Hello good people, hey buddy there is a lot of good out there these good people are all talking good firearms, I have two ruger American, awsome. But for what you are looking at for this one, I would look at the Bergara this is an amazing Rifle out of the box. Good luck.
Premium Production Rifles Worth It?
- Thread starter MoreSalsa
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
Trooper1
Well-Known Member
I agree with SKnox on the scope upgrade. Nothing wrong with your '06. My opinion, and worth what you paid for it - Invest your money in good optics. A mediocre rifle with a great scope is much better than a high dollar rifle with a mediocre scope. I don't own an '06, but there's nothing on this continent it won't work on, with the exception of Alaskan bears. Less recoil? Use a lighter but well constructed bullet.
Maybe upgrade your stock too, but I'd spend my money on great glass.
Maybe upgrade your stock too, but I'd spend my money on great glass.
My Browning Mountain Ti in 7mm WSM weighs 5.5 lbs, and shoots 1" groups at 100 yards. No point in buying a light rifle and putting heavy mounts and scopes. I put Talley aluminum rings and a Leupold 3.5x10 (13 oz.) on it. If you really want to go light, go with a 2x7 Compact (9 oz.). I made a 340 yard shot on an elk usig the 2x7, but had sighted an elk earlier at 400, and wished for a bit more power. I'd buy a .270 WSM if I had it to do over again. Easier to find brass, and they make good B.C. bullets for it now. I use a homemade Safari sling (with no hardware) so my entire outfit weighs under 6.5. It is a joy to carry. The thin barrel isn't a problem if you hit where you aim on the first shot, or even the second. If you need more than that you're probably not close enough.
When you backpack in, your shots tend to be closer because the game isn't used to hunters. I try to find a roadless area where the horse packers don't tend to go.
I have a Kifari Tipi tent with a wood stove for really cold weather (11 lbs.) , but most hunts I use a Go Lite Lair (13 oz).
When you backpack in, your shots tend to be closer because the game isn't used to hunters. I try to find a roadless area where the horse packers don't tend to go.
I have a Kifari Tipi tent with a wood stove for really cold weather (11 lbs.) , but most hunts I use a Go Lite Lair (13 oz).
I would say the first 2 things you are going to see in the rifles in the 1300-2000 dollar price range is going to be the stock, trigger and longer barrel at equally light weight.
Most rifles in the $550-$1250 price range focus on the barrel an other features like threaded muzzles or soft touch stocks or cericoat. The name of the game for ties in this lower price range is out of the box MOA accuracy with most factory ammo. They also struggle to make a gun in this price range lightweight with out chopping the barrel below 24". There are some lightweight guns in this class but most show up with 20-22" barrels. There are a few exceptions to these rules however (Tikka T3X, Winchester XPR) but while both guns are light weight and have 24 or 26" barrels (and the Tikka has an awesome trigger) they both suffer from cheesey stock syndrome.
By stepping up to the 1500 or 1700 class of rifle you may find something with a very solid stock, long barrel, and good trigger. Often these guns come with a carbon fiber stock, and match grade trigger. The easiest way to put it is to say that while accuracy is attainable at the $550 price point, attaining accuracy at the $1700 price point CAN BE easier as there are less things you have to "fiddle with." Last January I bought a Tikka stainless hunter for $900. Beautiful gun but it shot federal ammo into 2.5". I remover the action from the wood stock and found that the recoil lug was loose and there wasn't really much of a good connection between the action and the stock. I made 2 aluminum pillars for it on my lathe and bedded the action and recoil lug with Brownells accraglass ($14). Now it shoots my hand loads into 3/8". I could have just bought a Christensen Mesa or ridge and avoided all that but I choose to save $800 and just go with the accraglass. I choose the wood stock because I planned on bedding it and I new the wood stock would be easier for me to work with.
Bottom line, if I didn't have a lathe or want to mess with bedding the action. If a gunsmith is going to charge you $300-$400 to "accurize" your $1000 gun and it will be at the shop for a month why not just buy a sako/Christensen/Bergara (premier) and have your nice accurate rifle NOW with no fiddling around with stocks or triggers.
Example1 the sako S20 right now has a rebate going where if you buy the S20 hunter you can send a copy of your receipt and revive a free S20 precision stock. My brother bought that gun and it's first group out of the box without break in was the size of a dime. The S20 is regularly $1600-$1700.
Example2 the Bergara premier mountain 2.0 at 6.2-6.4 lb in 6.5creedmoor or PRC it will do everything exactly that you want. Comes with a Bergara barrel, the gun is hand built in Lawrenceville Georgia and it features an AG composite carbon fiber stock and a trigger tech trigger. For the price of $1900-$2100 you could not build this gun for that price.
I would stay away from Kimber as there isn't really much value for the price, except you get basically a blueprint win m70 action.
The average savage 110/10/111 will absolutely do everything you want it to do I'd pick the storm model with the aluminum bedding block and 24" barrel (but that's like 7.5lb). Savage has an awesome trigger but their stocks are probably the cheesiest in the industry. The new models with the aluminum bedding block fix this at the price of weight.
Caliber.
Chosing a lighter caliber will definitely benefit and kill anything you want out to 500 yards. 308, 65creedmoor, 65prc, 25-06 7mm-08 and 270 are all great options. I know everyone hates the 65creedmoor but honestly chosing either 65creed or 308 gets you the most gun options because more guns are made in those calibers. So ammo will be easier to find than 7mm08, 25-06 and 65prc.
I know someone is going to get on here and try to say the 7mm 08 or 25-06 is more popular and why didn't I mention the 260 rem but honestly I go to alot of gunstores around the country and I haven't seen a gun on the shelf chambered in 7mm-08 since 2019. I have never seen a factory rifle sitting on the shelf chambered in 260rem and I did see one 25-06 but I've never found the ammo for it anywhere and this is from a guy who goes to enough gun stores to buy primers off the shelf through the pandemic. ....
Lots of other great options out there in the mid range:
Browning X bolt
Weatherby Vanguard
Most rifles in the $550-$1250 price range focus on the barrel an other features like threaded muzzles or soft touch stocks or cericoat. The name of the game for ties in this lower price range is out of the box MOA accuracy with most factory ammo. They also struggle to make a gun in this price range lightweight with out chopping the barrel below 24". There are some lightweight guns in this class but most show up with 20-22" barrels. There are a few exceptions to these rules however (Tikka T3X, Winchester XPR) but while both guns are light weight and have 24 or 26" barrels (and the Tikka has an awesome trigger) they both suffer from cheesey stock syndrome.
By stepping up to the 1500 or 1700 class of rifle you may find something with a very solid stock, long barrel, and good trigger. Often these guns come with a carbon fiber stock, and match grade trigger. The easiest way to put it is to say that while accuracy is attainable at the $550 price point, attaining accuracy at the $1700 price point CAN BE easier as there are less things you have to "fiddle with." Last January I bought a Tikka stainless hunter for $900. Beautiful gun but it shot federal ammo into 2.5". I remover the action from the wood stock and found that the recoil lug was loose and there wasn't really much of a good connection between the action and the stock. I made 2 aluminum pillars for it on my lathe and bedded the action and recoil lug with Brownells accraglass ($14). Now it shoots my hand loads into 3/8". I could have just bought a Christensen Mesa or ridge and avoided all that but I choose to save $800 and just go with the accraglass. I choose the wood stock because I planned on bedding it and I new the wood stock would be easier for me to work with.
Bottom line, if I didn't have a lathe or want to mess with bedding the action. If a gunsmith is going to charge you $300-$400 to "accurize" your $1000 gun and it will be at the shop for a month why not just buy a sako/Christensen/Bergara (premier) and have your nice accurate rifle NOW with no fiddling around with stocks or triggers.
Example1 the sako S20 right now has a rebate going where if you buy the S20 hunter you can send a copy of your receipt and revive a free S20 precision stock. My brother bought that gun and it's first group out of the box without break in was the size of a dime. The S20 is regularly $1600-$1700.
Example2 the Bergara premier mountain 2.0 at 6.2-6.4 lb in 6.5creedmoor or PRC it will do everything exactly that you want. Comes with a Bergara barrel, the gun is hand built in Lawrenceville Georgia and it features an AG composite carbon fiber stock and a trigger tech trigger. For the price of $1900-$2100 you could not build this gun for that price.
I would stay away from Kimber as there isn't really much value for the price, except you get basically a blueprint win m70 action.
The average savage 110/10/111 will absolutely do everything you want it to do I'd pick the storm model with the aluminum bedding block and 24" barrel (but that's like 7.5lb). Savage has an awesome trigger but their stocks are probably the cheesiest in the industry. The new models with the aluminum bedding block fix this at the price of weight.
Caliber.
Chosing a lighter caliber will definitely benefit and kill anything you want out to 500 yards. 308, 65creedmoor, 65prc, 25-06 7mm-08 and 270 are all great options. I know everyone hates the 65creedmoor but honestly chosing either 65creed or 308 gets you the most gun options because more guns are made in those calibers. So ammo will be easier to find than 7mm08, 25-06 and 65prc.
I know someone is going to get on here and try to say the 7mm 08 or 25-06 is more popular and why didn't I mention the 260 rem but honestly I go to alot of gunstores around the country and I haven't seen a gun on the shelf chambered in 7mm-08 since 2019. I have never seen a factory rifle sitting on the shelf chambered in 260rem and I did see one 25-06 but I've never found the ammo for it anywhere and this is from a guy who goes to enough gun stores to buy primers off the shelf through the pandemic. ....
Lots of other great options out there in the mid range:
Browning X bolt
Weatherby Vanguard
Last edited:
MagnumManiac
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2008
- Messages
- 5,595
Personally, I like the 7-08, as I bought one for my wife. If I wanted a light rifle I would look at a Rem Model 7.
I backpack hunt in the mountains with 2 lightweight rifles that finish at 7 1/2lbs and 6 1/2lbs fully loaded with sling and optics.
I pack in my other stuff earlier in the year and bury it all in 44 gallon plastic barrels.
Twice now I have had my gear found and trashed by other people, so I moved to even less accessible areas….the bonus has been more deer!
Anyway, getting back to premium rifles, it is true and very realistic to get exactly the same accuracy from a Ruger American as it is from a Kimber Montana.
I had a rifle go south because there was a twig wedged between the stock and barrel that wasn't visible with the rifle assembled, so the less than perfect fit on a less expensive rifle may have prevented that from happening in the first place.
Lots and lots of people hunt very successfully with $200 rifles.
Cheers.
I backpack hunt in the mountains with 2 lightweight rifles that finish at 7 1/2lbs and 6 1/2lbs fully loaded with sling and optics.
I pack in my other stuff earlier in the year and bury it all in 44 gallon plastic barrels.
Twice now I have had my gear found and trashed by other people, so I moved to even less accessible areas….the bonus has been more deer!
Anyway, getting back to premium rifles, it is true and very realistic to get exactly the same accuracy from a Ruger American as it is from a Kimber Montana.
I had a rifle go south because there was a twig wedged between the stock and barrel that wasn't visible with the rifle assembled, so the less than perfect fit on a less expensive rifle may have prevented that from happening in the first place.
Lots and lots of people hunt very successfully with $200 rifles.
Cheers.
XSIVSPD
Well-Known Member
My wife and I do a good amount of backing also, and in the last few years I've transitioned to a lot of our stuff to the ultralite side of things. We're not cutting the tounges out of our boots and sleeping under tyvek tarps, but being reasonable about it...
If it were me in your shoes (which I sort of am at the moment...) I'd be looking at an $1100-$1200 savage 110 ultralight in either 6.5 creedmoor or 308... Maybe a 6.5prc or 280ai version if you felt the need for a little more power. They're light, you're not going to be upset when it bounces off a rock or gets jammed in the dirt, it leaves $$ for decent glass and some ammo/components, and I've yet to find a bad review of them.
There's always fierce furys or Christensen if you want to spend $3k but I really don't think you're getting much more for your money other than a nicer stock
If it were me in your shoes (which I sort of am at the moment...) I'd be looking at an $1100-$1200 savage 110 ultralight in either 6.5 creedmoor or 308... Maybe a 6.5prc or 280ai version if you felt the need for a little more power. They're light, you're not going to be upset when it bounces off a rock or gets jammed in the dirt, it leaves $$ for decent glass and some ammo/components, and I've yet to find a bad review of them.
There's always fierce furys or Christensen if you want to spend $3k but I really don't think you're getting much more for your money other than a nicer stock
Last edited:
snox801
Well-Known Member
This is correct but you must have a receding hairline while still trying to sport a mullet "scullet" I believe, matching jeans and coat. Plus you can't drive anything. Newer than 1983 because new fangeled stuff is for the birds.
Shane Lindsey
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2010
- Messages
- 3,353
Calvin45
Well-Known Member
Oh man! I've asked this on another creed bashing thread in the past but still don't know the answer: is something bad going to happen in the universe, mess with the space-time continuum or upset the balance of nature, if I had long hair in my college years, still enjoy a latte from time to time (there's really not many foods or drinks I don't enjoy, I'm not picky!), drive a minivan as a father of four, and still primarily shoot a .300 win mag and not a creedmoor 
? I mean over the course of this year Texas saw -20c and British Columbia hit +49c so maybe I screwed something up in the world…
? I mean over the course of this year Texas saw -20c and British Columbia hit +49c so maybe I screwed something up in the world…
Swinehunt74
Well-Known Member
Take that 3006 and rebarrel to 6.5/06 proof CF 24" and have competant GS install or Remmage the system yourself. Cost aound $8-900, spend rest on dies and resize your once fired 3006, 270, 25/06 brass buy some decent hunting bullets.......
I need your gunsmiths name where I can have a new proof carbon barrel installed for $900. Heck I paid $900 for my last lilja and I guess the muzzle threading was the cause.
Hmmm I guided salmon and steelhead for 12 years and cheap hooks caught just as many fish with less problems as expensive hooks. Just my experience is all.
XSIVSPD
Well-Known Member
Good quality hooks = good quality ammo in my book...
