Platform of choice for distance in .308

Seeing how the Mods were gracious enough to grant us this new forum ( Thanks Guys![Beer])
and we were told to use it:

What is your distance rig of choice in .308?
Semi or Bolt?
What mods and tweaks do you have or want?

I picked up a NIB Savage 10FCP Accutrigger with the HS Precision stock, Harris bipod, Warne steel Picatinny base that is Loctited to the receiver and Warne steel rings. I will mount my Nikon Monarch 4.5x16 Mil Dot one of these days on it.
I haven't fired it yet but I am contemplating a couple of tweaks:
1-Steel bed the action. The HS stock has the aluminum bedding block but their is actually very little contact between it and the receiver, like less than a square inch total.
2-Replace the stock recoil lug, they are a little anemic.

I have had a couple of Remingtons and a DPMS LR 308 but I seem to come back to the Savages. I have had 3 of them and have liked every one. The Accutrigger is great as is the floating bolt head.
If you are into changing calibers the barrel nut design makes swaps and headspacing easy.
I have yet to see a Savage with poor fit and finish or quality control issues.
All shot very well out of the box.
I liked my LR308 but it was a heavy SOB.

Discuss

Here is my Remington 700 LTR
http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/y..._/DSCN0485.jpg

I'm partial to the 700 action since it has defiantly been proven to me several times over in the 'ghan. I just put the AICS on it which I personally prefer over the McMillan. The McMillan is a great stock but after a Brit sniper let me get behind his L118A1 I fell in love.

It has right now:
-SS 10x
-Badger rings and base
-AICS 2.0 FDE
-stock trigger
-stock 20" barrel
-Harris bipod

Some improvements I want are:
-U.S. Optics or NF
-Jewell trigger
-18" Rock creek barrel with Badger FTE
-Atlas V8 bipod with spigot mount
-Cerakote

Maybe one day I'll win big at Cripple Creek! [ROFL1]

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BPTactical

What is your distance rig of choice in .308?
Semi or Bolt?
What mods and tweaks do you have or want?

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Are we talking ultimate wish list, or reality? My .308 is a Remington and I'm satisfied with it, but then it's a $500 rifle. If you have more like $5,000 to spend, the discussion gets much more esoteric.

I have noticed one discrepancy with the precision rifle crowd. First, they tell you to buy a Remington 700 as a first rifle because it's the standard for custom projects. The explanation given is usually something about all the aftermarket goodies available for the Rem, long history, good resale value, etc. Then, when you do plan a custom rifle, those same people will tell you not to spend all that time and money on a Remington. They'll recommend something more exotic like a Surgeon. I understand the thinking behind it all, I just find it comical.

When my current barrel finally succumbs to wear, I will spend my money upgrading the one thing that really matters to accuracy, the barrel. I'll probably not screw around with truing or blueprinting the action, I'll just put my money where it will do the most good.

I have to admit that a number of the Savages I've encountered shoot pretty well. I have a knee jerk negative reaction to them, but I think that's just brainwashing. I wouldn't fault anyone for deciding on a Savage, but I might not spend a lot of money upgrading one.

My current .308 is a Howa 1500... it shoots better than I do. I have several tweaks done to it but I don't remember them off the top of my head. I'd love to get it into the hands of someone that can actually shoot and see what it can do... any takers?

My 1000 yd gun is built from a trued rem 700. It is the only remington I own. The rest of my bolt guns are all savages. A 700 is a good precision platform once it has been trued. A savage needs no such tweaking IMO to compare. The savage has as much aftermarket support as the 700. Shoot the sucker and see if it needs any tweaks. A new recoil lug will take about 10 minutes to replace. It will probably take longer to rebed the lug than it will to replace it. Might not need it.

Swapping barrels is so easy. Once you are ready to step up a custom barrel, you'll save a couple hundred in gunsmith fees by doing it youself.

Check out savageshooters.com and sharpshootersupply.com.

I really like the Savage 10. It came with the Accu-Trigger, Accu-stock, heavy fluted barrel, and muzzle brake for $750. And it has a 4 round detachable box mag that can be converted to hold 10 rounds.

I've got a Remington 700. Glass bedded action with trigger work done by my grandfather. It has a 26" 1:12 fluted SS floated bbl and a Millett 4-16x50 TRS1 on it. Harris bi-pod. The stock isn't my favorite but my grandfather gave me this rifle so the stock has sentimental value, I'll probably keep this rifle just as it is. The thing is a shooter. With the slow twist rate I'm using 155 AMAX with 44 grn of 3031 and Federal match primers.

Once I get some money saved up I'll build another one from the ground up. I'll probably stick with the 700 action because I like it so much but I will definitely go with a stock that has more of a vertical grip on it. I actually really like the Millett glass too, it's extremely clear for the price.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5001/...801fee67_b.jpg

Here are my three .308 distance guns.

Savage 112, Premier Reticle Prepped VariXIII 6.5x20, just a light bit of stone work on the trigger, otherwise the money was spent on the scope at Premier.

M1a -- M21, only parts not GI are the Douglas Barrel, Receiver and stock. Built in 1998-99 with all new components (except receiver). Leupold M4 16x. I had this gun built by a retired Navy Armorer who'd built sniper and competition rifles for 30+ years for the military. Everything is matched, trued, torqued and ultimately over paid for.

Armalite Super SASS, Leupold Mk4 LRT 8.5x25. Just changed out the black plastic to tan for no particular reason. Initially I had a Burris XTR on it, but that's now on another rifle.

I've shot them all out to 1,000 yrds -- all of them are quite sufficient to this end.

http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...n/DSC00119.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...n/DSC00120.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...DSC00176-1.jpg

That M1A is awesome, great find. I would love to build one into a good shooter someday.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OgenRwot

That M1A is awesome, great find. I would love to build one into a good shooter someday.

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Getting that rifle built was a learning experience. I would never do it again. One the other hand, I bought the Savage at Walmart for $350.00, then spent about 3x that on optics -- which is the correct way to build a tack driver.