Which custom action for shooting PDs beyond 500 yds?

[urbanrifleman]

I don't. I've shot them out to 700 yds with an AR sitting on a $20 Chinese Harris knockoff and a rear bag. No where in these 3 pages did anyone ever say anything about needing a custom action. In fact, nobody has said anything about needing period.

What I basically said was that I'm looking for something more accurate than a factory rifle. With EVERY factory bolt action rifle I've ever had, along with a couple of ARs, I've been able to produce groups that were 1/4 MOA or better, but they normally averaged more like 3/8-1/2 MOA. The range that I shoot on is in a valley which helps negate the effect of wind, so I do most of my load development at 300 to 500 yds. The accuracy of a system is determined by the cumulative effect of all of its components, and I fully understand that the shooter is normally the weakest component in the system with regards to accuracy. I've played this game enough to know that I don't fit this statement. I can tell a difference between a rifle that's only capable of 1/2 moa and a rifle that's capable of consistent 1/4 moa or better. I don't think the action plays a huge role in accuracy, but if I'm going to spend money on a custom barrel, and a nice stock or chassis, I might as well go all out and start off with a custom action as well. After 30+ years of loading for, shooting, and competing with factory rifles, I'd like to move to the other end of the spectrum, build an extremely accurate rifle, and then see what I can do with it both on the bench, and out in the field whacking prairie dogs. In short, it's a game that looks like I would enjoy playing

That being said you don't need to spend a ton of money to shoot tiny groups.

I thought this Kauger br2 polished with my barrel would be a pretty fancy choice. In my Revolution stock no less.

 

[urbanrifleman]

Origin in an MPA comp chassis would be the pdog slayer. No gunsmithing required.

 

[urbanrifleman]

My "Black Betty" Kauger CRS PRS action is one of my main shooters.

Hard to beat for the money.

MPA comp chassis.

 

[urbanrifleman]

Lauren's Mack Bros. Hers is in an MDT chassis.

Also hard to beat for the money.

 

[Dgd6mm]

Well done Bradley. Your fiance smile says it all. Nice looking rifle builds and I'm sure they shoot well.

 

[urbanrifleman]

Well done Bradley. Your fiance smile says it all. Nice looking rifle builds and I'm sure they shoot well.

This is my Kauger CRS. 22bra 8 twist. These are the very first groups I just threw some 80 grain Sierras in it to see what it would do after I switched from the seven twist. This is a load workup with TS-15.5. Not bad for the first groups.

 

[B23]

Y’all are killing me with the talk on the BAT’s. I may have a new itch, gee thanks ;-).

You certainly won't be disappointed with one if you do. I have two BAT receivers, HR and Igniter, as well as a Kelbly and a Stiller. Nothing wrong with the other two but I'll take a BAT over anything else.

 

[swd]

A PPC or BR cartridge would gain me another 50-100 fps, but the real world advantage of that extra speed is negligible at best. If I were interested in a PPC or BR based case, I'd likely wait and go with a 22 ARC or 224 Valkyrie once better brass becomes available. While I absolutely love the idea of something like a 6x47, for my applications, ALL 6mm options gain me more recoil (hard to spot for myself), burn more powder, and shoot more expensive projectiles while gaining me little to no practical benefit in application. Would a 105gr 6mm ACTUALLY drift less at 1000yds? Probably. Would the difference be enough for even a very experienced shooter to know whether it was the bullet or a slight shift in the wind half way to the target? Probably not, at least not unless I'm pushing it from a case big enough to heat my barrel up almost as fast as a 22 creedmoor. The point is that its a compromise. If you want less wind drift at distance, you're going to be pushing heavier bullets with more powder, it’s going to heat the barrel faster, and it's going to shorten the barrels life.

It depends on how successful you want to be a long distance. Really a cartridge for 100-500 yards is very different than one for success at 600+. A flat shooting hot rod isn’t flat shooting after 600 yards and is a rainbow at 1K. If you just want something good for shorter range and spray and pray long range then any ol’ 22 screamer will do it. But if you actually want a good success rate at long range a 6mm with good bullets is night and day better. A 6 Dasher/BRA/BRX uses less powder than a straight 22-250 with more than twice the barrel life. If you have good shooting form and follow through you can still see your shots and especially so with a brake. I’ve tried to shoot cartridge and bullet combo’s well past where they were effective and it sucks. The fun factor goes WAY up when you go to bullets and cartridges that are up to the job. Fun factor is where it’s at!

 

[Lefty2506]

This is my Kauger CRS. 22bra 8 twist. These are the very first groups I just threw some 80 grain Sierras in it to see what it would do after I switched from the seven twist. This is a load workup with TS-15.5. Not bad for the first groups.
View attachment 1528934

I have to hurry up and get some money saved.....

 

[Lefty2506]

It depends on how successful you want to be a long distance. Really a cartridge for 100-500 yards is very different than one for success at 600+. A flat shooting hot rod isn’t flat shooting after 600 yards and is a rainbow at 1K. If you just want something good for shorter range and spray and pray long range then any ol’ 22 screamer will do it. But if you actually want a good success rate at long range a 6mm with good bullets is night and day better. A 6 Dasher/BRA/BRX uses less powder than a straight 22-250 with more than twice the barrel life. If you have good shooting form and follow through you can still see your shots and especially so with a brake. I’ve tried to shoot cartridge and bullet combo’s well past where they were effective and it sucks. The fun factor goes WAY up when you go to bullets and cartridges that are up to the job. Fun factor is where it’s at!

Understood. I'm not interested in taking a PPC or BR cartridge past 500 yds, and my experience with a standard .223 tells me that I don't really need either of those inside 500 yds. If I'm shooting past 500 yds, I don't really care about barrel life, how much powder I'm burning, or the cost of the projectiles. I only care about making hits as far out as I can. I concede that its very possible that I'd be disappointed with the 22CM as a long distance cartridge for one reason or another, and that's fine. If that ends up being the case, I still don't see myself going with a 6mm. I'd most likely step up to a 6.5 instead, probably a 260AI or 6.5-284.

 

[jghoghunter]

Understood. I'm not interested in taking a PPC or BR cartridge past 500 yds, and my experience with a standard .223 tells me that I don't really need either of those inside 500 yds. If I'm shooting past 500 yds, I don't really care about barrel life, how much powder I'm burning, or the cost of the projectiles. I only care about making hits as far out as I can. I concede that its very possible that I'd be disappointed with the 22CM as a long distance cartridge for one reason or another, and that's fine. If that ends up being the case, I still don't see myself going with a 6mm. I'd most likely step up to a 6.5 instead, probably a 260AI or 6.5-284.

6.5/284 and never look back! It's the easy button.

 

[flintcreek6412]

Sounds like you like to tinker, like me. If that's the case I am a fan of Zermatt TL3 actions. I have several.

I started with one about 8 years ago when I began F-class. My Rem 700 stock barrel couldn't handle round count during a string of 20. I bought a TL3 single shot and ordered a Criterion barrel nut barrel. Dropped into a Stocky's Rem 700 footprint stock and was up an running in less than a week shooting a 6.5x284. Actually set an F-class NR at 800yrd that still stands somehow.

I then bought a repeater for hunting, PRS, or whatever else I want. Then another for a smokeless ML and then a Rim X. All great actions.

Here's the beauty of that action. It has the same threads as a Savage small shank barrel so barrel nut barrels are easy to get. Have some from Criterion and Shilen. Prefits are easy to find if you prefer a shouldered barrel. And my smith has spun several shouldered barrels for me. So I can swap and switch barrels to suit my wants and needs.

And since the bolt heads can switch out I have a 6.5 PRC barrel for a magnum bolt head, 6BRA, 6.5 CM, 308 FTR barrel, 6.5x284 hunting barrel, 6.5x284 match barrel, 45 smokeless ML barrel for standard bolt head and .223 FTR barrel for 223 bolt head.

No wait on these actions or barrels from Jim at Northland Shooter Supply. Overall I like them and my FTR rig has won some pretty tough matches. My best ever NR record is with that Zermatt in 308 FTR

I will say it's not as buttery smooth as my Kelby Atlas single shot FTR action, which somehow doesn't have a pinned lug like they do these days. I think the lack of smoothness is more about the Zermatt floating bolt head.

All the actions mentioned are good solid actions but the versatility of the Zermatt TL3 is what I really like.

 

[Bigdaddy405]

Here are my 2 prairie dog rifles, Top has an American Rifle company nucleus action chambered in 6mm BR, Bottom is a .223 fullbore using a Kelbly's Atlas tactical action shooting anything from 75-88 grain bullets. both are great but honestly a Zermott (Bighorn) Origin action with an interchangeable bolt head would be great decently priced rifle and you could switch calibers with bolt head & barrel change.

 

[Tommie]

If you have good shooting form and follow through you can still see your shots

And THIS is the ignored factor in every colony varmint discussion. There’s a bunch more factors that figure into the PD equation than external/terminal ballistics.

Guys who swear they’re watching impacts with big boomer guns should take a slo-mo video of themselves touching off a shot. I’ve done just that and regardless of muzzle rise, the rearward motion puts the scope out of the eyebox at the moment of bullet impact. Muzzle brakes and moderators definitely help but don’t eliminate the problem.

Flame suit on.

 

[Lefty2506]

Nice! I like that .223 setup. Really makes me want to upgrade to a better tripod. This is my current setup. It works. Except for the optic, the whole thing is pretty easy on my wallet, and even the optic is pretty reasonable. Savage 12FV in .223 from Cabelas in an Boydes At-One thumbhole stock with an Athlon Ares ETR sitting on an older BOG POD.

 

[kochie]

No arguments here. I'm hearing some of you say that I don't really need a 1000 yd BR setup to shoot prairie dogs past 400 yds, and I totally agree. I'm not jumping from 400 yds straight to 1000 yds. I'm just wanting to buy one action that will (hopefully) meet all my future needs. I'd rather spend more money now and get an action that's better than I need than end up needing to buy a "better" action down the road. FWIW, I plan on ending up with multiple barrels for this rifle, and I don't plan on having anything I can shoot before next winter. Budget wise, I want to get the action and trigger in the next 3 to 6 months and then get the stock and (1st) barrel next winter with the goal of taking it out for first blood late in 2025. I'll continue to use my current array of rifles out to 300 yds or a little more. I'm wanting something to use when I'd rather the rifle stretch its legs than me stretch mine

Ultimately, I can see having a different barrel/cartridge for 300-700yds, and another barrel dedicated to whacking a few way out there early in the day. While I think I'll end up with a barrel chambered in something like 22CM, it wouldn't be my only barrel. The topic of which chamber to use is a whole other discussion (actually several discussions). I'm not to the point where I need to work out those details yet. I just want to make sure that I'm starting off with an action that will get me where I want to be.

If I read the question correctly I would say about any custom action.

 

[jxb]

Send me a half dozen, ample ammo for each, fuel to get there, and a place I can shoot PD and I'll let you know.