1st Precision Rifle Build

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So I have finally concluded the transaction on my 1st personnally owned rifle.

I have opted for a Remington 700 VLS .308 bolt-action rifle with 26'' bull-barrel and a 5-25x50 Zeiss Conquest HD5 scope.

My hope is that this will provide a strong platform which I can upgrade and tweak as I get better and better at precision shooting.

Currently looking into a decent bipod and possible rack to expose my new acquisition on the wall!

Any thoughts and recommendations are welcome!
 
Chassis for a first rifle? There's not a thing wrong with a laminated stock (especially when bedded correctly) and money is far better spent at this point on reloading equipment & knowledge resources.

If the OP is concerned most with looking cool, by all means get a chassis. If he wants to really understand what his rifle, ammunition, and results down range are all about, get some good reloading gear and start learning!

There are gobs of guys willing to help here but there's not much that can be done with the guys who blow their wads on bling and then complain that the two factory boxes of hunting ammunition that he's tried shoot like crap, yet buddy led him to believe that once he put a bunch of aftermarket stuff on his rifle, it would pretty much do the hard part for him.

Learn how to race, THEN build the car.

Rooster
 
Pulling a scope and bipod on a factory rifle is not a precision build. Better check the storage/display laws before exposing anything:p
X2 on the reload equipment and having the rifle skim bedded in the stock it is in now.
 
Chassis for a first rifle? There's not a thing wrong with a laminated stock (especially when bedded correctly) and money is far better spent at this point on reloading equipment & knowledge resources.

If the OP is concerned most with looking cool, by all means get a chassis. If he wants to really understand what his rifle, ammunition, and results down range are all about, get some good reloading gear and start learning!

There are gobs of guys willing to help here but there's not much that can be done with the guys who blow their wads on bling and then complain that the two factory boxes of hunting ammunition that he's tried shoot like crap, yet buddy led him to believe that once he put a bunch of aftermarket stuff on his rifle, it would pretty much do the hard part for him.

Learn how to race, THEN build the car.

Rooster

I chose the rifle for the Remington action, which my 2 armorer friends said was more than a good starting point, and for the rigid and heavy laminated stock in the first place because I was not interested in upgrading the chassis for any bling effect. The rifle does look ###y enough in my opinion too! I was looking for a rifle I could learn to shoot better on (have some experience, but on friends' rifles) and would be able to keep for a long time without the rifle restricting me. Only short term modifications I might consider is switching out the bottom plate magazine for a droppable mag and I do intend on having the rifle bedded. Thought I would give the rifle a try before bedding though.

I am starting to take some classes with an armorer buddy of mine which is intent on teaching me reloading, but for the next few months I expect I will be shooting match ammo as a starting point and accumulations some casings. Also started reading some books on reloading methods, expertise and caveats.

I will build up some experience and understanding in the while too.

I did look into the Harris bipods, but also the models seem to vary a lot, so looking for all-rounder good one which would it be?


Pulling a scope and bipod on a factory rifle is not a precision build. Better check the storage/display laws before exposing anything:p
X2 on the reload equipment and having the rifle skim bedded in the stock it is in now.

I agree that this will not make the rifle a sub-MOA shooter at 500 yards with me at the helm, however I went with something that would not break the bank and would yield room for improvement on my part, i.e. I know the rifle will shoot far better than I can! For display, I am aware of the regulations here, and know what I can and cannot do. More looking for a decent looking wallmount or something if you guys knew any. Or better yet, photos of your setups if you have em! ;)

New to the gun owner community and I am aware I am lacking what some of you guys take for granted now maybe, which is accumulated knowledge on this very interesting topic. I am aware this is maybe not a 'precision rifle' to the liking of some of you but it will be my first best try! :)
 
You may want to consider a trigger upgrade. Timney is a decent choice. Also, maybe a brake. And, of course, you may want to bed the action.

The 700P was my first precision rifle. A really good choice. In fact, I still have it and it shoots great. I've taken it out to 1100m. I really learned some great fundamentals with it. You may want to also consider a decent bipod or front and rear bags. If you're shooting a lot from prone, you might want a mat.

There are lots of things that will drain your wallet. But the main thing is have fun! Stretch out the distances and get lots of trigger time. You've made a great choice on the rifle and there's lots of mods that you can do if you desire to improve its performance.

As far as the "you're not doing a build with a factory rifle" talk, all I can say is that's hogwash.

Have fun!

EDIT: Also your choice of optics is very important, and you have a great one there!
 
Great start......you have lots of capability with that rifle!
Harris bipod will serve you well....get the 'S' model, then add a lock lever.
Use good quality scope mounting rail and rings, get it bedded, upgrade the trigger.
 
Don't get me wrong, it is a good choice as a starting point and you will have no problems shooting out to 1000 yards with it with the right reloads. Purchased match ammo may not always shoot well in your rifle and 400 rounds of Match ammo will set you back as much as a reloading kit. The trigger can be reworked to something workable. I would suggest sending it to guntech to have him work his magic.
Save the money that you want to spend on bottom metal and put it towards reloading components. The bottom metal won't make it shoot any better.
Skim bed, free float the barrel, tune up the trigger and start to develop a load. After 3000-4000 rounds the factory barrel will be toast, rebarrel and carry on.
 
Agreed, it is a great rifle. Make sure its bedded. The barrel may or may not shoot. Shoot lots through it. Then when you want to really tighten up your groups, have a good smith blueprint the action and screw on a good match barrel.
 
Check out Coretac Solutions for bipods, if you're an average build the 6-9" HBRM-S is the best option. If you are a larger man with a big chest then the 9-13" will work better for you.
 
I also started off with a remington 700 5r in 308, I've been able to print sub moa groups once in awhile usually under 1 MOA grouping though. I use a harris s-brm bipod with a podlock from t-nuts.com, and a JSA tactile small sandbag in the rear.
I had picked the same scope, but regretted it due to lack of target turrets and high quality one piece mounts for 1" tubes.
I also found the reticle to be VERY thick for precision shooting.
Other than those two items the scope was awesome, glass clarity was awesome by far best of the price range I saw. I kinda wish I had the chance to compare it to the s&b pmii I replaced it with, but I was satisfied with glass clarity.
 
Buy lots of ammo. Or if you're going to reload, stock up on lots of components and try and get them all of the same lot number if possible. Shoot often, don't just shoot to make holes in a target. Focus on fundamentals every time. Be meticulous.
 
Thank you all for your input. Very much appreciated. I do believe, the more and more I hear, that I will have to work on reloading more quickly than I thought at 1st. I keep hearing 'reload' from the guys here too lol. I had an offer for a custom 6mm PPC benchrest rifle from my armorer buddy for 1900$ (gun + reloading die and some other stuff to get started) but I opted for something I could get some ammo from the store for. It was a bit over my price point when adding a scope too for now.

Looked into the Harris more, and settled on the Harris S-BRM 6-9''. Ordered it last night.

Also comforted in the fact that the scope seems to have a good rep, it's what I gathered from my info gathering both online and from shooters here, but nice to know more ppl agree. It may have some caveats (not sure about the lockable turrets, target turrets, etc...) but it was the scope I was most comfortable with when I tested em out all around as to eye relief and clarity. We'll see how that works out.

Thanks guys, you're awesome. Looking forward to interacting with ppl like you more both here on the site and at the range. I have much to learn.
 
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