25 years ago, when I was in basic training, I had no problems hitting the silhouettes at 327 yards with iron sights. More recently I've been enjoying going out to the desert with my nephew and plinking at junk with his .308. My eyesight isn't what it used to be, and I have no idea what range were shooting at, but it has a scope so that obviously helps. The problem I have with the .308 is the recoil, it makes it impossible for me to see where the bullets are landing.
So, that brings me to my point...
I want a rifle and optics that will wont hold me back when attempting to hit man sized targets at 1000 yards. And, I want to see where I'm hitting at through the scope, if that's even possible, so low recoil is preferred. Whether or not I can actually hit anything at that distance is my problem, I just don't want the rifle to get in my way. This is for entertainment, not competition. My budget is around $2000. The price of the ammo is definitely a concern. .338 lapua is, in my opinion, too expensive per round to plink at junk.
Here's what I've mulling over at the moment:
barrel: 24" or longer, floating and/or heavy, and stainless, nitride, or chome.
caliber: .224 valk or 6.5 creed
I need suggestions on what to get. Brand, trigger, barrel type/length, caliber, optics, etc.
I've heard nothing but great things about .224 valk, but my local Turner's doesn't carry anything in that caliber, so I would have to custom order it. That's not a deal breaker, but I would really like to hold the rifle in my hands before purchasing it to get a feel of its ergonomics and weight.
I looked at a Howa a few months ago, but didn't buy it, because the bolt handle is way too close to the scope. I would end up smashing my fingers/knuckles into the scope when loading. Maybe 1/2" clearance. Raising the scope to get clearance for the bolt handle seems like going in the wrong direction. Maybe they were paired together as a marketing gimmick. I definitely could use some advice on how to pair the optics with the rifle.
Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
So, that brings me to my point...
I want a rifle and optics that will wont hold me back when attempting to hit man sized targets at 1000 yards. And, I want to see where I'm hitting at through the scope, if that's even possible, so low recoil is preferred. Whether or not I can actually hit anything at that distance is my problem, I just don't want the rifle to get in my way. This is for entertainment, not competition. My budget is around $2000. The price of the ammo is definitely a concern. .338 lapua is, in my opinion, too expensive per round to plink at junk.
Here's what I've mulling over at the moment:
barrel: 24" or longer, floating and/or heavy, and stainless, nitride, or chome.
caliber: .224 valk or 6.5 creed
I need suggestions on what to get. Brand, trigger, barrel type/length, caliber, optics, etc.
I've heard nothing but great things about .224 valk, but my local Turner's doesn't carry anything in that caliber, so I would have to custom order it. That's not a deal breaker, but I would really like to hold the rifle in my hands before purchasing it to get a feel of its ergonomics and weight.
I looked at a Howa a few months ago, but didn't buy it, because the bolt handle is way too close to the scope. I would end up smashing my fingers/knuckles into the scope when loading. Maybe 1/2" clearance. Raising the scope to get clearance for the bolt handle seems like going in the wrong direction. Maybe they were paired together as a marketing gimmick. I definitely could use some advice on how to pair the optics with the rifle.
Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
) was a game changer as well. Now I'm not saying go out and get a .375 Cheytac because you can make the hurt go away (my .338 weighs 28 pounds and that helps too!)but there are lots of things that you can adjust that will help! Back to the caliber thing you asked about... If I was going to build a smaller long range rifle I would seriously look at the 224 Valkyrie! It's a "dead" cartridge (Federal and Horandy still have factory offering) but with 88gr ELD-Ms you have 2675 FPS (That is VERY close to the 6.5CMs spped)) and is suprisingly wind resistant. It has a G7 of .274 versus the 6.5CM 140gr at .326. Shoots almost as flat as well. At 500 yards the 140gr has 43.2" of drop and the little Valk has 47.4". 1400 yards hits are not unheard of with the little zipper!
