Looking for a decent rifle

[Shami-Amourae]

I currently don't own a long range weapon and have been wanting to get one. I need something that is California legal, but also is kickass anywhere else. A family friend suggested I get a 30'06 rifle (and add a scope.) I looked online and heard the Winchester Model 70 is a good gun for this caliber. What are your thoughts/suggestions?

Thank you.

[Dogman]

Winchester makes some fine rifles and the model 70 is one of them. There is one company that has been around that makes some of the most accurate 'Out of the box" rifles on the market today, at very good prices. That at least when I bought mine a model 12bvss that is a tack driver. Every rifle I have owned made by them were good across every caliber they shot.

The caliber depends on what you want to do/shoot with the gun.

Take a look at the Savage Arms co. http://www.savagearms.com/


The .30.06 is a good round, but the .308 has almost identical ballistics.

[k-os]

Right on, Shami-Amourae! Once you get your rifle, you really should checkout Project Appleseed. You can't beat the price, and the training is awesome.

[Katmandu]

Take a look at the M1 Garand through the CMP program.
http://www.odcmp.com/Sales/m1garand.htm

Or, for on the inexpensive side: Mosin Nagant.

[SLV^GLD]

All good suggestions, throwing Remington 700 on the heap.

[Dogman]

All good suggestions, throwing Remington 700 on the heap. Had a Remington 40x in .308 that was awesome, was sorry to let that one go.

[Katmandu]

All good suggestions, throwing Remington 700 on the heap.

Yes, love the Remington 722 in .308.

[hoarder]

I'd go with a Ruger in .308. Savage, Winchester and Remington do not have integral scope bases, IOW, they have 4 tiny threaded holes on which you can add bases for scope rings, as though a scope was just an afterthought in the design of the rifle. Sako is another rifle that has integral bases, but costs a little more.

Any rifle you buy will need a custom trigger added.

[Gaillo]

8 replies, 13 opinions! ;D

Look into a bolt-action Tikka T3 in .308 Win., or (if you plan on reloading) .260 Rem or 6.5x55 Swede. The latter two are ballistic twins, with superior ballistics to the .308 Win. The .260 Rem. is a .308 Win. cartridge necked down to 6.5mm.

I have SAKO (high-end Tikka) in .260 Rem., and it's undoubtably my favorite rile.

[Dogman]

8 replies, 13 opinions! ;D

Look into a bolt-action Tikka in .308 Win., or (if you plan on reloading) .260 Rem or 6.5x55 Swede. The latter two are ballistic twins, with superior ballistics to the .308 Win. When talking guns and ammo, would you or do you expect anything less?


;D

[Heimdhal]

What do you want to do with this rifle, besides "Long range"? What do you consider "long range" and what are you engaging at these ranges?




:)

[Gaillo]

What do you want to do with this rifle, besides "Long range"? What do you consider "long range" and what are you engaging at these ranges?

:)

Ah c'mon! Everyone here knows that "long range" is a codeword for 2-legged varmints! ;D

[steyr_m]

I currently don't own a long range weapon and have been wanting to get one. I need something that is California legal, but also is kickass anywhere else. A family friend suggested I get a 30'06 rifle (and add a scope.) I looked online and heard the Winchester Model 70 is a good gun for this caliber. What are your thoughts/suggestions?

Thank you.

Swedish [or K98k if you can find one in good shape] Mauser, Mosen Nagant.

[SWRichmond]

OMgoodness. Please define "long range." To some, 400 or 600 yards is "long range," to others, that is midrange. Please describe your experience with rifles and riflery. Please describe your intended use. Please describe whether or not you intend this thing as a hunting arm (carried long distances) and thus your tolerance for weight. Please describe your price point for rifle, scope, and ammo. Do you want to be able to hit things are 1,000 yards? Paper punching or "deer-sized game" (how much downrange energy do you want / need?)? How much time and money do you have for practice?

Long range suggestions:

AI Arctic Warfare: http://www.accuracyinternational.com/aw_series.php

GA Precision Hospitaler: http://www.gaprecision.net/ga-precision-2012-custom-rifles/ga-precision-hospitaller.html



Optics:

USOptics 3.2X17 with EREK (pick your reticle choice) : http://www.opticsplanet.com/us-optics-3-2-17x44-mm-sn3-t-pal-parallax-riflescope-with-erek-knob.html

IOR 3X18X42 (FFP, zero stop, illuminated reticle): http://swfa.com/IOR-3-18x42-SH-X1-Tactical-35mm-Rifle-Scope-P53850.aspx


Endless equipment talk, lots of sponsored shooters, take all advice with a grain of salt: http://www.snipershide.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=cfrm

[midnight rambler]

Not as cheap nor as 'simple' as a bolt gun, but a helluva LOT more versatile - a M1A Springfield, or for considerably more, a LRB M-14 receiver built with USGI parts and a Kreiger barrel. Takes optics (night vision anyone?) whereas the Garand not so much.

I would never advise anyone to bring a bolt gun to a fight, that's just dumb.

http://www.ajcgunshop.com/images/product/large/27446.jpg

[LuckyStrike]

I don't know what is legal in your state, but I was in your same situation a while back where I didn't own a rifle that could hit accurately past 150yds. I ended up going with a DSA FAL and couldn't be happier quality is superb and the .308 is a fantastic all around round.

IMO the FAL is the best of all worlds, reliability like an AK and accuracy like an AR, and superior stopping power to both.

[midnight rambler]

I don't know what is legal in your state, but I was in your same situation a while back where I didn't own a rifle that could hit accurately past 150yds. I ended up going with a DSA FAL and couldn't be happier quality is superb and the .308 is a fantastic all around round.

IMO the FAL is the best of all worlds, reliability like an AK and accuracy like an AR, and superior stopping power to both.

You're right about the FAL, except regarding the accuracy part. If you got a FAL which shoots MOA or better then you lucked out. Getting a very accurate FAL, even when built by the best using the very finest available parts (such as a mint StG58 surplus parts set on a new Imbel receiver) is a crap shoot, you could end up with a 2 MOA rifle (this according to T. Mark Graham aka The Gunplumber when I looked into him building a FAL for me after selling my last G series FAL - he would not guarantee anything regarding accuracy).

[LuckyStrike]

You're right about the FAL, except regarding the accuracy part. If you got a FAL which shoots MOA or better then you lucked out. Getting a very accurate FAL, even when built by the best using the very finest available parts (such as a mint StG58 surplus parts set on a new Imbel receiver) is a crap shoot, you could end up with a 2 MOA rifle (this according to T. Mark Graham aka The Gunplumber when I looked into him building a FAL for me after selling my last G series FAL - he would not guarantee anything regarding accuracy).

If 99% of people get a DSA FAL, the gun will not be the weak link the equation.

[midnight rambler]

If 99% of people get a DSA FAL, the gun will not be the weak link the equation.

Right, the FAL has 'AK reliability', no doubt about it. If anyone doubts this they should go read 'The Tale of Ol' Dirty' on the FAL Files forum, 16,000 rounds, never cleaned, and still going - http://www.falfiles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68486&page=8

However when it comes to consistent accuracy, the M1A/M-14 edges out the FAL, as just about any M1A can be tweaked to sub-MOA relatively inexpensively and is generally a better optics platform than the FAL (which is why I switched from the FAL to the M1A).