Finding a good 1st rifle.

[oldpapps]

"I think first should probably be "shoot more" rather than "save money"!
Once I started reloading I started shooting way more than ever and the ammo bill went way up as a result."
Welding Rod

Save money, impress the wife with how you are not just wasting money, buy more guns/components/gear. This is a win-win option. So doesn't save money translate to shooting more?

Mr. Rod, I'm on your side

 

[billzrifle]

So I might blow some minds and upset people for being late on this information but.... I'm left-eye dominant/left handed shooter.

So far I've switched to the .308 and the some rifles I'm looking at are the Rem 700 police, Savage 16 FLHSS?, Savage 11 and the Browning X-Bolt. Honestly the X-bolt is there because I think 1) it looks awesome IMO and 2) it is available left handed. (The police is not).

There is a gun fanatic at my work who shoots 1000 yards all day long with a hot-rodded Rem 700 (at least $10k into it), he believes that if I don't buy it as my first rifle, the world will end or something lol.

Also I would like to shoot 1000 ards someday but right now I just want to shoot and learn and become better.

 

[3212]

For recoil try Limbsaver recoil pads.

 

[Cee Zee]

If you can get your friend to show you some things about shooting long distances you will have a very valuable resource there. There is a lot that takes a long time to learn if you're doing it by trial and error. If you have a friend that can already do it try to tag along when he goes to shoot. If he's a good friend you're probably in. If it's just someone you work with and know you may not get so lucky. First off just having a place to shoot 1000 yards is a big advantage. I wish I had a place to shoot that far. 600 yards is it at my gun club.

Second a good Remington 700 will certainly do 1000 yards. It will generally take some work and money to get it to do so. A Savage will get you there MUCH cheaper IMO. If you buy a Savage 12 LRPV in .308 you will have a rifle that can do 1000 yards with the right load. I'm serious. You won't need the gunsmith work or the parts if you buy the right model and you can get one for under $1000 if you're willing to buy a used rifle. I bought my 12 LRPV for $950 (actually less since they gave me certain breaks and some ammo). It had been shot about 10 times. Mine is .223 which will do 1000 yards but a .308 is MUCH easier to get to perform at that distance.

A .270 or a .260 is a very good caliber for 1000 yard shooting too. A .260 will likely be cheaper to shoot but Savage doesn't make the 12 LRPV in .270 but they do make a .260 now. They mainly build those rifles to compete in F T/R or F Class competitions and they shorten the barrels on the F T/R rifles and call them varmint rifles. That and the stock is the only difference in the LRPV rifles and the Target rifles. At least that was the case when I bought my rifle. Things could have changed considerably in the time since I bought my rifle. Look for a target action and a high quality stock. I have the H-S Precision stock (which is a brand some people like to avoid for political reasons which would have included me if I had known then what I know now). It's a very good stock but it's no McMillen or so I hear. I don't get to shoot rifles like that often.

At any rate Savage wins competitions with their off the rack rifles shooting against custom built rifles (like your friend's Remington). Lots of people really dislike Savage because of that. I warn you. Some gunsmiths, who invested tons of hours in learning how to work on Remingtons and make them shoot great, really don't like Savages because they don't require nearly as much work. It costs them big money so you can't blame them. So don't be surprised if people tell you they aren't as good as they are. Mine is fabulous. I know other people who say the same thing. I'd tell you it will do but it would just cause people to say I'm lying. I'm serious. It happens every time I mention group sizes even though I'm very much a Christian and I really don't like the idea of lying one bit. If you want to know send me a PM. I'll tell you what it's done and what it will do normallly.

I'm just saying. You don't have to spend $10,000 to shoot 1000 yards. You don't have to spend $1000 to shoot 1000 yards. That is about the cutoff point I guess. And that's just for the rifle. Glass is considerably more. But for $1200-$1500 you can be making hits at 1000 yards if you get some help from your friend.

 

[greenlion]

Going with a 270, you are going to waste more powder and have trouble finding high ballistic co-efficient TARGET bullets. Most of the bullets made for the 270 are geared for hunting, not target shooting. I would opt for a 243win, 260rem, or 7mm-08, all of which have some very high B/C bullets, and are easier on your shoulder and will save you some money on powder.

 

[ElToro]

Shop around and get a used rem 700 in 30-06 270 or 308 or I have those and didn't pay more than $400 for any of them and one came with Leupold 3-9 glass. I have seen 280 and 7mm and 300 mag rem 700 ised cheap as well recently. This was all in the last 3 years. I paid 500 for my pre 64 70 in 30-06. Most of the above has had little use and each have tons of barrell life left. You can get a good 3-9 Leupold used in eBay for 200 no problem. Save the rest of your money for training or ammo and trigger time.