Low budget rifle build for tactical or benchrest shooting

Im going to touch on scopes a little bit this post more to come on scopes in later posts, plus I have been talking with a few manufacturers to do some reviews on "middle priced" scopes. Ok, the rifle. We need something that shoots good out the box and we can improve at home without a gunsmith. The remington sps tactical is such a rifle and can be had in the $600 range, will it shoot tight groups at 1000 yds no, why? Because the short barrel will not allow the bullet to stay supersonic to that distance "however there are some bullets not as affected by the transonic barrier", but out to 600 it will be great, this gun shoots sub moa "mel at snipercentral achieved 3/8" groups". A big part of that is the short barrel, shorter barrel more rigidity also the B&C stock has pillars already installed from the factory "a good glass bedding job and stiffening of the forend will help tighten groups". Another rifle choice would be savage 10xp predator hunter and can be found in the $700 range. "tips on home accurizing a savage will be posted soon, watch for it"

What type of shooting are we going to do? bench or tactical? F-class is fun. Decide if you need a rest and bags or a bipod. If truly on a tight budget we must be cautious on scope selection, the chepo with all the tacti-cool options is going to hurt you, trust me, we need tried and true. For punching paper we want tight groups at long range, the weaver t series is great, 36 or 24x. For tight groups at long range i would not go below 20x. My variable power budget choices would be weaver grand slam 6-20 about $400, sightron s2 6-24 also about $400 and optically you wont notice any difference, both great scopes.

Tactical type matches you will want a ranging reticle for holdovers, stick with the mil-dot and a side focus scope. An easy rule of thumb is no less than 1x per hundred yards, so if you're shooting a max of 500yds you want at least 5x mag, I feel more is better to an extent, for this game, "and tac rifles can double as hunting rifles". You want low magnification "power" for wider field of view. I wouldn't go higher than 4.5x, a 4-16x or 3-12x are excellent compromises between field of view and magnification. For this i would chose nikon monarch 4-16x42 mil-dot about $480 though perhaps a little high for budget minded, weaver kaspa is a decent scope for the price, also hawke sidewinder tactical 4.5-14x42 about $450 it has more bells and whistles than the monarch, dual illuminated skeletonized reticle, the trade off however is less magnification range, and less optical quality, is the hawke far behind the monarch no not really, is it a noticeable difference, yes. You decide if the trade off is better. Quick side note, Mel at snipercentral used a swift 6-18 to get those tight groups on that rem 700 tactical, so they may also be an acceptable scope.

Ok back to the rifle, if you keep the factory stock, you need to glass bed minimally, pillar bed preferably "B&C stock already pillars", I will post pictures of this procedure at a later date, with some tricks Ive learned, for bedding material I use steel putty, excellent product...

Cheap stock option at numrich parts order a 40xb stock. For matches where you will load one cartridge by hand leave the stock alone and purchase a bench rest single shot follower, if you epoxy in place or solder "not weld" it will add rigidity to the action. If you wish a floor plate or magazine then you must cut out a channel in the wood to add it, since on the 40xb stock it is solid wood.

So, how much is this budget build going to cost well the stock will add about $70, so not counting the stock, remington set up $850-$1100, savage about $100 more. Check the used market, most scopes have a lifetime transferable warrenty, and used remingtons abound, so you could shave $100+ off the cost.

If you decide to tackle a build feel free to post questions here or message me, I honestly enjoy helping others in this sport and will do all I can to help..

Also, the people over at snipercentral have always been kind to me, even Mel "owner" has taken his time to answer questions for me. I am and have been a member there for a few years and enjoy reading Mel's reviews on products. Here is a link http://www.snipercentral.com

Also I want to state that I am not paid or receive any benefits from any one or any company for discussing their products, services, or company. I do this because I love this sport and helping others interested in it..