Choosing a Rifle

[ar15barrels]

We see these threads all the time "I only have XXXX money to spend on a rifle, what should I get?"
It's always different for each person, but there are some common things you will see throughout the good recommendations.
In precision rifle competition, the most important things are reliability, repeatability and stability.
The rifle needs to work every time.
It needs to work the same every time.
It needs to be stable both mechanically and physically so you can shoot it well.

We often get too hung up on just the actual gun and scope.
We need to step back and think about the whole system.
In order to shoot matches, you need a reliable system.
This includes the support equipment such as the bipod, sling and rear bag.

This thread should be able to give you some recommendations of gear that's a "known good". The actual gear ranges from very inexpensive to very expensive.
ANY of the rifle packages recommended here are capable of winning matches in the hands of a good shooter.
The added quality and extra features of the more expensive gear just make them a little easier to shoot well.

In addition to one of the rifle packages below, you will want to gather up the other equipment that supports it:
First, you need quality ammo. You can't shoot tight groups without it. Match ammo is expensive. Most people choose to reload for several reasons, the most important being that you get to custom tune the ammo to your rifle and secondly that it's considerably cheaper to reload than to shoot factory ammo.
Top quality reloading gear will pay for itself in savings over factory ammo within less than 500 rounds.
Next, you need good records. That means a log book. It can be as simple as a notebook that you write down everything about shooting conditions and bullet performance observed throughout each shooting session. This will allow you to later recall what you saw in the past when you find yourself in similar conditions.
Then you need good tools. My shooting tools include a laser rangefinder, Kestrel handheld weather station and a spotting scope. These allow me to measure the weather conditions, measure the range to target and my spotter to read the mirage and watch my impacts.
Lastly, you need support gear and a way to carry everything. My shooting pack contains things such as ammo, mags, a shooting mat, a spare scope, an extra bipod that's taller than the one normally on my rifle, a hydration bladder with water for the day, a first aid kit, various small tools to make repairs and adjustments to the rifle and scope in the field, elbow/knee pads and a bandana or scarf to protect my neck as well as allow me to shade myself if I am shooting into the sun.

With all the accessories behind us, lets get to the real hardware.
The following Excel document contains a list of known-good equipment with a proven track record:
www.ar15barrels.com/data/builder.xls
The Excel document allows you to choose a rifle and add on a variety of different scopes, mounts and accessories to figure out a total price.
We would like for this excel sheet to be a living document. Many of the prices listed are below the minimum advertised price of the manufacturers so if you can't find the prices shown, ask around the CaPRC subforum and we will point you to the good-guy price vendors.
Likewise, if you find better prices than the sources listed, post them here and I will try to keep the excel sheet updated.

There are obviously other companies making good gear as well, but we have chosen these specific pieces for their value, quality of construction and most importantly for their consistency of quality. We have specifically avoided items that don't meet the general needs of precision rifle competition. For this reason, you won't see scopes with un-reasonably small internal elevation travel or 1/8moa clicks as these are not desireable in our sport. We have also chosen items based on their upgradeability. For this reason we have settled on the Remington 700 platform as the mainstay of the packages. Other platforms may be fully capable of the accuracy, but none share the aftermarket support so we can not recommend them. If you don't see something listed here, it's because it did not stick-out to us as a particularly valuable or desireable enough to make the list.
There are obviously lots of other quality gear that we could list here, but in many cases, we chose the most commonly available brands, simply because they would be easier to actually buy when you want them.

For those without Excel, here is a sample of some recommended configurations, ranging from very inexpensive to very expensive.

Remington 700 sps varmint
bushnell 321040M 10x
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,043

Remington 700P
bushnell 321040M 10x
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,293

Remington 700 5r
bushnell 321040M 10x
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,643

Remington 700 sps varmint
Sightron S2 4-16x42
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,253

Remington 700P
Sightron S2 4-16x42
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,503

Remington 700 5r
Sightron S2 4-16x42
Egw aluminum base
Burris 1" aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,853

Remington 700P
bushnell 652164T 2.5-16
Seekins aluminum base
TPS 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$1,941

Remington 700 5r
bushnell 652164T 2.5-16
Seekins aluminum base
TPS 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$2,291

Remington 700 sps varmint
AICS
bushnell 652164T 2.5-16
Seekins aluminum base
TPS 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$2,491

Remington 700 5r
nightforce 5-15 NP-R1
Seekins aluminum base
Seekins 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$3,063

Remington 700 5r
AICS
bushnell 652164T 2.5-16
Seekins aluminum base
TPS 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$3,091

Remington 700 sps varmint
AICS
nightforce 5-15 NP-R1
Seekins aluminum base
Seekins 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$3,263

Remington 700 sps varmint
McMillan A5
Badger M5
nightforce 5-15 NP-R1
Seekins aluminum base
Seekins 30mm aluminum rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$3,513

Remington 700 5r
McMillan A5
Badger M5
premiere heritage
Seekins aluminum base
Badger 34mm steel rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$4,683

Gap base custom rifle
Badger M5
premiere heritage
Badger steel base
Badger 34mm steel rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Sling
$5,583

Gap crusader
schmidt & bender
Badger steel base
Badger 34mm steel rings
Harris S-BRM bipod
KMW Pod-Loc
Triad rear bag
Tab sling
$7,068

These packages were selected in a manner to attempt to balance the quality of the rifle with the quality of the optics at a specific price level. Therefore, you will see fancier scopes sitting in more expensive mounts/rings on more expensive stocks. For the same reason, you won't see the most expensive scopes used on the lower cost packages as you should budget your money in such a way as to raise the total packages quality, not just a single item within the package.

[Gnzrme]

Nice post and lots of background work...I see a few things that I need...thanks for the effort...

[wildcard]

What's with the KMW Pod-Loc and Triad rear bag?

For a lower cost alternative..

Use the T-Nuts bipod handle from: http://t-nuts.com/index.php?cPath=73

Make your own rear bag by picking up "Poly-Beads" from your local hobby store such as Micheals: http://www.michaels.com/art/online/home Put it into a small/medium sock that doesn't stretch too much and zip tie closed.

One hell of a write up though..

[rksimple]

The sock and poly beads better be heavy duty. The triad bag is a much better solution. For guys that use them in all conditions and terrain, the cordura is far less likely to rip, tear, or be damaged. That said, if you're handy with a sewing machine, cordura isn't too expensive for some scraps.

[PatriotnMore]

Well thought out post, perhaps this should be a sticky.

[wildcard]

Originally Posted by rksimple

The sock and poly beads better be heavy duty. The triad bag is a much better solution. For guys that use them in all conditions and terrain, the cordura is far less likely to rip, tear, or be damaged. That said, if you're handy with a sewing machine, cordura isn't too expensive for some scraps.

I have yet to rip a sock but I know what you mean. Actually.. I rarely even use a rear bag now. Truth of the matter is that some guys won't get far beyond laying down at the bench a few times. It was just for the guys who wanted something functional while pinching pennies so they can invest in more critical hardware/ammo/reloading instead.

Even sheets of 1000 Ballistic Nylon isn't too expensive when you buy it by the yard and consider how much many units of whatever you get out of it. Can't have too many layers when you sew it without the right machine though .

[rksimple]

Originally Posted by wildcard

Can't have too many layers when you sew it without the right machine though .

Tell me about it. I went through many a needles with 1000d cordura. Tough stuff.

I'm with you on the bag thing though. For quick moving, versatile, improvised positions, etc., I like a glove.

[StraightShooter]

I made a bag out of a sock and rice. I left the bag in the garage for a week and came back and mice ate holes in it. Well being the cheap *** scottish man that I am I just threw another sock on it and added some more rice. Well it happened a few more times and I now have 2.5 pairs of socks holding my rear bag together. Moral of the story, I could have bought a triad bag for the price of socks I invested into my current one.

[ar15barrels]

Originally Posted by StraightShooter

I made a bag out of a sock and rice. I left the bag in the garage for a week and came back and mice ate holes in it. Well being the cheap *** scottish man that I am I just threw another sock on it and added some more rice. Well it happened a few more times and I now have 2.5 pairs of socks holding my rear bag together. Moral of the story, I could have bought a triad bag for the price of socks I invested into my current one.

Mice have not shown any interest in my triad bag.
With rice, be careful not to get it wet as rice is Hygroscopic.

I realize that by posting a list of equipment recommendations that there are cheaper alternatives.
This list was NOT about "how to get started for the least money".
The list is about known-good gear.
There will always be do-it-yourself alternatives for those that are capable.

[StraightShooter]

Originally Posted by ar15barrels

Mice have not shown any interest in my triad bag.
With rice, be careful not to get it wet as rice is Hygroscopic.

I realize that by posting a list of equipment recommendations that there are cheaper alternatives.
This list was NOT about "how to get started for the least money".
The list is about known-good gear.
There will always be do-it-yourself alternatives for those that are capable.

Exactly, i was emphasizing one of the pitfalls of trying to do things on the cheap.

Also, should a shooting glove be added to the list seeing as how some matches dont allow rear bags? Creedmore sports makes a cheap one that has worked really well for me.