Need advice on choosing a caliber

[chun12]

I want to build up a remington 700 due to its ease to acquire and accessories widely available. I was thinking about 300 WM but then got turned to looking at .338 lapua. However to start that build would be more expensive. So I am looking at trying to get a rifle built to go hunting with and shoot long distance (nothing competition worthy) so I am stuck at 3 calibers and would like some advice from what others have done.

.308 , a common round, military, cheap (relatively), easy to get and can go long range

.300 WM another decent round, still easy to get, a little more expensive

.338 lapua great round, expensive, hard to find in stores, expensive to build up, unstoppable

Just curious on what others have done. I do plan to still put this on a ACIS stock on it. Any advice would be great, thanks.

[ar15barrels]

Read this article I wrote comparing a whole bunch of viable precision rifle cartridges:

http://www.caprc.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=34

[toby]

Prioritize!

[ElvenSoul]

Remington sells a 700ADL with a 26" barrel avail in 7mm and 300Mag usually go for just unhder $500

would be a good starting point

[Dutch Henry]

Since you stated 'for hunting' and 'long range' non-competitive use, I would choose the .308 Winchester. You really don't need the power (and shoulder pain) of the other two calibers if you're hunting in the lower 48 and if your hunting is for Elk or smaller game.

Remington offers their 700 in many configurations in the .308 caliber, and the ammo is widely available in many bullet weights. The .308 is one of the most reloadable cartridges out there and in my experience it performs well with just about any bullet/powder combination.

Just my opinion. Whatever you choose, good luck.

[chun12]

Wow, thanks for the response. I did read the article, sounds like .308 will be the route I take to build, and that helps since I eventually want to get an M1A (not while I am in CA). The next logical question is what model 700 to choose. I am looking to replace the stock with the AICS system so that does not matter to me, more concerned with the action and barrel. Then all I would need is a good piece of glass. Recommendations?

[russ69]

...338 lapua great round, expensive, hard to find in stores, expensive to build up, unstoppable. Just curious on what others have done. I do plan to still put this on a ACIS stock on it. Any advice would be great, thanks.

If you are new to precision shooting, you'll need the 338 Lapua. Start at the top I say. It's the perfect beginner round. Bullets are expensive, it eats powder by the pound, it will knock you silly, and you'll have to handload to get any performance out of it. Only a new shooter can appreciate those qualities.

[LynnJr]

Randalls link took me to a sign in page so I couldn't see what he was referencing.

If your looking for a longrange caliber for hunting and general plinking but want a modern cartridge that is ballistically ahead of the curve the 300 WSM is a good compromise.

It runs circles around the 308 Winchester but has more recoil and burns more powder.

It equals the 300 WM but generally has less recoil and burns less powder.

You can build it on a short action or a long action 700 if you have one already.

The 338 Lapua requires the larger bolt face so if you have a long action 270 30-06 300 WM sitting around the first two have the 0.473 boltface and the latter has the 0.532 so you still need a $240 bolt from PT-G before you add a barrel.A factory gun runs $1100 but the magazine length is geared more towards the 250 grain bullets which defeats the purpose.It also has a harsher recoil meaning you won't shoot it as much.On the good side it uses Lapua brass so if properly re-sized a 100 rounds will outlast the life of the barrel.

Accuracy wise the 300 WSM is a top performer in most 1000 yard competitions were it is allowed.

A muzzlebrake isn't necessary and I am not a big fan of muzzlebrakes but it makes sense to use one on any gun routinely using 60 grains or more of powder.Felt recoil is reduced which translates into more shooting which translates into more comfort and thus better accuracy.

It also has a very generous load window common to most of the bigger 30 caliber rounds.With a 190 class bullet any load with 64-66 grains of H4350 should have you shooting little clusters.

[smittty]

Hunting and AICS stock don't really go together.

Hunting guns get carried a lot and the stock is typically designed to accommodate a wide variety of shooting positions.

The AICS stock works well for shooting prone or off the bench and that's about it.

[ElvenSoul]

7SAUM
.280AI
6.5-284
.284
.284Sheshane
.264Mag
26Nosler
There are a lot of choices out there

[Sutcliffe]

Long distance shooting and hunting rifles don't usually go together

For what you want a .308 ought to do just fine.
Long range shooting without using precision ammo will likely be frustrating for you.

[Cypriss32]

If you are hunting look no further then a 30-06. It has factory ammo for 110gr-240gr with tons of different bullet types. Plus every store that has ammo carries 30-06. It will kill anything in North America. You need to consider carrying a 10 plus pound rifle on a hunt. That will be hell. Buy a HUNTING rifle in 30-06 and then buy a target rifle. Ive carried a "target" rifle for hunting for years. I just recently had enough and bought nice hunting rifles (7mm-08 and 375 Ruger) both short and light.

[GJC]

Remington 5r 24"

[riftol]

Wow, thanks for the response. I did read the article, sounds like .308 will be the route I take to build

An excellent choice.

[riftol]

Since you stated 'for hunting' and 'long range' non-competitive use, I would choose the .308 Winchester. You really don't need the power (and shoulder pain) of the other two calibers if you're hunting in the lower 48 and if your hunting is for Elk or smaller game.

^^^

What he said.