Need advice on choosing first Rifle

superdave24

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Nov 10, 2014
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Location
San Antonio, Texas
I am new to this sport and am looking to purchase my first hunting rifle. I want to purchase a rifle that I can not only hunt with but utilized year round and learn how to shoot long distances. What do I start with?
I have been told to buy a Remington 700 7mm-08. What about a .270 or .308? Regular barrel, bull barrel? 22" or 26"? Any thoughts / suggestions? Open to anything because all of this is a bit overwhelming.
 
Remington 700 SPS Tactical 20" .308 Win (catalog # 84207) would make a great rifle for a beginner. The .308 Win caliber is a great caliber, and the .308 barrel will last virtually forever.

Remington 700 SPS Tactical 308win $622.00 SHIPS FREE

I would definitely not skimp on getting a good scope. I would recommend the Vortex Viper scope.

Vortex Viper HS Long Range Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 4-16x 50mm Side Focus

With some low height 30mm Vortex/Seekins Precision rings...

Vortex Precision Matched Picatinny-Style Rings Matte

And an EGW HD base...

EGW 1-Piece Heavy Duty Picatinny-Style Base Remington 700

This would make a nice shooting setup for a beginner, and also for someone who was an intermediate to advanced shooter, as well. In other words "buy once, cry once", and this rifle/scope combo will grow with your skill level.
 
weight is an advantage shooting targets and long range. a rem 700 long range, rem sendero, rem 40x, savage lrp, sako heavy barrel 85. if you can hit an f-class target X-ring you can hit a deer.
 
Remington 700 SPS Tactical 20" .308 Win (catalog # 84207) would make a great rifle for a beginner. The .308 Win caliber is a great caliber, and the .308 barrel will last virtually forever.

+1. Great caliber to start with.
 
Thank you for everyone's information. What's ironic about your response is that I was at Bass Pro yesterday and after spending an hour with an associate at the gun counter another associate walked up after over hearing our conversation and this is the gun and scope he recommended.
What's the advantage or disadvantage with a regular size 24" or 26" than the bull barrel? Will this be a good gun to hunt Antelope in Wyoming?
 
Remington 700 SPS Tactical 20" .308 Win (catalog # 84207) would make a great rifle for a beginner. The .308 Win caliber is a great caliber, and the .308 barrel will last virtually forever.

Remington 700 SPS Tactical 308win $622.00 SHIPS FREE

I would definitely not skimp on getting a good scope. I would recommend the Vortex Viper scope.

Vortex Viper HS Long Range Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 4-16x 50mm Side Focus

With some low height 30mm Vortex/Seekins Precision rings...

Vortex Precision Matched Picatinny-Style Rings Matte

And an EGW HD base...

EGW 1-Piece Heavy Duty Picatinny-Style Base Remington 700

This would make a nice shooting setup for a beginner, and also for someone who was an intermediate to advanced shooter, as well. In other words "buy once, cry once", and this rifle/scope combo will grow with your skill level.

+1 you could also search around in your local Walmarts and sports shops and sometimes you can find Remington 700 ADLs for around $400 on sale. Personally I do not like the HS Long Range scope because it has 1/2 MOA elevation adjustments. When I bought my Vortex I decided on the 4-16x44 HS-T, it is basically the same scope but has 1/4inch clicks and a different reticle. Either one will work just the HS-T has finer adjustments and still plenty MOA built into it.
 
Remington 700 SPS Tactical 20" .308 Win (catalog # 84207) would make a great rifle for a beginner. The .308 Win caliber is a great caliber, and the .308 barrel will last virtually forever.

Remington 700 SPS Tactical 308win $622.00 SHIPS FREE

I would definitely not skimp on getting a good scope. I would recommend the Vortex Viper scope.

Vortex Viper HS Long Range Rifle Scope 30mm Tube 4-16x 50mm Side Focus

With some low height 30mm Vortex/Seekins Precision rings...

Vortex Precision Matched Picatinny-Style Rings Matte

And an EGW HD base...

EGW 1-Piece Heavy Duty Picatinny-Style Base Remington 700

This would make a nice shooting setup for a beginner, and also for someone who was an intermediate to advanced shooter, as well. In other words "buy once, cry once", and this rifle/scope combo will grow with your skill level.

What is a good catalog # for a Left handed shooter?
 
Thank you for everyone's information. What's ironic about your response is that I was at Bass Pro yesterday and after spending an hour with an associate at the gun counter another associate walked up after over hearing our conversation and this is the gun and scope he recommended.
What's the advantage or disadvantage with a regular size 24" or 26" than the bull barrel? Will this be a good gun to hunt Antelope in Wyoming?

The 308 would not be my first choice for antelope in Wyoming but it is certainly capable. Advantages of heavy barrels over sporter barrels when hunting antelope? The bull barrel is heavier and better suited for target or varmint hunting (like prairie dogs) where you might shoot lots of rounds in a short time. Velocity difference between 24" and 26" in a .308? not that much.
 
Lots of good suggestions here. I would add that most people just getting into the sport quickly decide to move up a bit from there first rifle, so I would consider that in advance, or just buy something rather inexpensive with the realization that you will likely sell it. If you plan on keeping it for a while, I would look at the Remington Sendero, Savage long range hunter, or something in that class.
If you don't want to quickly grow out of what you buy, and want to shoot long range with hunting application, as well as target, give some thought to what you will be hunting, and what range you will be shooting.
Recoil is a consideration for a lot of people, so keep that in mind as well. Smaller bores, lighter bullets, less case capacity, etc. all equal low recoil while the opposite is true of heavy recoil rifles. Also the weight of the rifle enters in as well as whether or not you want a muzzle brake?
It sounds to me that you are looking at a minimum of 6.5 caliber, and for now, a maximum of 30. This will give you MANY good options with good bullet selection.
You should probably stay with a factory rifle for now, at least until you are more experienced.
Here are some popular options in each caliber which have sufficient punch for long range hunting work and will double for target as well. There are of course many other good options.
6.5-284
280 Remington, 7mm SAUM, 7mm RM
300 WM, 300 WSM or SAUM
Don't sacrifice too much on your scope. If you can't see it, you can't hit it! You also want repeatable, consistent calibration. You can get a good scope for around $800.
Here are a few:
I would probably get something in the 6x-24x variable range with turrets.
Vortex Viper
Sightron SIII (my favorite)
Zeiss Conquest
There are plenty more options out there, and everyone has there favorites. Do some research considering your present and future needs. Good luck..............Rich
 
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