Ruger Precision Rifle In Magnum Calibers

ruger helped out the 10mm cartridge by putting out their 10mm 1911. my hope is they can do the same for 338 lapua magnum. prior to this RPR in 338, the only other affordable option was the savage 110 series. I'm glad to see now more "affordable" options for 338. it's going to help the cartridge grow in popularity and hopefully ammo prices can come down a bit.
 
I probably don't really "need" one , but I've been reading up as much as I can about the RPR in magnum calibers since they came out.

Given the choice between .300 Win Mag or .338 Lapua, which would be the better option?

From what I've read .338 shoots flatter with less drop over distance, but is expensive.

.300 Win Mag seems more "popular" - and I can find brass at decent prices from places like gibrass.com , if I wanted to start reloading my own.

Part of my logic here is that in the coming civil war - I might actually need a good sniping rifle (I'm only half kidding about this)
 
I probably don't really "need" one , but I've been reading up as much as I can about the RPR in magnum calibers since they came out.

Given the choice between .300 Win Mag or .338 Lapua, which would be the better option?

From what I've read .338 shoots flatter with less drop over distance, but is expensive.

.300 Win Mag seems more "popular" - and I can find brass at decent prices from places like gibrass.com , if I wanted to start reloading my own.

Part of my logic here is that in the coming civil war - I might actually need a good sniping rifle (I'm only half kidding about this)
Since I've got one in 6.5 for long range I'd go with the .338 for the extra long range but either is a good choice.
 
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If a shooter can't get it done with a .308 or 6.5 CM, more than likely theyll never be able to do it with a magnum caliber.

considering the RPR's burn out a 308 barrel in 1000 rounds, magnum calibers should work out great.

shoot 308, save your money for a quality rifle.
 
considering the RPR's burn out a 308 barrel in 1000 rounds, magnum calibers should work out great.

shoot 308, save your money for a quality rifle.
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A 308 that burns out a barrel in 1000 rounds? I don't think that is, at all, possible. What's it made out of? Aluminum? 3000 is probably a minimum, and 5000 is likely.
 
I probably don't really "need" one , but I've been reading up as much as I can about the RPR in magnum calibers since they came out.

Given the choice between .300 Win Mag or .338 Lapua, which would be the better option?

From what I've read .338 shoots flatter with less drop over distance, but is expensive.

.300 Win Mag seems more "popular" - and I can find brass at decent prices from places like gibrass.com , if I wanted to start reloading my own.

Part of my logic here is that in the coming civil war - I might actually need a good sniping rifle (I'm only half kidding about this)

338 is better than 300 Winmag, but only at very long distances. 300 Winmag is a better choice for most due to cost. 300 is 1/4 of the price of 338.

The new king of long range is 300 Norma Mag
 
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A 308 that burns out a barrel in 1000 rounds? I don't think that is, at all, possible. What's it made out of? Aluminum? 3000 is probably a minimum, and 5000 is likely.

Haha, i was being a little sarcastic, but i have heard the RPR barrels burn up really quick.
 
I probably don't really "need" one , but I've been reading up as much as I can about the RPR in magnum calibers since they came out.

Given the choice between .300 Win Mag or .338 Lapua, which would be the better option?

From what I've read .338 shoots flatter with less drop over distance, but is expensive.

.300 Win Mag seems more "popular" - and I can find brass at decent prices from places like gibrass.com , if I wanted to start reloading my own.

Part of my logic here is that in the coming civil war - I might actually need a good sniping rifle (I'm only half kidding about this)

As much as I lean towards 'Buwahaha bigger is better!', the 300 Win Mag is a much better choice for you if a future SHTF situation is even the smallest of considerations. There are a bazillion projectiles in 30 cal and many, many powders and loads that will be effective in the 300 WM. While neither cartridge is as ubiquitous as the .308 or .30-06, 300 WM is going to be easier to find than 338 LP. I think I've seen 300 WM ammo at Wallymart.

Here's a quote for you:

I used the .300 Win Mag for most of my kills. It’s an excellent all-around cartridge, whose performance allows for superb accuracy as well as stopping power. The .300 is a little heavier gun by design. It shoots like a laser. Anything from 1,000 yards and out, you’re just plain nailing it. And on closer targets, you don’t have to worry about too much correction for your come-ups. You can dial in your 500 yard dope and still hit a target from 100-700 yards without worrying too much about making minute adjustments

That’s a quote from Chris Kyle. If anyone knows about long range shooting, it’d be him.

I'd love to get a RPR 338 LP but I already have a rifle (State Arms 50 BMG) that I can't really enjoy to it's fullest potential. Some numbnuts at Granby used a 338 LP with fairly hot ammo and damaged expensive club plates, thus resulting in a club ban for 338 LP and 50 BMG. Though we might get some RSO monitored days for the big bores, other clubs may have similar caliber restrictions. I've yet to see a ban on 300 WM, and they are fairly common on the line at Granby. I can shoot my 50 at my local club, but it's pretty much an exercise in sub-MOA benchrest shooting at 100 yards.

Next spring I was planning on doing some sort of PRS build in 300 WM. I'd save money by just getting the Ruger and could just go out and shoot. Nice thing about the Ruger is it will be easy to change the barrel when you want to.

The 338 LP is a very cool round, but it doesn't give much more than you can get from the 300 WM. The 338 is still an anti-personnel round and doesn't have the juice of a 50 in order to bust hard barriers and kill lightly armored vehicles.
 
Some numbnuts at Granby used a 338 LP with fairly hot ammo and damaged expensive club plates, thus resulting in a club ban for 338 LP and 50 BMG.

We had the nuts that ruined the plates and unfortunately the other nuts in the town that got the 1000yd. range shut down.
 
We had the nuts that ruined the plates and unfortunately the other nuts in the town that got the 1000yd. range shut down.

Sadly, it's pretty much a single nut that started the process to shut down the 1000 yard range. Of course it takes a town board filled with nuts to seal the deal. I may get out there next week. I think the range cover / structure is still closed which really pisses me off. Club members fixed the minor code violation almost immediately and it's been ~a year and a half since corrected and the town still hasn't approved the fix AFAIK. I've been to a couple of the town meetings- there are some cowardly and vile little toads on that board.

Hey, folks can still shoot 300 Win Mag to 500 yards at Granby.
 
Sadly, it's pretty much a single nut that started the process to shut down the 1000 yard range. Of course it takes a town board filled with nuts to seal the deal. I may get out there next week. I think the range cover / structure is still closed which really pisses me off. Club members fixed the minor code violation almost immediately and it's been ~a year and a half since corrected and the town still hasn't approved the fix AFAIK. I've been to a couple of the town meetings- there are some cowardly and vile little toads on that board.

Hey, folks can still shoot 300 Win Mag to 500 yards at Granby.

Yes the covered line is still closed. The town is still playing games with the club.
 
considering the RPR's burn out a 308 barrel in 1000 rounds, magnum calibers should work out great.

shoot 308, save your money for a quality rifle.


Where have you heard they're burning out barrels in 1000 rounds?

........... never mind, did a little searching and I see a lot of people reporting flyers once they get to the 1000 round mark
 
Burn out barrels after a thousand rounds. COME ON. Where did you get that info?
It can happen with certain calibers (243, 220 swift, 6.5-284, etc) but the 308 is usually one of the longer-lasting.

P.S. CDNN is selling the RPR in 308 for $799 right now.
 
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Burn out barrels after a thousand rounds. COME ON. Where did you get that info?


I did a little bit of searching after reading that - and there are people complaining about barrels losing their *match level* accuracy after 1000 rounds.

Not sure what expected barrel life should be on a rifle of this accuracy level.

If CDNN is selling the .308 version for $799 , maybe I'll think about one of those first and move into .300 Win Mag later.
 
The nice thing about the RPR is that it's easy to change barrels and make other upgrades too.
 
make other upgrades too.


I bought a Timney trigger, Magpul MOE grip and Seekins ambi safety and almost bought the Seekins rail to replace my Gen2 Ruger rail (oh no, Keymod!) and the Magpul PRS stock, but ended up leaving the RPR as is save for the trigger. Honestly, it’s just fine how it is out of the box once you retorque everything.

The Timney IS nice but probably not necessary for tangible accuracy gains from this average shooter.

The other stuff will remain in the parts bin.

And if the barrel doesn’t shoot, I’ll be off to Accurate Ordnance for a cut rifled barrel and still be into this thing for a fraction of any custom I have ever built.

Kicking myself for not coming around on the RPR sooner. A 300 WM may be in my future... always wanted a big caliber precision rifle and this is my most likely ticket to the ball (Accuracy I’ntl. = divorce papers).
 
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As much as I lean towards 'Buwahaha bigger is better!', the 300 Win Mag is a much better choice for you if a future SHTF situation is even the smallest of considerations. There are a bazillion projectiles in 30 cal and many, many powders and loads that will be effective in the 300 WM. While neither cartridge is as ubiquitous as the .308 or .30-06, 300 WM is going to be easier to find than 338 LP. I think I've seen 300 WM ammo at Wallymart.

Here's a quote for you:

I used the .300 Win Mag for most of my kills. It’s an excellent all-around cartridge, whose performance allows for superb accuracy as well as stopping power. The .300 is a little heavier gun by design. It shoots like a laser. Anything from 1,000 yards and out, you’re just plain nailing it. And on closer targets, you don’t have to worry about too much correction for your come-ups. You can dial in your 500 yard dope and still hit a target from 100-700 yards without worrying too much about making minute adjustments

That’s a quote from Chris Kyle. If anyone knows about long range shooting, it’d be him.

I'd love to get a RPR 338 LP but I already have a rifle (State Arms 50 BMG) that I can't really enjoy to it's fullest potential. Some numbnuts at Granby used a 338 LP with fairly hot ammo and damaged expensive club plates, thus resulting in a club ban for 338 LP and 50 BMG. Though we might get some RSO monitored days for the big bores, other clubs may have similar caliber restrictions. I've yet to see a ban on 300 WM, and they are fairly common on the line at Granby. I can shoot my 50 at my local club, but it's pretty much an exercise in sub-MOA benchrest shooting at 100 yards.

Next spring I was planning on doing some sort of PRS build in 300 WM. I'd save money by just getting the Ruger and could just go out and shoot. Nice thing about the Ruger is it will be easy to change the barrel when you want to.

The 338 LP is a very cool round, but it doesn't give much more than you can get from the 300 WM. The 338 is still an anti-personnel round and doesn't have the juice of a 50 in order to bust hard barriers and kill lightly armored vehicles.
Thanks, that’s the great info that that makes this sight so good.
 
I did a little bit of searching after reading that - and there are people complaining about barrels losing their *match level* accuracy after 1000 rounds.

Not sure what expected barrel life should be on a rifle of this accuracy level.

If CDNN is selling the .308 version for $799 , maybe I'll think about one of those first and move into .300 Win Mag later.
Personally, I think that's the smart move. The 308 (or 6.5 Creedmoor or {6 creedmoor!}) will absolutely hammer out to 1000 yards or maybe a bit further. A shooter can purchase another caliber that will be capable beyond that, but the shooter's skill level must exponentially ramp-up to to utilize it beyond 1000 yards. And I'm not saying 1000 yards is a cake-walk either; hell, 600 yards is a real test of the shooter's ability.

"Extreme Long Range" is the current rage. Everybody wants to go out and buy a rifle that is capable to do it. These same shooters have probably never shot beyond 300 yards except to see if they can get a shot on paper.
Wide open spaces of the American West? I suppose there might be some fun in 300WM or 338L. Will it be that much more fun over the standard RPR calibers to justify the cost, recoil, and shorter barrel life? Not for me, but for those with the money and the desire: go for it.
Notice I referenced "fun", not "utility"; there is not practical "utility" to 338L. 300WM can be great big-game caliber, but nobody is going to carry a 20lb hunting rifle.

My comments about "Shooter" are about the general shooting public, not any individuals here.

Let the hate begin....
 
Personally, I think that's the smart move. The 308 (or 6.5 Creedmoor or {6 creedmoor!}) will absolutely hammer out to 1000 yards or maybe a bit further. A shooter can purchase another caliber that will be capable beyond that, but the shooter's skill level must exponentially ramp-up to to utilize it beyond 1000 yards. And I'm not saying 1000 yards is a cake-walk either; hell, 600 yards is a real test of the shooter's ability.

"Extreme Long Range" is the current rage. Everybody wants to go out and buy a rifle that is capable to do it. These same shooters have probably never shot beyond 300 yards except to see if they can get a shot on paper.
Wide open spaces of the American West? I suppose there might be some fun in 300WM or 338L. Will it be that much more fun over the standard RPR calibers to justify the cost, recoil, and shorter barrel life? Not for me, but for those with the money and the desire: go for it.
Notice I referenced "fun", not "utility"; there is not practical "utility" to 338L. 300WM can be great big-game caliber, but nobody is going to carry a 20lb hunting rifle.

My comments about "Shooter" are about the general shooting public, not any individuals here.

Let the hate begin....


All very good points. I agree that 600 yards is a real test but think that at least with a 6.5 Creedmoor that 600 yards isn't too bad. Know your dope, plug in the numbers, and send it. Wait for the ping. I get very good scores in high-power at 600 with .223 even in windy conditions, but I've already screwed up offhand so it doesn't help, LOL.

I am going to disagree with you regarding .308 at 1000 yards. Sure, it can be done but .308 typically drops into subsonic ~800 to 900 yards. At Granby, in order to qualify for the long distance range you have to show up with match quality ammo / reloads with chronograph data that shows your loads are still supersonic at 1000 yards. 6.5 and 6mm Creedmoor are still good beyond 1000.

Pat, I know you know this stuff backwards and forwards- this is for others: Yes, you can keep .308 supersonic just barely past 1000. That would require loading low drag bullets a bit on the warm side and then having a ~30" barrel in order to take advantage of the extra 'juice'. Easier to just go with 6 or 6.5 CM that work just fine with factory ammo and just about any precision rifle right out of the box.
 
I bought the savage at the beginning of this year. I bought the evolution. I picked the 300wm. Most expensive rifle I've ever bought. I plan to try my hand at PRS with it. I picked the 300wm because you don't see our military shooting 6.5cm. In the event the shtf the 300mw is way more practical and functional.

And being a 300 its a real pussycat to shoot.

Nick
 
I bought the savage at the beginning of this year. I bought the evolution. I picked the 300wm. Most expensive rifle I've ever bought. I plan to try my hand at PRS with it. I picked the 300wm because you don't see our military shooting 6.5cm. In the event the shtf the 300mw is way more practical and functional.

And being a 300 its a real pussycat to shoot.

Nick

Compared to what, LOL? Sure, it's a pussycat compared to a .458 Win Mag. I think I'd prefer to shoot a 30 lb 50 BMG rather than a 10 lb 300 Win Mag. Last time I shot prone next to somebody shooting a 300 WM, the muzzle blast from it blew the side of my mat up and over my rifle and my head.

Regarding using what the military uses- different tools for different jobs. Take a look at the top PRS shooters over the last few years and let me know how many were shooting 300 WM vs. how many were shooting 6.5mm or 6mm cartridges.

Yeah, I want one too- but it's not a pussycat nor is it ideal for PRS. SHTF? Yes, I agree good for that. I doubt we'll ever see a deep and long term SHTF situation, however.
 
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