Is the Sendero SF II a good start on a LR rig ?

[Overkill338]

I just ordered a Sendero in .300 RUM, to use for long target work, and hunting over corn fields. I'm just wondering if it is a good starter rig for long range work, I mean I know it's no custom Lapua. I already own and shoot a 7mm Rem Mag, .300 Win Mag and .338 Win Mag, so recoil is a non-issue to me.

I also wanted to know about using the 220 and 240gr Matchkings in the 1 in 10 twist barrel. I've already got a can of Retumbo waiting.

Lastly, is bedding the action worth it on these rifles ?

Thanks in advance

 

[MontanaRifleman]

I just ordered a Sendero in .300 RUM, to use for long target work, and hunting over corn fields. I'm just wondering if it is a good starter rig for long range work, I mean I know it's no custom Lapua. I already own and shoot a 7mm Rem Mag, .300 Win Mag and .338 Win Mag, so recoil is a non-issue to me.

I also wanted to know about using the 220 and 240gr Matchkings in the 1 in 10 twist barrel. I've already got a can of Retumbo waiting.

Lastly, is bedding the action worth it on these rifles ?

Thanks in advance

Tang, I have bought two used of the older SF's and they are great shooters. One in 25-06 and the other 300 RUM. Retumbo should be a great powder and maybe the most popular for the 300 RUM. I'm using it and it is working well with 180 E-Tips, 200 AB's and 210 Bergers. I think the Sendoro is a great starter and if you get a good one it will rival most custom rifles out of the box.

My thoughts on bedding... I'm waiting on that. Right now I'm getting sub 1/2 MOA past 400 yds. I'm not sure that I need a bedding job or how it might effect the rifle. It's possible but hard to improve of what I've got now and I think i can get it a little tighter with a little more load tuning. I have found out you need to keep the bedding clean and dry for good solid contact. I've also found out that precise and consistant handloading is critical. I also use a slip-on recoil pad at the range which lets me shoot it all day. I think you'll find the recoil sharper than your 338 WM. It uses significantly more powder and creates significantly higher velocities for the same weight bullet. You will know it when you break the trigger

I dont use the SMK's but the 10 twist should work fine for the 220 and I think for the 240. Maybe someone else will chime in on that.

Good shooting and keep us posted, always interested in hereing how the other 300 ultra shooters are doing.

Best,

Mark

 

[7mmSendaro]

On my Sendero, I skim bedded the top and actually hogged some material out to totally bed the recoil lug. the bedding seemed to improve day to day consistency in the rifle.

 

[Overkill338]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm anxious to get it here. Now if I can just talk the wife into buying me a Zeiss for Christmas

Bullets I will try, are the 200gr AB's, 210 VLD, 220 SMK and 208 A-Max. I see no reason to even venture down to the 150's and 165's with the RUM. I will probably use a Slip-On Limbsaver at the range.

 

[MagnumManiac]

Tang,
I built my LRH rifle on a SenederoII, mines in 300WinMag but with a modified chamber.
I skim bedded the action and recoil lug, and bedded the first 2" of barrel as well. It runs a Jewel trigger and PT&G S/S bottom metal.

It is a very sturdy and solid platform for serious accuracy work straight out of the box, but as with all things they can be improved upon.
I believe you'll be very happy with your new SenderoII!
Cheers.
gun)

 

[Overkill338]

Tang,
I built my LRH rifle on a SenederoII, mines in 300WinMag but with a modified chamber.
I skim bedded the action and recoil lug, and bedded the first 2" of barrel as well. It runs a Jewel trigger and PT&G S/S bottom metal.

It is a very sturdy and solid platform for serious accuracy work straight out of the box, but as with all things they can be improved upon.
I believe you'll be very happy with your new SenderoII!
Cheers.
gun)

Im like a kid waiting on christmas. He will order it on Monday and I'll have it by Wed. . Sucks that I got to stick a Bushnell 6-24x40 on it for right now though. I am curious how long the Banner will live on the Ultra though. I figure it will be good enough for load work at 100 yards.

Anybody have an idea where I can get some brass ?

 

[MontanaRifleman]

The local Wholesale Sports (formerly Sportsaman's Warehouse) had some Rem Brass in for $50 per bag of 50. You might try Cabella's or Midway or a few of the other online stores. I was actually thinking about advertising in the local rag for once fired brass. I would almost rather have that than the new.

Not sure that Bushnell will hold up very long, do you have any other scopes? Whats on your other mags?

 

[Overkill338]

The local Wholesale Sports (formerly Sportsaman's Warehouse) had some Rem Brass in for $50 per bag of 50. You might try Cabella's or Midway or a few of the other online stores. I was actually thinking about advertising in the local rag for once fired brass. I would almost rather have that than the new.

Not sure that Bushnell will hold up very long, do you have any other scopes? Whats on your other mags?

Leupold on the .338, Bushnell Trophy on the .300 Win Mag, and a Simmons Aetec on the 7mm Rem Mag.

With the holidays so close, I just can't dump a lot into the scope just yet. I would use the Leupold, but it is only a 3-9x40. I want more zoom. Would love to get a Nightforce for it.

 

[MontanaRifleman]

I have a NF on mine and love it.

This is the way I look it. I might be wrong but I think the 300 RUM will trash your Banner pretty quick . Maybe 20 rounds, maybe 1 or 2. Then you'll be putting on your Leupold anyway and you will be less one scope plus the wasted time of messing around with it and lost rounds down range. 9x isn't ideal for 1000 yd shooting but with good glass it should do fine. You could use it for your load development and wait a save for a NF or whatever. It took me over a year to get all my pieces together. You should also consider getting an anti cant bubble level. I used one for the first time when mounting the NF to my 300. It was a real eye opener in that it showed me that my guestimation of a plumb sightline was rarely accurate. That makes a big difference at long ranges.

Mark

 

[Overkill338]

Thanks, I'll look into the bubble levels.

 

[Overkill338]

What is your first choice of bullet for strictly punching paper ?


....and did you guys with Senderos do any break in ?

 

[MontanaRifleman]

For strictley punching paper, the Bergers, JLK's or SMK's will probably be the best choice, which ever shoots best in your rifle. 180 E-Tips actually seem to be doing as well as the Bergers in mine. AB's show good promise in mine but ran out before I could get much in the way of accuracy results. Waiting for more to come in.

You'll get different opinions on break-in. I will always break-in a barrel. It has reduced fouling in the barrels I've done it in. My Senderos were used. The 300 RUM only had 20 rounds through it but it is a fouler. I think it may have expeienced some corrosion/pitting - it was about 3 years old. Don't know how many rounds the 25-06 had, but the first time I cleaned it, it took 5 days to get all the copper out. 4 Days of soaking with Wipeout, 4-8 hrs per soaking. I had it borescoped and it was firecracked from the throat to the muzzle. The Smith didn't know how I could hit anything with it. It's still shooting well though.

I thoroughly cleaned both completely free of copper and broke them in using a product called juice which is supposed to lay down a protective layer in the bore that can not be removed other than very high temps. It's also supposed to increase velocity. I cleaned all copper out between each shot of the 300 and applied Gun Juice before each shot for a little more than 20 rounds. For the 26-06 I cleaned some copper out (not all) for the first 6 or 7 rounds and then most copper after that. The idea was to "seal" copper in the cracks in the bore with the Gun Juice. Did the break in for a total of probably about 30 rounds in it. Very, very time consuming and tedious with these bores which needed a lot of attention. It reduced the fouling in each. The 25-06 can be cleaned by Bore Tech Eliminator in a couple of hours with 20-30 min soakings followed by one or two Wipeout soakings. The 300 is a little easier but it's still a fouler. They both seem to last about 60-70 rounds before accuracy starts falling off. The last I cleaned the 300 it took about 5 fowler rounds to settle it in. The 25-06 is still shooting very well after about 250 rounds after being borescoped.

IMO, a good break-in should work out some or most of the roughness in a factory barrel.

BTW, I'm glad I'm starting with a factory barrel. It's been a big learning curve and by the time I burn this one and get a custom match barrel, I might have a clue what I'm doing

 

[bigbuck]

I had good luck with the 208 AMAX and sierra 210 matchkings . In my opinion now I would reccomend 210 Bergers for punching paper and hunting. I think in the end you would be very happy with any one of these three.Keep us posted on how your load dev. turns out and what you decided to go with.

Bigbuck

 

[Overkill338]

I will definetly be posting a lot. It was reading posts here that inspired me to go with a .300 RUM over a .300 Win Mag in the Sendero. I really like Accubonds in almost any caliber. So I will probably start there.