Choosing a rifle for long range

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Puffin Chucker

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Hey fellas,

I am looking into starting long range shooting (300-800 meters), and I want to go with 6.5 CM.
I am wondering if it is worth it in the long run to buy a rifle for a few hundred dollars more. For instance if I am looking at the $1,000-$1,400 range, but I know I don't want to have to buy a whole new rifle anytime soon. Should I just push closer to spending $2,000 and get something a little better? Would that make much of a difference anyway? And what about rifles under $1,000? Would it be better to just save some money and get a $700 one?

I know not to cheap out on the scope; I plan on getting a good one. I'm basically just curious to know how much of a difference a few hundred or maybe a thousand dollar difference makes in the rifle.

Thanks for the help.
 
Do you want an out of the box tack driver, or do you want your rifle to evolve with your experience and budget?
I know guys that spring for the best and never looked back, whereas I have a rem700 and have been enhancing it as I gradually hone my skills.

With long range, consistent accuracy, I seems to be quite a bit about ammunition/rifle compatibility.
 
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I guess my advice would be "bullets, barrels & bedding", I would decide on your budget and then decide "new' or "used". Also get a realistic idea of the accuracy you expect? or demand? A solid action is good but the barrel will determine your accuracy, along with bullets.
 
Most mid-range $$$ factory rifles are perfectly capable for long range. I’d try to not over-think that aspect of it. Also don’t be afraid to grab a good condition used rifle either (check the EE). Setting yourself up for handloading, if you’re not already setup, will make a huge difference. Also I’d lean towards a better optic than a better rifle. With handloads you’ll be able to make just about any rifle shoot, but once you’ve got your optic there’s nothing you can do to upgrade it. If it doesn’t track true and return to zero, you’ll be chasing your tail all the time trying to learn you long range ballistics.
 
few good tips there, most out of the box will do just fine .. optics is the key like seven lakes said . probably will need to worth more then your rifle at this point in your shooting . get a good scope , swaro with a zero stop or huskama something in that range and style anyway ..hand loads of coarse can make or break a rifle for long range stuff.. i have a ruger m77 hawkeye in a creed , with a nikon monarch 16 power and it does just fine with that .. getting to 800 a little more power might be something you should look at ,its all fun just getting going and learning ...buy the way my 28 nosler with a muzzle brake is alot more fun then my creed ... lol ,,but $$$$ ya the creed is much easier on the wallet ,, i honestly believe for the money hard to beat a tikka out of the box shooting .....
 
Yep Tikka are great for the money and if you don’t mind a plastic factory stock I think theirs are as good or better than any of the Remington or savage ones.

6.5 is great but 308 will also do a great job under 1,000 yards. There’s a Tikka TAC on the EE in 308 sitting in a B&C stock for $1100....1750 with a decent bushnell scope that’ll get you started. Pretty good bang for the buck IMO.
 
Seven Lakes said:
Yep Tikka are great for the money and if you don’t mind a plastic factory stock I think theirs are as good or better than any of the Remington or savage ones.

6.5 is great but 308 will also do a great job under 1,000 yards. There’s a Tikka TAC on the EE in 308 sitting in a B&C stock for $1100....1750 with a decent bushnell scope that’ll get you started. Pretty good bang for the buck IMO.
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Good call, I purchased a Tikka T3X Tac A1 and it was a half MOA rifle after about 20rds, I added the Sterk bolt handle and shroud and it's now a good looking functional PRS type rifle. Money well spent.

For comparison here's a 300WM I just built with a Bartlien barrel, 20rds after break in, and the last 3 with factory ammo. Barrels and bullets & bedding make all the difference IMO
Good luck


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Just remember spending more doesn’t necessarily mean a proportionately better shooter. For example spending $2000 on a rifle vs $1000 doesn’t mean you’ll go for a 0.5 MOA capable gun to 0.25.

Have you owned and shot rifles before at shorter ranges? If so what did you like and dislike about them? What’s your total budget all-in with glass?
 
Seven Lakes said:
Just remember spending more doesn’t necessarily mean a proportionately better shooter. For example spending $2000 on a rifle vs $1000 doesn’t mean you’ll go for a 0.5 MOA capable gun to 0.25.

Have you owned and shot rifles before at shorter ranges? If so what did you like and dislike about them? What’s your total budget all-in with glass?
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Oh for sure. I'm not expecting to go buy a nice gun and shoot amazing right off the bat. I have some good friends who already do long range shooting and can show me the ropes.

Yes I have. Mostly shot ARs but my favorite is my Tavor x95. I have put one or two thousand rounds through it. I like it because it feels great to hold, I have only had one jam and I think it was my fault, it is very consistent, really fun to shoot quickly, overall it just feels like a gun that had a lot of thought put into why it works the way it does I suppose. As for what I didn't like, not really any one kind of gun but pretty much anything that had feeding or jamming issues, or that had to be modified in some way to work properly. I don't like it when you have to file some part here or change this little thing there to get it to work; to me that should have been thought of when they built it in the first place.

I wouldn't want to go over $4,000 for gun and glass together unless I had a good reason, and around $3,000 would be nice. However, I didn't really want to go spend $2,000+ on rifle and $1,500+ on a scope if something cheaper would do the trick. After all, I assume any really expensive gun probably does a really good job.
 
Well good news is sounds like you’ll definitely find something you like as you’ve got a good budget to work with.

Optics, I think $1000-1500 gets you an awesome scope. I buy most all my equipment used so long as it comes with a good warranty. Vortex is heard to best in that regard and the PST gen 2’s can be had in a 3-15 or 5-25x model for around $1100-1250 used. Ffp vs sfp is shooters preference but I like ffp. $1500-1600 can get you a good condition NF NXS. Not great or like new, but good. For the money though I’d still be happy with the PST.

Remington 700 is always a classic option. Something like one of the 5r milspec gen2’s Would be great in a 24” barrel. I like the Hs precision or b&c aluminum block stocks. Some people need a chassis rifle and if that’s the case, there are none more available than for the Remington 700 footprint.

Tikkas are awesome too. A T3x CTR would do well, give you option for muzzle devices too, but the stocks aren’t as nice as an HSP or b&c so I’d want to buy one off the bat. If you want a chassis, not as many options but they’re growing as the platform gains popularity. I’d also consider a Sako A7 roughtec. 3 lug action for a shorter throw, and they have a nice for LR (26”?) barrel and already come in a b&c stock.

Lots of options out there and unless you’re super particular about what you want, which you may not know until you try a few, any of the above will work and get you shooting, very well, and give you lots of upward room to learn. Keep an eye on EE and go for it when you find a good deal and you could be all ready to go with a really nice piece of kit for around the $2500 range. Leaves lots of room in your budget to actually get out and shoot or into reloading if that tickles your fancy (it won’t save you money, but what you do spend will be better tailored to YOUR rifle).
 
Alot of "new" shooters would be surprised what a good bedding job can do? or simply changing the stock?, I would start there, and if you're still not quite where you want to be? try an new barrel, I like IBI and for the cost you can't go wrong. Folks will tell you different things, weigh all their opinions, but the general consensus will be money spent on barrels, optics etc is "well spent" . Good luck.
 
Seven Lakes said:
Well good news is sounds like you’ll definitely find something you like as you’ve got a good budget to work with.

Optics, I think $1000-1500 gets you an awesome scope. I buy most all my equipment used so long as it comes with a good warranty. Vortex is heard to best in that regard and the PST gen 2’s can be had in a 3-15 or 5-25x model for around $1100-1250 used. Ffp vs sfp is shooters preference but I like ffp. $1500-1600 can get you a good condition NF NXS. Not great or like new, but good. For the money though I’d still be happy with the PST.

Remington 700 is always a classic option. Something like one of the 5r milspec gen2’s Would be great in a 24” barrel. I like the Hs precision or b&c aluminum block stocks. Some people need a chassis rifle and if that’s the case, there are none more available than for the Remington 700 footprint.

Tikkas are awesome too. A T3x CTR would do well, give you option for muzzle devices too, but the stocks aren’t as nice as an HSP or b&c so I’d want to buy one off the bat. If you want a chassis, not as many options but they’re growing as the platform gains popularity. I’d also consider a Sako A7 roughtec. 3 lug action for a shorter throw, and they have a nice for LR (26”?) barrel and already come in a b&c stock.

Lots of options out there and unless you’re super particular about what you want, which you may not know until you try a few, any of the above will work and get you shooting, very well, and give you lots of upward room to learn. Keep an eye on EE and go for it when you find a good deal and you could be all ready to go with a really nice piece of kit for around the $2500 range. Leaves lots of room in your budget to actually get out and shoot or into reloading if that tickles your fancy (it won’t save you money, but what you do spend will be better tailored to YOUR rifle).
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Well thanks for the help! You pretty much confirmed what I was looking at anyway which is a Remington 700 PCR with a PST gen 2.
 
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