I always wanted to try benchrest shooting and think now is the time to start. My main question is what rifle to buy, any recommendations? I would like to pick something in .308 and stay under $1,000 (not including optics). I appreciate the help.
What Rifle to buy for Benchrest shooting
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It depends on wether you want to shoot short or long range BR. Either way if you want to win it will not be with a .308 Win... You can't get a BR rifle w/ optics for under 1K! here is a rifle for close to that http://benchrest.com/class/index.php?a=2&b=648
If you want a factory gun in .308 Win the Savage F-Class would be the way to go. It does not meet 100-200 BR rules though. It does meet 600 and 1K rules. But the .308m would not be the caliber I would choose. 6mmBR or the 6.5-284! If 600 was going to be my range of choice the 6mmBR would be the best choice.
If you want a factory gun in .308 Win the Savage F-Class would be the way to go. It does not meet 100-200 BR rules though. It does meet 600 and 1K rules. But the .308m would not be the caliber I would choose. 6mmBR or the 6.5-284! If 600 was going to be my range of choice the 6mmBR would be the best choice.
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My 2 cents....
I certainly don't know what to recommend...but I do know that 1K won't get it....not even close....that might cover your optics...but probably not...
I'd recommend buying a Rem 700 action...putting it away for a rainy day.....you and your gunsmith are gonna be good buddies...and He's gonna be richer for it...but you'll have a lot of fun
then go watch a few matches...see what its all about...save some funds and then go for it when you are ready....that's kinda what I'm doing...I need to get my fat butt down to the next F-class match July 24 and see what's up
Savage makes some very nice rifles but they are all gonna need some "tweaking"
The benchrest game is vastly different than F-class....
F-class sounds a lot more "laid-back" to me than benchrest...I'm not interested in adding to my stress level......
Good Luck with what you decide to do...
Think we got some folks on here that really know their stuff so I'd stay tuned...I'm trying to soak it all in myself
I have a 308 build "in process" but its goona be in F class F/TR which is 308 and 223 only...I gotta learn to shoot 600 yard targets before I can imagine what the BR folks do,its still hard for me to get my mind around it.....one step at a time
I certainly don't know what to recommend...but I do know that 1K won't get it....not even close....that might cover your optics...but probably not...
I'd recommend buying a Rem 700 action...putting it away for a rainy day.....you and your gunsmith are gonna be good buddies...and He's gonna be richer for it...but you'll have a lot of fun
then go watch a few matches...see what its all about...save some funds and then go for it when you are ready....that's kinda what I'm doing...I need to get my fat butt down to the next F-class match July 24 and see what's up
Savage makes some very nice rifles but they are all gonna need some "tweaking"
The benchrest game is vastly different than F-class....
F-class sounds a lot more "laid-back" to me than benchrest...I'm not interested in adding to my stress level......
Good Luck with what you decide to do...
Think we got some folks on here that really know their stuff so I'd stay tuned...I'm trying to soak it all in myself
I have a 308 build "in process" but its goona be in F class F/TR which is 308 and 223 only...I gotta learn to shoot 600 yard targets before I can imagine what the BR folks do,its still hard for me to get my mind around it.....one step at a time
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The other issue Geaux is...I don't think there are any BR matches in MS...think you gotta get your road trip shoes on if you wanna shoot those...TN, La, AL
There's another thread on that was posted a few days ago
course none of that answers your question I guess...you could just buy a BR gun and go plink...aint nuttin wrong with that :thumbup:
that's pretty much what I'm gonna end up doing anyway....
Now I'll shut up....
for a few minutes :lol4:
There's another thread on that was posted a few days ago
course none of that answers your question I guess...you could just buy a BR gun and go plink...aint nuttin wrong with that :thumbup:
that's pretty much what I'm gonna end up doing anyway....
Now I'll shut up....
for a few minutes :lol4:
Thanks for the information. I may have used the term "benchrest" a little to loosely. While I would love to get into the competitive side of the sport eventually, I mainly want to compete against myself. I love to reload and would be very proud to cover three holes at 100 yards with a dime. I haven't been able to accomplish this with my M1A (most likely because of the guy pulling the trigger). The furthest range we have at my club is only 200 yards. The reason I've been leaning towards a .308 is simply because I currently reload the caliber and therefore have lots of supplies and some familiarity with it.
A local pawn shop has a Remington 700 SPS Tactical (heavy 20 inch barrel) .308 for sale. I believe I can get it for around $650 (is this gun worth considering). I thought that if I bought a 700 then I could trick it out as I got better. I've heard good things about the Savage and will certainly do some more research on it. In the end I want something that will drive tacs at 100 and 200 yards right out of the box with the right ammunition that can be upgraded as I go for around $1K. I have a Nikon Monarch Scope (4-16x50) that I plan on using.
Again, thanks for the help and please keep the opinions coming.
A local pawn shop has a Remington 700 SPS Tactical (heavy 20 inch barrel) .308 for sale. I believe I can get it for around $650 (is this gun worth considering). I thought that if I bought a 700 then I could trick it out as I got better. I've heard good things about the Savage and will certainly do some more research on it. In the end I want something that will drive tacs at 100 and 200 yards right out of the box with the right ammunition that can be upgraded as I go for around $1K. I have a Nikon Monarch Scope (4-16x50) that I plan on using.
Again, thanks for the help and please keep the opinions coming.
Here you go. http://benchrest.com/class/index.php?a=2&b=185 I am a Remington BAT Machine man but it is hard to beat one of these. The barrel has been cut back to 26" w/ a Brake installed.
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For what you are describing I'd jump on that SPS at $650...man there are many things a smith can do to improve it later on down the line.
A rechamber/rebarrel job aint all that much $ if you decided you wanted a different caliber later on...
a 20 inch barrel might be a tad short...but what do I know?...The US military is about to go to shorter barrels on their sniper rifles because of the need to use them in more of an urban setting..
Savage makes great actions and rifles as well...its a toss up...I'd take either
as far as scope..I'll assume you have side focus or parallax adj in that 4-16x50....I have several...they are fine at 100-200...but they just don't have enough internal adjustment in em to get you on at greater distances...They just aint made for it...
and soon you will desire greater magnification...say up to 22X...I'm not sure if beyond 22 buys you much in F Class
I was happy as can be... till I shot a NF 5.5 - 22 x 50
Of course it aint fair to compare a $1800 NF to a $400 Nikon hunting scope
Don't forget them rings and bases....20 MOA bases are in order at greater than normal hunting distance
I'm gonna give a Bushnell Tactical Elite 4200 6 - 24 x 50 a try ...I've shot a friends and I liked it...its a price performer
check em out at
http://www.libertyoptics.com/index1.html
I'll shut up now :lol3:
A rechamber/rebarrel job aint all that much $ if you decided you wanted a different caliber later on...
a 20 inch barrel might be a tad short...but what do I know?...The US military is about to go to shorter barrels on their sniper rifles because of the need to use them in more of an urban setting..
Savage makes great actions and rifles as well...its a toss up...I'd take either
as far as scope..I'll assume you have side focus or parallax adj in that 4-16x50....I have several...they are fine at 100-200...but they just don't have enough internal adjustment in em to get you on at greater distances...They just aint made for it...
and soon you will desire greater magnification...say up to 22X...I'm not sure if beyond 22 buys you much in F Class
I was happy as can be... till I shot a NF 5.5 - 22 x 50
Of course it aint fair to compare a $1800 NF to a $400 Nikon hunting scope
Don't forget them rings and bases....20 MOA bases are in order at greater than normal hunting distance
I'm gonna give a Bushnell Tactical Elite 4200 6 - 24 x 50 a try ...I've shot a friends and I liked it...its a price performer
check em out at
http://www.libertyoptics.com/index1.html
I'll shut up now :lol3:
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Or you can find beater 700's and Savages around and just "rescue" them...
I've bought em as low as 2 Benjamins...
but Oh the fun you can have picking out...
stocks,colors of paint for the stock, cheek pieces (adjustable/thumbwheel), butt plates, swivels (external vs recessed) magazine wells, floorplates, trigger guards, barrels, barrel length, twist rate, flutting and other designs for barrel, tweak 700 trigger vs buy a Jewel, Scope Bases (10 MOA, 20 MOA), rings....optics...optics is a course in science all by itself...MOA vs Mils...reticle choices...
you kinda see where this is going...try deciding on this stuff for 5 or 6 rifles at the same time
:crazy:
I've bought em as low as 2 Benjamins...
but Oh the fun you can have picking out...
stocks,colors of paint for the stock, cheek pieces (adjustable/thumbwheel), butt plates, swivels (external vs recessed) magazine wells, floorplates, trigger guards, barrels, barrel length, twist rate, flutting and other designs for barrel, tweak 700 trigger vs buy a Jewel, Scope Bases (10 MOA, 20 MOA), rings....optics...optics is a course in science all by itself...MOA vs Mils...reticle choices...
you kinda see where this is going...try deciding on this stuff for 5 or 6 rifles at the same time
:crazy:
In short range bench you are going to have to spend way more than that. If you want to compete with a 308 then you dont want to shoot benchrest you want to try F class.
A good competitive rig for 100-300 BR is going to cost alot and the 308 wont be competitive you will have to shoot a 6ppc preferably or some other 6mm. Yes other calibers are shot but the 6mm wins short BR hands down.
A good competitive rig for 100-300 BR is going to cost alot and the 308 wont be competitive you will have to shoot a 6ppc preferably or some other 6mm. Yes other calibers are shot but the 6mm wins short BR hands down.
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Stay within your budget. Get something, go shoot, get spanked and learn some stuff. You'll be o.k. Have fun and you can up-grade when you see what really works for you. I saw some interesting suggestions on 6mm benchrest's site a while back that might work for you. The Savages can be switch-barrel rifles if you want to play with different calibers. Talk to the folks at E. Arthur Brown (Eabco) for starters. Do I really need an $8,000.00 paper punch ? A .308 might win if you shoot against other .308s. Communicate with X-ring and go shoot an F-Class at Bogue Chitto. Good luck.
Great advice. Richard, you're right, I need to go to one of these competitions and participate. This is how I got into USPSA Practical shooting. Entered...got "spanked"...got hooked. In finding a gun to start out with all options are still open. One option I came across on the internet is the Remington "700SS 5R Milspec". According to the articles I found it is one of the most accurate .308 out of the box (see links below). Is anyone familiar with this gun? The cost is around $900 and appears to have everything a beginner would need. My thought is that the gun can be modified once I am no longer the limiting factor. Or, if I get into the sport and find that it's for me then I'll be willing to spend the money on a custom setup. Thoughts?
http://www.snipercountry.com/InReviews/Rem_M700_StainlessSpecial5RMilspec.asp
and
http://www.snipercentral.com/milspec5r.phtml
http://www.snipercountry.com/InReviews/Rem_M700_StainlessSpecial5RMilspec.asp
and
http://www.snipercentral.com/milspec5r.phtml
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