What is the best rifle I can get in the $1500 or less range

alex_m said:
Well this is the thing. I know I'm that uneducated person who wants more power than he needs. But I just want something big, reliable and customizable. And scope wise I am looking at something simple, cheap, to start with. The gun will be the focus until I truly understand more account guns. Then I will focus on scopes ect... Thank You for asking though.
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Buy something simple and learn to shoot it. Learn about cartridges and calibers and then decide what you want at that time. Nobody can interpret what it is you're looking for because you don't know yourself.

A Savage rifle/scope pkg in 30-06 or .308 or .270 will get you started. Learn to shoot first, everything else will fall into place after that.
 
Suggestion,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I suggest you buy my buddies Remington 700P custom .308 win.
He want $1500 and its a fantastic rifle. You,ll need a scope for it though.

Custom Barrell, stock, action and trigger,,,,, PM me if your interested I'll get you pics.
or
Check out the Equipment Exchange on this site.

M.
 
alex_m said:
Well this is the thing. I know I'm that uneducated person who wants more power than he needs. But I just want something big, reliable and customizable. And scope wise I am looking at something simple, cheap, to start with. The gun will be the focus until I truly understand more account guns. Then I will focus on scopes ect... Thank You for asking though.
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So you want to buy a gun in some outrageously powerful caliber and put an el-cheapo scope on it? Sounds like a good plan if all you want is to make loud noises. If you're actually interested in hitting the targets, you should reconsider your approach.
 
novice

hey guys I think we are dealing with a real honest novice and I recommend he goes to a gun club and pics a few brains before he lays out 1500 shekels for a big gun man I remember when I first jumped in I would have bought 3 guns for 1500 bucks so take your time ask questions gunnutz will answer them then spend your money wisely . slipp:sniper:
 
One good option you have Alex M, is purchasing a Remington/whatever target rifle, and using good iron match sites, like Paramount or Redfield match sights, until you garner some experience. Alot cheaper start in my opinion.
And you will not comprimize yourself with inferior optics.

Then you could spread out your purchases, and make informed decisions after shooting a few fullbore rifle matches, in the future.

Then if you decide it's not your 'thing,' it would be easy to sell/trade the rifle, for something more to your liking.
 
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my two cents...as regards the scope, it is not possible(within reason)to spend to much money on a good scope. remember this...there are a lot of things that you can do to your rifle to make it shoot better, there is nothing you can do to your scope, it is what it is. most rifles i have encountered shoot better than the people holding them...but i have looked through some seriously CRAPPY scopes. there should never be any doubt in your mind, that the reason you missed whatever it is you were shooting at, was you. i spend enough money on my kit, that i can never blame IT for a missed shot.

as per,

i.
 
i apologize...i adressed an issue that is important to me without answering the question at hand.
so...any heavy barreled .308 should do.
Rem 700, Savage, Tikka...with a good scope : )

good luck and good shooting,

i.
 
Ivan Smythe said:
my two cents...as regards the scope, it is not possible(within reason)to spend to much money on a good scope. remember this...there are a lot of things that you can do to your rifle to make it shoot better, there is nothing you can do to your scope, it is what it is. most rifles i have encountered shoot better than the people holding them...but i have looked through some seriously CRAPPY scopes. there should never be any doubt in your mind, that the reason you missed whatever it is you were shooting at, was you. i spend enough money on my kit, that i can never blame IT for a missed shot.

as per,

i.
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+1

I'm running the following for my first long range build (not a novice though)
Rem 700 R5 Mil Spec .308 ($1300) (In stock at Accuracy Plus in Peterborough for $1000)
AI 1.5 Stock ($900)
Badger Base and Rings ($400)
Bushnell Elite 6500 ($800)
Badger Bolt Knob ($50)
Harris Bipod ($80)

The bare minimum I would recommend is $2000 - $2500 for a rifle, base & rings, and scope. Also there is a huge difference in recoil between .17 HMR and center fire. If you want to feel bone crushing recoil that will make you flinch with every shot buy a 700P in .300 Rem Ultra Mag, Wolverine Supplies has one in stock. If you want an real custom tack driver call Rick at Alberta Tactical or VBull and they will set you up, but you will be looking at alot more than $2500

Just my two cents, good luck
 
One more thing you might want to do before making a purchase.
If you live in the Toronto area, check the ORA web site at:
http://www.ontariorifleassociation.org/

They occasionally have "entry day" shoots for new shooters. It would be an excellent way for you to meet and talk to some of the most experienced and knowledgeable people around.

Also, it would be a good idea for you to try to fire a few rounds in whatever calibre you are thinking of before making a decision. If you were to fire 10 rounds in 223 and 10 in 308, that might help you make a decision.

APG
 
Savage...get one of the ones with a decent stock..i've got a model 10FP..with Falcon Menace scope..total package $1200..and i just shot a 1" 10 shot group the other day...they are sweet out of the box..but people make an excellent point about rem 700..i've got a 700 Police as well..aftermarket support is huge for them..and if you can get your hands on the old style trigger you can adjust them to an amazing pull..take no time. it's either Savage or Rem 700.
 
My current .308 bolt rifle is the Remington 5R milspec. Available for $1000, was $1130 after taxes and shipping.

I have a Zeiss Conquest 6.5-20x 50mm with the Rapid Z 1000 yard reticle.
Leopold rings and bases. $1000 for the scope, and $150 for rings and bases.

It's a very nice set up. My first and so far only 5 round group was .349 of an inch at 100 yards with Federal Match 168 ammo.

While milleage will vary. I'm very happy with this rifle. Plus I prefer the looks over a straight black bolt action rifle ;)
 
A Savage 10FP or Remington 700 SPS tactical in 308 or 300WM should run you around $600 or so. Add a Bushnell 4200 tactical for around $700, factor in bases, rings, taxes and shipping and you've got your $1500 rig.
 
alex_m said:
Remington 700 is great but I want something with a bit more power. Any suggestions.
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I would consider a Remington M700 SPS in a magnum (my choice would be 300 RUM for primarily the bolt face that is the same as for the WSM). The 300 RUM is a good choice because it can be downloaded to 30-06 levels or by purchasing Remingtons "Power Level 1" ammo, then upgrading to Power Level 2 (300 win mag-ish) and finally to Power Level 3 (full-on 300 RUM) (In that order, or vice versa, not sure exactly). All in scope easily $ 1500.

When you are ready to start customizing this rifle, I would suggest rebarelling to a 7 WSM (my choice) or 300 WSM. IMO, Short Action WSM's limit the true ballistic potential of the excellent WSM cartridges by requiring heavy bullets to be seated deep into the case thereby reducing powder capacity. With a WSM in a long action and proper chambering, the full potential of the WSM can be realized, whereby long heavy bullets with high BC can be be seated out into the magazine with full case capacity available for more powder (= velocity). This is a super large range shooting rig, and I do not think it gets much better for long range hunting.
 
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alex_m said:
Remington 700 is great but I want something with a bit more power. Any suggestions.
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Is this your first rifle? if so a .308 is an excellent place to start....300 win mag is expensive for starters..and the recoil isn't the sweetest, the worst thing you can do is develop a flinch because you went too big off the hop...a .308 will get you to 1000 yards and if you get into reloading is actually very cheap..something to think about.
 
Epp's is listing a 24" heavy barrel Savage 10FP 'LE' in .308 for $689.24. Oddly the same rifle in .223 runs $698.24. Likely more demand for varmint calibre rifles this time of year.
They're listing a Rem 700 'Police' with a 26" heavy barrel in .308 for $1005.90. It's a bit more gussied up. Don't think it's $400 bucks worth of gussying though. A Remington 700 SPS in .223 runs $581.25. Same rifle with a lighter barrel and a different finish.


A Savage 10FP or Remington 700 SPS tactical in 308 or 300WM should run you around $600 or so. Add a Bushnell 4200 tactical for around $700, factor in bases, rings, taxes and shipping and you've got your $1500 rig.



+1 Exactly what I was thinking!!!



Jocelyn.
 
If you buy a "powerful" rifle and put a cheapo scope on it, get ready to start hitting anything but your intended target. I have tried to do that when I started shooting (my first 3 rifle calibers were 30-06, .338 win magnum, then .300 win mag) I used a total of 4 cheap bushnell/tasco scopes and the minimum that would happen was the point of impact would change after each shot. The cheap scopes just cant tolerate recoil from any moderately powered rifle. On the .338 magnum, I broke 2 scopes with 8 shots. So I spent a total of $450 dollars on cheap scopes and still had to go out and buy good scopes for them. So , in the end you will spend TONS more, and still have to buy the good scopes. You should look for a used leupold or bushness elite 4200 on the exchange. The leupolds have a lifetime warranty, so if you buy one that is less than satisfactory , you can just send it back to the factory and they will fix it like new or replace it.
The cheapo scopes are (in my opinion ) only meant for guns with the recoil ceiling of a .223 or .243 and even then, the optical clarity of the glass is low and your shooting will be affected. I would split your money in half, get a decent remington or savage and get either a new Bushnell elite 4200 or a used leupold.
 
Maybe you should concentrate on getting your PAL , then getting a little .22 caliber and actually try shooting. Sounds like you are wanting to win the war without actually digging a trench. We know you are excited and all, but this is a lifelong race but you haven't even tied up your shoelaces.
How about instead of doing it all, just do something. Get your PAL and slowly work up from there.
 
my advice

Remington 700 SPS varmit in .308, $699... Luepold Rifleman 4-12x40mm Scope $350, Talley rings and bases $80, Harris Bench Rest Bipod $100, Cheap Hard Gun Case (Canadian Tire) $20, 5 boxes of Good .308 $120.

Total Spent $1369 + 5% GST + 7% PST = $1533.28 Total

All of the above prices are normal retail, even in this town so you should be able to get a package price from a dealer for all items if bought in one store... you could probably knock off at least $75 for a package deal.

If you wanted to spendmoremoney well then the Milspec 5R remington 700 is also another xcellent option.
 
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