Long range, starting from scatch

[257 STW]

I started with a Remington 700 SPS 300 RUM 26" barrel new $489, took it my gun smith and had him get to work on it he put a KDF break, Timney trigger , lapped the bolt and barrel , this cost me $600, i purchased a Leupold VXIII 8.5-25x50 LRT $800, Leupold rings and bases $65, haris by pod $95. Im shooting factory ammo Remington 180 scirocco power level III and getting a 5" group at 500 yards and gun seems to get tighter the more i shoot it. I have a buddy hand loading me up some 185 berger and am thinking of going with a H-S Precision stock not sure on stock yet gun is a tack driver right now and dont want to mess with it any more with the performance im getting already i belive in dont fix it if it ant broke or something like that. I also have 3 other REM 700 rifles set up the exact same way 22-250, 257 Weatherby , 260 Remington and are tack drivers as well. So for around $2000 you can build you something like this and be very happy with it and not have to wait months for a barrel or a custom build , dont get me wrong i have spent big money on rifles before that shoot really well but after spending time with a good budy of mine that is a gun smith he told me to buy the cheepist Remington 700 26" 300 RUM I could find new and he would save me a bunch of money and I would be suprised how well the gun he builds would shoot. Im very happy with my rifles and have since sold a custom rifle I hade made a few years ago and built the 3 other rifles this way with the money I made off of the custom.

[azsugarbear]

Obviously an older post, but since many future readers will have similar questions and turn to this post for info - I will put in my two cents. Please remember, even though I write in absolutes, these are just my opinions. What I have found to be true may not hold water for others.

 

First of all, we need to define what "long range" means. For practical purposes, let's say anything in between 300 - 600 yds. is mid-range, and anything over 600 yds. is getting into long range territory. Over 1000 yds we will call extreme long range.

 

If you are going to be shooting mid-range, caliber and accuracy are not nearly as important as they would be at long range. With a little practice, nearly any rig that can shoot under 1 MOA at 100 yds. can become a consistent mid-range rifle. Just make sure the caliber is sufficient for the game you are hunting.

 

Beyond 600 yds. is when things begin to get interesting. Gravity is a constant. Once you know how your bullet drops over given distances - for the most part you are done. Yes, the drop will change somewhat depending on elevation and temp changes (maybe one or two clicks in MOA). However, the big "Boogeyman" that begins to become a major factor at 600 yds. and beyond is the wind. If you shoot much at long range distances, you will quickly discover that you miss more to the right or left of your intended target than you will in elevation (up or down). This is where the velocity and BC (ballistic coefficient) of your bullet really come into play. The faster the bullet, the less effect the wind has on it. The higher the BC of a bullet, the less effect wind has on it. That is why so many LR shooters go with the magnums and "near magnums". Most LR shooters also tend to go with either the 338 or the 7mm calibers. They have the best selection of heavy-for-caliber bullets with the higher BC's (in the .7 - .9 range). Once you get beyond 1000 yds., the 30 cals (max .6 BC) have some trouble keeping up ballistically with the 7's and 338's. The 6.5mm (.264) and the 6mm (.243) bullets also have some great higher BC bullets, but because they do not have the energy of the larger calibers, one needs to be more judicious in their use on game at longer distances.

 

For someone starting out, it is probably better to limit your expenditures until you see whether or not this is something you will like and stay with long term. Besides, even on a budget - you will still be spending some serious dollars. All of my LR shooting rigs are based on the Rem 700 action. Having said that, it is hard to beat the Savage in terms of dollars for out-of-the-box accuracy. Save your dollars here, as you will need them for optics.

 

It's hard to beat Leupold scopes for clarity and consistency (repeatability in dialing up and down) for the dollars spent. They have a lifetime warranty and they now offer custom turrets. However, there are some up-and-coming companies that also offer some great glass at a lower price point. Good glass is often subjective and depends greatly on the person looking through the scope. Just be sure the mechanics are consistent - so that you can dial up and then return to your zero every time. Kenton Industries makes both windage and elevation turrets for many of these scopes.

 

Having a great laser range finder (LRF) is indispensable. If you plan on shooting in the mid-range of 300-600 yards, then almost any LRF will get the job done for you on most days. If you want reliable, consistent, accurate readings beyond 600 yards in nearly all kinds of weather conditions, then there are only a couple of choices: Leica and Swaro ( approx. $800 used). Will the others get you accurate readings beyond 600 yds? Of course. But they will not be as consistent or reliable as these two. Check with most LR shooters and you will see the overwhelming majority use one or the other. Beyond 1000 yds., even these great units begin to fail. If you can't range it, then it doesn't matter how accurate your rifle is. Spend your money here.

 

A word of caution before you start down this road: It can become an addiction with no known cure. :-)

[Pat H]

I have a Remmington 700 LTR (Light Tactical Rifle) in .308 Be prepared to spend a few hundred dollars getting it bedded and the action trued, but you will appreciate the action and the heavier barrel. I have a Harris bi-pod and a Nikon Monarch X series scope with the target turrets, a 20 MOA scope mount and Leupold Quick Release Rings.

 

My 1st 3 rounds I fired out of the gun at 100 yards I was able to cover with a dime. I shoot Federal Gold Match 168 factory loads and it shoots a 1/4 - 1/2 MOA all day long. I also have a SureFire muzzle break on it (Barrel cut to 18"). I have shot this gun out to 800 yards with someone calling my shots and I have worked out my dope to that distance....I am no sniper, but I am very confident with this set up.

 

Lastly I added a HS Precision bottom metal and drop box magazine. The Fed 168 GM ammo is prentiful and there is enough research and history with it as it is used by more LE Snipers than any other single round on the market.

[richardoutwest]

Never an old topic. I have had great luck with two factory rifles shooting 1/2 groups at 100 yards. Grant you not all factory rifles will ever come close but once you find one or two, you just saved you thousands of dollars and have fun doing it. Rifle 1 Rem 300 Sendero, trigger job to 2 lbs, and David Tubbs fire lapping, custom loads, Leupold 6x18. First time out 1 1/2 inch group and never got better. Took it to a gun smith who is a close friend and had him do a fine look over and everything checked out. I called Sierra and asked them, I gave them my load, even though I was shooting 180 Nosler BT and the guy never bad mouthed the Nosler BT. He said he just got thru shooting 300 lbs of powder in 300 win mag and said to leave my load the same and discontinue using the Gold Medal primers and use Winchester WLRM primers but stressed leaving the rest of the load recipe alone. First time out 4 bullet holes inside each other at 100 yards! Holly crap, I thought I knew reloading, never to late to teach old dogs new tricks.

 

Rifle 2 was the last rifle my father bought and before he died, he said its yours if you hunt with it for at least one season. I think he did it on purpose because I can remember talking trash about it when he bought it, it is a Ruger M77 MKII in 300 win mag stainless and laminated wood. I told him I would, and after he died, I took out the Ruger and tried working up a load but nothing that would work on ranges out to 800 yards even after filing the shear down to 1 1/4 pounds. So off to the smith it went, trued the bolt and 47 deg crown. I wanted him to bed the action but he advised against it, he likes the way the forward screw angles back into the action for stability and said it probably wasn't needed. He also said he likes the heavier stainless barrel on the Ruger rifles and said it will shoot just have to play with it a while. Got it back and fired the David Tubbs fire lapping compound thru it and it finally settled in. Today I am still hunting with it, yes a Ruger M77 MKII. My last whitetail was 692 yards with a one shot kill.

 

So with my 2 cents on the table, unless you have a ton of money, find you a good factory rifle and do some final touches and you just may have your 5k to 10k shooter. Most reputable smiths can do a "Remington Tune Up" for a couple hundred and you would not believe the difference.

 

The things that are a must for me on a factory rifle is;

1. Trigger job. Remember less than 3 lbs. is hard to feel in cold weather but you need a trigger that you are not going to pull and breaks like glass.

2. David Tubbs fire lapping. Do some research as some shooters are not in favor of fire lapping most likely because they did it wrong and trashed a barrel.

3. Crown job.

4. Good quality reloading equipment and quality loads!. I have always used good quality brass, case sized to length, case weighted, de-burred inside and out, trimmed the outside of the neck for trueness, squared the primer pocket and de-burred the flash hole, and fire formed the brass. I use Lee Collet dies, not the most expensive but I like the way the collet aligns the neck true on the brass. Once I have done the above, I never resize the case when reloading since they are fire formed to my rifle. Each load is hand weighted, nor every 3rd or 5th, every round! Always be careful when reloading, read the manuals and take your time. It takes me 3 hours to load 20 rounds from scratch and I load like I am going to a bench rest competition.

5. Quality scope and rings, lap them in, best if a smith does this! Leupolds scopes work great.

6. In my 300 win mags, RL22 powder, 180 Nosler BT, Winchester WLRM primers. If it works, don"t change anything!

7 Chronograph you rifle once you establish your load. Use a ballistics program (and understand it) to help get you on paper at long ranges. Understand, temperatures, altitude, slop angle, pressure in HG, ect. changes point of impact. Anyone that tells you they shot a deer they ranged at 400 yards on a 30 deg angle and they held for 400 yards is either telling a story or they got lucky!

 

Not every one may agree with me but it works for me. I shoot one rifle and one load for everything, I don't believe in overkill, I believe in getting familiar with one rifle and knowing that rifle!

[LRSteve]

I started with this a few years ago and was just like you. Simple answer is NO. You dont have to speng 5k to shoot accurately at long range. I shoot a TIKKA and a Weatherby S2. One thing I will tell you is there is no substitute for good glass. I have a Vortex Viper PST 6-24x50 ffp, on a TIKKA 300 WSM. That gun is an 800 yard gun all day. My other gun, Weatherby S2 in 243 win. I have a Vortex Viper HSLR 4-16x44 and it's a 600 yard gun. The main thing to doing it is get the stuff and just start doing it. The more you shoot the better you'll get.

I know if you watch these shows they will make you think it cant be done with out their products. Dont buy into that. It can be done. Practise, practise, practise...

[452b264]

+1 on the Savage build, there is no need for a gunsmith$

[gaps]

This rifle was a budget build. I decided to sell my Ruger 7mm and the PST that was on it. I kept the Razor HD that was on the Remington 300winmag but sold that rifle too. Then I took that money and built this 300 RUM.

It is built off of a Remington 300RUM SPS that I bought as a donor rifle. I kept the action and the bolt and then sold everything else. I bought the H-S Precision Sendero stock and bottom metal on eBay, it was brand new. The Krieger barrel was purchased at Bruno Shooters Supply and while I was over in that area I stopped by Timney Triggers and picked up a Timney 512 trigger from their warehouse. I bought the Nightforce 40moa picatinny rail from amazon. Then I took everything over to Phoenix Custom Rifles and they put their magic touch on it. I bought the badger thruster brake, PTG recoil lug, and firing pin assembly from them. They chambered and installed the barrel, trued the action, threaded the barrel and timed it for the brake, opened up the scope bases to 8-40, installed firing pin and spring, and pillar bedded the stock.

They did a great job with the build with a very quick turnaround time. And this rifle shoots WAY better than I expected! I have no regrets choosing the 300 RUM as a caliber. I can shoot it all day long and enjoy it. Nothing against the winmag or 7mm, but the 230gr Bergers going 3,048fps is something special to watch!

 

https://www.youtube.com/user/19gaps/videos

[Sonof12]

At the end of the day most manufactures provide you opportunity to get to that 600-700 yard mark without much customization. That said, I have here a Howa 270 wsm (about $450 on sale), topped with a Vortex HS 4x16x44 ($300 on sale), a Boyd's tacticool stock that will be bedded this week ($130) with a Timney trigger ($100) and a friends handy work in getting a muzzle brake on it ($100). That is just over a grand and is more than enough gun to get out to 1000 yards but it won't do it if you don't find a load that works really good and if you don't practice your butt off at those long ranges.

[Carl D Farrell]

Long range hunting.

[Carl D Farrell]

I use a Huskemaw on my wheatherby 300 ultra mag. I've been blessed to get a Muley at 515 yards. A coues at 669 yards and the following year a coues at 252. Huskemaw is amazing. I couldn't ask for better performance and durability.

[Allforelk]

Good on you sir. Just a point to offer on the post, the posting previous to yours was from 07/29/2014.

[trphyhntr]

i remember when i first saw this thread in 2010 and thought, man those guys are crazy.

 

now im shooting stuff way the heck out there lol.

[Surefire]

I have a Rem 700 Sendero in 7mm Rem mag that I'm seriously thinking of selling and use my Savage 6.5 CM from now on. It's a great long distance rifle and the Hornady 143 gr ELD-X is just the bullet to do the job.

[Good]

Great and capable cartridge for sure! I'd like to get my wife one. She currently shoots a Savage 110 7 Rem Mag with a few bolt-ons, and she loves it, but I think she would like a CM even better.

[PRDATR]

Great and capable cartridge for sure! I'd like to get my wife one. She currently shoots a Savage 110 7 Rem Mag with a few bolt-ons, and she loves it, but I think she would like a CM even better.

 

 

I watched Big Browns better half put the smack down like a pro on a nice Coues last year with his 6.5. I think it was like 289 yards and the buck went maybe 20 feet.