Newbie to the precision shooting sports

killswithkimber

killswithkimber

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Recently I have been tossing the idea around to start doing some long range precision shooting . I was just curious what you guys would recomend for a platform to start with . I had my eye on a tikka T3 tactical or varmint, but after pricing one out I knew that one wasn't going to do. Recently I had my hands on a Remington SPS varmint in 308 win,I liked the gun and it was more in my price range ,plus it left a little extra cash in my hands for some goodies for it(timmney trigger and paint). I want to try and stay under a $1200 budget and I want a caliber that is relativly efficient and capable to do in the odd coyote out to 700-800 yards.


Anyone have another good option? Caliber?What about a 260 rem is that to weak out that far?
 
paint won't help it shoot better, spend your money on stuff that will.
Decent bi pod, good trigger, decent scope/ rings, Heavy barrell for prolonged shooting sessions, etc.
.308 is a decent start.
I shoot a 6 br and wouldn't trade it for another caliber, I love it.

M.
 
Forget the Timmney trigger, get the stock Remington trigger tuned for about $50. Paint won't make the rifle shoot any better, but a bedding job will. A .308 Win will work just fine on paper target out to 1000 yards as will the .260 Rem.
 
maynard said:
Forget the Timmney trigger, get the stock Remington trigger tuned for about $50. Paint won't make the rifle shoot any better, but a bedding job will. A .308 Win will work just fine on paper target out to 1000 yards as will the .260 Rem.
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come on, there are secrets to painting...Now if you Moly your whole rifle....sleeeek :D better aerodinamics when the wind hits and etc

Buy .308 first, then but other calibers cause you will soon realize that you NEED one of each :dancingbanana:
 
Out of your choices for precision shooting sports, the Tikka is the most likely to give you the best accuracy. Precision shooting is all about accuracy, nobody cares what they look like. Magazines are not used except in Tactical/sniper type shoots, but in F-Class and TR they are not used.

For precision shooting sports, I would highly recommend the Savage F-Class rifles (If you reload, go for the 6BR). If you do not reload, Savage makes a rifle called the 12 FT/R that will easily accept good factory ammo and deliver competition-worthy results. Their new Palma rifle is excellent, and can be used in a number of disciplines, although I see they are a bit more money.

If you would like to know more about competitive shooting in BC, drop me an email! riflebarrels@telus.net

Ian Hames

F-Class Director
BC Rifle Association
 
Popping the odd coyote at 800yds is your limiting factor. First, most factory rifles will not have the level of accuracy you want. Then most small cartridges, we prefer to shoot, don't have the horsepower.

Hit it? - YES. Hammering it hard enough to make an ethical kill out that far? I would lean towards a larger 6.5, 7mm. 260Rem, 6.5 Swede, 7RM as best factory options.

Odds are you will get very tired of plinking with such a cannon though.

Now take hunting OUT of the mix and I would suggest a 223 Savage HB in whatever stock/format floats your boat. Properly bedded and loaded with some 75gr Amax or Bergers, you will have no issue plinking well beyond 1000yds with decent accuracy.

You first have to learn alot about shooting and condition doping. The 223 is likely the best teacher as it is not as forgiving as the high BC fast options. Ballistics are near identical to the 308.

Plus you can afford to shoot it and it will not burn out a barrel in the first season of shooting.

There are plenty of posts on the subject in this forum. You can also visit www.longrangehunting.com if you want to learn about LR hunting. I have several articles there on rifle build, scope setup and load development.

I prefer the Savage over the Rem because of the ease of swapping barrels. Superb accuracy for the investment made.

Jerry
 
I learned on a 223. 308 is great too, but expensive to learn on. The point is to get out and shoot more. I took Jerry's advice a few years ago and did a 223 on a savage action and a pre-threaded savage match barrel and it is the way to go. The factory Savages are good too, there are a lot more options now then there was even 5 years ago.

And paint your gun whatever you want, its your gun. I like tactical colors on my rifles too. OD and tan and such. Find someone locally that applies KG GunCoat, the stuff is torture proof and looks great.

BTW, there is nothing unethical about shooting a coyote out to 700-800 meters, its a coyote. Realistically, you will be lucky to hit one cold bore at 500. They are small. Depends how much you blow on your optics I guess.

Last thing. The stock Remington or stock Savage Accutriggers are as good as the Timney triggers after they are tuned up. If you want an after market trigger, look at either the rifle-basix or the shielen. Personally I would recommend tuning up the stock triggers and use them till you shoot good enough that you find your trigger is your bottleneck.
 
If you are going to pay for an aftermarket trigger then I would go for the Jewell HVR. With an easy spring change it can be as light as 2oz or as heavy as you want up to 3.5lbs. Crisp as they come and as well built as they come. You would never want to give it up once you shoot with one.
 
MagnumPeanut said:
BTW, there is nothing unethical about shooting a coyote out to 700-800 meters, its a coyote.
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Was not saying it wasn't. What I refered to was having enough oomph to get the job done properly. I may be able to hit a pooch that far with an 80gr Amax from a 223 but that level of energy I consider inadequate for the task.

The goal is making a decisive hit that will bring a quick end to the game.

Most small cals simply run out of steam that far out to provide adequate expansion/tissue damage.

243AI would be a nice min when pushing 105gr Amax or a light build 115gr Berger at desired speeds. But there is no hope of a factory rig with the right twist.

Bigger would be better.

Jerry
 
Like I said. The likelihood of making a 800 yard shot on a coyote is extremely slim. 223, 243, 308 doesn't matter. Coyotes are small and they are fast. Under 500 is more likely. Deer sized game is a different story.

But then guys shoot gophers past 500 yards, so what do I know.
 
See if you can get someone at your home range to let you try their rifle. I have a Savage 110F/T in ,308 and it is an amazing rifle considering it cost about $1000. You will probably want to spend a surprisingly large amount on your optics; be prepared for a sticker shock experience.
 
If your not afraid of a little recoil and you want something that shoots the balls off a fly git yourself a 300 win mag. you can load it for all kinds of senarios with a plethera of bullet choices. If yer on a budjet git a Savage free floating barrel and purdy damn good accuracy for the money that'll leave you lots fer optics wich is what you need too.
 
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