Hi all. I have perused the boards for a while now, and just recently joined up so I could ask for people's thoughts. I have been shooting all my life, but mostly hand guns, shotguns (trap, some skeet). Though I have shot rifles some my experience is limited to a friend's 300 Mag (kicks way more than I like) and my father's old 270 (which we used to hunt boar in Pakistan way back when I lived there).
My shooting desires now-a-days revolve solely around target shooting, and I find myself wanting to get a rifle to round out my shooting options and skills. I would love to get into the longer distance shooting (600yds to 1000yds) as well, though there is a distinct lack of nearby ranges for such stuff. 300 yards and under is the much more realistic distance for what I will regularly be dealing with.
I had been keenly eyeing the 22-250 as a solid choice for my needs, giving the flexibility to upgrade the rifle and components for the further stuff if my situation changes and I find myself closer to ranges which support such. I currently however do not reload. I've been pricing ammo and it seems I may well do better going with 223 for variety of factory ammo available as well as lower cost.
Budget for the rifle is under $1000, and would like to keep it on the leaner side if possible, especially as this is my first rifle and perhaps after some experience under my belt I'll have better idea of what I want or need. I love shooting iron sights (love the 10/22 sights for out to 75-100 yds, as pedestrian as the gun may be), but also enjoy scoped shooting and would plan on having a suitable scope on the rifle. In a perfect world my rifle/scope cost would fall under the $1200 realm, but that could just be a dream.
Rifles I've been looking at include (prices on some do exceed my budget but I am currently just window shopping and I could be brought to spend more for better accuracy out of the box versus the need for smithing work/costs after the initial purchase):
- Browning A-Bolt
- Cooper M22 (or just about any in the correct caliber)
- CZ 527
- Howa 1500
- Kimber 84M
- Remington 700
- Rossi Heavy Barrel (I've seen very mixed reviews on this little, super affordable rifle)
- Sako 85, 75
- Tika T3
- Thompson/Center Encore and Icon
- Savage 12 and 14s (though I still am not real clear on what the model break down is)
- Weatherby Vanguard
Mostly I had looked at the Varmint models of the above, but have not been so keen on dealing with a 9+ pound beast. Maybe I think this more of an issue than it really is as the rifle would be a range gun and not something slung over my shoulder while traipsing through the fields. Weights of the above range from just over 6 lbs (Browning) to 12 lbs (Savage Long Range Precision Varmint), with most falling in 7.5 lbs - 8.5 lbs range. Barrel lengths vary from 22" to 26", with most being 24" or 26". Rate of twist for 22-250 is almost universally 1 in 14", with the Savage and Kimber being 1 in 12". 223 rates look to be mostly 1 in 12".
So, sorry for my long winded way of getting to my questions:
1. What are peoples thoughts for the appropriate caliber for my shooting needs?
2. Opinions on, and experience with the rifles mentioned?
Thanks in advance all.
-<M>-
My shooting desires now-a-days revolve solely around target shooting, and I find myself wanting to get a rifle to round out my shooting options and skills. I would love to get into the longer distance shooting (600yds to 1000yds) as well, though there is a distinct lack of nearby ranges for such stuff. 300 yards and under is the much more realistic distance for what I will regularly be dealing with.
I had been keenly eyeing the 22-250 as a solid choice for my needs, giving the flexibility to upgrade the rifle and components for the further stuff if my situation changes and I find myself closer to ranges which support such. I currently however do not reload. I've been pricing ammo and it seems I may well do better going with 223 for variety of factory ammo available as well as lower cost.
Budget for the rifle is under $1000, and would like to keep it on the leaner side if possible, especially as this is my first rifle and perhaps after some experience under my belt I'll have better idea of what I want or need. I love shooting iron sights (love the 10/22 sights for out to 75-100 yds, as pedestrian as the gun may be), but also enjoy scoped shooting and would plan on having a suitable scope on the rifle. In a perfect world my rifle/scope cost would fall under the $1200 realm, but that could just be a dream.
Rifles I've been looking at include (prices on some do exceed my budget but I am currently just window shopping and I could be brought to spend more for better accuracy out of the box versus the need for smithing work/costs after the initial purchase):
- Browning A-Bolt
- Cooper M22 (or just about any in the correct caliber)
- CZ 527
- Howa 1500
- Kimber 84M
- Remington 700
- Rossi Heavy Barrel (I've seen very mixed reviews on this little, super affordable rifle)
- Sako 85, 75
- Tika T3
- Thompson/Center Encore and Icon
- Savage 12 and 14s (though I still am not real clear on what the model break down is)
- Weatherby Vanguard
Mostly I had looked at the Varmint models of the above, but have not been so keen on dealing with a 9+ pound beast. Maybe I think this more of an issue than it really is as the rifle would be a range gun and not something slung over my shoulder while traipsing through the fields. Weights of the above range from just over 6 lbs (Browning) to 12 lbs (Savage Long Range Precision Varmint), with most falling in 7.5 lbs - 8.5 lbs range. Barrel lengths vary from 22" to 26", with most being 24" or 26". Rate of twist for 22-250 is almost universally 1 in 14", with the Savage and Kimber being 1 in 12". 223 rates look to be mostly 1 in 12".
So, sorry for my long winded way of getting to my questions:
1. What are peoples thoughts for the appropriate caliber for my shooting needs?
2. Opinions on, and experience with the rifles mentioned?
Thanks in advance all.
-<M>-