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My 308 bolt gun odyssey....

VSP968

Old World Asshole
Supporter
Full Member
Minuteman
I had lurked on Snipers Hide for almost a year and a half before I finally joined in October of 2004.

In the time I was lurking, I bought, in this order, a Leupold MkIV 8.5-25x50 from SWFA ( for less than $1000), a Ken Ferrell 20MOA base, some medium Leupold PRW rings and an AICS 1.5 chassis with one 5 round magazine from Impact Guns for the princely sum of $568.00 (I still have the packing slip) TAC PRO was the only other domestic AI dealer at the time and they didn’t have any OD green S/A R700 1.5s in stock. The AI chassis was the hot lick at the time and I figured if I hated it, I could always sell it here.

I didn’t even own a Remington 700 at the time, but this is how I usually do stuff, by backing into it.

I’d learned here that the only real difference at that time between the R700 PSS .308 and the R700 VS .308 was the stock and the finish. The PSS was parkerized and was in the HS precision police marksman stock and the VS was blued and was in the HS precision Varmint stock.

Everything else was exactly the same and the VS in .308 was usually about $100 cheaper than the PSS in .308 And I didn’t care about the stock because I had an AICS.....I’d sell the VS stock and bottom metal later, right? And I did, for $125.00, a few months later.

I had to drive forty miles to a Leesburg gun shop to get my VS in 308. I can’t find the sales slip but I still have the box. It is an F prefix serial number.

So I showed up a few months later at the local 1000 yard range/gun club that I had joined after zeroing my rifle at my buddies farm for my introduction to long range shooting.

FGMM 175SMKs were about $15.00 a box and I had my Schweibert Precision Ballisticards for my match ammo, one for each temperature range!

We shot steel there and I bought a 25x15 80% IPSA target that I proceeded to beat the shit out of with FGMM and M118LR. I kept copious notes in a data book that was nothing more than rite in the rain range cards in a binder. I still have them going back to 2007 for this rifle with dates, round counts, ammunition, and weather conditions. I didn’t even own a Kestrel till 2009.....

In November of 2007, with a round count of someplace around 5000 (can’t find the data pages for the factory barrel) I had a local gun plumber install a Mike Rock 1-11.27 twist tight bore (.307-.298) M40 contour 26” barrel with an OPSINC brake. I bought the barrel here on the Hide from a member in the PX. I’d already had @Hateca install one of his bolt knobs previous to having the action trued and the barrel installed. I’d also graduated to Badger Ordnance 20MOA base and rings that were bought here, from @Doorkicker, I believe. I hated the OPSINC brake so it got a Badger FTE brake. Now everybody on the firing line hated me.

I had begun to reload- there weren’t a lot of choices for match bullets, 190 and 175SMKs mostly, 178 AMAXs, 155 Lapua Scenars (going 2950FPS) and Berger 185VLDs, if you could get them to shoot for you. I never could.

Along the way, my shooting partner @sosicmcise “discovered“ density altitude and actually holds a patent for the Field Density Altitude Calculator or FDAC. I got to shoot with a bunch of guys like @Hogstooth and @EasyRhino72 and @DOC8531. Church was every Sunday on the thousand yard line.....

8000 rounds on that barrel. It was tired. And slow. I’d added a PST Gen 2 FFP scope by this time.

About eight weeks ago I contacted @LongRifles Inc. by PM. He answered all my questions about K&P barrels, his .308 “sniper“ chamber and a bunch of other shit i pestered him with. I sent him my barreled action with my Jewel trigger after completing the group buy work order.

In less than 30 days I had my test fired barreled action back from LRI with a new 25.5” ten twist K&P barrel. I knew that none of my usual 185 Berger Juggernaut target loads ( 2.920COAL over 44.1gr Varget in LCLR case) weren’t gonna fit or work. I had already decided it was time to switch brass for this new chamber and forgo my usual Lake City Long Range brass that I have over 10,000 pieces of.

@LongRifles Inc. work was flawless. I didn’t even bother to bore sight it after installing my base and rings. I used some very old FGMM 175SMK to zero the rifle at 100. The first two rounds were 2.5” low and were touching each other.

The fired Federal cases measured exactly 1.6300 when I checked head space. 185 Berger Juggernaut Target bullets had an OAL of 2.912 when I measured the chamber. Brass length measured 2.018. Fired case neck diameter was .3463.

I bought 500 pieces of 308 Lapua LRP brass right after I sent the barreled action to Chad. I wanted to make a nice soft 185 load that still had enough ass to make it to a thousand and fire form my new brass while I was getting to know my new barrel. After screwing around on Quick Load, I settled on 210m primer, 43.1gr of Varget with a COAL of 2.890. Predicted MV was 2600FPS.

Last Sunday the conditions were perfect, overcast was a DA of 300ASL.


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I’d set two 25x15 IPSAs on target point 25. One to figure out where I was and one to attempt groups. By the time I took these pics, I’d already put the Labradar away but QL was pretty close.....




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Rifle shot pretty well for a “soft slow” load. Not bad for fire form loads. I‘m used to running these bullets much faster around 2725FPS.

It was 35.5MOA to 1000yds with .5MOA left wind (That‘s 10.4 mils for you other guys), not bad for a slow loading. That’s about the elevation 175SMKs used to run with a much higher DA.


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I‘ve got some load development in my future. I’ll be ready for Church this Sunday.
 
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Awesome man. It’s nice to see you stick with one action, caliber, chassis.

Hell I’ve only been shooting a few years and I’m on my third action. Third stock, second scope, second caliber. Lol
 
Awesome man. It’s nice to see you stick with one action, caliber, chassis.

Hell I’ve only been shooting a few years and I’m on my third action. Third stock, second scope, second caliber. Lol
I agree, pretty commendable.
OP: When are you going to give up the 308 and build yourself a nice new dasher?:p



Im trying to get rid of my duplicates and overflow experimentation to get back to fewer irons in the fire.

Although I fear that Ill get bored and start building new all over again lol its a vicious cycle.
 
Glad to see another 30Hate shooter still sending em down range. Rifle is beautiful in the toughest way.
 
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I agree, pretty commendable.
OP: When are you going to give up the 308 and build yourself a nice new dasher?:p



Im trying to get rid of my duplicates and overflow experimentation to get back to fewer irons in the fire.

Although I fear that Ill get bored and start building new all over again lol its a vicious cycle.

I’ve got a 6.5CM and a 30-06 (that thinks it’s a 300WM) that look exactly like my 308.... same everything, lol.
 
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Remi 700VS and 700PSS...takes me back to the early days of my sales career, oh how the trends have changed. Glock 23’s were the hot carry pistols and Keltec P32’s were hot and in high demand.

Still have a 700 PSS....though the HS stock is long gone.