My new gun for 2017 - bolt action

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  • Thegeek

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    It seems I can get one new gun a year and take my time doing so. Now I'm thinking I want something with some range, and that can be reloaded for fun. I'm a lefty shooter, so a left handed bolt is requirement #1. I've been looking at the Remington 700 SPS in .300 Win Mag. I'm thinking with that I can give it a little love, throw some good glass on it and have a pretty decent 500yd rifle.

    Anyone want to offer a different direction?
     

    ChristianPatriot

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    It seems I can get one new gun a year and take my time doing so. Now I'm thinking I want something with some range, and that can be reloaded for fun. I'm a lefty shooter, so a left handed bolt is requirement #1. I've been looking at the Remington 700 SPS in .300 Win Mag. I'm thinking with that I can give it a little love, throw some good glass on it and have a pretty decent 500yd rifle.

    Anyone want to offer a different direction?

    300WM is overkill at only 500 yds IMO. I would suggest .308. Reloading components and data are abundant. Is this just a range gun?
     

    Thegeek

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    They're all just range guns until they need to be something else. But yes. Competition with myself. The reason I chose the .300WM over the .308 was the ballistics show the .300 being a bit flatter (about 15 inches at 500 yds). But you have a valid point on the commonality of the components. But, I should be able to use the same projectiles for this as my .300BLK.
     

    Dog1

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    I got a new one for 2017 too-
    20170116_164443_zpsf4qzooc6.jpg


    Remington 700 SPS Tactical. I put it in a Magpul Hunter Stock. It has a nice Vortex Crossfire on it, but I'm going to upgrade the glass to a Vortex Viper HST 4-16.

    I would stick to .308. Having had a 300WinMag, it just gets expensive to shoot it, not to mention reduced barrel life.
     

    ChristianPatriot

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    They're all just range guns until they need to be something else. But yes. Competition with myself. The reason I chose the .300WM over the .308 was the ballistics show the .300 being a bit flatter (about 15 inches at 500 yds). But you have a valid point on the commonality of the components. But, I should be able to use the same projectiles for this as my .300BLK.

    If it's just for printing pretty groups than 300WM is definitely overkill. Heck the .308 might be easier to group at 500 yds than a .300. Huge different in recoil impulse.

    Edit: The drop is just math. You're well within the supersonic range of .308. Wind calls are most important.

    As as for a rifle suggestion. How precise do you need it to be? Any Savage or Remy with decent ammo should be able to shoot well at that distance.
     

    aztec777

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    A Savage 10-FLCP in .308 WIN would fit the bit nicely. Top it with decent glass and make some noise on that steel.
     

    throttletony

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    No love for 7mm-08? 243? 6.5 Creedmoor?
    All very capable at 500 yds and all a blast to shoot!!
    If you look outside of Remington, consider Tikka T3, or T/C bolt actions. I would take them over a Rem unless i knew i needed lots of options for aftermarket accessories (though the Tikka has quite a few)
     

    dhamby

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    No love for 7mm-08? 243? 6.5 Creedmoor?
    All very capable at 500 yds and all a blast to shoot!!
    If you look outside of Remington, consider Tikka T3, or T/C bolt actions. I would take them over a Rem unless i knew i needed lots of options for aftermarket accessories (though the Tikka has quite a few)

    Of those options the only one he could hunt with would be the .243.
     

    Lees

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    Do you have other left-handed bolt rifles? I'm just curious because last time I looked in Cabela's I think they only had one lefty bolt in stock. Is there an Indiana gun store that has more left-handed stuff?
     

    throttletony

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    Of those options the only one he could hunt with would be the .243.

    I don't think he mentioned hunting specifically.
    And, you could shoot coyotes with any of those (since they're varmints), and maybe he hunts out of state...
    My main point was that there are other GREAT caliber choices if someone just wants to shoot steel/paper/(meat?) at 500 yds.
    These other calibers are more enjoyable to shoot for extended periods of time and have great and affordable reloading components.
    308 is also solid, I was just giving other options
     

    throttletony

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    Do you have other left-handed bolt rifles? I'm just curious because last time I looked in Cabela's I think they only had one lefty bolt in stock. Is there an Indiana gun store that has more left-handed stuff?

    Remington, Savage, and Tikka offer LH Bolt guns... others too, I'm sure.
    As a lefty, I actually prefer a regular (RH) gun, but that's just me.
     

    Thegeek

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    If it's just for printing pretty groups than 300WM is definitely overkill. Heck the .308 might be easier to group at 500 yds than a .300. Huge different in recoil impulse.
    Edit: The drop is just math. You're well within the supersonic range of .308. Wind calls are most important.
    As as for a rifle suggestion. How precise do you need it to be? Any Savage or Remy with decent ammo should be able to shoot well at that distance.

    No love for 7mm-08? 243? 6.5 Creedmoor?
    All very capable at 500 yds and all a blast to shoot!!
    If you look outside of Remington, consider Tikka T3, or T/C bolt actions. I would take them over a Rem unless i knew i needed lots of options for aftermarket accessories (though the Tikka has quite a few)

    Actually the .243 Savage had my attention as well. I'm leaning toward the Rem simply due to commonality. The less exotic the better. Not that the Savage is exotic, but certainly doesn't have the aftermarket presence.

    I've heard a lot of arguments for .308 and so far the only supporting facts for it have been the statement about the recoil impulse. More opportunity to learn? How so? Mainly what I'm hearing is that the .300WM is overkill. And for some reason, that's appealing... almost like the engine in a new truck 5.0L or 5.7L ....

    If there comes a time that I need to hunt with it, I'm not going to be worried about legal calibers. The quality of the rifle isn't of major concern, but I do want something that I can't blame for inaccuracy. This is mainly to challenge myself. I'm also not worried about something "fun" to shoot for hours. I leaned towards the .300 because it's capable of 500yds, but if I ever get the chance to go further, I'd like to. I had also looked at the .280rem, 7mm, 30-06 as a potential candidates.
     

    roscott

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    308 will happily do 1K if you are up to the task. 6.5 CM is another great option, particularly if you reload. If you just want the ability to stretch it out, 308 can do it, and 6.5 gives slightly better ballistics, but your ability to do math and make wind calls is what's really going to matter.

    Have you shot a 300 win mag? Most distance shooting is done from prone, and you feel much more recoil in that position because you don't have as much meat to cushion your shoulder that way.

    Ask a buddy to punch you in the shoulder real hard. Kinda fun, kinda hurts, makes you feel manly right? Now have him keep hitting you in the same place, same power, all afternoon. What was kinda fun at first gets old real fast. 300 win mag is great if you plan to kill elk at 800 yards. If not, there are lots of better alternatives, IMHO.
     
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    Thegeek

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    So, .300WM can be lumped right in with .50BMG and .338 Lapua being options only for what nothing else can do. Got it.

    I guess I need to go to school on the pros and cons of .308 and 6.5 CM.
     

    ChristianPatriot

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    I hope you can take our advice in the right context. The WinMag is a fantastic cartridge and is far superior ballistically to .308 and probably 6.5 Creed. It will absolutely shoot flatter at most any range. BUT there is a price to pay for that. Brass, powder, and bullets will all be more expensive. I'm not necessarily saying don't get a 300. I'm saying there are other options that are more affordable that will give you just as much fun for the ranges you're talking about.
     

    Thegeek

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    I'm not big game hunting, and if the truly unthinkable happens, they'll all take out a deer or a man at distance. If I were needing to take down bear at 600+ yards, then the .300WM might be a necessity. I've spent the last part of the hour looking into 6.5CM and .308. It looks like 6.5 would be the way to go, but lefty bolts in that caliber are slim. Only the Savage 11/111 and the Browning X-bolt have come up in my searches. That might force me to go .308.
     

    Thegeek

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    I'm not counting them out. I really liked what I saw of them at the NRA show and a friend has one of their 17HMRs. It shoots real nice. It looks like the 11/111 is the low end of their lineup.

    Lefty bolt really narrows the options.
     
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