Advice on long range rifle

This is just my humble opinion. I am not a pro, I am a 50y.o. long-time hunter and paper shooter, and recent black rifle enthusiast.

I recently made the jump into long-range target shooting hardware.
I spent quite a few months on researching my options.
IMHO The biggest thing that comes into play is how much you want to spend, this also affects to some degree what your rifle accuracy and caliber will be.
Price is related to and will be followed by what degree of accuracy you are looking for. Personally, I'm old and not an expert marksman so I am happy with something that is just sub-MOA.
I won't be doing this professionally, I am just interested in it for playing with the larger caliber and further distance.
If you are not into reloading custom tuned rounds, you probably won't get the best accuracy or repeatability. If you are not reloading I also would not recommend the .338LM, and the .300WM is so-so, if you have to buy all of your rounds at retail it is going to cost you with these calibers.

The three calibers I settled on choosing from were:
.308 for lower ammo price and medium range. under $1/rd
.300 WM for medium ammo price and med-long range. ~$2/rd
.338 LM for high ammo price and long range. ~$3-$7/rd

There are a number of firearms available in these calibers, but a large percentage of people go with a Remington 700 based setup simply because of all of the after-market and third-party hardware available, and often with AICS stocks.
For scopes many people choose Schmidt&Bender or NightForce.

For a build-it-yourself setup expect to pay around $2500-$3000 for each the rifle (Rem 700, stock, etc.) and scope, totaling $5000-$6000.
For a pre-built setup such as an AI AX expect to pay between $6000 and $10,000, plus scope cost. Expect similar high costs to have a shop custom build you something.
For examples see http://www.wolverinesupplies.com/products/firearms/rifles.aspx?brand=ACCURACY+INTERNATIONAL

I settled on a Remington 700 in .308 with AICS 1.5 stock, and an Armalite AR-30 in 300WM (flame on), both with S&B scopes. Currently waiting for delivery, probably won't be range-ready until next spring.
If you are looking for a single rifle, I would look at the Rem 700 in .308, a decent stock, and a good scope.

I wouldn't try to mix a long-range target rifle with hunting.
In most cases the target rifle is going to be too big and heavy for long-distance/long-duration carrying in the bush. And the scope will be excessively high magnification.
 
Thomson Center fire make a rifle and it comes with R5 rifling for about $600 bucks in 308 caliber best starter deal bar none. the remington 700 with R5 is over $1000.
 
dbxdiver said:
Thomson Center fire make a rifle and it comes with R5 rifling for about $600 bucks in 308 caliber best starter deal bar none. the remington 700 with R5 is over $1000.
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And neither one is ideally suited for prone shooting at 1000 yard targets. ALthough I'm sure your recommendations are completely well intentioned, you have helping me make a point.
 
The OP will have to decide if he wants a dedicated long range target rifle, a hunting rifle, or some sort of compromise rig that is neither one nor the other, and is a little frustrating to use as either. As I said in my earlier post, a sporting rifle loaded up with slippery match bullets can do surprisingly well at long range. While MOA or 1.5 MOA at a grand might not set the benchrest world or even the Farky world on fire, for a casual marksman, its rewarding, its fun, and its a place to start without spending big money. Lets say he found an older M-700 Remington in .30/06 (or .280 or 7 mag) with a 1.5-5X hunting scope and acquired a 20X target scope, then mounted both in QD rings so that both attach to the same 20 minute rail. Lets forget shooting tiny groups for a minute; I bet after a few outings he'd be hitting more 12" steel plates at 1000 yards then he'd be missing, and it wouldn't cost him $10K to do it. If his interest keeps up, and he wants to dedicate himself to the sport, he can decide to spend that cash farther down the road. In the meantime, he has a decent hunting rifle that can put meat in the freezer and heads on the wall, and it can make him feel good about clanging steel on the far side of a half mile. Its represents a better investment then a Sendero type rifle that's a club to carry in the field, but doesn't cut it as a long range hitter either.
 
There is one thing I haven't seen anyone address. The OP indicates he is from Brampton i.e. the Greater Toronto Area. Before he spends any money on a firearm he needs to determine how far he wants to shoot and where a shooting range providing these distances is located. It seems he is a relative newcomer so I don't know how much money he has to devote to his shooting activities after he acquires his equipment.

There is no point in spending a lot of money on equipment if he later finds he can't afford to travel to where suitable shooting facilities are located. Unfortunately shooting is not the cheapest hobby and with the cost of gas today extensive travel incrementally increases the money needed.

Just something else to think about.

Jim
 
Come to an ORA intro day and try some different rifles.

If you want to shoot paper at 300 to 1000 yards, buy a good used target rifle in 223 or 308. A single shot target rifle has a solid bottom (no magazine). This gives a much larger bedding area and a stiffer action. It will have a guality barrel, stress relieved so it can shoot a 20 shot string without warping and shifting the group.

For hunting, buy a quality used rifle. A 10 or twenty year old sporting rifle is probably better made than a modern rifle.
 
ORA Intro Day or better yet the upcoming ORA Winter program (if the volunteers are running it again), is a great way to see what's going on in the long range game and figure out a direction. I started that way and my first rifle was a .223. It was a great way to start. Now my rifle is a purpose built .260 Remington for long range, lying around on my belly shooting, 16.2 lbs of bolt action fun. Certainly not for hunting. I guess depending on what you were hunting, then a mid range efficient calibre in 6mm or 6.5mm like the .260 would fit the bill. Either would work for long range target, not to pricey to set up and shoot, short action, manageable recoil, and good for game up to deer size for sure. I would pick up a 2nd rifle nice and light for hunting.
In either of these calibre's (.243 or .260) I could share components for loading a precision target round, and a hunting load with hunting bullets for deer size game.
 
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FTRRookie said:
Some consideration should also go in to any specific discipline of target shooting you choose. In some cases caliber doesn't matter, but in others you may find yourself competing against purpose-built boomers with ridiculous ballistics.
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I just got Sauer 202 Wolverine in 308 for my long range hunting, and it is a beauty.
 
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