While I’ve been shooting AR’s, hunting rifles, shotguns and pistols for a while, I’m new to precision shooting. For the last few months I’ve been piecing together my first long range precision rig. The rifle is a Remington .308 5R. My initial impression was very favorable. The stock is very nice and the stainless steel is bead blasted to an even matte finish. At some point, I’d like to have the metal coated black. I also adjusted the X-Mark trigger to a crisp 2 lbs 12 oz.
For an optic I choose a Leupold Mark 4 6.5-20x50mm with a TMR reticle. A few weeks ago, I went to my local Nightforce dealer with the full intention of selecting a reticle and placing an order for a 5.5-22x NXS. I realize I’m in the minority, but I actually felt like the MK4 was a better fit for my needs. I recognize that the NF is a more robust optic, but the MK4 was actually as clear if not a little clearer to my eye. I also liked the TMR reticle more than any of the NF reticles. All of the above goes against all of my online research, but nonetheless, I’m really impressed with the Leupold. I mounted the scope using Seekins rings/base from Liberty Optics. They are also very impressive.
I’m still trying to wipe the smile off my face from my range trip earlier this afternoon. I handloaded several rounds of 175 gr SMK’s using Lapua brass, Varget powder, and CCI BR2’s. COL was set at 2.80". I started at 42.6 gr and went all the way up to 44.6 in .2 gr increments. All shooting was done at 100 yards. While most of the lighter groups were slightly under 1 MOA, things really started to tighten as the powder charge increased. I found my rifle’s sweet spot at 44.2 grains. Velocity was exactly what I wanted at 2,651 FPS (31 ES, 11 SD). I fired a total of four 5 round groups with this load, .529”, .842”, .524”, .886” for an average of .695”. These are great groups for me and I included two flyers in the larger groups which I know were my fault. I believe with a little more tuning and lots more practice, I’ll flirt with .5 MOA regularly (at least from a bench).
In the near future, I’m planning on joining a club in Williamsport that has a beautiful 600 and 1,000 yard range. In the mean time, I’m going to clear some brush near my pond and hopefully get 300 yards behind my house. I took some photos of today’s trip and attached below (taken with an old school POS camera). Feel free to offer any advice or constructive criticism. Like I said, I’m new to precision rifles, but I think I just started a new lifelong addiction.
For an optic I choose a Leupold Mark 4 6.5-20x50mm with a TMR reticle. A few weeks ago, I went to my local Nightforce dealer with the full intention of selecting a reticle and placing an order for a 5.5-22x NXS. I realize I’m in the minority, but I actually felt like the MK4 was a better fit for my needs. I recognize that the NF is a more robust optic, but the MK4 was actually as clear if not a little clearer to my eye. I also liked the TMR reticle more than any of the NF reticles. All of the above goes against all of my online research, but nonetheless, I’m really impressed with the Leupold. I mounted the scope using Seekins rings/base from Liberty Optics. They are also very impressive.
I’m still trying to wipe the smile off my face from my range trip earlier this afternoon. I handloaded several rounds of 175 gr SMK’s using Lapua brass, Varget powder, and CCI BR2’s. COL was set at 2.80". I started at 42.6 gr and went all the way up to 44.6 in .2 gr increments. All shooting was done at 100 yards. While most of the lighter groups were slightly under 1 MOA, things really started to tighten as the powder charge increased. I found my rifle’s sweet spot at 44.2 grains. Velocity was exactly what I wanted at 2,651 FPS (31 ES, 11 SD). I fired a total of four 5 round groups with this load, .529”, .842”, .524”, .886” for an average of .695”. These are great groups for me and I included two flyers in the larger groups which I know were my fault. I believe with a little more tuning and lots more practice, I’ll flirt with .5 MOA regularly (at least from a bench).
In the near future, I’m planning on joining a club in Williamsport that has a beautiful 600 and 1,000 yard range. In the mean time, I’m going to clear some brush near my pond and hopefully get 300 yards behind my house. I took some photos of today’s trip and attached below (taken with an old school POS camera). Feel free to offer any advice or constructive criticism. Like I said, I’m new to precision rifles, but I think I just started a new lifelong addiction.
