What would be your choice of factory rifles to use at local benchrest competitions. Its nothing serious just a fun shoot. I dont want to go with anything custom. They are shooting 100 & 200 yards. I was thinking a .243 Winchester would be my round of choice but wasnt sure which rifle.
Factory Benchrest Rifle
- Thread starter JRDANIELS
- Start date
rattletrap1970
New member
Savage
I just picked up a Savage BTCSS in .223 (also available in .22-250 and .204 Ruger). I will be visiting the range with it this Sunday.
I will post a picture of my best group with some match ammo I loaded for my AR back in 1993 (Yes, 1993. After I sold the AR I had nothing to shoot it in). Remington cases trimmed to 1.759", 24.0gr IMR 4895, Sierra 69gr Matchking, Remington 6-1/2 Small Rifle Primer. Neck chamfered in and out, Primer pockets trued, flash hole chamfered. Seated to -.010 from rifling on my AR.
I'm told these things are hard to beat out of the box.. I guess we'll see. I suppose we'll see if my ammo is crap too.
I just picked up a Savage BTCSS in .223 (also available in .22-250 and .204 Ruger). I will be visiting the range with it this Sunday.
I will post a picture of my best group with some match ammo I loaded for my AR back in 1993 (Yes, 1993. After I sold the AR I had nothing to shoot it in). Remington cases trimmed to 1.759", 24.0gr IMR 4895, Sierra 69gr Matchking, Remington 6-1/2 Small Rifle Primer. Neck chamfered in and out, Primer pockets trued, flash hole chamfered. Seated to -.010 from rifling on my AR.
I'm told these things are hard to beat out of the box.. I guess we'll see. I suppose we'll see if my ammo is crap too.
Group shooting BR
If you want to have some small chance of finishing in the top 10 in a real short range BR match, you'd better do some more research. The 6mm PPC rules the roost. A trip to the archives of Benchrest.com and 6br.com would be well advised.
Savage makes a very nice rifle, and I shoot several, but the BR version is not quite competitive as it comes from the factory. If you want to get a competitive rifle built on the Savage target action, talk to Fred Moreo at sharpshooter supply, and order the (Shilen select match) barrel for it from Jim Briggs at Northland Shooter supply.
If you are not willing to get heavily into brass forming (the real 6ppc cases must be made from 220 russians) or don't want to pay someone like Lester Bruno's boys to do it for you, the 6BR norma (not to be confused with the now pretty much defunct 6BR rem) is really the only option if you want to try to compete with the 6ppc. I'm shooting a 6 BR norma Moreo smithed rifle with the Shilen select match barrel chambered in the .272 "no turn" neck
with a 1/13 twist. It shoots teensy lil holes at 200 yards. A better shooter than me could probably do pretty well in the matches this spring using it. That same shooter will undoubtedly be shooting the ppc. Fred can build those too.
Score shooting:
30 BR rules this roost, though not as completely as the above................
http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php?board=64.0
http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php?board=65.0
If you want to have some small chance of finishing in the top 10 in a real short range BR match, you'd better do some more research. The 6mm PPC rules the roost. A trip to the archives of Benchrest.com and 6br.com would be well advised.
Savage makes a very nice rifle, and I shoot several, but the BR version is not quite competitive as it comes from the factory. If you want to get a competitive rifle built on the Savage target action, talk to Fred Moreo at sharpshooter supply, and order the (Shilen select match) barrel for it from Jim Briggs at Northland Shooter supply.
If you are not willing to get heavily into brass forming (the real 6ppc cases must be made from 220 russians) or don't want to pay someone like Lester Bruno's boys to do it for you, the 6BR norma (not to be confused with the now pretty much defunct 6BR rem) is really the only option if you want to try to compete with the 6ppc. I'm shooting a 6 BR norma Moreo smithed rifle with the Shilen select match barrel chambered in the .272 "no turn" neck
with a 1/13 twist. It shoots teensy lil holes at 200 yards. A better shooter than me could probably do pretty well in the matches this spring using it. That same shooter will undoubtedly be shooting the ppc. Fred can build those too.
Score shooting:
30 BR rules this roost, though not as completely as the above................
http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php?board=64.0
http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php?board=65.0
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Best accuracy in benchrest matches has always been attained by following these two primary rules:
1. Use a cartridge with minimum recoil. They move the rifle the least while the bullet's going down the barrel.
2. Use a rifle with a 2-ounce trigger that's heavy enough to lay on its rests such that only its trigger is lightly touched by the human shooting it. The more us folks hold onto the rifle with all our wiggling bodies (heartbeat, muscle control) inconsistantly from shot to shot trying to manage a much heavier trigger pull, the bigger the groups are.
So, to buy something off the shelf that comes close to what you want to do, get a heavy weight Savage in .223 Rem., set/change its trigger pull to as light as possible, then reload the best ammo you can. This is probably the best way without having to go to larger bores which may well be best for serious competition in the upper levels of stool shooting.
1. Use a cartridge with minimum recoil. They move the rifle the least while the bullet's going down the barrel.
2. Use a rifle with a 2-ounce trigger that's heavy enough to lay on its rests such that only its trigger is lightly touched by the human shooting it. The more us folks hold onto the rifle with all our wiggling bodies (heartbeat, muscle control) inconsistantly from shot to shot trying to manage a much heavier trigger pull, the bigger the groups are.
So, to buy something off the shelf that comes close to what you want to do, get a heavy weight Savage in .223 Rem., set/change its trigger pull to as light as possible, then reload the best ammo you can. This is probably the best way without having to go to larger bores which may well be best for serious competition in the upper levels of stool shooting.