Help on Long range rifle

[Deuce16]

I am wanting a long range rifle, and not real sure which way to go. I want the best bang for my money and want to stay under $1000. Caliber choices I have narrowed it to, 7MM-08, 260 Rem, and 264 Win Mag. Really on the fence on caliber, I will be reloading.

Rifle: Remington, Ruger, Tikka, Howa, Winchester, Weatherby.....???

Ive even thought about buying a lower end rifle, and replacing the barrell and stock. Basically just using the action. Then I seen where you could just buy barrelled actions.... Choices choces!

Anyone been down this road?

[whitetailtrail]

$1000 for just the rifle right? No glass

[Black Ice]

Help on Long range rifle

I would go .264 win for caliber out of those choices. Gun I would say model 700 for continuing the build in the future as funds allows. If your just wanting a stock rifle in .264 to shoot somewhat long range then the winchester, tikka, and Remington would be my top 3. Not real sure which of those rifles come in .264 so that may narrow the brand of rifle also.

[Deuce16]

Yeah, under $1000 for the rifle. I guess I should contact a gunsmith and talk about how much work can be done on a stock gun to make more accurate. Are all 700 actions the same, no matter SPS, BDL, etc.?

[SCREAMINREELS]

Yeah, under $1000 for the rifle. I guess I should contact a gunsmith and talk about how much work can be done on a stock gun to make more accurate. Are all 700 actions the same, no matter SPS, BDL, etc.?

Older actions are better. Imo most of the 700s are smoother than the sps. (I own sps, great shooter but action needs to be cleaned up). The 5r is the smoothest action i felt out of the box that hadnt had any work done to it. Since your in buffalo I've had great luck with Tuttle gunsmithing right down the road from you and hes very reasonable.

[Deuce16]

So all 700s arent created equal? lol I even thought about rechambering if I couldnt find the caliber in the rifle I wanted. Been kicking this around for about 2 months now, and really havent gotten any closer to a project.

Tuttle? I googles him and says Lockhart... must be a different road, LOL

[Black Ice]

Help on Long range rifle

So all 700s arent created equal? lol I even thought about rechambering if I couldnt find the caliber in the rifle I wanted. Been kicking this around for about 2 months now, and really havent gotten any closer to a project.

I'm not up to date on the rifles made in the .264 win mag. The .264's I've seen in the 700 are nicer cdl type rifles ranging from $800 to $1,100. You could buy a $379.00 SPS and have it re-chambered in .264. Also, all 700's are not created equal. The 700 sps is light years behind for and finish of a CDL stainless fluted. Now as far as accuracy out of the box my SPS shoots just as good as my LSS 700, ones a 22/250 and the other is a .300 win.

[txfireguy2003]

Two common options here:
Buy a Remington 700adl long action, then take it to a gunsmith and tell him what you want. Or...buy a Savage 110, and a few tools, then buy the parts you want to use, and swap them out yourself, saving the gunsmith fees. For me, if I were building a custom long range gun, I would want to do it myself, as I'm a DIY kinda guy, but I would defer to a gunsmith because Savages, although accurate, are ugly IMO. If I'm spending a grand on a rifle, i want it to look good. Some of the imported actions, like Howa, are hard to build off of because they use metric barrel threads and many gunsmiths don't work with metric threads. I'd stick with s trued Remington action, but you're going to be pushing if not totally busting your 1000 dollar budget. I looked into this a while ago, and the only way i could do it under a grand was to start with a Savage action, and I wasn't willing to spend that kind of cash on an ugly gun. The other option is to go with a stock rifle, but you may have a hard time finding one that meets your accuracy standards, much less one with a rifling twist rate suitable for heavy, high bc bullets. You're also about to hear from the"custom action" crowd, there going to tell you to buy a Predator action (which is basically an upgraded 700 built to tighter tolerances from the get go) and you'll have a better action to work with for about the same price as a trued 700. They are right, but again, your 1k budget is going to pretty much pay for the action and nothing else. Good luck sir, and show us what you come up with.

[Deuce16]

Yes, thats what I have been thinking about as long as the SPS actions are good. $300 for a barrell and $200 for a stock, and seems like Id have what I been looking for.... But sure looking for some feedback from the GS from others that been down this road.

[Black Ice]

Two common options here:
Buy a Remington 700adl long action, then take it to a gunsmith and tell him what you want. Or...buy a Savage 110, and a few tools, then buy the parts you want to use, and swap them out yourself, saving the gunsmith fees. For me, if I were building a custom long range gun, I would want to do it myself, as I'm a DIY kinda guy, but I would defer to a gunsmith because Savages, although accurate, are ugly IMO. If I'm spending a grand on a rifle, i want it to look good. Some of the imported actions, like Howa, are hard to build off of because they use metric barrel threads and many gunsmiths don't work with metric threads. I'd stick with s trued Remington action, but you're going to be pushing if not totally busting your 1000 dollar budget. I looked into this a while ago, and the only way i could do it under a grand was to start with a Savage action, and I wasn't willing to spend that kind of cash on an ugly gun. The other option is to go with a stock rifle, but you may have a hard time finding one that meets your accuracy standards, much less one with a rifling twist rate suitable for heavy, high bc bullets. You're also about to hear from the"custom action" crowd, there going to tell you to buy a Predator action (which is basically an upgraded 700 built to tighter tolerances from the get go) and you'll have a better action to work with for about the same price as a trued 700. They are right, but again, your 1k budget is going to pretty much pay for the action and nothing else. Good luck sir, and show us what you come up with.

I've got a 110 in .270 that shoots a tree shot group I can cover with a nickel or dime, and that's with a $50 Simmons scope on it.

[Mike D]

So all 700s arent created equal? lol I even thought about rechambering if I couldnt find the caliber in the rifle I wanted. Been kicking this around for about 2 months now, and really havent gotten any closer to a project.

Tuttle? I googles him and says Lockhart... must be a different road, LOL

Unless the action goes through the Remington custom shop, all of the 700 receivers are the same.

Of your calibers listed my choice would be between the 260 Rem and 264 Win Mag.

To see the best potential out of either, factory ammo choices are limited for true long range work.

$1000 is going to be rough to achieve if a rebarrel is required in addition to a quality stock.

My last build has $1500 tied up in the barreled action alone with a Bartlein barrel and Rem 700 stainless action that is trued and lugs lapped.

[Greywolf in Hawaii]

I recently found some 150 gr 264 Win Mag bullets and am in the process of making up those rounds. 129s for deer , 160s for elk and moose, 150s for sheep and mule deer.
Perfect all around rifle. Mine is point blank at 420 yards with the 129s. 375 with the 140s
So basically, if I can see it, just put the cross hairs on the point of the shoulder and drop it in it's tracks !!

[Deuce16]

I like DIY projects also, but I am not set up to work on rifles. I would have to get vise and whatever else I would need for the build.
Thanks for all the comments so far, it has helped. My main concern is action and barrel for the desired projectile. Thats why I am considering the build option, cause them i get the caliber and twist rate I need.

[Capt.Bryan]

What are you wanting this rifle for? Target shooting, hunting from a blind, spot and stalk in the mountain? Going to be hard to get under 1000.00 on a barrel, stock and gunsmith unless you have a 700 doaner rifle already. You tube savage barrel swap and watch how easy it is. Also you may want to look into the savage model 12 long range precision. They don't offer 264 win mag but they do offer them in .260, 6.5 creed more, and 6.5x284. They have them listed at able ammo in Huntsville for 1049.00. You may be able to find one cheaper at buds guns. If you can find a savage or Stevens doaner rifle look up eabco.com. they offer the barrels and charge 30.00 to change and head space. They also have several stocks for under 200.00.

[Slick8]

If you're looking for a factory rifle under 1K here's my opinion.

Rem 5R mil spec and none others from Remington.
Savage mod 10 in a varmint barrel such as the predator or any of the mod 12 target rifles. The mod 12 LRP comes in at $950.
Tikka varmint, tactical or target model.

The remington is going to offer the most in aftermarket parts and any smith will work on it.

IMO the Savage produces better accuracy in a factory rifle. Some don't like its appearance and it's a bit heavier.