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beginner long distance rifle suggestions

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Scotia902

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I'm looking to do more long range shooting. I only own a 10/22 rifle currently but want to get into shooting out as far as 300 yards. I'm a harvard member so that is my max distance for now. and I need a high powered rifle to qualify for the 200 and 300 yard range there not a 22.

I'm looking for something that is accurate and inexpensive to shoot so I can get a lot of practice and build my skills before getting in to larger calibers.

I've looked at the savage Axis II and the Ruger american as well at the Remington 783 and they all seem to be accurate value rifles.

any other suggestions ?

will a 223 which is cheap and plentiful work well ? or should I be looking at a 2-250 which is more expensive but has more punch ?
 
I started with a Remington 700 SPS Tactical in .223 with a used 10x42 SWFA scope and Black Hills refurbished match ammo. Even got a $50 Remington rebate when I bought the rifle from Buds, so this was a great value.

Off a bipod I could hit the small steel at HSCs 300 yard range without challenge. It was a great “starter” for me.

I’ve since moved on to other rifles/calibers but genuinely miss this one. A soft shooter with the heavy 20” barrel, this rifle provided an easy transition from .22lr.
 
PilotRPI said:
Go 223/556 out to 500 or 600 yards.
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Same interest as the OP.

Any reason a regular AR with a compensated scope can't do this? I was looking at the Nikon 3x9 with compensation on the reticle. Would this be good to 300 yds?
 
A regular AR may not have accuracy u want. Add a better than mil spec barrel and improved trigger and u will be there. But if you Only have a 22 a heavy barrel bolt gun in 233 a great starter A lot of cheap 223 ammo is not accurate. Some is surprisingly good. Try before u buy a bunch of something.

22-250 is a great caliber but not for range work. Costs more, and will quickly burn out barrels to point of decreased accuracy. Mine is mainly saved for varmint hunting.
 
bostonnerd said:
Go to cabellas and pick up a savage 12fv in 223. Wait for the rebate they can get under 300$. Don’t bother with a 22-250 the ammo cost is double and 223 is a perfect cost/accuracy round out to 300.
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22-250 is pretty pricey. Almost 308 territory. 223 as others have said. Maybe a bolt AR. Then you could go Grendel or others.
 
I went with the Rem 700 I shopped around and found a lefty varmint heavy in .308 for $599

I started out thinking 300 yards was long range, but I quicky got used to the gun and the distance, and at 300 yards was getting 1/2 groups consistently. You will too. Then you make friends that are members at 600 or 1000 yard ranges, and the fun truly begins.

Here are the things I did right....

1. .308 was absolutely the right caliber. It is cheap, and can generally do anything a more expensive caliber can (ie: 1,000 yards). When I’m ready I can reload, but until then, Federal Gold Medal 175gr are $1.00 a round. And absolutely perfect with my 26 inch barrel.

2. You can upgrade over time. With what you think you need. For me trigger was first. Stock is next (although I’m having trouble finding a good lefty stock). Then maybe send my bolt out for a knob job (no, not that kind). This is a rifle that can grow with you, and you will never need to sell.

3. Plenty of $$ left over for glass. I spent more on my vortex viper 3-15x44 than I did on the gun. It was the right call. 600 yards is a long ways away. The glass is of equal importance.

4. Learning trigger control will improve your accuracy more than any $500-$600 equipment upgrade.


Here are the things I did wrong:

1. I got a Second Focal Plane scope. I think FFP would have been easier to learn with.

2. I did not REALLY learn how to use all the bells and whistles of my scope until recently. Finding a good mentor, class or you-tube is a good way to learn this quickly.

3. I started with PPU surplus 7.51. Huge difference between milsurp and match in terms of consistency. Go with the match, you’ll save money in the long run

Good luck to you!
 
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I'm also a lefty but have never shot a left handed rifle.

I do things primarily as a righty except for shooting.

The options for Lefty's do seem to be limited.

what are the disadvantages of shooting a right handed bolt-action rifle as a lefty ?

I am looking at the remington 700, still torn on caliber and whether I want a 308 or to stick with my original idea of getting a 223 and being able to shoot it more for less and have more trigger time.
 
I’m ambidextrous and I shoot offhand right handed and bench/bipod left handed.

Offhand left handed with a right hand gun just sucks and is uncomfortable working a bolt. If I were to ever hunt I would use a lever action for sure.


Prone/bipod/bench you don’t lose a whole lot. You adapt quickly. I bought my first lefty gun and it hated it.


I cannot stress enough learn on a BOLT action 223. Semi auto you will go too fast and heat up your barrel. 223 you will learn wind a lot better.

When you get decent you will have learned enough to select a larger caliber
 
Scotia902 said:
I'm also a lefty but have never shot a left handed rifle.

I do things primarily as a righty except for shooting.

The options for Lefty's do seem to be limited.

what are the disadvantages of shooting a right handed bolt-action rifle as a lefty ?

I am looking at the remington 700, still torn on caliber and whether I want a 308 or to stick with my original idea of getting a 223 and being able to shoot it more for less and have more trigger time.
Click to expand...



I would be happy to meet you at Harvard and let you try my LH 700.

Savage and Tikka both offer a full range of LH options.
 
SMS65 said:
I would be happy to meet you at Harvard and let you try my LH 700.

Savage and Tikka both offer a full range of LH options.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the offer.. my schedule over the next few weeks is horrible but I ill pm you and see if we cna work something out.
 
Scotia902 said:
I'm also a lefty but have never shot a left handed rifle.

I do things primarily as a righty except for shooting.

The options for Lefty's do seem to be limited.

what are the disadvantages of shooting a right handed bolt-action rifle as a lefty ?

I am looking at the remington 700, still torn on caliber and whether I want a 308 or to stick with my original idea of getting a 223 and being able to shoot it more for less and have more trigger time.
Click to expand...
A right handed bolt rifle shooting lefty prone or from a bench is easy. You cycle the bolt with your right hand.
Im a lefty 100% and dont own any LH guns. I had a left hand 870 but sold it.
 
northny said:
A regular AR may not have accuracy u want. Add a better than mil spec barrel and improved trigger and u will be there.
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Doubt.

A regular AR will out shoot most of the people commenting in this thread, especially at 300 yards, even with reasonably cheap ammo.


boatman said:
Same interest as the OP.

Any reason a regular AR with a compensated scope can't do this? I was looking at the Nikon 3x9 with compensation on the reticle.
Click to expand...

Absolutely not. I was shooting my 16" hammer forged BCM, by no means a match barrel, at steel at 650 yards on Friday off an ammo can for a rest with boring repeatability. It only has a 1-4x with bullet drop reticle, run of the mill milspec trigger, and I was shooting m193.
 
edmorseiii said:
Doubt.

A regular AR will out shoot most of the people commenting in this thread, especially at 300 yards, even with reasonably cheap ammo.




Absolutely not. I was shooting my 16" hammer forged BCM, by no means a match barrel, at steel at 650 yards on Friday off an ammo can for a rest with boring repeatability. It only has a 1-4x with bullet drop reticle, run of the mill milspec trigger, and I was shooting m193.
Click to expand...

You might be able to do that with boring repetition, but keep in mind the OP is new to this.

OP, a varmint or tactical Rem 700 in .223 will do the trick. Get a decent scope- Leupold or Vortex in your price range, first focal plane if you can afford it. 300 yards is not particularly difficult once you get used to it. Best deal in match ammo IMHO is Sig .223 77 grain Match. I use that or Norma Match (more expensive) if I don't have time to reload.
 
Mountain said:
You might be able to do that with boring repetition, but keep in mind the OP is new to this.
Click to expand...

I know, I was responding to the 2 comments made by other folks. My point is that anyone can take the AR15 they already have, put a scope on it, and have a rifle more then capable of making hits out to 600 yards. It would to be a total roach of a rifle if not.
 
edmorseiii said:
Doubt.

A regular AR will out shoot most of the people commenting in this thread, especially at 300 yards, even with reasonably cheap ammo.

Absolutely not. I was shooting my 16" hammer forged BCM, by no means a match barrel, at steel at 650 yards on Friday off an ammo can for a rest with boring repeatability. It only has a 1-4x with bullet drop reticle, run of the mill milspec trigger, and I was shooting m193.
Click to expand...

Good for you. Seriously. You must have good trigger control and good technique.

But I stay with my original statement.

northny said:
A regular AR may not have accuracy u want. Add a better than mil spec barrel and improved trigger and u will be there. But if you Only have a 22 a heavy barrel bolt gun in 233 a great starter A lot of cheap 223 ammo is not accurate. Some is surprisingly good. Try before u buy a bunch of something.
Click to expand...

A rack grade AR is not what I would recommend. Anything can hit 4 moa steel at 300 yards. I was doing it today with a muzzle loader before I head to camp for ML season opener Saturday.

I can hold about 6” group at 300 with my rack grade AR but it takes a lot of focus on trigger control. I would not expect newer shooter to do this. They may not even hold it to 12 inch.

It is easier to hold closer to 3” group with my Appleseed AR with better trigger ( still DCM greater than 4#) with wylde chamber in green mountain barrel. Newer shooters (and some experienced ones) do better with this rifle.

So that was the basis for my statement. I didn’t say a regular AR can’t do it, I said it may not have accuracy he wanted.

Going back to OP, I still think heavy barrel bolt gun in .223 is a good low cost solution especially with cost of AR in MA. Less recoil than .308 or even 6.5 cm
 
I like the stock that came with my 700 LTR lefty. The trigger sucked so put on a Timney which I love. If you want to shoot on a budget and aren’t going past 600 yards anytime soon, go Savage and 223. Decent stock triggers and the stocks shouldn’t flex, so that can save you some money if you find the stocks comfortable.

The cost of 308 isn’t really a big deal with a bolt gun. I’m shooting slowly, so a buck a round often ends up being less than the rate I shoot my 9mm at $.20 a round.
 
I did not realize there were so many lefties around. I don’t want to hijack the thread, so PM me if you have any reccomendations for a Rem 700 LH Stock. Thanks.
 
northny said:
So that was the basis for my statement. I didn’t say a regular AR can’t do it, I said it may not have accuracy he wanted.
Click to expand...

Unless I missed it, his stated accuracy goal as of right now is qualifying to shoot on the 300 yard range at Harvard. Admittedly, I have never done it, but I highly doubt that will require a match rifle to do so.
 
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.223 or .308. ruger american ranch with 16" barrel and runs AR mags is a good choice. i'm also a fan of the savage model 10, not as much fan of the savage axis but they're fine too. any of the tikka models are nice too. pay attention to the magazine system make sure you like it and mags are available. i would spend more $$ on your optic than the rifle. good luck.
 
At what distance does barrel length begin to matter for accuracy ? the savage axis is 22 I think and a remington 700 is 26 in some models.
 
Scotia902 said:
At what distance does barrel length begin to matter for accuracy ? the savage axis is 22 I think and a remington 700 is 26 in some models.
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For what cartridge? Barrel length effects velocity, not necessarily accuracy.

In the context of this conversation, where long distance is only 300 yards, I wouldn't worry about barrel length in buying your rifle. I personally like short rifles, like shorter then 20" barrels.
 
My buddy is big into long range shooting. He says a lot of people shoot the matches with short barreled guns that fit in a suitcase, around 16”. That is probably with 308, 6.5, and 270 rem type cartridges, but 223 is a fast round, so 16 or up is probably fine.
 
Does Harvard have any rules on minimum caliber for the 300yd range? I'm a member there, but have not tried to qualify or the 300yd.
 

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