Best Bolt Action 223

[gerard488]

Looking at buying another .223,I have a Savage axis now. What is the best and most accurate bolt action .223 for under $600

 

[silverfoxdj]

This is going to be good.. tagged

 

[sobo4303]

Without a doubt - There are two which come to mind from personal experience. For the walker - the Weatherby S2. For the stationary shooter the Remington SPS Varmint. With the Remington, I bought in 2009 and was not too pleased with the plastic stock provided, so I upgraded to a Hogue stock. This did improve the groupings to near cloverleaf.

The newer models seem to have a better stock on them, but they are heavy beasties with 1:12 twists.

My SPS likes to digest the Hornady V-Max and Nosler 50 and 40 grain pills.

 

[fingers284]

For under $600 i think you will be limited to the Weatherby Vangaurd/ Howa family. I own an Axis and have shot the other two. The only benifit I can see, they have over the Axis, is that they have an adjustable trigger. The Axis has actually shot better groups than the other two but they were all good shooters ( the best with the Axis was .249, the other two were under .500 ). The adjusrable trigger just maks it easier to control the gun during the firing process.
The only other benifit to the Howa action is the loading port allows for easier feeding of one shell at a time thru the top.

 

[martinbns]

Best and Savage should never be read in the same sentence.

 

[jeffcarr88]

Pretty much any off the shelf UNMODIFIED bolt action will shoot the same for most people (most shooters are not good enough to shoot better then a modern rifle). I personally like Tikka/Sake but they are not super cheap. Have had luck in the past with both Savage and Remington as well.

IMO...the more important parts of being a good shooter is #1 practice!!! And after that good ammo, quality rings/scope and a good trigger/trigger control are very important to get the most out of anything your shooting.

 

[Ardent]

Save the extra month and buy a CZ527, that is the best .223 on a budget in my opinion.

 

[gunrunner100]

I sold off all my other 223's and kept a 788 Remington.

 

[Zomb1es]

Mossberg MVP 24" barrel, 1:9 twist comes with scope and bipod for around $600. Not saying it's the best but it shoots damn good!

 

[Can-down]

I'd try one of the new AR magfed Mossberg's or a used CZ in that price range.

 

[mikeyb]

$600 gets you mass-produced guns, which isn't bad per se, but I don't think you're going to see a huge difference between them. I own Weatherby Vanguard, Remington 700 SPS, T/C Venture, and Savage Axis and they are all fine and will all hit your price point. I kinda like the Venture best, it just feels that little bit more solid on lockup and lighter than the Weatherby. I'd also look at the cost to step up to a Tikka T3, that's a decent barrel the Finns stick on those.