Action Question

[beattie buk]

Ok here's the deal, As you may guess i am new to the long range hunting thing, although its something that has interested me for years now. I have struggled with what bullet i wanted for a while but I think I will settle for a 280. I hunt primarily in Tx. but would like to be able to hunt bigger game up North if I can ever get time and money on my side. I plan on starting my first build soon and I have a few questions.
What action should I choose? (Leaning towards Remmington)
Is there a certain model thats better than the rest and why?
Is there any reason why I should stay with a 3006 which was my first choice a year or so ago?
Any insight I can get from yall would be much appreciated.

 

[J E Custom]

Ok here's the deal, As you may guess i am new to the long range hunting thing, although its something that has interested me for years now. I have struggled with what bullet i wanted for a while but I think I will settle for a 280. I hunt primarily in Tx. but would like to be able to hunt bigger game up North if I can ever get time and money on my side. I plan on starting my first build soon and I have a few questions.
What action should I choose? (Leaning towards Remmington)
Is there a certain model thats better than the rest and why?
Is there any reason why I should stay with a 3006 which was my first choice a year or so ago?
Any insight I can get from yall would be much appreciated.

The 700 Remington action is the easiest to find and has after market parts for everything.

With good smithing they are great performers.

The 280 is also a great cartridge for deer and elk at extended ranges with a very good selection
of bullets for the re loader and good factory loads also.

Recoil is a little less than the 30/06 but the performance is better in most cases except for
the larger bullets (The largest bullets for the 280 will be from 180 to 200 grains and the 30/06
can shoot 240 grain bullets.

J E CUSTOM

 

[liltank]

I am going to push you toward the Savage and Howa actions. Howa's 1500 action is used in S&W Rifles and Weatherby Vanguard. It is a Japanese version of a Mauser but is very rugged. Both actions can be fitted with after market triggers.

The Savage is nice because of the accu-trigger that can be adjusted by you. It is also convenient that you can make it a switch barrel rifle to bounce between calibers should that be something that you think you might like to do. They offer their actions as a separate item and you don't have to purchase a barrel w/ the action or a full rifle.

You have a choice of two repeating actions and 3 different target configurations. I will caution that the target actions are single shot and short actions, but they will feed casings as big as the 338 Lapua. I've shot one. They eject empties nicely and should you need to pull a loaded round you just pull the bolt which is no big deal really. There are aftermarket stocks for both, I believe the Howa is a little easier to find, but there are stocks available for the Savages when you really start looking. I have a Bell and Carlson for my Savage action. It's a very nice stock.

As far as caliber, 280 or the improved version are very nice. Like J E said there are some nice bullets out there. 30-06 was the king of long range for many years so don't count it out. To make it a feasible long range caliber you will want to stay with 180 grain bullets and up for good ballistics.

Tank

 

[roninflag]

lil tank- is a "sako" a finnish version of a mauser action?? what about a tikka? is it a finnish version of a mauser action? is a weatherby mkv a california version of a mauser action?? answer to original thread is - you can't go wrong with a remington 700 action. 30-06 has lapua brass available. either the 30-06 or the 280 are fine cartridges. roninflag.

 

[liltank]

lil tank- is a "sako" a finnish version of a mauser action?? what about a tikka? is it a finnish version of a mauser action? is a weatherby mkv a california version of a mauser action?? answer to original thread is - you can't go wrong with a remington 700 action. 30-06 has lapua brass available. either the 30-06 or the 280 are fine cartridges. roninflag.

Sure if you want to play that game! However the MKV is its own design. It is not a Mauser reproduction. Sako has their own design, and CZ has its own design. Howa is almost an exact replica of the Mauser 98. I am just not a Remmy fan and therefore put up the Howa and its pedigree, plus the Savage as my choice of action.

Question by OP: "What action should I choose? (Leaning towards Remmington) Is there a certain model thats better than the rest and why?"

I think I covered that ground in my answer!

Tank

 

[rscott5028]

I beleive that JE and Tank are both right.

Remington 700 is probably the most popular action for customizing and Savage is probably the easiest to do without using a gunsmith.

There are some very suitable/accurate/affordable production rifles available.

Remington Sendero and Savage Long Range Hunter are just 2 examples. Either of these will make a fine long range rifle out of the box and can be customized along the way.

Don't forget to add up the cost of all of your components for a long range hunting system e.g. rifle, base, mounts, scope, range finder, bipod, anemometor, backpack, etc...

Don't underestimate the value of a good scope and range finder.

Good Luck and have fun!!
Richard

 

[beattie buk]

I appreciate the feedback that I got back from you guys. Rscott2850 had said something about being able to build off of a savage action without needing a smithing work done.
I am sure that during my build I will use a gunsmith, but can yall explain in a little more detail why a remm would require more smith worh and why a savage would not?

 

[rscott5028]

Beattie Buk,

[...]can yall explain in a little more detail why a remm would require more smith worh and why a savage would not?

I can't do that topic justice. There are folks a lot better qualified to explain the details. ...and, many internet and hardbound publications that go into detail. But, here is my take on it in a nutshell.... So, please don't misconstrue my comments to suggest that you simply unscrew and screw on a new barrel.

Rem 700 is popular for customization because it's made with a relative few simple machining operations resulting in a strong yet affordable action that's easily tunable on a lathe. ...many millions sold and customized over 40+ years.

However, the barrel nut and floating bolt head design of the Savage make it such that a non-gunsmith can actually change out the barrel with good results provided that they follow the proper safety precautions to headspace, etc... Doing the job improperly can be disasterous with any firearm. But with a Savage, it can be done with basic tools to include a set of go/no-go guages.

Whereas the Rem 700 almost certainly will require a lathe to properly install a barrel although some accurazing such as floating the barrel and bedding the action is well within your capabilities. Some claim the Savage Accustock does not require bedding and the Savage accutrigger is designed for adjustment by you. For that matter, you can adjust your 700 trigger also, but whenever messing with triggers/safeties, you need to know and practice some very solid safety precautions.

Nonetheless, there are still many tuning/blueprinting tweaks for both actions that require special knowledge and tools that go beyond the do-it-yourself-er. Trueing and blueprinting may or may not be required to achieve the accuracy you desire.

Win Mod 70 on the other hand is an excellent action. But, it is apparently more complicated and expensive to work on. Many smiths specialize in specific actions and only tool up for the ones they work on. If your smith says he doesn't like Savage, or won't work on Rem, then don't try to compell him.

Hope this helps and perhaps someone can explain better or point you to specific threads and publications.

--Richard

 

[rscott5028]

American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) has some very good DVDs. I especially like the ones featuring Darrel Holland. They won't make you a gunsmith. But, they will help you understand and converse with your gunsmith.

The Shooting Beyond Belief DVD set does a decent job of showing how to float your barrel and bed your action. As well as many other tips for getting into long range shooting/hunting.

http://savageshooters.com is a wealth of information.

 

[liltank]

The one thing not mentioned, is when you change barrels, you will have to change the bolt heads which is easy. This is another feature that makes the Savage/Steves rifles so great. One action can support from 17 Fireball to 338 Lapua. Change the caliber and the bolt head and your good to go.

Tank