Grandpa's first hunting rifle

[Tikka 300wsm]

Ok my grandpa is buying his first hunting rifle, he has always had guns since his days in the army but doesnt shoot very much....he wants me to pick the gun out and i have a pretty good idea but i like to hear other people's opinions....this will be used for whitetails, mulies, yotes, speed goats, and elk for him out to 300 and for me out to 600 when i shoot it....I was thinking of buying a howa 1500 barreled action in 270, 3006, or 7 mag, drop it into a b and c medalist and top it of with a vx-2 or vx-r 4-12 with the cds i want something thats really simple for him to use and i thought the cds fit the bill pretty good....he hasnt really gave me a budget other than i know its over a grand so i would say its $1200-$1500 tops....but i would like to hear your guy's opinions also so let them fly, thanks.

 

[Tikka 300wsm]

Also we dont handload eventhough i really wish we did so factory is what we got to use....if we go 7 mag i was thinking hsm/blackhills 162 amax or hornady 162 superformance, if 270 probly hornady 130/140 superformance or fed 130 trophy copper, if 06 hornady 165 superformance or fed trophy copper.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Why spend all that money? You could just buy a Remington 700 Long Range in 7mm RemMag, and it already comes in a nice B&C Tactical Medalist stock. They sell for about $699-799. Then put an EGW HD 0 MOA base (inside of 750, I don't think you'll need a 20 MOA base). Some Seekins Precision or TPS TSR rings. And a decent scope, like a Vortex Viper HS 6-24x50.

Also, check out HSM ammo that comes loaded with the Berger 168 VLD.

 

[roninflag]

a remington sendero or longrange and 168 berger.

 

[Dosh]

+1 on the 7mm mag and the 168 Bergers, a deadly accurate combination. Easy to find ammo and will easily reach both of your ranges. I'm a grandpa, for the price range that's the ticket.

 

[Tikka 300wsm]

Forgot to ad that the 1200-1500 was the toatal package.....the long range is one of the best bang for the buck guns right now and it would be a good option but its probly too heavy for him but i will definetly show it to him, i forgot to say the weight range he was wanting it had been a long day, he said he wanted lightweight but i dont want it so lightweight he cant shoot it very well so probly 8-8.5 loaded up....i can get the long range for 699 at my local cabelas so its definetly and option if its not to heavy for him and the howa barreled action and the bc stock is about the same price...cameraland still has vortex demos so i can get a good deal on those, vortex is my favorite optic brand but the cds scopes are so simple so would you go with the vx-r 4-12 or viper hs lr 4-16? Also i will check out the hsm 168 bergers, also is hsm still making the 162 amax cuz i can only find it on sniper central. Sorry for the long post

 

[roninflag]

guns last a long time. the sendero is 8.5 pounds. even though you might feel it is out of the budget. there is a sako a7 long range too.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Forgot to ad that the 1200-1500 was the toatal package.....the long range is one of the best bang for the buck guns right now and it would be a good option but its probly too heavy for him but i will definetly show it to him, i forgot to say the weight range he was wanting it had been a long day, he said he wanted lightweight but i dont want it so lightweight he cant shoot it very well so probly 8-8.5 loaded up....i can get the long range for 699 at my local cabelas so its definetly and option if its not to heavy for him and the howa barreled action and the bc stock is about the same price...cameraland still has vortex demos so i can get a good deal on those, vortex is my favorite optic brand but the cds scopes are so simple so would you go with the vx-r 4-12 or viper hs lr 4-16? Also i will check out the hsm 168 bergers, also is hsm still making the 162 amax cuz i can only find it on sniper central. Sorry for the long post

I would go with the Viper HS-LR 4-16x50.

AMax is not a very good hunting bullet for those velocities. It is very fragile. The Amax is virtually the same thing as the SST, and I've had 139gr SST's blow up on deer from a 7mm RM. We found all the deer, but after that season, I swapped to Federal P7RK ammo, and was much happier. Which, they haven't made in about 10 years. It's still some good stuff.

 

[Tikka 300wsm]

Hey mudrunner whats the p7rk i tried to find it on federals website and couldnt find it.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Hey mudrunner whats the p7rk i tried to find it on federals website and couldnt find it.

They haven't made them in about a decade... It was a factory Federal Premium round that was loaded with a 160 Barnes Triple-Shock, that was XLC (blue lubalox) coated.

They shoot awesome. They're impossible to find, unless you have, or know someone who has a stash of them.....

 

[Tikka 300wsm]

That explains why that serial # wasnt there, that blue lubalox is funky lookin, what do you think of the 160 trophy bonded tip and 150 trophy copper....i thought it was the hs lr that cameraland had still but its just the regular hs but I'll probly have him get that at $404 its too good of a deal to pass up, so now just got to figure out the gun....what do you guys think of buying the howa action at 400 and the b and c stock at 250, also do you guys think about the browning x-bolt hunter and the composite stalker.

 

[roninflag]

guns last a long time. the sendero is 8.5 pounds. even though you might feel it is out of the budget. there is a sako a7 long range too.

besides those for a lighter gun. weatherby accumark 7mm or 30-06 or.......caliber you pick no x or howa in this list.

 

[MudRunner2005]

That explains why that serial # wasnt there, that blue lubalox is funky lookin, what do you think of the 160 trophy bonded tip and 150 trophy copper....i thought it was the hs lr that cameraland had still but its just the regular hs but I'll probly have him get that at $404 its too good of a deal to pass up, so now just got to figure out the gun....what do you guys think of buying the howa action at 400 and the b and c stock at 250, also do you guys think about the browning x-bolt hunter and the composite stalker.

Don't buy the Howa, don't buy the X-Bolt... Stick with a Remington 700 if you want to be able to customize the rifle 100%.

Hey, some of the SPS rifles will really shoot right out of the box. My buddy has one in .300 WM, and with handloads, it will shoot some tight cloverleafs.

Get an SPS in 7mm RemMag (if the Long Range is too heavy), and put some good glass and a good mounting setup with a rail, and he should be fine. That would be lightweight, and useable.

 

[pods8]

For a scope you may consider a Sightron big sky as well. I have a Sightron Big Sky on one of my rigs and a VXII on another, I like the sightron better (coated class and rezeroable dials under the caps). They are similar weight to the Leupold thus both are lighter than Vortex HS line if you're trying to limit how much weight you add with the scope.