Picked this up today. Now the search for the perfect scope. Need to add a bipod, too.

Nice!
A lot of folks poo poo about the 700 over the trigger issue years ago.

I have a VTR with the ported triangular barrel and it is a fine bolt gun.

Beautiful rifle!!

As a substitute for the one that arrived as a disaster?
Definitely classic and classy looking guns. I would be interested in a range report about such rifles these days.

I had some experience on one from about 2011 I think. Very accurate rifle. The stock color grew on me too.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
As a substitute for the one that arrived as a disaster?
Definitely classic and classy looking guns. I would be interested in a range report about such rifles these days.

No, I bought 2 700s. A 700 BDL and this 700 SS 5R. The replacement for the BDL will arrive in mid-April. Apparently, they seem to be out of stock at my regular guy's suppliers.

It will be awhile before this one makes it to a range. I have to put a bipod and a scope on it and I don't want to scrimp on the scope so I may have to wait until next winter to put one on it. The BDL will likely get a scope first as I plan on taking it hog hunting in the fall.

I have one of those from about 12-15 years ago. Great shooter on the bench. A little heavy for walking around in the field. Replaced the trigger with an aftermarket. Currently running a Vortex PST 4x16x50 with illuminated reticle. Can’t recall which 20MOA base I used any more, but the rings are XTRs.

Not sure about your specific rifle, but mine gives great results with FGMM in the 168 gr SMK load. For a hunting round, I like the Federal Premium with the 165 gr SGK bullet. Prints almost identically to the SMK load. Good results with Hornady Match and Super Performance ammo as well.


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This message has been edited. Last edited by: Abn556,

Had one of these for about 10 years. Accurate, Very poor trigger. I used Badger 20MOA Base and 30mm rings with a Leupold M4 6.5-20 FFP scope, TMR reticle. a great scope.

Overall for the money a very good shooter, but you spend so much on the optics, trigger, mounts, etc the savings on the 5R get a little lost.

Enjoy it. You will catch the bug

John

Nice! I've had one for a while now. Put mine in an MPA chassis and swapped the factory trigger for a Trigger Tech Special. I'm using a Vortex Razor for the optic. It's very accurate & fun to shoot.

The 5R is a great baseline for a fine rifle (not that it isn't good all on its own).
Mine I uber upgraded it to a fine tack shooter.

I have the milspec model with the 5r barrel as well
Looks very similar to this one
It boringly shoots any ammo I feed it into .5/.75 groups @ 100yd

I actually like the trigger on mine, except for that damned adjustment screw, which sticks out too far.

I'm going to order a Harris bipod. I want one that will be handy shooting from a bench or prone. There are so many to choose from I am not sure which one to get.

quote:

Originally posted by Micropterus:
I'm going to order a Harris bipod. I want one that will be handy shooting from a bench or prone. There are so many to choose from I am not sure which one to get.

If you're set on a Harris, look at the one with swivel and notched legs. The Harris is well built and solid, meaning that it will last a long time and will put up with a lot of abuse. However, there are better bipods for bench and prone shooting.

Bipod hop has challenged shooters from the beginning. F-Class shooters mitigate hop by using large, wide bipods. Tacticial-type shooters mitigate hop by using bipods that have a little slack in the leg system. Hop is caused by recoil. Unless you have the buttstock jammed against a solid steel beam or concrete post, a rifle moves slightly to the rear during the recoil cycle. For a shooter with a 308 and good technique, the shouldered rifle will move rearward -- maybe at least 3/8", but possibly 5/8" or more.

The Harris bipod is solid, with no slack or movement from the attachment to the stock all the way to the feet. When the rifle moves rearward during recoil, the Harris' feet must also move rearward. Unless the feet slide freely on a perfectly smooth surface (say, a Teflon plate), the bipod will jump/hop/skip along the support surface during recoil. Some of this jump/hop/skip occurs while the bullet is still in the barrel, and thus accuracy suffers.

The starting price point for tactical-type bipods that mitigate hop is the Atlas bipod. Yes, there are more expensive bipods out that there that do things better than an Atlas.

If you really want to learn how to shoot your 700 accurately, consider investing in an Atlas instead of a Harris. Over the long haul, the Atlas' benefits cost that much.

quote:

Originally posted by Micropterus:
There are so many to choose from I am not sure which one to get.

My thoughts about bipods:

In general, for shooting from a bench shorter is better. I don’t normally use a bipod at all from a bench because for me bags or other types are steadier. The taller the bipod, the harder it is to prevent movement. I thought that Harris used to offer a very short bench model, but if so it’s been discontinued, and was probably not very good for most people to use from the prone.

If I were using a Harris bipod, I’d get one of the 6 to 9 inch models. The Atlas bipods I use have a maximum extension of 9 inches and I have never wanted anything taller on level surfaces. I have 3 inch extensions for the legs, but have literally never used them. Unless someone has difficulty getting low to the ground in the prone position, I wouldn’t consider one of the taller Harris models for shooting from the prone.

I also strongly recommend the models with notched legs. The smooth leg (“standard”) models permit the height to be adjusted to exactly where the shooter wants it, but in practice I found that style a pain to set up and adjust from the prone. The legs must be pulled out under spring tension and held in place while the locking screw is tightened. In addition, if the screw isn’t tightened securely (which makes it difficult to change the setting), there is a tendency for a leg to collapse, and dump the rifle and scope onto the ground—or off a bench!
I have never found the notched legs to be any sort of problem in adjusting the height.

Then there is the swivel feature that permits tilting the rifle left or right a few degrees. That is useful for leveling the gun precisely rather than adjusting the height of a leg. To lock the tilt in place, the swivel models have a knurled nut to tighten, but the adapter that uses a lever is more convenient. The Pod-Loc used to be the standard lever lock, but there are other options today, including, I believe, Harris’ own.

Having an adapter to permit the gun to be panned left/right without moving the bipod is also sometimes a useful feature depending on the type of shooting one does.

Finally, there is the mounting method. Most Harris models are designed to clamp directly to a sling swivel stud. That system works well, but it takes a little time to attach and remove so I prefer a quick detach system that clamps to a Picatinny rail section that’s permanently attached to the rifle stock. That’s hardly essential, though.

Most of the Harris bipods I own are the HBRMS model:
https://www.harrisbipods.com/HBRMS.php

Added:
Read the advice fritz offers. The Atlas bipod was the first good alternative to the Harris line that I discovered years ago, and I have a couple that I can mount on any of several different rifles. One advantage of the Atlas is that the mounting head of the original model permits panning and tilting, but it uses friction to limit movement after we’re on target. The friction tension can be adjusted and I’ve never wanted a hard lock when using an Atlas.

There are also others to consider these days, but I have never regretted spending the money for the Atlas models I own. Harris bipods were the standard for tactical shooters including military snipers for a long time, but that was because there were no other good options. Today there are many others that really are better.

Added, part deux:
Another advantage of the Atlas and some others is the ability to change the feet for different shooting surfaces. These days I pretty much use the standard rubber feet only on surfaces that I don’t want to damage, as when shooting from a car hood. Otherwise I much prefer spike feet that stay in position and, depending upon the design, have less tendency to sink into soft dirt that requires readjusting things every few shots. Not that it would probably ever be an issue for you, but on ice spiked feet are a must. Interchangeable feet are becoming more common following Atlas’ lead, and I believe there is an aftermarket adapter system for the Harris line.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sigfreund,

quote:

Originally posted by Micropterus:
Now the search for the perfect scope.

Take your time, do your research, figure out what you want, look for sales. Read the scope primer in this section.

Consider your primary uses first. I'm guessing this is a target rifle.
- Distances to targets, paper/steel/reactive, multiple targets in a short time or only one at a time.
- Shooting from a fixed location or moving between multiple locations. Prone & bench only, or alternative positions.
- If you shoot targets at more than one distance, do you intend to dial the elevation or use the reticle for hold overs/unders.
- Your preferred reticle type.
- First focal plane or second focal plane reticle.
- Magnification requirements.

And of course, budget. Include the cost of rings/mount in your budget.

Next is ammo, although your shooting may be down the road a bit. Ammo is currently getting scare and pricey. I'll assume you're looking for target shooting accuracy, not hunting ammo. Also assuming you will buy factory ammo, at least initially.

You really can't go wrong with loads which feature Sierra MatchKing ("SMK") 168 grain, SMK 175, or Hornady Amax 168. These bullets have been around a long time, and virtually every ammo manufacturer knows how to load them. The bullets also tolerate variations in chamber sizes. They tend to be jump-tolerant, meaning that they shoot well throughout the life of your barrel, as the barrel's lands inevitably wear. Federal and Hornady are quality brands, as is Black Hills. Other options include Fiocchi, Aussie Outback, HSM, Remington, Winchester.

155 grain match bullets may work, too. Hornady's Amax and ELD are options. Lapua's HPBT.

Sierra's new Tipped MatchKing bullets ("TMK") offer great ballistics, but appear to be pretty finicky with chamber dimensions and barrel. Factory TMK loads don't shoot well for me -- it's probably a hand loaded bullet. Hornady's ELD bullets are a step up in ballistics over their Amax bullets. However, ELD loads don't always perform well in some rifles. But if ELD loads do shoot in your 308, they will noticeably outclass SMK and Amax at longer distances.

I do not recommend Hornady's Superformance ammo. Or for that matter, any company that loads ammo to increase muzzle velocity 100-200 fps beyond normal levels. Superformance may be accurate in your rifle, and it will offer flatter flight & less wind drift. On hot days and after shooting a few rounds, I experience signs of over pressure. First is a hard to lift bolt. Then flattened primers. If it really gets bad, expect blown primers and a bolt that has to be opened with a rubber mallet. If you want flight ballistics better than that of a normal 308, rechamber your barrel to a 6.5 Creedmoor.

Nice rifle!

I’ve had one a number of years and it was my first real venture into distance shooting. I have been very happy with it.

Over the years I have replaced the trigger with a Timmey, the stock with a KRG Bravo, and have transitioned thru several iterations of glass from a SFWA fixed 10x to a Vortex HSLR 6-24x to the Viper PST 3-15x that now sits on it.

I did a HUGE amount of bullet and load testing over the years with it. Berger’s, SMKs, Hornadays, various weights. In the end, I found that due to the long throats typical on them, the good old 175gr SMK did the best in my gun. For loading, both Varget and RL15 are about equal in performance using around 43.0gr. Careful trial is your friend.

I’ve been tossing the idea of putting the Remington stock back onto it. I always liked the looks, and while the purpose of the Bravo was to match it’s bigger brother Stiller .300win mag, the relative compactness of the factory stock is a tempting one to go back to.

Micropterus that looks fantastic! Love the matt stainless and barrel profile.

I always thought one of these would make a great M40 clone base with the 5R rifling.

I have an 700 LTR that I picked up around '05, that I really need to get out to the range and shoot.

So many great scope choices to evaluate these days. I would buy more scope than you can afford, it will make you happiest in my experience. Be sure to check out BHphotovideo for scope pricing.

HK Ag

I have almost that exact rifle, including the stock! Picked it up around '06. Haven't got to shoot it much lately, but it's easily 3/4 MOA (when I'm having a good day). It shoots better than I can.

Mine is set up with a Leuopld Mk 4 4.5-14 and Harris bipod. I really like that rifle!

I have a Remington 700PSS (they've since re-labeled it "700P") in .308 Win.

I've gotten as little as 1/2" groups at 100 yards with it, shooting Federal Gold Medal Match with the Sierra 168 gr. Match King BTHP bullet.

I've tried other factory match rounds, the same and other weights. Some with the same bullet. That rifle really likes those 168 gr. FGMM cartridges. When I eventually get to reloading, that Sierra 168 gr. MK will be the bullet I'll use. (Somewhere I found and copied somebody's replication of Federal's powder load, I think.)

I've a Leopold 3-5-14x40 (I don't recall which model) scope on it, with a Mil-Dot reticle, mounted with Burris rings.