Budget Build That Will Go 2000 Yards

[ELR Researcher]

Lynn – as you well know, I am no Savage fan. That said, the Savage 112 Magnum in 338 LM is going for $920, shipped, on GrabAGun. I’m guessing you could use that as the base to get to the same result for substantially less money – even with a brand new barrel and trigger (or the factory barrel throated). Your thoughts, please.

You noted that you would also have a Savage for folks to try – presumably the old beater we both know. Correct?

[LynnJr]

Oscar
Your old beaters stock and barreled action now weighs closer to 25 pounds and is sporting a 33 inch long barrel chambered in 338 Lapua Ackley Improved.
I replaced everything but the receiver and the stock on it.
I added an entirely new bolt and trigger and when I went to put a bolt lift kit in it a part went flying and the gun has sat idle for over a year now.
Shaun Brady got it up and running before and he thinks he can get the bolt lift kit in it and get it shooting again.
I just need some free time to get it to him.
And yes if your a new shooter looking to play at these super long ranges the Savage in 338 is the cheapest way to get there.
What the custom barrels get you is groups that are half as big as a factory gun.

[LynnJr]

All this money and work so that new shooters have something to use...

The biggest hurdle for new shooters at these distances is not accuracy or the wrong chamberings as most guns will work.
It's the elevation in the scope that causes all the grief.
Lisa from the SoCal matches got a hit with her 223 and Apollo in NorCal banged the gong with his 308 with a short barrel.
They both had to hold way over the target to get a hit because they ran out of elevation.

[sigstroker]

Hits at 2000 with a .223 must be like flinging bullets with a catapult.

[boyguan]

I’m still hoping to bring my 308 and hit that gong. Gotta find time between the kids

[BillyGoatMachine]

Thanks for the shoutout Lynn. Keep those parts coming and I'll build 'em. And to any other shooters out there wanting to get something like this done now is the time. I'm all caught up on my backlog and builds are taking days instead of weeks with customer supplied parts.

[pdaddy]

Thank you for this thread.
Please disregard if the question is inappropriate, however,
how much can one expect to spend on a similar build with minimal glass?

Thank you in advance.

[jimmykan]

Thanks for the shoutout Lynn. Keep those parts coming and I'll build 'em. And to any other shooters out there wanting to get something like this done now is the time. I'm all caught up on my backlog and builds are taking days instead of weeks with customer supplied parts.

I just visited your website. Wow your lathe has a 2"+ spindle bore? Sick.

[BillyGoatMachine]

I just visited your website. Wow your lathe has a 2"+ spindle bore? Sick.

Yup, she has a 2" spindle bore, weighs over 5K lbs, and runs true down to .0001" I think I posted a video of it running at .0000" around a year ago on my Instagram. The only drawback to it is the headstock is pretty long. But I solved that issue with a True Bore Alignment System. Lynn keeps threatening me with a 45" long, 2" diameter truck axle he wants me to chamber in something crazy...

[Flouncer]

The biggest hurdle for new shooters at these distances is not accuracy or the wrong chamberings as most guns will work.
It's the elevation in the scope that causes all the grief.
Lisa from the SoCal matches got a hit with her 223 and Apollo in NorCal banged the gong with his 308 with a short barrel.
They both had to hold way over the target to get a hit because they ran out of elevation.

Lynn you may get a laugh but that is shooting. Not buying and engineering all this crap to twist and dial and shoot. It's using your brain and your eye to shoot.

[jconfus]

I am a new (for 2k) shooter can I shoot it? Do I need to bring ammo?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[LynnJr]

Flouncer
I reread my post and I didn't state it as I meant it to come out.
The 223 and 308 hits at 2000+ yards are completely doable as I witnessed one of them with my own eyes.
What I was trying to say is if they had enough elevation it would have been a much easier undertaking.
To check this out the next time your shooting at Sacramento hang a target up backwards on the target stand mark it with a Sharpie and dial your scope so your point of impact is 1 inch above your point of aim and shoot 5 shots.
Now staple a second target up above the first target and make your point of impact 16 inches above your point of aim and shoot another 5 shot group. You want your point of impact high enough above your point of aim so you can't see your impacts while looking at your aiming point.
It's a quick and easy test and it will show you the importance of hold.
Without giving too much away it's how I would determine if my heavygun rest system was working how it is supposed to work.

[LynnJr]

Thank you for this thread.
Please disregard if the question is inappropriate, however,
how much can one expect to spend on a similar build with minimal glass?

Thank you in advance.

If your after accuracy as your top criteria $1800 without glass.
If your gun has to look as good as it shoots add another 600 to that price.
When Randall posted Get ur Dun he understands I am a shooter and looks don't mean anything to me. I use a die grinder and carbide burrs to inlet my stocks not a $20,000 mill. The barrel gap on my guns looks like a sidewinder rather than a perfectly straight even line because I follow an ink line on a piece of masking tape not a digital display that reads in thousandths.
I have Skeeter at Billy Goat Machine do the important work and I do the easy stuff.
The pictures show me hogging out the inlet.
The bottom picture is just the flattop stock as it comes from McMillan with blue masking tape on it. I set the action where I think it needs to go and trace it with an ink pen then grind out the fiberglass. The second picture shows the bare action within a eight inch of fitting and the third picture shows the barrel channel a quarter inch under spec on each side.

[LynnJr]

Some more pictures.
The bottom picture shows the Davidson single shot follower which runs $20 and allows you to shoot a 700 without a magazine of any kind.
The second photo shows the follower being epoxied into the bottom of the action with J-B Weld.
The third picture is me adding green modeling clay to the action so no J-B Weld gets into any nooks or crannies.
You need to work the modeling clay until it warms up so it is smoother to apply then you need to let it cool back down so it doesn't move while your applying the secret release agent which is Kiwi shoe polish at $4 a can.
If your not cheap like me you can have the Davidson follower polished and it really makes the gun look sharp but does nothing for accuracy.
Brownells sells stock makers screws to hold everything together while your bedding the stock. I use 1/4-28 or fine thread bolts 4 inches long and just cut the head off of them. My way is under a buck the Brownells way is over $30.

[LynnJr]

And I forgot to mention anyone on CalGuns can send me a PM and shoot one of my guns at a match.
I only need the PM so I can remember to bring a spare gun and enough ammunition for all interested. The gun pictured has yet to be fired but Skeeters work has never failed me and sub half inch groups at 100 yards shouldn't be a problem.
If there is enough interest we can even hold a non-Match just for new shooters to get them a hit at 2000 yards+.
I don't shoot prone because I have a cage a plate and 4 screws holding my neck together and I like to be comfortable when I am shooting. That means a portable bench and a drummers throne for me.
All my guns have extremely light triggers so once anyone gets used to that they are good to go.
I also only use Nightforce scopes with MOA not MIL because I am an old Benchrest shooter not a sniper.
Luckily where we shoot there is a huge rock we can sight in on that makes seeing the bullet splashes easier.