to 1200... And honestly, I haven't seen a rifle that I haven't had to alter in some way. After you have experience, you will develop a form and a preference for your gear. A lot depends on your body shape. You may add a cheek rest or a bipod or shoot from bags.

If you really want to be an operator, you'll learn every pin and spring in that thing. Eventually, you'll reach he point that you'll know what you want out of the components.

 

[Punisher]

Re: Almost done!!!

6.5 Creedmore. My good friend has the exact rifle in that caliber. His savage is an average 1/2 MOA shooter with hand loads for him. That is all I know about it.

He wants to upgrade the stock to see if he can do better. Myself, I'm not a fan of the accu-trigger. It doesn't do anything that a quality trigger won't do IMO.

It's a pretty tall order to expect a 1/4 MOA rifle out of the box with factory ammo, or with any ammo for that matter.

I wish you luck though, you may LOVE the Creedmore. Everyone has their preferences.[FLOATRIGHT][/FLOATRIGHT]

 

[LaHunter]

Not sure how many "out of the box' 1k yard rifles are really out there.
1,000 yards is a loooooong way.
If you want to start with a factory rifle, I would consider what actions are best for re-barreling with a custom barrel, because you will probably end up doing this sooner rather than later.
M700 actions are probably at the top of this list.
Also, you will need an aftermarket trigger, probably Jewel will be at the top of this list for target / bench rest type shooting.
Not to mention stocks and glass bedding.
It has already been discussed about setting up for loading your own ammo.

You may want to speak to a reputable gunsmith or talk to several people who shoot 1k regular to see what they shoot and recommend.

Good Luck

 

[scf]

Savage F class 6.5-284 is a true out of the box 1000 yard rifle and the price is reasonable. It is the easiest way to get into this type of shooting. No waits for parts and gun smithing needed. With proper hand loads the Savage will shoot 1/2 moa. I've won several F class matches with mine competing against full customs rigs. Top it off with a 20 moa base and a Nightforce 12-42 br (or new 15-55) and you are ready to go.

 

[Barrelnut]

Savage F class 6.5-284 is a true out of the box 1000 yard rifle and the price is reasonable. It is the easiest way to get into this type of shooting.

The OP has not responded to this thread since 01-02-2013............. But I 100% agree with the above statement.

 

[DakotaGlockGuy]

Hey Guys,

Sorry for the lack of replies. I actually started 2 threads, since I wasn't sure what forum to put them in. I forgot about this one.

We had a slight delay in the build due to taking our 5 year old to Disneyland, and in fact, just got back from that tonight!

I DO believe I have it pinned down to the 6.5 Creedmor, but am still open to other caliber options. I like the creedmor since it's not only a softer shooting gun, but relatively cheap to shoot as well!

I also have been looking at the possibility of building, or at least swapping out the chasis of the gun. I've looked into the XLR Chasis, as that seems to have a nice feature of the folding stock adapter I think would be nice for cleaning the gun WITHOUT messing up the cheek rest height. The only issue with that XLR setup is that the scope is going to need to be mounted up pretty high. Probably not a dealbreaker, but it might take a little getting used to!

Finally thanks so much for the help here. I really appreciate it. I'll be diving back into the research on this soon and hopefully will have some better, more specific questions to post!

 

[DakotaGlockGuy]

The best OoB rifle I have owned was a Winchester model 70 in .243. It held almost 1/4 MOA at 100. The best shooter I own was originally a weatherby vanguard 30-06. I upgraded trigger, stock and barrel. It shoots single holes at 100.

I just purchased a new remington 700 Long Range model in 7mm mag. I have not got it completely set up because it hasn't arrived yet. It's all quality components and I was pretty impressed with the unit when I handled one in Cabelas. It may turn out to be a single hole shooter as well.

As for caliber? The serious shooters use 6.5x284, 7mm mag or 6mm dashers. There is also 338 LM and 50 bmg. But I don't think you want to go that big.

Try the 700 long range, for $699.00, it is a good start at least. Save the rest for glass.

I shoot out to 1200... And honestly, I haven't seen a rifle that I haven't had to alter in some way. After you have experience, you will develop a form and a preference for your gear. A lot depends on your body shape. You may add a cheek rest or a bipod or shoot from bags.

If you really want to be an operator, you'll learn every pin and spring in that thing. Eventually, you'll reach he point that you'll know what you want out of the components.

Punisher,

Thanks for the info. After doing some research, it looks like the .243 is in the running as well. Great selection of ammo that's cheap to shoot, and great reviews on 6mmbr.com.

Looks like the only big drawback is the barrel life, or lack thereof. Definitely a possibility though!

 

[Dukguy]

Re: Almost done!!!

Happy New Year all!

Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate all the input and experience.

I've been doing some thinking and comparing, and I think I have 2 of the 3 pieces of the puzzle done.

Caliber: I'm giong to go with the 6.5 Creedmoor. Like it Squirrelduster said, either a 6BR or a 6.5 will shoot a dime sized hole at 100 yards, but the 6.5 has the edge at longer distances. I think the other big thing for me is that the box ammo is so much more reasonable with the Creedmoor rounds. Getting some Hornaday Match Ammo is not just reasonable, but will give me the recipe I need for a starting point, along with some good fireformed brass for reloading later on.

Rifle: Savage Model 12 LRP. It's been echoed here many times that, box stock, these rifles are just too hard to beat in the price to accuracy ratio. They are also a good (from my limited experience and research) platform to upgrade later on down the road. It just doesn't seem like these could be a bad choice, especially since it's available in the 6.5 Creedmoor round already.

Glass: Vortex Viper PST Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 6-24x 50mm . This one I'm about 95% sure about, but we'll see with some more reseach. Again, I don't think this is a bad choice, but will do some more looking to see if there is a *better* choice as far as pricepoint and quality are concerned.

I didn't read the whole thread but this is exactly what I would suggest. Best bang for buck.