lancetkenyon

Very cool looking build. I really like that look. Can't wait to see some groups.

I have looked at the Victory 2.8-20. Fairly lightweight ay 29oz,, glass is good, but the only mil reticle they offer is a mil-dot. They work, but so many better options out there for my taste. Also, I am not sure if they are a FFP scope or not, one of my main criteria.

210 SMK, 215 Berger Hybrid, 210 HVLD. They are all far more readily available right now than the 212 ELD-X. And should easily push to 2900+fps. I have taken, or seen game taken with the 210 HVLD and 210 SMK. I have been working up a load with the 215 Hybrids on the off chance I ever draw a bull tag.

After reading even more reviews, the March is out.

Thanks for the info. I am leaning further and further towards the S&B. 8 oz. isn't a huge weight gain for top tier glass.

On the 3-24x52, right?

He actually has 2 of them now that you mention it. One on his 7RM, and one on his .243. Thanks, I will see if I can swing by. But I was more hoping to look through the March to compare. I know the S&B quality.

What a lousy choice of magnification ranges. 1-8, 1.7-13, 2-16, 2.3-18. A 3-24 or 4-32 would have been a much better choice than the 2-16, with the other two being so close to that range.

I have researched these to death in every way but actually laying hands and eyes on them. It is not like a Vortex Viper HS, that everyone and their brother has one. Step to this level and it cuts out 99.5% of hunters and shooters. I have heard the March has a slightly finicky parallax knob, with 100 to Infinity being a fairly short throw on the dial, but it is manageable. But I usually leave my parallax on 200 when still hunting, so it has not been an issue before. Further than that, and I usually have a chance to dial it in. Thanks for the info though, never hurts to get other input from people who have done research.

Dear Lord, please let it be a LR scope with a tactical flair to it!!! Right before I buy my new glass too.

I will try and get a photo up this weekend, but I have a piece of rock with only 3 known in existence. Seriously. My Grandad worked for Phelps Dodge in Douglas, and found it. It came out in 3 pieces. My Dad has the biggest, my aunt the second biggest, and I have the third. MI e is about as big as my palm. My Dad has shown his to several geologists, and they always freak out. He has been offered some big money for his. I will explain the find when I post the photo this weekend. It is an amazing piece of mineral.

Oh boy.....new S&B 3-20 for my 7RM or new rifle? What a dilemma!

I do all of mine (about 4700+ currently fully loaded) on a single stage press. It sucks, but I get consistent results. I just do it one stage at a time. I try not to get too far behind, but last batch I ran was about 2000. I won't do that again. I worked on those all Christmas and New Year's four day weekends. And I still have to powder and seat bullets. My brother has a Dillon progressive, and he does his way faster than I can.

Did CJ pick these up? He asked me about the Shilen, and he has talked about building a .25-06 Ackley too.

I did that with my .300RUM. Worked OK on some coyotes last elk season....

What bullet and velocity are you shooting? I might need to do some more load work. Both my 50 V-max at 3400 and my 69 SMK @ 3033 both have 7"+ of drop at 300 with a dead zero at 200. If I were to hold center mass of coyote at 300, I would be missing.

6.5-.284 Norma would be a slightly cheaper way to go vs. the .300WSM. I would rather shoot the 6.5 for LR target and deer size game and down. For elk, I think I would want the extra bullet weight myself, not that the 6.5 is not fully capable of cleanly taking elk with proper bullet construction and placement. Just personal preference.

1 in 9" twist is good to the 69-70 grain projectile weight range. My AR is a 1 in 9", and shoots the 69 SMK into 1/4" groups.

200 yard zero. Both 50gr. V-Max @ 3400 and 69 SMK @ 3033. Puts the 50 V-MAX 1.2" high at 120, and only 3" low at 255 yards. Basically hold dead on for anything but Prarie dogs out to 250.

Yes it is the factory barrel. Factory plastic stock that has been glass bedded. It is a 510 or 512 but I'm not sure which. Blued less than 300 rounds. Rifle is in good shape..I'd say 8/10 He'd like to sell as a package with Leupold variX3 4.5-14 Boone and Crockett reticle. I would chose a different scope so I will try and purchase just the rifle. I'm not sure what kinda rings and bases, but I'd just as soon buy my own. I would think a fair price for both parties would be in the $450-500 range. Even though the stock has been bedded, you will still want to replace it sooner or later. The plastic is junk for a rifle you plan on using as an accurate LR rig. Factory barrel, again, if it shoots well, shoot it until you can afford a new quality barrel. 300 rounds is not much if the shooter didn't cook them out at a fast rate of fire all the time. I would think you can get another 800-1200 with care. Then get one that is quite a bit heavier contour than a sporter if you truly want a dedicated LR rig. If you want to lighten it up a bit, order a fluted barrel from the factory. Add a brake to reduce felt recoil. A 13-16# rifle will usually help in LR shooting. But they suck to carry for miles on end up and down canyons. They are a purpose built set up. Get quality base and rings. Mounting a scope with cheap rings does you no favors. Glass: buy the absolute best you can. I would rather have a $500 rifle with a $1500 scope than the other way around. Hard to shoot accurately if your scope is fuzzy and won't track.

Good to go. I always buy a big, fatty ribeye roast and do 70% game, 30% beef when I make my burger.

Factory button rifled barrel that was fluted after the fact? I guess if it shoots, you should be OK. I wouldn't flute a button rifled factory barrel myself. What stock? Factory Tupperware plastic or Bell & Carlson or HS Precision fiberglass composite? Huge difference. The cartridge choice, .300 WSM, is a great round for LR. Plenty of horsepower to push the 210/215 if it is a 1 in 10" twist. About the same expected velocity of the .300WM if you can seat them out a bit, but a short action makes that tough unless you don't mind a single shot. Good trigger, I assume the 510/512? Stainless or blued? Round count? Any additional items? Base, rings, ammo, reloading components? Scope? Price is determined by what someone is willing to pay for it. You rarely get what you put into a gun when you resell it. I would think $350-700 for the rifle dependent on clarification of features and condition of rifle.

For $1800, here would be my considerations (not in any particular order): Steiner T5Xi 5-25x56 W. SCR SWFA SS HD 5-20x50 Athlon Cronos 4.5-29x56 Vortex Razor Gen I 5-20x56 Kahles Gen II K624i 6-24x56 (the Gen III is out, but costs more) Burris XTR II 4-20x50 or 5-25x56 Sightron SIII FFP 6-24X56 Bushnell HDMR 3.5-21X50

I took my boat to Apache twice. That was it for me. Great lake, beautiful scenery, but either way in sucks. Through Roosevelt, might as well stay there and fish. Through Apache Junction, might as well stop and fish Canyon. I drive that road quite often for work, and I will never take my boat to Apache again.

Great choice. You won't be sorry. My 7RM is very manageable pushing 183s at 2960fps.