Tactical Rifle Which Brand Best

[roc1]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am asking a lot of questions but would like to know best brand of tactical/varmint rifle in either 308 or 7-08? I am leaning toward Remington SPS but I know Savage makes a good one as well. How does the heavy barrel new Rugers and the new Winchester as well as any others stack up?
Is any barrel length ok or how is the 20" against the longer tubes?
Thanks
roc1

 

[Almond27]

I'd go with a Remington SPS tactical .308, their is a member on here who just recently sold his at a great price and it was an absolute tack driver if I wasn't a broke 20 year old I would have been all over that rifle it was a nice one. Alot of people may flame me for this but I've heard 20 inch barrels can be just as accurate as say a 26inch, the way I understand it the 20inch is stiffer(hope thats the word im looking for) which helps with barrel harmonics. Your not losing alot of velocity out of a 20 inch barrel maybe a couple hundred feet per second.

 

[dakotasin]

typical production rifles will really boil down to personal preference.

longer tubes will gain more velocity. the less effecient a given cartridge is, the more the disparity. in 308 and 7-08, the difference wouldn't be enough to get excited about.

 

[Erik M]

I held a Remington 700 with a houge over molded stock and bull barrel. it was hard to had back across the counter and not take home. Its all presonal preferance. Ive fired a Savage Model 10 that was a hot little tackdriver to.

 

[Boba Fett]

I'd go with the Savage 10FCP.


Here's my range report for it. Managed to get a 5 shot 0.458 MOA at 100 yards, so I'm happy with it.
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=488324


Also check out Sniper Central for some good rifle, equipment, and ammunition reviews among other things.

http://www.snipercentral.com/sav10fcpmcm.htm


As for barrel length, I plan to cut mine down from the 24" to an 18"

http://www.sniperschool.com/sniper-rifle-barrel-length/


I'd say of the two caliber choices you listed, 308 is your best bet. From Sniper Central:

The .308 is by far the most popular sniping round, and for good reason. The .308 is not punishing to shoot, has excellent terminal ballistics, behaves predictably in the wind, and is consistent. While there are quite a few rounds that outperform the .308 in ballistics, there are few, if any, that perform as consistently as the .308. And consistency is accuracy. The .30 cal bullet has long been a great performer, and is very popular which leads to more research with the .30 than with other calibers. While the .308 may over penetrate in some cases (especially with M118) the .308 is still used in the majority of the Law Enforcement agencies out there. It is accepted that if you do your job and put the bullet where it counts, you can count on the .308 to do its job and incapacitate the target. The US Army preaches an 800 meter maximum effective range for the .308, the USMC preaches a 1000 yard (915 meter) max effective range. While I have made hits at 1000 meters and beyond with the .308, I would have to agree with the Army and say that 800 meters is the limit for RELIABLE hits. After that the .308 is dropping like a rock and is inconsistent. As an all around sniping round that works great for both Law Enforcement and military sniping, the .308 is hard to beat!

Also, in a SHTF or the "Oh crap I just drove 400 miles to the hunting spot, forgot my ammo, and there isn't a Walmart anywhere" sort of scenario, the 308 will probably be easier to find at Bubba's Bait & Chicken Stop in the middle of nowhere. I'm not saying people shouldn't buy "non-standard" calibers, but if you don't already have standard caliber rifles, I'd buy a few of them before I buy something like a 338 Lapua which Bubba has probably never even heard of.

 

[nalioth]

Take the marketing blinders off.

A man is tactical, not anything the man carries.

 

[Almond27]

Take the marketing blinders off.

A man is tactical, not anything the man carries.

Getting a little technical aren't we haha.

 

[Brimic]

Fn spr.

 

[jdh]

CZ550 Varmint

http://cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-550-varmint/

 

[roc1]

I have shot the CZ Varmint in 308 it is great. I already have a CZ 550 243. I love it just wanted something different. I have a bull barrel Savage model 12 in 22-250 that is a tack driver. I just thought the Remington or Ruger bull barrel 308 looked good. I have a couple Remmys not in a bull barrel.
roc1

 

[Uncle Mike]

Savage.....

 

[dubbleA]

If I said it once, Iv'e said it a thousand times....get what ever rifle you fell suits your needs the best and shoot it...and shoot it somemore. Handloading will in almost every case give you the best accuracy than factory match will. Folks get hung up on brand preference and in alot of cases dont have any shooting experience with "said" firearms but go on what they read.

Well just today I took a few of my factory 308's and did a very simple test. Chose a handload that the middle rifle likes (45gr Varget over a 168 SMK) and shot 3 rounds each at 210 yards with a FNH SPR, Savage 10fp and Rem SPSV. Temp was 42 degrees which is unusually cold here and winds were 3mph full value left -right. This isnt a scientific test just a quickie and only shot 3 rds due to time constraints.

As you can see, it's almost a moot point to say one shoots any better than the other even with non tailored loads. Again, the most important thing is to get range time and shoot and shoot some more, learn your rifle! Driven and fed properly will go a long ways into getting any rifle to shoot well consistantly

Go out and look at several models, pick one that feels best and fits your budget and try burning the barrel out of it. Better yet would be to try to get your hands on some local range and try them out. I would venture to say there are alot of various makes and models that will fit the bill, there is simply no "best" out there.

 

[dubbleA]

Alot of people may flame me for this but I've heard 20 inch barrels can be just as accurate as say a 26inch, the way I understand it the 20inch is stiffer(hope thats the word im looking for) which helps with barrel harmonics. Your not losing alot of velocity out of a 20 inch barrel maybe a couple hundred feet per second.

Almond27, having actually cut the 26 inch factory tubes of the center and far right rifles back to 20 inches and recrowning I only lost an average of 60-70 fps not a couple of hundred FPS. The 308 is fairly efficient when it come to burning powder and doesnt really need a long barrel.
Factory barrels and chambers are a bit sloppy so velocities will be slower but take tight bore and tighter tolerence chamber in a custom barrel and even a shorter one will be faster that a factory longer tube.

I did it for a shorter OAL and better balance.

....your milage might vary

 

[Maverick223]

Another vote for Savage 10FP, unless you really want the "best" and are willing to pay for it (AI, DTA, Surgeon, et al). I prefer a longer barrel as I like to maximize my velocity to minimize windage and elevation adjustments...speed kills ya know.