About a month and a half ago, I bought a
Remington 700 VSF Left-Hand (yes, I shoot from the sinister side). I've only been able to get to the range twice since buying it, and due to local range restrictions, I have only shot it out to 100 yards so far, but at that distance, it
easily shoots under 1 MOA, even getting down to .5 MOA a few times. The rifle lists for $1,185.00, but I "only" paid $831.00 at a local dealer. I've mounted a Leopold 4.5-14x50mm scope, and I've had the trigger lightened to 3.5 lbs. The overall impression is of a refined rifle that shoots very accurately. Details like the tan stock, the fluted barrel, and the jeweled bolt body add to that impression.
Here is a picture of mine.
However, if I had to club somebody to death with a rifle, I would pick my son's brand new, never been shot yet,
Savage 10FP HS Precision ($799.00 from a local dealer). It is a beast. A tank. A battle-axe. A broad sword. It ought to shoot very nicely when we get a chance to get it to the range. But it does not give the same impression of refinement as does the Remington. The Savage is tight, very well put together, and has a wonderful trigger, but it is all black, and appears thick and brutish. My son has topped it with a Bushnell 4200 Elite 6-24x40mm scope. I have to say, at 17 years old, he has better taste in rifles than I did at his age.
Here is a picture of his rifle
Since a measeley $32 separates the price of the two rifles, I would say that price should not be much of a factor in making your choice. Also, don't let looks be a determinant. It's cool when a rifle looks like it will do what it alleges to do, but the most important thing is how tiny your groups are going to be, not what the rifle looks like. Pick ugly and accurate over beautiful but useless. Besides, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and in any really good design, form always follows function. The Savage AccuTrigger is Pure D Awesome for a right out of the box rifle. I had to spend an additional $50 or so at my local gunsmith's to get my Remington trigger lightened to 3.5 lbs - which makes it feel like the OEM AccuTrigger setup. Scope selection will have a huge impact on the price of the total package, since you should be prepared to spend a significant percentage of your rifle's price on a decent scope for it.
If I had to do it over again, I would give a long hard look at the Savage rifle for myself, even though I am very satisfied with the Remington. I chose the Remington simply because it was left handed, and available on the shelf at the time I was ready to buy. (Trust me, being left handed is like that, and it gets even worse - and more expensive - when you are talking about fine guitars). In short, either rifle would be a good choice for a beginning long range shooter.
I wish I could tell you more about shooting technique, but I'm new to this long distance game myself, having only shot out to 750 yards once in my life, and it was almost comical. So I'll defer to more experienced and wiser heads in that area.
I apologize for being long winded, but I hope this information was useful in helping you to make your rifle selection.