Short or long action???

[BrokenHorn]

I will most likely build my gun off of the remeington action. Now the question is which action is better. Remington publishes same velocities for the 7mm saum and the 7mm remington mag.

The 300 WSM, 300 win mag, and 300 saum all have published velocities within 50 fps.

I have always heard the a short action is more accurite than a long action. Any truth to this???

 

[James Jones]

The short action being more accurate than a long action is a matter of stiffness , if you plan on using a long heavy barrel and free floating it then maybe yes the short action will be more accurate as the long because its shorter wich makes it stiffer but the actual ammout is not goin to be seen. so basicaly what I'l saying is if your wanting to buld a world class accurate rifle on na remington action then yea the short action would be the way to go but you had better chamber it for the 6mmPPC or some other world record holding round !!
As for the caliber , I like the new short action rounds but if I were planning to shoot say a 190gr+ bullet out of a 300 mag I would use the 300Win mag as a Minimum but for the 150-180 class hunting bullets the 300WSM will do all the 300Win mag factory ammo can do and little more. But if your going to use a short action for one of the new short mags then I personaly would use a Wyatt's mag box , it'll give you a little more flexibility in you bullet choice.
Now if your the type guy that is gonna use this gun for hunting only and you don't reload then I would choose one of the older mags like the 7mmREM or 300Win because their are so many available rounds loaded for them and they can be found just about anywhere. but if you reload then the short mags would serve you well

 

[Michael Eichele]

More accurate? Who knows. What is known is that a shorter action is more rigid than a long action, its lighter than a long action and easier to carry a shorter rifle than a long one. If you are not wanting to reach RUM velocities or such, than the short action mags get my vote. Yes you can get about the same velocity with the short mags as the standard mags. Less powder, same velocity, less recoil, better bbl life and an inherently more accurate case design, you would be foolish to go with yesterdays mags unless you want/need MORE POWER! Then go long and go all out, otherwise a long action makes little sense.

 

[BrokenHorn]

Okay, let me give you a little more info. It will be a hunting rifle that is capable of taking deer and elk out to 600-700 yrd range and hopefully claim braggin rights amongst my buddies punching some paper at the range.

Yes, I do reload.

 

[wapiti13]

BH, Go with a short action and short case. I would recommend stepping up to the WSM cases and using a longer magazine box in the 700 SA.

 

[Michael Eichele]

300WSM, short action (slightly modified for longer OACL) 200 accubonds. Watch the deer and elk crumble out to 650+ If you put em in the right spot....

 

[BountyHunter]

Rem SPS in 300 WSM IF you want a factory action. 1-11 twist about 26-28" barrel.

For the distances you are talking would suggest you start with the 180 class bullets, SST, Sirocco etc. Flatter and just as deadly.

BH

 

[BrokenHorn]

BountyHunter, sounds like a good setup. Problems is that it doesn't look like remington offers that. They only show a 24" smooth barrel. I would like a 26-28" fluted stainless steel. Maybe I'm just reading the charts wrong or possibly I can order one.

 

[Fiftydriver]

Quality machining of the receiver and a quality barrel fit and chambering will make a more significant difference to fine accuracy then the difference between a long and short action receiver.

While they all have nearly the same listed velocity, if the rounds you list are loaded to top pressures, the belted magnums will run 75 to 150 fps more then the short action magnums for a give barrel length on average. Contrary to what is advertised, they are not the full equal to the old belted magnums, sexier though!!! I suppose.

They will all perform well in a quality built rifle. Do the research to find a good smith and then pick which round you are most interested in, the difference in accuracy will be very hard to see fired off a human shoulder if the rifle is built properly.

Kirby Allen(50)

 

[Bart B]

[ QUOTE ]
I have always heard the a short action is more accurite than a long action. Any truth to this???

[/ QUOTE ]
Having observed and participated in accuracy for over 30 years at ranges far beyond 300 yards for cartridges shooting bullets heavier than 160 grains leaving faster than 2500 fps, the best performance has been with long actions having a lot of flat bedding surfaces on the receiver so it won't twist and distort bedding from torque.

 

[BrokenHorn]

Thanks for all the great comments. This site is tops for quality people that know what they are talking about.

Tell me what you think, as far as my plans go.
I wanted to buy a factory rifle with a 26-28" stainless fluted barrel. Take it to my gunsmith and have him square the action/barrel marriage.

Then I am going to piller bed, inlet, float barrel, lap barrel and adjust the trigger.

Like stated before this is mainly a hunting rifle that I want to get the most out of. I don't shoot competition unless you count a freindly wager with my hunting buds /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Ballistic64]

Save yourself some money if your going to have the action trued and buy a match grade barrel.

 

[winmagman]

[ QUOTE ]
Then I am going to piller bed, inlet, float barrel, lap barrel and adjust the trigger

[/ QUOTE ]

I would strongly advise against lapping a barrel after it has been chambered and cut to length. You can do a great deal of damage to the accuracy potential by belling out the throat and or the muzzle.

I'd go to Wal-mart and pick up a factory Remington then order a custom barrel that has already been lapped. You'll spend $650 or so which is just a tad more than most factory sticks with a 26"-28" SS fluted barrel plus you get a far better barrel than you will likely ever get from any factory.

Chris

 

[BrokenHorn]

[ QUOTE ]
You can do a great deal of damage to the accuracy potential by belling out the throat and or the muzzle.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is something that I didn't know. See what I mean by such a great site. I guess I need to start visiting shops around here and see if I can't pick up just the action then order a barrel and have him mate them for me. 600.00 is very reasonable for a quality shooting gun.