There was a post about brownells carrying the TAC-21 Chassis for the Rem 700 short action. I have been wanting to get my mits on one and try it out. Soo put down the old visa card and lit her on fire. Build is as follows.
Rem 700 SPS Tactical, Picked it up local had 20 rounds fired. Came with a Nikon Monarch 4-16x40 side focus and sat in some leup std rings. Shot 2 5 shot groups as it sat for a baseline. The a few groups in an HS Prec PSS stock. Using factory FGGM 168 ammo.
Tac 21 Chassis, Brownells only offered black and with the top safety cutout.
Cav Arms A1 length stock, 1" shorter than a standard AR A2 stock as you know. Replaced Cav's shitty trapdoor assembly with one off a proper A2 stock for a nice fit. Almost went with the PRS but its not needed with this platform.
Magpul MOE grip, simple and functional
Leup Ultra High Alum rings. I wasnt sure what it would take to get a scope where it needed to be on this but you have to look at it like mounting a scope on an actual AR cause any lower than this would be unusable I think.
Nikon Monarch 4-16x40 SF optic, figured I would use it all the way through as it was used for the first groups. This is also true with the trigger on the rifle. The only thing changed is the stock/chassis and optics mounting.
OK to start there are some short comings on the chassis.
#1. The side safety is a nice thought to save some cash on a new trigger but its damn near useless. If you go with this chassis get the filled side and go with a bottom safety trigger.
#2 Sling attachment, while adding parts is possible for sling attachment it does not come with anything readily. Theres tons of options in this area and most will work fine.
#3 Factory bolt is not as accessible as it should be. I have a bolt with a handle installed by dan in AK and it feels great with this chassis. Will post a pic of factory and it for your comparison. I think even the addition of a badger knob it would help but for the price of a tig'ed handle you might as well go that way.
Initial range trip today I was disapointed at the 100 yard groupings. I might have to contribute that to a new platform and not being 100% comfortable with it. Next time will have a better scope mounted and get a bit more trigger time on it. As it sits right now there was no accuracy increase like there was when I mounted the same gun in a HS Prec Police stock. The brochure mentions a V-block mounting system but it does not look like it has it. Its round bottom on the inside so there may be some stress when torqued. I think with some skill I can bed this action in the stock but gonna have to look it over pretty good. When the action is inside there is a bit of room above the top so bedding should be able to be done yet be very tricky.
I did swing down to the 500 and shoot some prone with it and my other 308. I was a bit more comfortable with it at that point. Was able to make some good hits at 500 by guessing the drop and adjusting. Didnt go to 1k cause I dont think the optics have the adjustment in them even with the 20MOA built into the chassis, and I didnt feel like dicking with the wind today. Even though its great practice to shoot in the wind and figure things out I didnt wanna mess with it.
TAC-21 cost
Chassis $820ish
Mag $65
Stock with buttplate and bufer tube $45-$55
Grip $20
$960 total
McM A5 Adj Cost,
Stock $725-$750
Badger DBM $350
$1100 plus bedding if you dont do it yourself.
Used HS PRec Stock $200
You save a bit of cash over the A5, you also save a bit not having to buy the rail.
Rem 700 SPS Tactical, Picked it up local had 20 rounds fired. Came with a Nikon Monarch 4-16x40 side focus and sat in some leup std rings. Shot 2 5 shot groups as it sat for a baseline. The a few groups in an HS Prec PSS stock. Using factory FGGM 168 ammo.
Tac 21 Chassis, Brownells only offered black and with the top safety cutout.
Cav Arms A1 length stock, 1" shorter than a standard AR A2 stock as you know. Replaced Cav's shitty trapdoor assembly with one off a proper A2 stock for a nice fit. Almost went with the PRS but its not needed with this platform.
Magpul MOE grip, simple and functional
Leup Ultra High Alum rings. I wasnt sure what it would take to get a scope where it needed to be on this but you have to look at it like mounting a scope on an actual AR cause any lower than this would be unusable I think.
Nikon Monarch 4-16x40 SF optic, figured I would use it all the way through as it was used for the first groups. This is also true with the trigger on the rifle. The only thing changed is the stock/chassis and optics mounting.
OK to start there are some short comings on the chassis.
#1. The side safety is a nice thought to save some cash on a new trigger but its damn near useless. If you go with this chassis get the filled side and go with a bottom safety trigger.
#2 Sling attachment, while adding parts is possible for sling attachment it does not come with anything readily. Theres tons of options in this area and most will work fine.
#3 Factory bolt is not as accessible as it should be. I have a bolt with a handle installed by dan in AK and it feels great with this chassis. Will post a pic of factory and it for your comparison. I think even the addition of a badger knob it would help but for the price of a tig'ed handle you might as well go that way.
Initial range trip today I was disapointed at the 100 yard groupings. I might have to contribute that to a new platform and not being 100% comfortable with it. Next time will have a better scope mounted and get a bit more trigger time on it. As it sits right now there was no accuracy increase like there was when I mounted the same gun in a HS Prec Police stock. The brochure mentions a V-block mounting system but it does not look like it has it. Its round bottom on the inside so there may be some stress when torqued. I think with some skill I can bed this action in the stock but gonna have to look it over pretty good. When the action is inside there is a bit of room above the top so bedding should be able to be done yet be very tricky.
I did swing down to the 500 and shoot some prone with it and my other 308. I was a bit more comfortable with it at that point. Was able to make some good hits at 500 by guessing the drop and adjusting. Didnt go to 1k cause I dont think the optics have the adjustment in them even with the 20MOA built into the chassis, and I didnt feel like dicking with the wind today. Even though its great practice to shoot in the wind and figure things out I didnt wanna mess with it.
TAC-21 cost
Chassis $820ish
Mag $65
Stock with buttplate and bufer tube $45-$55
Grip $20
$960 total
McM A5 Adj Cost,
Stock $725-$750
Badger DBM $350
$1100 plus bedding if you dont do it yourself.
Used HS PRec Stock $200
You save a bit of cash over the A5, you also save a bit not having to buy the rail.
