Custom rifle or take the money?

L

Leveraction35

Private
Minuteman
Jan 18, 2022
33
7
Pennsylvania
#1
I won a contest where the winner gets a Blueprinted Remington 700 in Short Action caliber of choice, with a Kreiger or Bartlein Barrel, Bedded in a MDT XRS Chassis (or equivalent pricepoint)… or…$1500 cash.

I could have him build me a gun that I’d be happy with for life… Or I could take the money, buy a tikka, Bergara etc, put it in a decent stock/chassis and still have money for a bunch of ammo

We discussed 243, 6arc and 6gt for the most part. If I go with 6arc or 6gt, he would do load testing and give me the data. I’m a factory ammo shooter but I would have friends load the oddballs for me. We Briefly discussed 220swift and 224Valk as well.

This will be a pure coyote hunting gun and max distance of 300 yards. All tripod shooting. I don’t like to blow big holes in the animal either, I keep the nice pelts. I’m a bit torn on what to do, and would appreciate input.
 
#3
By the time you get one of the Tikka rifles or such and then buy a different chassis for it, you aren't going to actually be saving anything.

Especially if the place building the rifle is going to test it and work out a load for it and such and do accuracy testing, it's not a bad deal.

I'd suggest you go with the rifle build.

I'd also suggest you consider getting it in a caliber you can get factory ammo for if you aren't going to reload at all.
.243 would be a perfect 300 yard coyote killer, or you could go with 6cm if you want to be all modern about it.
 
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#4
Assuming the Smith goes good work (you don't have to name drop if you don't want to) then I would probably go the custom 700 route. Going to be hard to beat that Kreiger/Bartlein in a factory offering around that price. IF you have money to burn then roll it the full custom otherwise Rem 700 will be fine.

For caliber under 300 yards; .223 Rem or .204 Ruger would perform great and save you money
 
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#6
Take the rifle. I'd say to get a 6mm ARC since you don't reload. You can get plenty of factory ammo for it with a variety of bullet types. You can't buy anything for $1500 that will compete with the build you'll be getting.

My wife's hunting rifle is a 6.5 Grendel bolt action and it performs amazing, the 6 arc is very similar hunting performance with a flatter trajectory. Hers mostly takes whitetail to 300 yds and it's a winner.
 
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#7
Fun problem . . .
IMHO
No question - M700 based Custom
Cartridge? Definitely a 6mm, much better in the wind than a 22. 6ARC or 6BR <my favorite
(FWIW - My buddy scored 1st place - and just beat me out in the most recent 200 yard local "Battle Rifle" precision rifle match with his 6BR vs. my 22BR on a windy day. And we both kicked butt on all the .223's.)
DO NOT GO WITH A 224Valkyrie (got one - CANNOT recommend, especially if limited to commercial ammo).
Barrel? Can't go wrong with either. "Precision is where you find it"
 
#8
Memberberries said:
Take the rifle. I'd say to get a 6mm ARC since you don't reload. You can get plenty of factory ammo for it with a variety of bullet types. You can't buy anything for $1500 that will compete with the build you'll be getting.
Click to expand...
The guy said the only issue with factory 6arc ammo is it’s loaded for AR platforms and you lose some of the max potential the cartridge can offer when loaded in a bolt gun. But, maybe that’s splitting hairs.
 
#9
Id take the rifle but if you are using it in the small rifle primer arc or gt chamberings I would want to ensure the bolt face is bushed to handle high pressure small primers so you arent blowing holes in them. If its not then the low pressure arc factory loads might be a blessing.
 
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#10
243 or 6 CM. food for thought, any/every store that has ammo will have 243. 6CM is elusive on the gun shelves where I live. The 6 CM may be the better cartridge, but if you don't reload, the 243 will be more available/prevalent and likely cheaper. Either will also handily smoke whitetail deer past 400 easily with 100 grain bullets.
 
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#11
Leveraction35 said:
The guy said the only issue with factory 6arc ammo is it’s loaded for AR platforms and you lose some of the max potential the cartridge can offer when loaded in a bolt gun. But, maybe that’s splitting hairs.
Click to expand...
He's wanting something with mild recoil and factory ammo availability. I don't see the reason that leaving 5-10% of the full potential of a cartridge on the table is an issue because he's not trying to build a hotrod, just a 300yd yote rig.
 
#12
Zooming all the way back to the original question, no way can OP build a comparable rifle for $1500.

A Bartlein/Krieger barrel alone will run you $800+ these days, plus let’s say $400 street price for the chassis. That leaves $300 “value” for a blueprinted R700 action, which would cost 2-3x that to assemble yourself.

A Tikka will likely shoot right out of the box, so you’re just in for the chassis of your choice, but hard to imagine coming in under $1500 for a solid build. I’d skip the Bergara, those are too variable, unless you went the Premier route and now you’re into $1500 before a chassis.

Take the rifle.

ETA: 223 with a twist rate appropriate for heavy bullets is the perfect ballistic option for your needs. However, I’d want to make sure it would feed reliably. 6BR is probably what I’d choose in your shoes, plenty of appropriate factory ammo options.
 
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#13
I hope you don't but........

My guess is that you'll take the cash and piss it away on something unremarkable and not even remember what you spent it on inside of a month.

Please take our advice and take the rifle. What an awesome thing to have won. A good rifle will last a lifetime.

Any number of calibers would do the job. I personally would go with .308 but I'm ride or die .308.
 
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#16
Take the rifle. If inside of 300 is really what you’re doing, go 6x45, or 6mmARC. Loading for 6x45 is incredibly easy and cheap to set up to do. And you have a wide range of 6mm bullets that will kill fine.
 
#17
Take the rifle in 243win, definitely the most capable and well rounded of all you listed given the correct twist rate is chosen.
If you can't find an assortment of 243win ammo on the shelf locally your probably not in Armerica anymore.
The 6mm CM is just the modern version and if you don't reload would most likely be just more expensive or difficult to find ammo for.
About the only downside of the 243win is finding the right ammo that is fur friendly like something in the 58 - 75 gr range.
Otherwise the recommendation above of 223rem would be a good one or just hit the easy button and get a 22-250.
 
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#20
100% take the rifle. Too me the 1500 isn’t equivalent to the semi custom build in a caliber of choice.

For 350-400 and in I love a 20 cal. For factory ammo it would be the 204 ruger, but if your reloading I would consider a 20 tactical, 20 practical (20-223), or 20-223ai. If you want to step into the bigger bolt face then 20br, 20bra, 20gt and these would extend your range yet again. I personally ran 204 for years and switched to a custom 20 tac. They are super fast, super flat and make for running shots very easy. At 3800-4000 fps it’s just lights out.

If 20 isn’t your thing then 300 and in 223 is a simple easy choice. 22-250, 22 creed and 22 arc are a few other great options all with factory ammo.

6mm’s give you the option to extend ranges but come with slight more recoil making spotting shots a little harder, and tend to be a little more expensive. 6 creed, 6 arc and 6gt would both be good choice. If reloading then 6br, 6bra, 6gt would be awesome.

My 2 main guns are a 20 tactical pushing 39gr blitzkings at 4000fps and a 22bra pushing 85.5’s at 3130fps

This is all presuming the smith is a reputable gunsmith
 
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#21
Absolutely the rifle. For 300 yards and in, off a tripod, wanting to make small holes, with factory ammo, out of an action that needs gunsmith attention to rebarrel? It would be foolish to do anything other than .223.

It’s ballistically equivalent to 6BR or ARC inside 300 yards. It’s easier to find GREAT factory ammo. It has better barrel life. It makes smaller holes. It’s lighter recoiling. Ammo is cheaper.

Are there “better” coyote calibers? Sure. Do they allow a person to maximize barrel life, use factory ammo, and shoot for less than $1.50 a round? Nope.
 
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#22
Ive had a handful getting up after being shot lately that had me leaning away from the 223 (which I currently shoot). Good shots too, lungs hanging out of the animals. I was hoping to get more it a DRT result if I stepped up to 6arc, 243 or 250.

Maybe it’s my ammo though? 55gr Hornady spire soft points
 
#23
Leveraction35 said:
Ive had a handful getting up after being shot lately that had me leaning away from the 223 (which I currently shoot). Good shots too, lungs hanging out of the animals. I was hoping to get more it a DRT result if I stepped up to 6arc, 243 or 250.

Maybe it’s my ammo though? 55gr Hornady spire soft points
Click to expand...
There are others here with far more expertise on the best coyote cartridge. To answer your original question though I think the rifle is the way to go.
 
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#25
Leveraction35 said:
Ive had a handful getting up after being shot lately that had me leaning away from the 223 (which I currently shoot). Good shots too, lungs hanging out of the animals. I was hoping to get more it a DRT result if I stepped up to 6arc, 243 or 250.

Maybe it’s my ammo though? 55gr Hornady spire soft points
Click to expand...
Saving pelts and maximizing DRT are competing priorities. If you want the animal to stop always, somewhat irrespective of shot placement, you gotta have the bullets reliably blowing up…which will wreck the pelts.

Dead is dead, even if you gotta walk a bit farther to find it, unless you’re in thicker brush and will lose the animal.

The other option is to improve your shooting skills as high as you can, restrict when you take shots, and take headshots or shoot for the tops of the legs to
anchor them; problem there is that coyotes are highly mobile, I wouldn’t go for headshots personally, and intentional wounding isn’t my style either.
 
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#26
Leveraction35 said:
How do you mean? How is it on fur
Click to expand...
I use the Hornady 80gr VT for coyotes and 105gr for pig. The 80 gr it is very fur friendly just like hornady's v-max. But it is easier to shoot than .223 because it is not effected by the wind as much, with 6 arc requiring only half the wind hold value as .223 does. If you dont read wind well or dont want to worry about wind, the 6 arc is the easy button out to 300 yards.
 
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#27
Leveraction35 said:
Ive had a handful getting up after being shot lately that had me leaning away from the 223 (which I currently shoot). Good shots too, lungs hanging out of the animals. I was hoping to get more it a DRT result if I stepped up to 6arc, 243 or 250.

Maybe it’s my ammo though? 55gr Hornady spire soft points
Click to expand...
A lot of people like the 77tmk
 
#28
Skeptic1 said:
22-250 and/or 243 are barrel burners for sure. I would choose 223 if trying to save a pelt is a real concern.
Click to expand...
MEH, barrels are consumables.
For a coyote rifle it's not like he is going to be running 10-12 round strings In rapid succession as a normal course of fire.
I wouldn't buy a Ferrari and put discount tires on it.
If barrel life were the main concern the a 30BR running 118-125 gr bullets would be king.
 
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#29
ironhiide said:
I use the Hornady 80gr VT for coyotes and 105gr for pig. The 80 gr it is very fur friendly just like hornady's v-max. But it is easier to shoot than .223 because it is not effected by the wind as much with 6 arc, requiring only half the wind hold value as .223 does. If you dont read wind well or dont want to worry about wind, the 6 arc is the easy button out to 300 yards.
Click to expand...


I'm my experience the high ballistic coefficient 223 projectiles buck the wind extremely well. Especially at the distances the OP suggest.
 
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#30
Take the Cash, not even a question. That gets you into a quality custom action to build around. Or lets you buy a decent factory type gun that you can buy prefit barrels for. Or a little more and you can get one of the PRS production guns for about $22-2500 that are every bit as good as full $5000 customs.

A blueprinted 700 has little resale value and who knows the quality of the smith and their work. Not worth the risk. There are more shitty smiths out there than good ones, so you can figure out the odds.
 
#31
DeathBeforeDismount said:
Take the Cash, not even a question. That gets you into a quality custom action to build around. Or lets you buy a decent factory type gun that you can buy prefit barrels for. Or a little more and you can get one of the PRS production guns for about $22-2500 that are every bit as good as full $5000 customs.

A blueprinted 700 has little resale value and who knows the quality of the smith and their work. Not worth the risk. There are more shitty smiths out there than good ones, so you can figure out the odds.
Click to expand...
I’d go this route.

I paid less than $1,500 for an Origin with a Proof 26” .223 barrel, and a Triggertech Special, right here in the PX.
Then pick up a $300 Bravo to throw it in, or anything else one desires to use.
 
#34
I'd take the rifle in .308 if you have a need or even want for one. Just finding a good smith that doesn't have a 1 year waiting list isnt easy. Putting 1500 into a rifle is very easy to do and you'd likely wind up with less than you're being offered.
 
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#35
I keep seeing comments that poor mouth the old Remmington 700 platform. I realize that there are more custom actions than I can name now but I personally prefer the Remmington 700 and I always will. A 700 action done right by a really talented smith is as good as it gets in my opinion. I will always choose a 700 over any thing else.
 
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#36
Skeptic1 said:
I keep seeing comments that poor mouth the old Remmington 700 platform. I realize that there are more custom actions than I can name now but I personally prefer the Remmington 700 and I always will. A 700 action done right by a really talented smith is as good as it gets in my opinion. I will always choose a 700 over any thing else.
Click to expand...
This guy has a whole wall full of targets from his builds that produced one hole groups. I was really impressed.
 
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#37
DeathBeforeDismount said:
Take the Cash, not even a question. That gets you into a quality custom action to build around. Or lets you buy a decent factory type gun that you can buy prefit barrels for. Or a little more and you can get one of the PRS production guns for about $22-2500 that are every bit as good as full $5000 customs.

A blueprinted 700 has little resale value and who knows the quality of the smith and their work. Not worth the risk. There are more shitty smiths out there than good ones, so you can figure out the odds.
Click to expand...
I’d go this route, but that’s just me any route is fine if the smith does a decent job 6mm CM would be my choice.
 
#38
Leveraction35 said:
This guy has a whole wall full of targets from his builds that produced one hole groups. I was really impressed.
Click to expand...

He may be a great smith. I have no way to know. If you have any knowledge of firearms it shouldn't be to hard to look at his work and tell whether his general craftsmanship is good or not.
There is way more to it than that but this in an ok place to start.
Looks at his work. Talk to other people that have had him do work for them. See what they say.
Maybe someone here has heard of him.
 
#40
Skeptic1 said:
I hope you don't but........

My guess is that you'll take the cash and piss it away on something unremarkable and not even remember what you spent it on inside of a month.

Please take our advice and take the rifle. What an awesome thing to have won. A good rifle will last a lifetime.

Any number of calibers would do the job. I personally would go with .308 but I'm ride or die .308.
Click to expand...

.308 might not be the best for coyote hunting.
The .243 is usually considered a better option for that kind of stuff, or the modernized 6cm
 
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#41
Leveraction35 said:
How do you mean? How is it on fur
Click to expand...
I've killed quite a few over the years with 6.5 grendel. 6arc would fit what you need with good factory ammo choices and you ever decided to reload you will get even more out of it. You want more out of it 243. 6 creed or 22 creed and 22 creed would get my vote.
 
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#42
Pelt damage: I’m not an expert here. Try Rokslide or a predator hunting forum for info, or this thread:
www.snipershide.com

Hunting & Fishing - Let’s start a coyote thread.

I’ve got a couple in the last few weeks. My 17 Remington is money!
www.snipershide.com www.snipershide.com

KnowNothing256 said:
6BR is probably what I’d choose in your shoes, plenty of appropriate factory ammo options.
Click to expand...
What hunting 6br ammo are you talking about? I own a 6br and I don’t see many factory selections, even for match ammo.

Caliber:
Between these two 204 and 6arc factory loads, 204 is way way waaaay flatter out to 300.

15mph left—> Wind:
100yds equal
200yds: 204 is .2mil more
300yds: 204 is .3mil more

4CEE795C-C560-4284-915D-DAC3A178C0FA.jpeg

FE2238B4-E047-45E3-9E74-52B07D75EA0A.jpeg


0-300 yds 6br is roughly equivalent to 6arc, and 223 is definitely worse than 204 w/40gr vmax. A 204 w/32gr vmax in the same conditions as above is even flatter but is definitely worse in the wind.

For knockdown power, the bolt gun coyote hunters here seem to like 22-250, custom-loaded 22br laser beams (a mess on pelts), or of course 243.

204 is so fun man. So, so fun.

Edit: my 40gr 204 numbers are trued, the 6arc are not. So I suspect the actual real-world ballistic gap will be even more in favor of 204.
 
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#44
carbonbased said:
Pelt damage: I’m not an expert here. Try Rokslide or a predator hunting forum for info, or this thread:
www.snipershide.com

Hunting & Fishing - Let’s start a coyote thread.

I’ve got a couple in the last few weeks. My 17 Remington is money!
www.snipershide.com www.snipershide.com


What hunting 6br ammo are you talking about? I own a 6br and I don’t see many factory selections, even for match ammo.

Caliber:
Between these two 204 and 6arc factory loads, 204 is way way waaaay flatter.

15mph left—> Wind:
100yds equal
200yds: 204 is .2mil more
300yds: 204 is .3mil more

View attachment 8617324
View attachment 8617326

0-300 yds 6br is roughly equivalent to 6arc, and 223 is definitely worse than 204 w/40gr vmax. A 204 w/32gr vmax in the same conditions as above is even flatter but is definitely worse in the wind.

For knockdown power, the bolt gun coyote hunters here seem to like 22-250, custom-loaded 22br laser beams (a mess on pelts), or of course 243.

204 is so fun man. So, so fun.

Edit: my 40gr 204 numbers are trued, the 6arc are not. So I suspect the actual real-world ballistic gap will be even more in favor of 204.
Click to expand...
I wouldn’t personally be terribly concerned with a hunting bullet for coyotes, they aren’t tough; opinions may vary
 
#45
Leveraction35 said:
I guess I never really considered the 204. Maybe because I’ve been having dogs get up after being well hit with my 223… I guess I assumed the lighter bullet in the 204 wouldn’t help that situation
Click to expand...
I can’t help you there. Haven’t shot a yote yet (trying to find land). I have read all sorts of experiences with 204 and 223 on coyotes. If you are a good shot…

But if prairie dogs explosion backflip hits are any indication (they may not be), within 300yds I sure would rather be hit by 223 than a 204. Excepting 5.56 77gr TMK; haven’t shot a pdog with that.
 
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#46
KnowNothing256 said:
I wouldn’t personally be terribly concerned with a hunting bullet for coyotes, they aren’t tough; opinions may vary
Click to expand...
Yeah, I have read that too, but about the “plenty of appropriate factory ammo options” thing you talked about…?

Not being a dick, genuinely curious. I get there are plenty of bullets for the reloader, but 6br factory ammo?
 
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#47
carbonbased said:
Yeah, I have read that too, but about the “plenty of appropriate factory ammo options” thing you talked about…?

Not being a dick, genuinely curious. I get there are plenty of bullets for the reloader, but factory ammo?
Click to expand...
Perhaps “plenty” is an overstatement, that’s fair. My choice would be Lapua ammo loaded with either the 105gr or the 90gr Scenars, probably the 105s but either is perfectly fine for the application.

There is semi-custom ammo out there too, at a premium, but for a factory ammo shooter running 6BR I’d buy Lapua and sell the brass
 
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#48
KnowNothing256 said:
but for a factory ammo shooter running 6BR I’d buy Lapua and sell the brass
Click to expand...
That’s what I am currently doing. It is very consistent for factory ammo.

I did just find this 6br hunting ammo…actually it’s the only 6br hunting ammo that I am aware of. NORMA 6BR 100gr ORYX. Never heard of it…text is in Finnish, I think. According to Ammoseek it’s $3/rd.

www.olkkonen.fi

- Olkkonen.fi

www.olkkonen.fi www.olkkonen.fi
 
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#49
carbonbased said:
I can’t help you there. Haven’t shot a yote yet (trying to find land). I have read all sorts of experiences with 204 and 223 on coyotes. If you are a good shot…

But if prairie dogs explosion backflip hits are any indication (they may not be), within 300yds I sure would rather be hit by 223 than a 204. Excepting 5.56 77gr TMK; haven’t shot a pdog with that.
Click to expand...
The last one I shot was with a 308win and 168amax at about 110yds.
Entry left collar bone, exit mid rib cage right hand side.
Pretty much disembowled and then watched three Caracaras squabble and fight over eating it.
The doe and fawn it was following lived to fight another day.
 
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