Long Range?

[Vitals]

This post may belong here, it may not. I'm starting to look into getting a new rifle for a variety of reasons. I currently have an old Ruger M77 .270 win that came off the factory floor sometime in the early 70s. It was my grandfathers rifle that was passed down to me and I have really enjoyed shooting it. However, being a short, thinned barrel rifle with a wood stock, it has had its share of lead down the pipe and wear to the stock.

My question is this, is it considered a "long range" rifle if I want a gun that I have confidence in out to 500 yds? And would it be possible to find a gun off the shelf with the right ammo/scope combination that could achieve those distances consistently? While I have an immense appreciation for the craftsmanship, fine tuning, and skill it takes to build a 1000 yd gun, it seems unnecessary for me.

Which caliber I want in either a Tikka T3 or Remington 700 are all things that have been rolling around in my mind. Any and all input would help a lot.....

 

[Beastmode]

Pretty hard to beat a 7 rem mag. If you reload and can practice 500 is very doable.

 

[Ryan Avery]

I agree a 7 RM would be hard to beat.

 

[Vitals]

What do you guys think about the Remington 700 Mountain SS? It seems like a really light gun with some things already done, but would It be cheaper or maybe better to get a stock 700 and have a gunsmith do what I want?

 

[Ryan Avery]

Vitals, I've been around three Tikka t3s. None of them needed any gunsmith work

 

[Beastmode]

What do you guys think about the Remington 700 Mountain SS? It seems like a really light gun with some things already done, but would It be cheaper or maybe better to get a stock 700 and have a gunsmith do what I want?

The only stock Remington puts on one of their guns that I somewhat like is the sendero. Other than that most of them don't fit my taste. I like the action though. Depending on how much you are willing to spend I would go the route of by a lower end 700 with a plastic injected stock and use the extra money for a nice stock, trigger job and possibly true the action. Put a good piece of glass on top and you should be looking good.

The trigger job is fairly easy to do with a little help from the internet. You should be able to bed the stock as well on your own. Pretty easy (just not currently) to find model 700 stocks. Good luck

 

[Vitals]

Yeah I have heard great things about Tikka t3s. I guess I fall into that feeling like many other guys when they hold the rifle of it seemingly like a toy. I just meant gunsmith work as in having some custom work done. Have you any experience with the 700 Mountain SS Ryan?

Beastmode, I like the way that sounds. However, cost is a major factor here. That's my interest in the Tikka. As far as weight goes, it comes in at about the same at the 700 Mountain SS at a significantly lower price. The Mountain stock feels good in my hands, but I'm not sure performance wise if all the uniqueness of the Mountain SS is worth almost twice the cost of the Tikka.

Vitals, I've been around three Tikka t3s. None of them needed any gunsmith work

 

[Beastmode]

If cost is a factor I wouldn't throw savage out. Their factory accustock and accutrigger are pretty hard to beat for the price. It doesn't have the Tikka toy feel which I can't stand either. The savage is a 500 yard gun.

 

[Ryan Avery]

Sorry, no experience with the SS. But I do have a few 700s. If your only going to 500 yards most guns will do. But Remington has fell off the Q/C wagon. If I buy a factory 700 I expect it will need work.

 

[Ryan Avery]

If cost is a factor I wouldn't throw savage out. Their factory accustock and accutrigger are pretty hard to beat for the price. It doesn't have the Tikka toy feel which I can't stand either. The savage is a 500 yard gun.

I totally agree! Watched a friends kids shoot .5 inch groups with two out of the box savages.

 

[Vitals]

Well- the 700 mtn ss doesn't come in any mag calibers. I was very interested in the 7mm and the 300. I have read SOME differing opinions on the two. 7mm seems to be the more common cal for long range, at least over the 300s. Not sure why?

 

[Justin Crossley]

I would go with a Tikka in 7mm mag also. I don't think it's even a fair comparison.

I have been working on loads for my brother's Rem 700 ti and it is very picky. His is a .260 Remington. To get it to group under 1 moa, I had to bed a pressure point at the end of the stock to help stiffen the barrel. The nice thing about it is that it only weighs 101.8 oz (6 lbs 5.8 oz) with the stock that it comes with.

This is a picture of it with a modified youth stock.

 

[Vitals]

Interesting. Yeah... the more I research, the more I lean toward the Tikka. Its the gun I had my eye on in the first place. I could put the money I save into nice glass for it. Does anyone know how the Tikka barrel does with a muzzle break? or possibly being fluted. Or would you not even want to lighten it up that much at the 7mm mag stage?

 

[Ryan Avery]

My son's 300wsm is a tack driver with a DE break.

 

[Vitals]

Great pictures. Any advantages of the 300 wsm over a 7rm?

 

[Ryan Avery]

Great pictures. Any advantages of the 300 wsm over a 7rm?

I would of bought either. Just got a really good deal on the 300 WSM. I don't think an Elk could tell the difference at 500 yards or even 800!

 

[ST52v]

Cabelas had an t3 ultralight. It was almost $900 with a camo stock and fluted ss barrel. It was pretty nice but my budget wouldn't allow it and they didn't have it in the 7 mag. They did have it in a 300 win mag.

 

[Vitals]

Hey not a bad deal for the fluted barrel. Not a fan of the camo however. Alrighty.....I'm settled on the Tikka. Now I need to sell my Mountain Bike hahah

 

[Jager]

Great pictures. Any advantages of the 300 wsm over a 7rm?

Yes, it is a 30cal.

As the others have said, a new 700 will likely need work to the action to shoot as good as the Tikka, are either up to 500 yards out of the box for hunting, you betcha.

Is your current .270 up the task, as long as it is relatively accurate, yes.

A B+C stock or HS Precision for a 700 is a good option, neither will need to have the 700 bedded either.

I wouldn't even consider putting a break on either calibre.

Purchase either or, they will do the job you want.

 

[Liljozie495]

I totally agree! Watched a friends kids shoot .5 inch groups with two out of the box savages.

This is no joke here, I bought my wife a few years back the savage model 111 with a scope out of the box ready to shoot in .270 caliber from cabelas for $400 ( she rarely had much time to hunt but wanted a better rifle then her first 243 single shot her grandad gave her) we first took it up to shoot first time no optics adjusting or anything with factory Remington ammo 130gr rounds... I punched 3 shots at a target i set up to shoot with my rifle on a bank at 350 yards its first shots out of the box and I could lay a golf ball over the group... I was overly amazed and I'm not screwing around and making things up either. I figured it would need to be adjusted some, I think sense she's had it we've maybe had to adjust the scope 2 times... Sat in the safe for a year took it out 2 weeks ago she laid down a quarter size group at 100 yds no problem... Ill never knock a savage out of the box rifle ever again, but maybe we got lucky with it... Figured from factory to cabelas in Lacey,wa it would have got shook up and needed a little scope work but... We haven't had a single problem with it yet (knock on wood) figured I would share that.