<newbie, apologies in advance for any stupidity>
Wondering how folks think about what I am beginning to see as four "categories" of elr bolt action rifles. For context, I am looking to get into long range shooting after a bit of a drift off into mostly pistol related sports and activities. I am trying to judge the value tradeoff and decide what to buy. Would appreciate thoughts on how to think about this if accuracy vs. price is my only focus. I am willing to spend $3-5k or so if I am really getting better accuracy than say an RPR, don't care (much) about weight, appearance, custom colors, etc. Expecting to shoot in the 1,000 yard range mostly.
1) Your basic bolt action like the Rem 700 and clones. Sub $1,000 off the shelf. Sub 2 MOA maybe out of the box? I have one of these already.
2) Factory rifles designed for elr shooting, but "low end." RPR. Christensen MPR. etc. Right around the $2,000 mark +- $500. Sub 1 MOA out of the box?
3) Factory rifles, but high end. Christensen TFM. Tikka. AI. Barrett, etc. Typically >$5,000. Maybe sub 1/2 MOA? The TFM is "guaranteed" < 1/2 MOA.
4) Hand made custom rifles from one of say a dozen top class high end builders. Probably would buy one used here, looks like $3,500 - $10,000 is the range.
Wondering how folks think about what I am beginning to see as four "categories" of elr bolt action rifles. For context, I am looking to get into long range shooting after a bit of a drift off into mostly pistol related sports and activities. I am trying to judge the value tradeoff and decide what to buy. Would appreciate thoughts on how to think about this if accuracy vs. price is my only focus. I am willing to spend $3-5k or so if I am really getting better accuracy than say an RPR, don't care (much) about weight, appearance, custom colors, etc. Expecting to shoot in the 1,000 yard range mostly.
1) Your basic bolt action like the Rem 700 and clones. Sub $1,000 off the shelf. Sub 2 MOA maybe out of the box? I have one of these already.
2) Factory rifles designed for elr shooting, but "low end." RPR. Christensen MPR. etc. Right around the $2,000 mark +- $500. Sub 1 MOA out of the box?
3) Factory rifles, but high end. Christensen TFM. Tikka. AI. Barrett, etc. Typically >$5,000. Maybe sub 1/2 MOA? The TFM is "guaranteed" < 1/2 MOA.
4) Hand made custom rifles from one of say a dozen top class high end builders. Probably would buy one used here, looks like $3,500 - $10,000 is the range.