best caliber remington 700 for range only

This is a question for everyone.

What about .260rem? It has a better BC than the .308 as well as an higher velocity(from what I read), but it has a recoil similar to the .223. The deflection an drop at 1000 yards are smaller than the .308 as well. Basically, the .260rem is a .308 cartdridge necked-down. I'm considering to build my next rifle in .260rem so any advice or comments will be appreciate.
 
260 Rem

I shoot a Broughton 260 Rem 30 inch (1-8 inch twist) in my 700 VS and it's great to 1000 yds. 44 grains of H4350 will send a 140 grain SMK or Amax (or 139 scenar) at 2950 fps. You should start lower and build up to max load in your rifle. My friend Leo only needs 42.5 gr in his 260 Rem. The barrel life is less than 308 but still quite good (4000 vs 5000 but some say more) I've experienced the Broughtons to shoot as good as the Kriegers (tried both in several configurations and was never disapointed ) Remington is the only manuf. that makes the brass but you can use Lapua 243 and neck up or 308 and neck down. I use Rem brass as I found it's quite consistant.
 
I'm new as well (1st rifle) & shoot only targets - took a long time to decide & got a Rem VLSS thumbhole in .223 & a Leupold scope.

For all the reasons listed - starting with cost. The idea is to spend as much time shooting as possible - and .223 is the cheapest that I found, since as a total novice I wasn't planning on "reloading" until I get a good amount of experience. And you'll need to save $$$ for a good scope - don't be surprised if it actually costs alot more than the rifle. But it is worth every penny.

These HB bolt action rifles in .223 will shoot out to 1000yds with precision - waaaaaay more precision than you have. I'm spending alot of time right now at 200yds - and am just getting my technique dialed in to use just a tiny fraction of what this gun is capable of. I shoot 75-100 rounds in a weekend, so spending $1.00 or more a round would be prohibitive. .223 rem costs me $0.42 a round - not cheep, but at least affordable.

When I get a few thousand rounds under my belt, I will look at other calibers & reloading. But for now - this is great because its a no-brainer -

1) low cost
2) low recoil (virtually none)
3) high precision
4) TONS OF FUN

Cheers,
D
 
Max Owner said:
260 will pretty well require you to reload. VERY few factory loads.
Yeah but, to shoot long range accurately, you pretty much have to reload anyway so assuming that I do reload, ain't the .260rem would be even better than the .308. I saw that even the smallest .260rem(130gr if my memory is good) bullets have a higher BC than the 180gr .308. Every .260rem bullets also have a higher velocity(about 100 to 200 f/s)than the .308.
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RePete said:
I'm going to go one different.

.223 AND .308!
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Beat me to it!

I would recommend a Remington 700 VSF in .223 Rem to start and then one in .308 Win if you decide to get serious about longer ranges.

http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire_rifles/model_700/model_700_VSF.asp

For ranges out to 300 meters you will be fine with the .223 Rem and your shoulder and wallet will thank you.

I have shot varmint matches at 200 meters with a Remington 700 VS in .223 Rem and loved it. I literally fired off a few hundred rounds in the course of a few hours. It does not kick enough that I developed a flinch and it did not heat up the barrel as much as a .308 Win would (or even a .220 Swift or 6mm PPC.)

The .223 Rem is very easy to reload for without breaking your bank account. Plus the dies and brass are easier and cheaper to find than the stuff made for wildcats.

Another thought is to pick up a very nice .22 LR (match grade if you can afford it) and play around with it out to 100 meters. They are a blast to shoot and you can buy a brick of CCI Standard Velocity or CCI Mini-Mags cheap. They seem to shoot just as well as the .22 LR match bullets I've compared them to in rifle and pistol.

The .22 LR is also a great way to give new shooters the experience of shooting without scaring them with heavy recoil or excessive noise. Nothing thrills them more than seeing tiny groups forming on their targets at; 25, 50, or 100 meters.

Have fun and good luck!
 
what range do u shoot at? If you are limited to 300 then a 223 is great. As you go ot it gets harder & more interesting. Check with some of your local guys & try out what you can. The 22 is also a very good choice as most of us have a few we play with. Keep us in the loop & have fun! AJ
 
"...trading it in..." Sell it privately. You'll get more money than you will using it as a trade-in. Gun shops base their trade-in values on the wholesale price, not the retail price.
 
Zaitsev: a 260 Rem is definitely better than a 308 on many points:
1)- better ballistics
2)- wind bucking ability
3)- less recoil (you need a min 200 grain .30 cal to match a 140 gr 6.5mm/.264)
it's true that it has a bit less barrel life (4000 vs 5000) but to illustrate my point let me tell you this experience I had last year shooting at the Connaught range nationals. The SJ Perry at 900m (2+15) was late morning and I finished the match with 6.5 MOA windage on my 260 Rem (and 83/90 score) while my buddy Martin had 10.5 MOA on his 308. I was shooting the 139 grain Lapua scenars (260) and Martin the 154 grain scenars (308)
The guys told me if you shoot a 6.5-284 you can half the wind corrections but 6.5 vs 10.5 is not far from that. Plus the 6.5-284 only lasts under 2000 rds. I only use the very high performance calibers for hunting applications. For target shooting I like the long barrel life of medium calibers as I shoot several 1000 rds per year. The 260 Rem does very well for me even in F-class as you might see I won against all the fancy calibers so it definitely is competitive. (DCRA site) I also did an 89/90 in the Valcartier Final at 600 yds (PQRA site) Happy shooting. Serge
 
sniper767 said:
Zaitsev: a 260 Rem is definitely better than a 308 on many points:
1)- better ballistics
2)- wind bucking ability
3)- less recoil (you need a min 200 grain .30 cal to match a 140 gr 6.5mm/.264)
it's true that it has a bit less barrel life (4000 vs 5000) but to illustrate my point let me tell you this experience I had last year shooting at the Connaught range nationals. The SJ Perry at 900m (2+15) was late morning and I finished the match with 6.5 MOA windage on my 260 Rem (and 83/90 score) while my buddy Martin had 10.5 MOA on his 308. I was shooting the 139 grain Lapua scenars (260) and Martin the 154 grain scenars (308)
The guys told me if you shoot a 6.5-284 you can half the wind corrections but 6.5 vs 10.5 is not far from that. Plus the 6.5-284 only lasts under 2000 rds. I only use the very high performance calibers for hunting applications. For target shooting I like the long barrel life of medium calibers as I shoot several 1000 rds per year. The 260 Rem does very well for me even in F-class as you might see I won against all the fancy calibers so it definitely is competitive. (DCRA site) I also did an 89/90 in the Valcartier Final at 600 yds (PQRA site) Happy shooting. Serge
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Yeah, that's prety much what I thought. I knew that the 6.5-284 had a short barrel life but not that much.

By the way, congrats on your good shooting. I plan to shoot at Valcartier this year. I have had my RPAL for less than a year so I never did any LR competition yet(I'm just 19 years old) but I plan on making a lot. I will go to Valcartier with Francis Gaulin from Armtech (pretty sure you know him), he'll be my coach or kind off. Will you shoot there this year?

Thanks for the infos. Next rifle will probably be a .260rem. Right now, I shoot a .308.
 
rem 700 caliber

Zaitsev: glad to hear you're 19 and already knowledgeable on rifle shooting. I started at 12 myself and am 50 now but we didn't have CGN or internet in 1970 and I had no access to any serious range like st-bruno (didn't know you could shoot there as civilian) if you have a 308 now all you need is a 6.5mm barrel blank (1 in 8 twist). check Bruno shooters supply. they have good prices on krieger and stock many contours and twists. for ex. I got a LV 308 29 inch blank 1-10 twist krieger in jan for 270$ + 18$ shipped at Freeport Forwarding Champlain NY 12919 for pick up. The 31 inch blanks were 290$ (30 inch finished) The barrel blank is not classified as gun part in the states so there's no export permit required and this is a fact. If you want to borrow my 260 Rem. reamer you're welcome. It's a custom reamer from Pacific Tools and Gages with a 0.295 neck. 200$ to get the chambering at Gaulin's. 260 Remington brand brass is available or use Lapua 243s and neck up with an expander button. The other brands, not annealed will crack. I use Rem brand brass and neck turn down to .013 as they come .013-.015 but the lapuas should be more consistant. My best load yet is 44.5 grain of H4350 and I use the 9 gram moly scenars (you mkight know that the 10 gram 308 scenars are 154 grain) start at 42 grain H4350 and work up. Leo had high pressures at 44 grain with his lot of powder. H1000 is very good too but a compr. charge at 50 gr. I will be glad like most CGNers to give you any help you need. good shooting and keep'em in the Vbull/Xring. I would love to shoot this year at Valcartier but my budget is tight so I'm sticking with Farnham especialy with the price of gas. Take care Serge.
 
Thanks for all the infos,

I'm not reloading right now because I'm waiting for one of my friend who will buy a relaoding kit that we will both use. Since we are students, we don't have a lot of money so we try to help each other. I'll shoot my .308 first and when I'll have more money, I will buy a new barrel(probably Krieger) chambered in .260rem and at the same time, I'll accurize my action. Right now, I'm waiting for my McMillan A-4 stock to come in. I should have it in late June or July.

Once again, thanks for all the infos. I trully appreciate.
 
McMillan A4?? That's not cheap.
Do you know Robertson's stocks near Ottawa?
they make a very good quality prone full adj. stock for 1100$
the equivalent of a McMillan 1500$ job or more.
 
The thing is, the McMillan will cost me near 1100$ and may be less. And that's with the thumbweel adjustable cheekpiece and the spacer system recoil pad. Francis will make all the bedding and painting on this stock and we figure out that it should cost me less than 1200$-1100$. I should have it in late June or July. One thing though, I think that we calculated the final price considering the resale value of my Rem 700 police HS stock. Not sure though.
 
I did my reseraches and found the Robertson's site. Those stocks look very nice and seem to be well made. One thing though, all the stocks that I saw are benchrest type stocks. I know that it's just a <<tacticool thing>>, but I prefer the tactical type stocks as the A4. Even if I shoot benchrest most of the time:redface:. And I must admit that the A4 has something that other stocks don't have to me. I can't tell what but I like it.
 
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