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.308 Build

H

HotrodDaryl

Private
Minuteman
Sep 3, 2014
1
0
30
Whats up guys? I'm a new member on the site here mainly because I would like some advice from people who a far more experienced then I am. I'm looking to build a .308 long range rifle easily capable of +1000 yard shooting. What would guys recommend for stocks, action, barrel, scope and any other items I might not be listing? I'm not worried about price range because I want high quality so if it takes me a year or two that is fine because I want the quality. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.
 
Also Sako TRG

Or contact one of the good builders (Chad at Long Rifles or Mark at Short Action Customs are two good ones) and see what they recommend/can supply.

Or buy a Remington rifle, shoot it a LOT, then decide what you want/need when you have some experience.

My current long range rifle is a Rem 700 PS-1 (factory barrel, action on tuned) in a Manners T-4A stock with MiniChassis, Schuler brake, Vortex Viper PST 6-24x FFP scope on a 20 MOA base. Shoots well to 1200 yards (longest I have tried so far).
 
Welcome. A 308 is a great cartridge to get started. Many here will tell you that the 308 is outdated and it is not forgiving in te wind. While that's true in some ways I think that a man should always have a 308. I have a few 308s and love them all. Mine are from 16"s to 26". If you don't want to always use a suppressor or length isn't a big concern then I would look into 22-24 in bbls. My personal favorites are my 16" and 20" so if you want compact then 18-20 are good lengths.

As far as a build, there are many great choices.
You can buy a AI or a TRG ready to go. They are well made but carry a nice price tag for a factory rifle.
I buy from GAP and they have a few "standard" models like the crusader and the gladius. Or you can spec out your own.

Things I'm really liking these days are bartlien bbls-1-10 to 1-11.25 I like the rem varmit contour but I'll go as heavy as a m40 sometimes.
Manners or McMillan stocks. In just like the typical stock feel.
I like custom actions and really like the integral actions. Surgeon, defiance, etc
Many great choices on rings and bases (if you don't use an integral action) I like badger and night force but GDI,sphur, bobro, LaRue, and others will work fine.

Scopes are user preference just like the other stuff. You will get a lot of good reviews from night force, vortex razors, Schmidt/bender, US optics, premier, kahles, and a few others.

308 is still a great choice. Imhabe several customs in different cartridges and my last build was a 308 from GAP. I love it and the 16" has gotten me to 1k with ease. You better not have a lot of wind to deal with though.

Good luck and welcome to the hide. A lot of people here can steer you right.
 
I love the 308 round, its my favorite, but I dont really look at mine as a 1k gun. More like a 800 yard gun max. And not get into serious wind and drop issues. Savage actions are the way to go in my opinion. Model 10-12 are great. Even the older long actions will be great on a new build. But those are hard to find and stocks are rare. You can swap out barrels/calibers in 10-15 minutes without the need of a smith with savage. Get a savage. That being said, Id go for a 18-22 inch, 10 or 11 twist barrel. Those lengths are ideal for carrying. Anyhing longer and it just gets in the way. As mentioned, the viper vortex scopes are great for the money. Scopes rings, I use Weaver low 30mm 4 holes. They are rock solid and a great buy. Quite a few choices for bases. Talley, EGW (aluminum), Weaver, Nightforce (expensive) and Badger (expensive). Some others. All make solid 20 moa bases that will get you to 1k. Lapua brass and a good bullet. Sierra or Lapua. Powders, Varget, imr 4064, 4895 or 3031 will get you where you need to be. Dont think you have to have a $3500+ rig in order to shoot accurate at 1k. Ive seen rigs a lot more expensive shoot worse than my "cheap" $1700 setup. Key is, practice practice practice. Shoot shoot and shoot some more. Ive almost shot out a 308 barrel I got 3 months ago. Practice.

Oh yeah, invest in a chronograph if you dont already own one. Its a must. Good luck.
 
I have seen a lot of rigs under $3000 that shoot 1000y easy and are 1/2 moa at 100. I have also seen other rigs at similar price points that are very finicky. My recent buy was a "Buy once cry once" approach. AIAX 308MC, Night force BEAST, SPUR mount, and Atlas bipod (around $11,000). What you get with any AI rifle is piece of mind. You know it will work; but that does come at a price. Look at all the shooters here that rave about AI rifles. They have that reputation for a reason. Also, should you decide to sell the rifle down the road, AI rifles hold their value better than a custom build or another factory rifle. I am not saying you would be wrong going with a great smith for a custom build. It is just a decision you have to make. Try not to rush into buying anything. I did hundreds of hours of research before I opened my wallet. 8541 Tactical is a great YouTube channel to check out for research. His review of the older model AX308 is what led me to take a serious look at AI rifles. Good luck with your research.
 
No offense, but $11k for a rifle is just silly. I dont believe in taking out a loan for a rifle. Lol

Countless hours of trigger time and knowing my rifle is my piece of mind. Not the pricetag.
 
Hmmm...where's that bag of popcorn? I can already see where this thread is going...

BTW [MENTION=82566]alphadogg56[/MENTION] , technically, Littlecreek is in Virginia Beach (if you're implying JEB in your location)
 
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$11,000 on a rifle is fine if it is his budget. Do I have 11k in mine? Hell no. But do I begrudge a guy if he has bigger budgets than mine? Hell no. It is the high end spenders that drive this technology, and then it trickles down to us poor fat guys. How much did the first Mil/Mil scope go for? I bet it was not the $299 SWFA fixed power line. So, deep pocket guys, keep funding the R and D for us broke bastards. I need a 2k yd range finder that costs less than a Terrapin.

Bender out.
 
308220 said:
No offense, but $11k for a rifle is just silly. I dont believe in taking out a loan for a rifle. Lol

Countless hours of trigger time and knowing my rifle is my piece of mind. Not the pricetag.
Click to expand...

Not saying it is necessary, but why is $11k silly? Also the rifle wasn't $11k. The rifle package including high end optic and mount was that amount. I've paid over $20k apiece for a couple of my MGs and paid cash.

It might be silly in some peoples eyes, but shooting and motorcycles are my hobbies and I have the means to pay for what I want. I know people that spend a lot more money than this for their hobbies. If it is what he wants and can afford it, why worry?
 
I'm surprised to see so many short barrels being recomended for a 1000 yd .308, but then again I don't know much about 1000 yd shooting. I'm looking at options for a .308 build also. I don't want to hijack this thread but it was mentioned earlier that .308's aren't very good 1000yd guns, so which caliber would be good? Are there good mid size calibers or do you have to jump up to a .338 lapua? I know the op asked about .308 but maybe the op (and myself) would consider another caliber especially if a budget isn't really a factor. A budget is a factor for myself so shooting a .308 is a good option for me
 
Icewater said:
I'm surprised to see so many short barrels being recomended for a 1000 yd .308, but then again I don't know much about 1000 yd shooting. I'm looking at options for a .308 build also. I don't want to hijack this thread but it was mentioned earlier that .308's aren't very good 1000yd guns, so which caliber would be good? Are there good mid size calibers or do you have to jump up to a .338 lapua? I know the op asked about .308 but maybe the op (and myself) would consider another caliber especially if a budget isn't really a factor. A budget is a factor for myself so shooting a .308 is a good option for me
Click to expand...

A few decent options are 6.5CM and .260Rem. Also people are having good luck with the 6mm and 7mm offerings.
 
rbdub474 said:
A few decent options are 6.5CM and .260Rem. Also people are having good luck with the 6mm and 7mm offerings.
Click to expand...

Interesting.....smaller calibers, larger cases, deserves some research. But still a shorter barrel? I know mid length barrels are suppose to be more accurate but it seams to me you would want a 24" plus barrel for that little extra velocity
 
I don't know what your budget looks like, but I for one would, and did buy stuff that was good enough so I could actually go shooting. If I had it all to do over again I'd probably start with something like a Tikka T3 or Sig Sauer SSG 3000. For ranges from 100-1000 plus I'd want a variable range scope mil/mil FFP with as much magnification and quality as I could afford. Vortex and Bushnell over the best values in this area.

Get a solid stock, cheapest way is something with an aluminum bedding block or one of the lower priced chassis.

As far as barrel length. Get a ballistic calculator. Every inch you take off takes away some velocity and makes the longer shots a little more challenging. I'd get the longest you're comfortable with for your intended use.
 
I think the point is being taken wrong. If you want a true 1k yard rig then don't even look at the 308. Go bigger case or smaller bullet. But if you want to go 308 I don't see the need in a really long bbl. 24 is as long as I would ever go. You can't have it all. Gotta pick something. I just know that I don't go to a square range and just shoot 1k. I !might want to take a 100yd offhand shot or a 400 sitting. Having a shorter bbl can help out. If I am going yo shoot a 1000 yd distance at a range I won't take my 308.not if it has to count. Just know what your dealing with. That's all
 
300 win mag is pretty decent for longer ranges and still has some energy. A guy also has to take into consideration how much they will be shooting. The larger cartridges take a toll on you after several shots. From what I have seen, you can buy a remmy 700 and tune it up and do pretty good. You can throw a stick in any direction and hit an aftermarket part for a 700. An AI is of course my dream gun, but spendy. Savage makes a decent rifle as does Sig for a decent price and very good performance out of the box. Good luck.
 
My .308 has a 24" barrel and I can make 1000 yards shots easily after accounting for the variables. I do have a Kestrel 4500 with applied ballistics to get the dope close. I can stay within 1 MOA for multiple shots at that range after dialing in. A 308 WILL get the job done at 1000 yards; however other calibers can do the job better with less wind drift and drop. For clarification, I am single with no kids and recently got back from a deployment; so I had $11,000 to spend for a complete system. Other people with other financial priorities (wife and/or kids) can't drop $11,000 and I get that. You just have to decide what YOU can afford not what other people tell you to spend on a system.
 
AI AT folder in 260 Rem or 6.5 Creedmoor will make you very happy. Decent FFP scope and Atlas bipod and LOTS OF PRACTICE and you'll attain your stated goals. AI AXMC 308 allows me to shoot both 308 and 260 with only one scope and bipod needed, so no need to get a second rifle later! Both platforms will shoot better than YOU! Good luck on your decision. Whatever you decide, you'll find this sport in not cheap, but neither is golf, mountain biking or motor sports.
 
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