Opinions wanted for first bolt action rifle

Oly

Jan 2009
31
0
Thurston County, Washington
I'm looking at buying my first bolt action rifle and have done some reading on the subject. I'm leaning toward a Savage .308. Some folks I've talked to have suggested 30-06 as "the best" all around rifle. I was leaning toward the above manufacturer as they aren't too expensive.

Don't have a pic but the model is 11FXP3 (short action comes with an o.k. scope)

Any opinions or suggestions???
 
Jan 2009
870
0
Lynnwood, WA
I like my .30-06 but with ~18" of bullet drop at 300 yards....make the call for yourself.

look into tikka's too.
 
Jan 2009
371
0
Washington on the wet side
My Dream Rifle

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Jan 2009
870
0
Lynnwood, WA
^my tikka cost ~$700, with the scope, and it was guaranteed to shoot within a minute of angle.


Oly, what are you planning on using it for? Hunting? Plinking? Long range targets? Short Range targets? Competition shooting?
 

Oly

Jan 2009
31
0
Thurston County, Washington
I like my .30-06 but with ~18" of bullet drop at 300 yards....make the call for yourself.

look into tikka's too.

I have heard that as well and that's what moved me more toward the .308
 

Oly

Jan 2009
31
0
Thurston County, Washington
^my tikka cost ~$700, with the scope, and it was guaranteed to shoot within a minute of angle.


Oly, what are you planning on using it for? Hunting? Plinking? Long range targets? Short Range targets? Competition shooting?

Probably B and C. I don;t have anything that will shoot at distance right now and it would be nice to have.
 
Jan 2009
25
0
Bremerton, Wa
I shot .308 in the service. I'm partial to either a model 700 Remington or a Model 70 Winchester. Accuracy will depend on how the weapon is setup, ammo, weather, and you. Buy the best optics you can afford. Do not be fooled by the bells and whistles. Buy a good, solid, scope. I am partial to Mil Dot reticals.
 
Jan 2009
870
0
Lynnwood, WA
Probably B and C. I don;t have anything that will shoot at distance right now and it would be nice to have.

well, define distance? 100? 200? 300? 1500 yards?

also, if you are looking for a hunting rifle, you'll want a nice, light rifle, with more than enough power, as you'll be shooting it once or twice at a time.

if you are looking for a target rifle, you'll want a heavier barrel, and a heavier gun to match. Possibly even with a smaller caliber. There are lots of smaller, flat-shooting, calibers out there. This will have less recoil so you can shoot more without hurting your shoulder too much.

My .30-06 is a LIGHT gun, with a LIGHT barrel and it kicks like a MULE. Any more than 15-20 shells and I'm hurting. Your mileage may vary...
 
Jan 2009
29
0
wa
i would not buy a package deal rifle plus scope, my reasoning behind it, normally the scopes that come with rifles are low end or clearance type scopes nobody buys. spend the money and get the best rifle you can and the best scope you can afford or save your money and wait until you can affored to buy a good scope you will be money ahead when you realize that what you have purchased isnt what you really wanted. and there are many good calibers of rifles out there as well as manufactures. do a little research into what you want your rifle to do and then go from there. i personally have sako, remington, savage, nef, kimber and am happy with all of them, they suit the purpose they were intended for.
 
Jan 2009
870
0
Lynnwood, WA
i would not buy a package deal rifle plus scope, my reasoning behind it, normally the scopes that come with rifles are low end or clearance type scopes nobody buys. spend the money and get the best rifle you can and the best scope you can afford or save your money and wait until you can affored to buy a good scope you will be money ahead when you realize that what you have purchased isnt what you really wanted. and there are many good calibers of rifles out there as well as manufactures. do a little research into what you want your rifle to do and then go from there. i personally have sako, remington, savage, nef, kimber and am happy with all of them, they suit the purpose they were intended for.

+1 to that!
 
Jan 2009
196
0
Marysville, WA
Another +1 to Roland. The actual rifle doesn't matter so much (as long as it's decent quality), but the scope is what makes the package. Save up for the scope, then buy the rifle.

Everything I've read about Savages indicates they are a fantastic bargain for what you get, and have great triggers. Tikkas are very nice too - my brother-in-law has one in 300WM and loves it.

Caliber - 30-06 ammo is plentiful, and if ammo ever got really scarce, 30-06 would probably be salvagable. But .308 is also very prolific, and has way better ballistics. I'd go .308. If you want even more performance, there are several newer rounds out there too (7mm, 300winmag, 300WSSM, etc.).
 
Jan 2009
8
0
spokane
My buddy has a Rem 770 and it is a pretty good distance rifle. We were having no problems hitting 1000 yds with it. But people are absolutley right about a scope, its a very important piece when buying a rifle.
 
Jan 2009
370
0
Washington
Another +1 to Roland. Skip the "combo" stuff. The scopes are mostly junk.

For my .22 setup, the scope was the same price as the rifle. Crazy? Probably so. But I guarantee you that I'll never have to put another scope on it. And at 110 yards I can shoot the center out of a clay target. (I need smaller targets to practice with... lol)
 
Jan 2009
371
0
Spokane
Another +1 to Roland. Skip the "combo" stuff. The scopes are mostly junk.

For my .22 setup, the scope was the same price as the rifle. Crazy? Probably so. But I guarantee you that I'll never have to put another scope on it. And at 110 yards I can shoot the center out of a clay target. (I need smaller targets to practice with... lol)

use shotgun shells and shoot at the primer.

DSCF0195.jpg
 
Jan 2009
38
0
Beaverton, OR
I'm looking at buying my first bolt action rifle and have done some reading on the subject. I'm leaning toward a Savage .308. Some folks I've talked to have suggested 30-06 as "the best" all around rifle. I was leaning toward the above manufacturer as they aren't too expensive.

Don't have a pic but the model is 11FXP3 (short action comes with an o.k. scope)

Any opinions or suggestions???

The savages are nice guns, I'd defineatly stay away from a rifle scope combo. What you buy really depends on what you can afford. I'd go with 308 or 300 win mag as they're easy to find ammo for, and they are most common for long distance shooters and snipers. Personaly i'd look for a used remington model 700 sps tactical. It comes with a good barrel, better trigger, some action bedding, a nice houge stock, and looks cool with the tactical black finish. There's one for sale at my local range with a nice leopold scope for i think 700 obo.
 
Jan 2009
84
0
Puget Sound, Wa.
I keep it simple- I bought a FR8 Mauser with a scout scope in 7.62x51mm (NATO).

"Low and Slow" :devil:

FR-8-1.jpg
 
Mar 2009
86
0
Kent
I have a spanish mauser, turkish mauser, italian carcano and an Enfield eddystone.
Military surplus rifles are fun and still fairly cheap.

Last weekend at Paul Bunyan range on saouth hill, I nailed the Gong in the tires a couple few times with them on open iron sights. now thats fun!
 
Oct 2009
3
0
Ojai, CA
I'm looking at buying my first bolt action rifle and have done some reading on the subject. I'm leaning toward a Savage .308. Some folks I've talked to have suggested 30-06 as "the best" all around rifle. I was leaning toward the above manufacturer as they aren't too expensive.

Don't have a pic but the model is 11FXP3 (short action comes with an o.k. scope)

Any opinions or suggestions???

I am new to this site but I can throw my two cents on the table. My first real rifle experience was 7.62 MCRD San Diego(1971). I surprised myself as well as all of the range officers. I received the series "High Shooter" award, that was with open sights... no scope. So naturally I had an instant bond. It is a well respected caliber and popular enough so ammo is readily available and reasonably priced, uh.. barely reasonable. A good friend of mine reloads many calibers so if I keep him supplied with coffee I can get a fair price :cool: I tend to lean toward distance and accuracy... duh. So, it does depend on where you want to be with your shooting, target, hunting, brush country, mountains?
 
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