help me do a 223 budget build.

[Swampcrip]

So im looking into bolt guns and would like to work my way up to long distance. I have a howa 1500 in 308 that's been sitting for years.

I would like to do a budget build for 223 to learn fundamentals with first. I figure I can shoot the barrel out of a cheap .223 then I can go out a little further with my .308 and then if I am in love with it I can invest in a nicer rifle.

What would you guys suggest for someone entry level?

[CSACANNONEER]

What are you trying to accomplish? If your goal is 1.5-2moa in precision, most rifles can do that with decent ammo. If your goal is to learn how to shoot sub .5moa, you won't get good enough feedback with a 2moa gun. Also, if your goal is .5moa or so, you will want to roll your own rounds.

[bsumoba]

i would suggest 6.5 creedmoor.

long distance, although can be done with a .223 and you would definitely learn a lot about wind drift out to distance, is not ideal for "long distance" and i would just shoot an AR in 223 out to "distance" You will still be able to get out to 600 yards with a mag fed AR rifle and 77gr bullets. then, take your 308 and shoot that more. if you want to build yourself a bolt action trainer in the same setup as your tactical bolt gun, then i see the point. otherwise, i would save up and go with 6.5 creedmoor if you do not reload or a 7mm/30cal if you do reload. if you mean "long distance" as 1000+ yards, then go with 30cal/338

[Swampcrip]

i would suggest 6.5 creedmoor.

long distance, although can be done with a .223 and you would definitely learn a lot about wind drift out to distance, is not ideal for "long distance" and i would just shoot an AR in 223 out to "distance" You will still be able to get out to 600 yards with a mag fed AR rifle and 77gr bullets. then, take your 308 and shoot that more. if you want to build yourself a bolt action trainer in the same setup as your tactical bolt gun, then i see the point. otherwise, i would save up and go with 6.5 creedmoor if you do not reload or a 7mm/30cal if you do reload. if you mean "long distance" as 1000+ yards, then go with 30cal/338

The 338 Is down the road. Im just looking for a good starting platform to lean the fundamentals and decide if bolt actions are something ill enjoy enough to stick with. I only thought of 223 because it would be cheap to feed. In my mind i want to get to 1000+ but i dont want to break tge bank and then decide that its not for me.

[bsumoba]

The 338 Is down the road. Im just looking for a good starting platform to lean the fundamentals and decide if bolt actions are something ill enjoy enough to stick with. I only thought of 223 because it would be cheap to feed. In my mind i want to get to 1000+ but i dont want to break tge bank and then decide that its not for me.

then, stick with a 308. you want precision with that 308, start reloading.

[Abraham32]

Save the money you were going to spend on the .223 and buy some good .308 ammo and just go shoot... If it kicks too hard take some of the money and put on a brake, enjoy what you have before you throw a bunch of cash at something you are already planning to upgrade later.
My $.02

[milotrain]

How are you going to learn what you want to learn?

Im just looking for a good starting platform to lean the fundamentals and decide if bolt actions are something ill enjoy enough to stick with. In my mind i want to get to 1000+ but i dont want to break tge bank and then decide that its not for me.

Who are you going to learn fundamentals from?
How are you going to decide weather or not it's for you?

I ask this because I doubt you'll get very far without coaching, and if you want coaching then you should find a coach and ask him/her what to buy. Or find a group of people who do what you want to do and shoot with them (and ask them what you should buy). A 308 with the proper barrel will be very good to learn fundamentals on while being fairly cheep to feed. Within some groups a 308 is less ideal, and within others (like palma shooters) it's required.

If I wanted to learn "long range shooting" beyond the fundamentals practice that i do right now I'd want a 308.

[TomReloaded]

You can shoot a 308 at 100 yards to get started, nothing wrong with that at all. Its kinda fun actually. You'll learn the same fundamentals with a 308, except you'll have to learn to deal with the recoil early on, which is a very good thing.

500 bucks wont get you much rifle at all, but $500 will get you a lot of 308 ammo to get started with.

[bandook]

Check out the Savage rifles. They are good entry level rifles.

But, as CSACANNONEER mentioned, past a certain point, you need to start rolling your own ammo for accuracy and consistency in YOUR rifle.

[jeffafa]

Why not just get a Ruger or Savage Axis? They're cheap enough that if you want to mess around with mods you're not making a big investment, and some models come with lower end (but accurate) enough optics to shoot 100yds+.
I bought a Savage Axis at Big 5 for $239, and can ring 8" steel out to 150 yds without really trying.

EDIT: bandook beat me to it!

[CSACANNONEER]

Why not just get a Ruger or Savage Axis? They're cheap enough that if you want to mess around with mods you're not making a big investment, and some models come with lower end (but accurate) enough optics to shoot 100yds+.
I bought a Savage Axis at Big 5 for $239, and can ring 8" steel out to 150 yds without really trying.

EDIT: bandook beat me to it!

I hope you can shoot 6 moa without trying. Hell, anyone that shoots should be able to do that off hand, with iron sights and crappy ammo. Your gun is capable of shooting 3" groups or smaller at 150 yards with decent ammo and irons.

[jeffafa]

I hope you can shoot 6 moa without trying. Hell, anyone that shoots should be able to do that off hand, with iron sights and crappy ammo. Your gun is capable of shooting 3" groups or smaller at 150 yards with decent ammo and irons.

Yep. Sitting in a lawnchair, using a cheap Caldwell bipod resting on a plastic table from Costco out in the desert. My wife (who shoots rifles maybe twice a year) was also ringing it without any problems.
I did take it to an indoor range here in town with a proper bench and rear bag and was able to shoot nickel sized 4-shot groups at 100 yds pretty consistently.
I guess the point I was making for the OP was that you can get an introductory bolt-action rifle very inexpensively and get a very accurate rifle out of the box without having to do any mods.

[TomReloaded]

The axis will shoot a 1 inch group at 100. Its accurate, just has a crummy trigger. Theyre very easy to lighten up though.

[TMB 1]

So im looking into bolt guns and would like to work my way up to long distance. I have a howa 1500 in 308 that's been sitting for years.

I would like to do a budget build for 223 to learn fundamentals with first. I figure I can shoot the barrel out of a cheap .223 then I can go out a little further with my .308 and then if I am in love with it I can invest in a nicer rifle.

What would you guys suggest for someone entry level?

Mossberg MVP Varmint http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/p...ducts_id/76665

[bandook]

The axis will shoot a 1 inch group at 100. Its accurate, just has a crummy trigger. Theyre very easy to lighten up though.

Looks like there was an AXIS II released last year with the Accu-trigger... May be worth the extra coin.