Sadly, I’m not as young as I once was, or as fit. And I’m at the point in my life where the likelihood of dragging a rifle through slop and mud is infinitesimally small. So when it came time for my latest rifle I thought I’d do something a little different – I’d have something built with a primary focus on accuracy at the expense of durability.
10 years ago I had a proper tactical rifle built by hd rifles (remember them?), and it was this fantastic rifle that would really help me discern what I wanted in a long range gun. Ideally, I would be 14lb or under, relatively short for ease of handling, comfortable to shoot off hand or supported, and exceptionally accurate.
So I began by compiling a list of criteria the rifle would need to meet in terms of weight, overall length, balance, handling, and accuracy. And being the fanatical perfectionist I am, durability and absolute reliability under all conditions could take a back seat to tight tolerance and accuracy.
The criteria I arrived at was:
At this point I started combing through the various rifle builder websites to see if anything ‘off the shelf’ would be what I was looking for. The closest was an offering by GA Precision, but in the end I chose to spec it out myself and have a well known benchrest smith build and balance it. I chose .308 because I'm extremely familiar with the cartridge, have brass/bullets/dies, and want to try my hand at F-T/R when I get a chance.
Specs:
Action: Remington 700 Short
Barrel: Spencer modified LV taper 22” (from lug)
Chamber: 308 Special Match
Trigger: Jewell @ 1lb
Stock: HS Precision (bedded to aprox 4" in front of recoil lug)
Bottom Metal: Williams
Scope: March 3x24 illum
Mounts: Badger
I've yet to see how it shoots, but should be sorting that out in the next couple of weeks. I haven't really done anything cosmetic with it, but I may end up cerakoting and having the bolt fluted... after I see how it shoots.
Pics:
10 years ago I had a proper tactical rifle built by hd rifles (remember them?), and it was this fantastic rifle that would really help me discern what I wanted in a long range gun. Ideally, I would be 14lb or under, relatively short for ease of handling, comfortable to shoot off hand or supported, and exceptionally accurate.
So I began by compiling a list of criteria the rifle would need to meet in terms of weight, overall length, balance, handling, and accuracy. And being the fanatical perfectionist I am, durability and absolute reliability under all conditions could take a back seat to tight tolerance and accuracy.
The criteria I arrived at was:
- 14lb or under w/ optics
- 42” Overall length
- Balance 1” in front of the front action screw
- Conventional stock (non-canoe paddle)
- Accuracy of 1/4" @ 100 yards w/ match ammo
At this point I started combing through the various rifle builder websites to see if anything ‘off the shelf’ would be what I was looking for. The closest was an offering by GA Precision, but in the end I chose to spec it out myself and have a well known benchrest smith build and balance it. I chose .308 because I'm extremely familiar with the cartridge, have brass/bullets/dies, and want to try my hand at F-T/R when I get a chance.
Specs:
Action: Remington 700 Short
Barrel: Spencer modified LV taper 22” (from lug)
Chamber: 308 Special Match
Trigger: Jewell @ 1lb
Stock: HS Precision (bedded to aprox 4" in front of recoil lug)
Bottom Metal: Williams
Scope: March 3x24 illum
Mounts: Badger
I've yet to see how it shoots, but should be sorting that out in the next couple of weeks. I haven't really done anything cosmetic with it, but I may end up cerakoting and having the bolt fluted... after I see how it shoots.
Pics:
