looking for some advice on what 223 rifle to buy as a good start for target shoo

[philschoppers]

Hi , ive been into shooting for many years but now im looking to build a good 223 target rifle .Looking for some ideas as to what i should buy . Im looking to start shooting from 350 yards and out . I currently own a few different savage rifles and i love how they work and shoot . Stick with them ? What barrel trist should i go with ? Any imput that anyone has i will gladdly appreciate !

Thanks

 

[philschoppers]

I'm kinda going towards the savage f/tr , it seems to have great reviews , has the better trigger assembly . What kinda bullets would shoot well from this rifle ?

 

[stacy]

ANY OF THE SAVAGES IN MODEL 12 WOULD MAKE A VERY GOOD STARTER

 

[Laurie]

I'm kinda going towards the savage f/tr , it seems to have great reviews , has the better trigger assembly . What kinda bullets would shoot well from this rifle ?

A very good choice. It'll shoot any of the 80s and the 80.5gn Berger LRBT Fullbore very well. It MIGHT shoot 90s well too, but that's much more problematic. The current model is only listed with a 1-7-inch twist barrel, but I have a feeling that earlier models also had the 1-9" rate available. You want 1-7".

 

[Delaware_Ken]

Good Afternoon,

Mine likes the Berger 80 grain VLD's in front of a stout load of Varget.

Ken

 

[MarkS]

philschoppers,

Savage, if you are going Factory, 7 tw and 80gr Berger and Varget. I have a Savage with custom 8tw in 223AI

Mark Schronce

 

[philschoppers]

I have had very good luck with varget in the past . Now I guess this next question is for anyone who owns the savage f/tr , how good of a gun is it out of the box ? Is there something right off the bat that is needed for it to shoot better or is it a tacdriver by itself ? Kinda interested in some of the load data for those who are using varget powder ? Any one have good luck with h335 ?


Thanks for all the input !

 

[22BRGUY]

Gotta ask...although the 223 is an awesome cartridge, you said you are wanting a target rifle....have you considered any of the BR family of cartridges?? 6BR; 22BR and their variations? Its just that they are sooo easy to shoot and reload for accurately and in my opinion, have an edge on the .223. Savage does offer a 6BR and I have a friend that shoots with me alot and just really likes his out to 600 yards. Best to you whatever you decide.

 

[philschoppers]

Very good question ? To be totally honest with you I never really heard much about that size ? I just looked it up and I'm not 100% sure I was looking at the right one . The reason I was kinda sticking with 223 is because I also have several ar's that I load for . I've got a huge stockpile of brass , powder , and primers . Lol now days finding any of those three components in stock at a store is a nightmare . I figured I might just have to search for a heavier bullet . What's the pro's and con's of shooting 6br?

 

[jbpmidas]

A friend has an F-T/r in 223. It was an excellent shooter in 600 yard F-Class. He shot 90BTLR's. The VLD's were too finicky. The barrel was shot out at 1800 rounds and he had it rebarrelled. I don't think you'll find a better entry into F-T/r in a factory gun chambered in 223. The only thing he did was torque test to find the best torque for the stock.

I have a Savage LRPV, RBLP in 223 and 7 twist. I've never shot it in competition. But, I let a first timer borrow it and his 3rd string was 196-6x with 80 A-Max's over Varget. I prefer the 26" barrel over the 30", but the 30" did provide a velocity advantage.

 

[22BRGUY]

Although others may disagree, when it comes to a bolt action type rifle, the advantages in accuracy and range of a 6BR, or 22BR I think are overwhelming. For 25 years I shot and reloaded for 22 250 and thought it was the only great varmint cartridge out there......then a friend of mine showed up at the range with a 22BR.......My sweet Tikka has been in the safe for a long time now. I could go on but its best if you do your own investigation. A lot of fellows on this site have had experience with these cartridges and would be happy I'm sure, to share their opinions but I think I can safely say that a 6BR will outperform a .223 in just about any department....except maybe for the AR platform stuff.
Best Wishes again

 

[Delaware_Ken]

My Savage F/TR 223 7 twist is stock except for the trigger. I did replace the factory trigger with a Rifle Basix Savage-2. I shot a 588 21X in F/TR with it at our last 600 yard F/Class match. It was my personal best. She beat all of the open shooters but one. Nuff said, get one, you won't be disappointed.

Ken

 

[22BRGUY]

If you want, you can go to Internationalbenchrest.com and click on the "Results/Rankings tab, then click on Long Range (600-1000 yards). If you check out some of these matches and look under the "Equipment List" it will give you an idea of why I said what I did.
Congrats Ken...nice shooting for sure.

 

[DennisH]

All the above are great suggestions.

The F/TR 7 twist 223 is hard to beat, price wise and performance.

You will get all the load information you need right here.

 

[stinnett1981]

Gotta ask...although the 223 is an awesome cartridge, you said you are wanting a target rifle....have you considered any of the BR family of cartridges?? 6BR; 22BR and their variations? Its just that they are sooo easy to shoot and reload for accurately and in my opinion, have an edge on the .223. Savage does offer a 6BR and I have a friend that shoots with me alot and just really likes his out to 600 yards. Best to you whatever you decide.

agree

 

[philschoppers]

Thanks for all the info ! Now I gotta shop around and see where I can get the best deal on the rifle . Lol now I gotta find a good scope to put on it .