Bergara B-14R Range Report and Assessment

[BoilerUP]

Perhaps a stupid question...

Is the HMR mini-chassis stock and bottom metal on the B14R identical to centerfire models, ie. would one be able to remove the B14R mini-chassis and place a 700 barreled action into it?

 

[Tochnost]

Just a heads up
After 3 days an a match today
We ran the b14r very hard
Noticed something not right
When I got home found ejector small pin had worked its way out
Just enough to cause failure to eject
Drove pin back in , covered hole with a dab of jb weld
Just did a test fire
Good to go
It is the top small pin
To be on the safe side jb weld dab both pins
That could have cost us big time in match today
They call it bottom pin
Pm# 33000

@Yoteman2

I've been looking for Geco Auto Match and I'm not seeing it. I see Match and I see Semi-Auto. Do you have a pic of the box or can you confirm which one I should be looking for? Thanks!

 

[Yoteman2]

@Yoteman2

I've been looking for Geco Auto Match and I'm not seeing it. I see Match and I see Semi-Auto. Do you have a pic of the box or can you confirm which one I should be looking for? Thanks!

When I get home will check

 

[Yoteman2]

When I get home will check

Had a box in truck
Sorry for confusion
Semi auto
My lot #
61KL3
Like it has been said all over in the rimfire section your mileage may very

 

[Yoteman2]

Sorry for the confusion
GECO semi auto
I have been saying auto match
My bad but it is shooting in my b14r like match

 

[Tochnost]

Thanks. I'll see if I can find some and give it a try.

 

[Baracuda22]

Just got mine from my dealer a damn very long tuff background check and waiting and now she is all mine.Ready for barreled and make over touches.

 

[RFutch]

Perhaps a stupid question...

Is the HMR mini-chassis stock and bottom metal on the B14R identical to centerfire models, ie. would one be able to remove the B14R mini-chassis and place a 700 barreled action into it?

Yes, it’s exactly the same. Even says HMR on the bottom of the stock.

 

[ta6ppc]

I know KOD has tried a bunch of triggers, I ordered myself a Jewell today.. so hopefully within a week I’ll have some info about it. I’m sure it will function as all jewells do.. I’d like to get into the ounce range on mine.

I also bedded my action in Devcon, in the factory HMR stock so hopefully that will make an improvement. Seems like the loose fit to the stock was really sloppy to me.. I didn’t have any issues with the rifle, just when I attempted to turn the trigger down I discovered how loose a fit it really was. I’ll get some groups at 50 or 100 yards after the trigger is installed.

 

[melglass]

I know KOD has tried a bunch of triggers, I ordered myself a Jewell today.. so hopefully within a week I’ll have some info about it. I’m sure it will function as all jewells do.. I’d like to get into the ounce range on mine.

I also bedded my action in Devcon, in the factory HMR stock so hopefully that will make an improvement. Seems like the loose fit to the stock was really sloppy to me.. I didn’t have any issues with the rifle, just when I attempted to turn the trigger down I discovered how loose a fit it really was. I’ll get some groups at 50 or 100 yards after the trigger is installed.

Robbed the 2oz Jewell out of my 40x last night and dropped it in my B14r Carbon. Seems to work perfectly. Will gets some rounds down range on it this evening.

 

[Yoteman2]

I know KOD has tried a bunch of triggers, I ordered myself a Jewell today.. so hopefully within a week I’ll have some info about it. I’m sure it will function as all jewells do.. I’d like to get into the ounce range on mine.

I also bedded my action in Devcon, in the factory HMR stock so hopefully that will make an improvement. Seems like the loose fit to the stock was really sloppy to me.. I didn’t have any issues with the rifle, just when I attempted to turn the trigger down I discovered how loose a fit it really was. I’ll get some groups at 50 or 100 yards after the trigger is installed.

Did you shoot any groups before you bedded
Just was thinking a comparison would be nice to know
Yote

 

[ta6ppc]

Did you shoot any groups before you bedded
Just was thinking a comparison would be nice to know
Yote

I’ve shot lots of groups pre bed, I’m not sure I’ll get a chance to go shoot before I install the trigger.. but I’ll try

attached is a pic comparing my Vudoo to the Begara shooting the same ammo

 

[DFC]

I've been waiting to see side by side V Vs B for a long time. thanks.

 

[munsonbw]

I’ve shot lots of groups pre bed, I’m not sure I’ll get a chance to go shoot before I install the trigger.. but I’ll try

attached is a pic comparing my Vudoo to the Begara shooting the same ammo

Looks like they shoot pretty similar. In fact, your Begara groups look very much like what I am doing with center X. I might be getting slightly tighter groups for 4 shots, but suffer from fliers that kill the average every couple of 5 shot strings.

 

[Yoteman2]

I’ve shot lots of groups pre bed, I’m not sure I’ll get a chance to go shoot before I install the trigger.. but I’ll try

attached is a pic comparing my Vudoo to the Begara shooting the same ammo

Cool cool cool
Yep shot beside a Vudoo today
But he would not tell me what ammo until we got to 200 yards
We were shooting at 50 yards
I was still trying out geco semi auto
He went to pull targets
But tried to past off my target for his
Until I made he look on the back of targets
He saw my initials lol
He was a little pissed
He did let me shoot 5 from his vudoo
I think they are about same as far as I could tell
He did indeed out shoot me at 200 yards
But hell I was running semi auto he was shooting centerX
Still I hung in there with him on plates
Shot for shot his was the better group
Next trip will bring out centerX
Yote

 

[ta6ppc]

I shot my Vudoo and the B14r side by side off a machine rest and a rear bag on a solid bench.
I tested SK pistol match, SK standard plus, and Lapua center x...

It all shot very similar, but when I measured them all the Vudoo came out probably.150-.200 better than the B14r..

the bolt lift, and the over all refined aspects of the Vudoo are far superior to the B14r..

overall accuracy is very marginal, however I haven’t lost tested anything for each rifle, I just bought what I can afford and shoot.

 

[melglass]

If nobody has a problem I will start putting the info from my B14r Carbon in with these instead of the topic I started. The Jewell trigger worked great For I’m guessing 250 rounds today. Conditions switching I really need to set up some flags instead of guessing what it’s doing at time of shot. Used 50 in/lb today.
.

193 yards Eley Action. Targets 5 and 6 wind got me. Pulled the very last shot on 7.

Had a pretty good string on a 10x5 at 50 with an old lot of CCI standard. .422 10 group average with a 6x5 of .364.

 

[Yoteman2]

I shot my Vudoo and the B14r side by side off a machine rest and a rear bag on a solid bench.
I tested SK pistol match, SK standard plus, and Lapua center x...

It all shot very similar, but when I measured them all the Vudoo came out probably.150-.200 better than the B14r..

the bolt lift, and the over all refined aspects of the Vudoo are far superior to the B14r..

overall accuracy is very marginal, however I haven’t lost tested anything for each rifle, I just bought what I can afford and shoot.

Good for you
That what this sport is all about
Having fun with what you got
By the way I am having a Vudoo built
By my gun smith
He is one of the few that has been vetted by Vudoo to do so
Still your rigs shoot outstanding
Yote

 

[docohm]

I've been testing various ammo in my week old B14R Carbonfiber. It is in a KRG Bravo chassis. All stock trigger and such.
Here is a summary of what I've found so far. I have much more testing to do at 100 yds and beyond. I just bought a brick of SK Long Range Match and SK Rifle Match because I found them locally at a good price.

Summary		At 50 yds		MOA	Ammo	No. in Average
		Best	Average	0.646	CCI Std Vel	6
				0.875	SK Long Range Match	3
				0.876	Eley Tenex	2
				0.958	Eley Target	3

Summary		At 100 yds		MOA	Ammo	No. in Average
		Best	Average	0.896	SK Long Range Match	3
				0.5	SK Rifle Match	1
				0.4375	SK Standard Plus	1

 

[melglass]

Still running budget ammo through mine. Waiting for better conditions to test some of the better stuff I have. I mainly have been shooting Eley Action 40gr and Action Plus With other stuff thrown in. Have shot some great groups but the averages suffer because of flyers. Got a few nice groups today at 193 yards but had two shots drop out the bottom to keep me from a sub moa average.

 

[melglass]

Triggershims.com has Bergara B14r bolt shims.

 

[ta6ppc]

Triggershims.com has Bergara B14r bolt shims.

Has anyone tightened up the head space on one of these yet?

mine shoots well enough I don’t think I would or could gain anything from it.

 

[melglass]

Has anyone tightened up the head space on one of these yet?

mine shoots well enough I don’t think I would or could gain anything from it.

I’m going to play around with it. I have a set coming and mainly shoot Aguila and Eley. They shoot good enough for my playing now but figured it would be a fun experiment.

 

[munsonbw]

I would be very curious about the shims. I bought shims from them for my 77/22 I didn’t do proper testing to validate the improvement, unfortunately.

 

[DFC]

I would be very curious of what you think you are going to get from shimming the bolt. If the factory shimmed the bolt for an acceptable head space for using various 22 ammo whats to gain? The V22 is headspaced rather tight and owners have reported problems with some ammo.

 

[Kisssofdeath]

You guys are looking good with your B-14R's. I need to get back into shooting but for the moment I have a lot of other things that need my attention. I do pop in every now and then to check things out.

 

[melglass]

I would be very curious of what you think you are going to get from shimming the bolt. If the factory shimmed the bolt for an acceptable head space for using various 22 ammo whats to gain? The V22 is headspaced rather tight and owners have reported problems with some ammo.

I have seen it greatly improve the Ruger 77/22s and the pistol caliber guns. It’s only a few dollars to try something different and experiment. I have time unless they call me back to work. Nice getting paid to stay home and work up loads for the centerfires and see how many bricks of 22 ammo you can shoot into groups. The RimX I have coming has enough headspace to run anything so not worried about setting this up for one brand.

 

[ta6ppc]

So I took my 2 rifles out the B14r and the Vudoo so far on my B14r I have bed the action in devcon steel putty, mostly just a skim bed around the rear tang and the recoil lug nothing in front of the recoil lug so my barrel is fully and cleanly floating in mid air with approximately 0.100-.125 for the whole length of the forearm. I have also installed a Jewell Trigger with the “c” spring in it probably breaking around 2-3 ounces. Shot off a machine rest with sk plus I was able to shoot many groups mostly 10 shots each and keep them under the 1” mark I did have one that I thought was absolutely shit hot at about 1/2” for 10 shots
My vudoo shot as it always does and can easily keep them under an inch. The Begara is getting really close to the accuracy level of the Vudoo.

I also have only torqued the Begara in at around 60 in pounds, so perhaps I’ll play with torque next..

Over all very happy with the purchase of the B14r, in fact I may just buy a second one and try the carbon barrel out so that when we make our range days I don’t end up standing behind everyone watching the festivities!

 

[NavyshooterM40]

What bore guide do you use? Also what is best to clean the lead out of the barrel?

 

[ta6ppc]

What bore guide do you use? Also what is best to clean the lead out of the barrel?

I use the bore guide that I bought with my Vudoo, however one for a remmy 700 works good too I have a Sinclair that works well.
Solvent wise I have been using Bore tech rim fire blend.. when I got the rifle new I ran a few wet patches through it and a few dry ones and I also ran some isso paste through it for about 100 or so strokes refreshing the paste every once in a while. Once I got all the paste out I cleaned it once more with the boretech rimfire blend and ever since I just push a few Damp patches through it after I shoot.. no need to really clean and scrub all I shoot is SK or Lapua which has so much lube it cleans up easily.

 

[Kevin1]

I shot my Vudoo and the B14r side by side off a machine rest and a rear bag on a solid bench.
I tested SK pistol match, SK standard plus, and Lapua center x...

It all shot very similar, but when I measured them all the Vudoo came out probably.150-.200 better than the B14r..

the bolt lift, and the over all refined aspects of the Vudoo are far superior to the B14r..

overall accuracy is very marginal, however I haven’t lost tested anything for each rifle, I just bought what I can afford and shoot.

.200 better at 50Y isn't marginal. That's the difference between one rifle shooting in the 0.2s vs the other shooting in the 0.4s.....Am I missing something?

 

[ta6ppc]

.200 better at 50Y isn't marginal. That's the difference between one rifle shooting in the 0.2s vs the other shooting in the 0.4s.....Am I missing something?

My Vudoo is typically capable of bettering anything the Begara shoots by .150-.200, so my point of the statement is that the Begara is very close to the Vudoo that’s it no hidden meaning or anything..

I shot 2 brands and 3 flavors that day and the average aggregate for all groups was .200 better for the Vudoo. I shot center-x , sk plus, sk pistol match all the same lot in each gun 5 groups of 5 shots each and one 10 shot group for each flavor and measured them outside to outside and averaged each.

is a gun that shoots .200 at 50 yards worth approx 3x one that shoots .400 ??

I love my Vudoo it’s super refined and slick as butter, and does exactly what it’s supposed to do, the Begara is a pretty good second though the only thing I don’t like is the bolt lift and close is awful hard..

 

[DFC]

Apples and oranges. The B14R is a $900 to $1000, mass produced complete rifle. The V22 is 2 and a half times more money. So is it twice as good? Thats the real question.
Furthermore the B14R is a new rifle with some bugs that will be worked out. Bergara makes all their parts for this rifle, unlike other brands that don't make any of the parts.

 

[OutThere]

Gentlemen,

As I'm just getting back into rimfire rifles, everyone's input is most appreciated.

I was considering a B14R as I have a BXR and like it alot.

Thank you.

 

[melglass]

Could not find an extra mag so did what any gun nut would do. I ordered a standard barreled B14r to go with my carbon one. Rigged it out and shot it today.

The good
Shot each of 4 types of ammo that I am using to run the barrel in better than the carbon. A Browning bulk box that is probably some of the worst stuff I ever had even shot even did ok. 50 yards 4 10 round groups just under 3/4 each with 2 flyers in one group to open it up A good bit. That ammo shoots about 3in in everything I have shot it in. New Aguila standard that has shot 3/4-1in in everything did 7x5 at just over .6.

100 yards
New Aguila averaged about 1.5 so it’s usable.
Gemtech sub did around 1 3/8 with two groups in the 3/4 range but a wide shot in two other groups to kill the average.
Fed AutoMatch 3/4, 1 1/8 And a 10 shot group of 1 7/8 with 8 into 7/8. Two low shots that sounded subsonic.

The bad
Trigger would not go below 3 1/4 so put the trigger from the carbon gun in it for 2 1/2lb.
Had multiple FTE. Will try to narrow down the problem the next time I hit the range.

Carbon gun did it’s normal 100 yard average with Action plus. 9x5 of 1.24 with a 6x5 of 1.15. Will eventually get around to testing better ammo but have just been having fun with the $3 stuff.

 

[Yoteman2]

Gentlemen,

As I'm just getting back into rimfire rifles, everyone's input is most appreciated.

I was considering a B14R as I have a BXR and like it alot.

Thank you.

Really enjoying mine
Steel

 

[OutThere]

I ordered a B-14R, (steel barrel). I'm working on getting the other stuff to go with it.

 

[Rem7]

I just got my carbon back from Bergara after having FTE issues. Shot about a 150 rounds out of it without any hiccups. I zeroed at a 100yds and was consistently hitting cans at 200yds.

 

[Rem7]

Sorry, 50 yd zero.... not 100yds

 

[JaoeyP]

Apples and oranges. The B14R is a $900 to $1000, mass produced complete rifle. The V22 is 2 and a half times more money. So is it twice as good? Thats the real question.

The problem with your question is virtually nothing in the market of precision equipment has a cost linear to its quality. You often do have to pay 2-3x more to get something marginally better. That said, I love my B14R, I think it punches above its weight class in price AND I still want a Vudoo.

 

[Chipster]

Is the steel barrel shooting better than the carbon barrel in general? Not sure if I should buy the carbon barrel or wait for a steel barreled action.

 

[JaoeyP]

Is the steel barrel shooting better than the carbon barrel in general? Not sure if I should buy the carbon barrel or wait for a steel barreled action.

Not sure how one is doing vs the other but I would encourage you to make that decision based on purpose-
Match rifle for competition- steel all day UNLESS you want a child or smaller woman to shoot it
Hunting rifle- carbon

 

[Rem7]

I consulted with Bergara before I bought my Carbon. They told me that both were equivalent and the only difference was weight. But I’d like to see results on paper as well. I still need try different types of ammo to see what shoots best for me.

 

[Chipster]

Thanks JaoeyP.
So you think in general the steel barrel is more accurate or the weight of the steel is better for competition, not that the steel is more accurate?

 

[Chipster]

What do you think Melglass, you have both?
Thumbs up for one or the other?

 

[melglass]

You will be good ether way. Steel barrel shot junk ammo a little better. It’s funny but so far the Carbon does better at 50 and 193 but the steel does better at 100. Not like it’s a big difference but it’s there. Mainly shoot Eley Action 40gr and Action plus 42gr because I have 12k combined. Been saving the match ammo for a RimX I have coming. Easy to find something under 1/2 at 50, 1-1.25 at 100 and under 3in at 200 with budget ammo in both. That’s averages with 1/2 moa or near that Thrown in at all ranges. Not even sure if I have fired any ammo over $4 a box. May have to give them a good scrub and try some Lapua, RWS and Sk.

 

[Chipster]

Thanks Melglass

 

[JaoeyP]

Thanks JaoeyP.
So you think in general the steel barrel is more accurate or the weight of the steel is better for competition, not that the steel is more accurate?

I think the steel barrel is better for competition because of weight and balance. I do have a friend who out together a competition rifle with the carbon fiber barrel specifically with his son in mind.

 

[Yoteman2]

Up date
We just finished 22 100 yard match
My neighbor 9 year old son
Made me proud
Possible 200 score 20x
He beat everyone with
197 11x
10 ring 3/4” x ring 1/2”
With my Bergara b14
Up against
Walter
Anshulte
Rem 40x
Custom cz 455 an 457
Custom 10-22
Vudoo
He beat them all
‘O’ by the way geco auto match ammo
He also finished 2nd in side match of know your limit
YEA I think the B14R does ok
I did finish 2nd
But he still handed me my a$$

Correction he shot his fathers walther KK
He did indeed do a lot of practice with the b14r

 

[MarkCZ]

Guys thanks for all the input. just went thru all of this post. Mine is coming this week. Is the factory trigger adjustable? A lot of trigger info, some worked some did not. What trigger are you using?

Mark