new member, gun question

[ksukid]

hey everybody,
I'm a new member here and i'm looking at getting a savage Model: 25 LV-T in the .223 cal.

Just wondering what everybody thought about this gun. Any information your would be awesome.

Love this site by the way!

 

[Chas1]

Welcome, glad to have you here. Lots of good folks and lots of good info. Enjoy.

 

[trebark]

hey everybody,
I'm a new member here and i'm looking at getting a savage Model: 25 LV-T in the .223 cal.

Just wondering what everybody thought about this gun. Any information your would be awesome.

Love this site by the way!

ksukid:
In terms of a rifle manufacturer, Savage is a good choice. If you want to shoot long range, I would encourage you to choose a larger caliber cartridge though. The 223 is nice, but the rate of twist in most factory barrels is too slow. Typically factory barrels have a 1:10 or 1:12 twist and the heaviest bullet they will shoot is about 62 grains. My 223 has a 12 twist and it shoots the 50 grain bullets really well. Beyond 400 yards though accuracy comes apart. In order to shoot long range with a 223 you need a 1:7 or 1:8 twist barrel so you can shoot the 80+ grain bullets. Check out this article about shooting the 223 at long range:

Shooting A 223 Rifle To A Mile Accurately

Generally speaking, caliber/cartridge choice is driven by intended use. Because your initial choice is 223, I would assume your intended use is varmints and/or targets. If that's the case, I would encourage you to look at the various 6mm (.243) and 6.5mm (.264) cartridges. Both of these calibers offer heavy bullets with great ballistic coefficients (BC).

As an example, I've just ordered my next custom rifle. It will be a 260Rem and I intend to shoot 140grain VLD bullets (BC = .612) at 2800fps. This load will shoot varmints at about as far as I can see and take deer at 600 yards.

 

[ksukid]

trebark, thank you.

the savage model i listed above has a 24" heavy barrel with a 1 in 9" twist.

this gun will mainly be used for coyotes and paper shooting. really dont know how far i will be shooting. hopefully working out to 700+ yards.

 

[Chas1]

223 at a mile. Good read, thanks for posting.

 

[trebark]

trebark, thank you.

the savage model i listed above has a 24" heavy barrel with a 1 in 9" twist.

this gun will mainly be used for coyotes and paper shooting. really dont know how far i will be shooting. hopefully working out to 700+ yards.

ok - I'll press you just one time....what's got you so hooked on the 223? With a 9 twist 223 you will be able to shoot 73grain bullets with a BC of .373. This would limit the distance you could shoot and you would have to deal with tremendous wind drift.

If you were choose one of the 6mm's, like a 243Win in the Rem700SPS Varmint

http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire/model-700/model-700-sps-varmint.aspx)

It comes with a 26", 9 twist barrel which means you could shoot 95/100 grain bullets with BCs in the .480 class. With the 243 you could shoot varmints/targets as far as you can see and with the heavier, higher BC bullet you would have a lot less wind drift.

I'll admit the 223 is nice. I have one. But it's pretty much relegated to being shot by my 12 year old niece these days because it has almost no recoil. When I couldn't shoot 600 yards with it, I bought a 308. And now I'm having a custom 260 built.

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f53/my-308-1k-rifle-evolution-continues-43510/

I'm not trying to be argumentative, I just sounds as though you will be wanting to shoot pretty far and I think you will have greater success shooting a larger caliber cartridge than the 223.

 

[Chas1]

Since you didn't ask for any other caliber advice I figured I'd keep quiet but, since trebark has brought it up I guess I too will throw my 2 cents in. You mentioned 700+ yards and once your there well... you'll want to go further...it's seems to me that's how it goes. If your really set on 223...go for it but, if not then +1 w/trebark especially 243 great bullet selection, availability of ammo and rifles, inexpensive, easy to reload, practically no recoil, great barrel life on and on. Either way let us know what you go with. Enjoy.

 

[ksukid]

on of my main reasons for going with the 223 is that my dad has a ton of bass for the 223 already. i plan on reloading most of the time and so i already have everything i need for starting out, besides bullets and powder. I'm also going to college so i'm trying to keep the cost down as much as possible.

i'm not trying to be hard headed. i'm really enjoying all the information you guys are throwing out about this.

Thanks.

 

[Chas1]

Don't worry about anyone thinking your hardheaded...I don't see it that way. Sounds like you have alot of the reloading cost already covered and if your choice is the 223...then great.

If you hang around here long enough you'll get to see folks who would as the saying goes fight to the death defending a beloved caliber or gun or scope or pet load and so on. We're all that way...at least I am at times and that's good because during those debates alot of valuable info is shared and learned...but at the end of the day what's most important to me is that I've maintained a comradery with these gentlemen.

 

[ksukid]

thanks for the great advice.

also any ideas on a great scope? i would like to keep the cost fairly low but having a very clear scope is first to everything else.

 

[Chas1]

What price range were you thinking of and what power and reticle?

 

[ksukid]

i was looking for a scope somewhere around 15X variable power. multi-dot or straight cross hairs. not really sure. i would like to keep it under $350 if i can

i've been looking at the Nikon Buckmasters Rifle Scope 4.5-14x 40mm

 

[Chas1]

The Nikon Buckmaster 4.5-14 is a good choice as are the Nikon Monarch Series. You may also want to take a look at the Bushnell Elite 3200 and 4200 tactical's. I prefer fine reticle.

 

[ksukid]

alright thanks for the great advice