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New member, new rifle, special application

Md25v

Private
Full Member
Minuteman
Jul 20, 2011
4
0
45
Hey guys, this is my first post. I've been reading up on the sight for a few years and finally decided to join.

Backround- Eight years U.S. Army, six active/two reserve. Squad Designated Marksman (NOT sniper) for three years.

I have been shooting and hunting for twenty years and was just starting to compete when I was injured. I was in a car accident a little over a year ago where a drunk driver crossed into oncoming traffic and hit us head on at 65mph on a highway. I was not able to shoot for a while and have recently been having a lot of trouble with the recoil anything over a .223rem. This is a humiliation for me because I really liked my big-boom guns from 300wssm to 338lm and now that I can't shoot them I am having a hard time dealing with it. I am awaiting a third back surgery in a month and have high hopes that I will be back to shooting the big ones in another six months or so.

With all that said, I decided to get a muzzle break on a .308 savage build I was working on. I know that there is typically no reason to break a small round like a .308 but medically it is the only way I can shoot until after the surgeries are finished. I did some research and found that the JP break was one of the most effective, albeit one of the ugliest as well.


So, here is my build.
Savage 10fp
Action trued and custom recoil lug installed
Stock- B&C Tac-Medalist, bedded with devcon
Break- JP Howitzer
Rail-Badger 20MOA
Scope- Zeiss 4.5-14x50 w/custom shop turrets.

DURACOAT007.jpg


DURACOAT009.jpg


DURACOAT011.jpg


DURACOAT013.jpg



This was my first attempt at Duracoat. I mainly hunt in open hills/mountains on the East Coast so I chose a camo scheme that would blend into the wooded edges I usually shoot from.

I just finished working up a load for it with 168 Sierra Matchkings, sitting on 43.7gr of IMR-4064 in Lapua Brass with CCI-BR2 primers. Its pretty generic for a .308 load but my gun love it.

The following targets are the final groups at 300 yards with this load. One group is below 1/2MOA and the other is 1/3MOA. I had great weather for this shoot and my two shooting buddies were helping me by taking my targets down range and spotting for me while doing load development.

target1.png


target3.png


So, there it is. My intro and latest build. Hopefully I'll be able to shoot the real toys again soon and then I'll have some great pics to put up.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Welcome to the hide. Nice shooting! Sorry to hear about the accident, hope you get back to the riffles you want to shoot.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Welcome to the Hide! Thanks for your service and I hope your health gets back to normal soon so you can shoot without any problems. Very nice looking weapon and clearly it's a shooter!
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Thanks Guys!
I'm really pleased with how this one came out, especially since this is my first time with the Duracoat. I hate the look of the break on a little .308 but really thats just an ego thing. It really does work though. The recoil is no more than my rem 700 in 223. I was only able to post 300 yard groups this time because that's as far as that range goes. I will be taking it out to 800 yards on the 5th (next fri) and will post those groups when I get back.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Sounds like you found a winner, I don't think the targets or deer will complain about your brake. Good luck to you, hope all goes well.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Nice first post, pics of rifle and not one but 2 five round groups. Try 175 SMK's and Varget powder and you may like the groups you get. Good luck with the healing and take it slow.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

+1 on all of the above!! Prayers sent for you to speed your way to a full recovery so that you can get back to enjoying the big boomers (and enjoying life in general more)!!

As for the rifle...it looks great as does the performance you are getting thus far. The JP "tank" brakes are LOUD as hell, but one of the single most effective designs around for reducing recoil and muzzle jump.

Look forward to seeing your 800yd performance soon! Hang in there, brother!!
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Welcome to the brotherhood of the barrel nut
wink.gif
. Also as long as you are only shooting to 600 those 168s will do just fine. If you ever want to go further I'd highly recommend the 175smk with 2000MR or Varget. 2000MR will give you much more velocity and seams very stable. One of the guys I shoot with uses it now after I pointed him towards it and I don't think he'll ever look back in his 308.

Good luck,
Merritt
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Very nice build and good shooting. Everything you need for hunting.

Those "Sherman Tank" brakes are supposed to be very, very effective. I've not shot one, but have read they are the top performers.

Your Duracoat job looks good, too. I live in Northeast and that's the sort of woodland you need, esp. in fall.

Welcome to the 'Hide.

Cheers,

Sirhr
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

I had one of those JP brakes on a FN SPR 300 WSM, made it feel like a .223. They really work well.

Only complaint is the concussion and noise, I would definitely were some ears when hunting with that baby.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Big welcome to the Hide! You have a fine rifle there, and I hope you get back to normal soon! As others have stated, the 175 SMK is much better than the 168. Also, 155 Bergers and Lapuas work pretty darn well too. Merely a suggestion though, looks like you have a winner!

Best wishes,
-Dylan
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

I have one of those brakes on a .308, and yes, they do work very well for their purpose. However, as one poster put it, they do greatly increase the noise, so be careful when hunting.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

I'm using the 168s because I have 1000 or them that were free from a friend so I'm killing them off. I have one 250 count box of 175smk's that I use for my 300 wssm and other .308 so I'm quite familiar with them. I know SMK's are match target bullets but I've been really happy with their hunting performance as well.
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

Md25v,
Welcome to the Hide!

With your condition, have you perhaps considered the 135gr SMKs? Believe it or not they do pretty good, and the lack of recoil even without a brake is nice.

Gary
 
Re: New member, new rifle, special application

I have tried a few sub-150gr bullets but can't seem to find a load that my 1/10 twist barrel will shoot as accurately as I want. I have another 308 with a 1/12 twist and it shoots the lighter bullets great. I used to shoot competitively (100 meter benchrest) and was just moving to F-class when the accident occurred. For now, I can't handle the duration of prone shooting in a full match so I am relegated to "precision plinking" with friends. We try to go out when its windy and even raining and see how far we can hit things like golf balls and coins. My current shooting level has diminished to the point that I can only hit a golf ball at 300 yards every third shot on adv. Before the accident I would rarely miss such a close shot unless the winds were rapidly changing and I made a bad estimation.