Good to hear. Do you have any grand plans for your rifle? I only ask because I’m guilty of being a tinkering gear whore
I get that, trust me.. I too am an epic gear whore & gadget geek. Sometimes I think I FSU on purpose just so I can fix it. I bought my R700 AAC-SD .308 (in bone-stock form) about two years ago when I got a little money in my pocket & contracted a case of “ghetto rich”; I wanted to spend money I should be saving but had some valid reasons to justify treating myself for once. Had a hard time deciding between a bolt-gun or a 300 blackout upper for my M4 & a class III permit for a suppressor. Shopping for the 300 AAC upper was... entertaining, but every time I switched gears to research the LRP bolt-gun, I got giddy like a kid... decision made.
So, in the last two years I’ve slowly - & selectively - upgraded the OEM set-up to something a bit sexier & more LRP capable: Bell & Carlson A-5 Tac Precision stock, upgraded to a single-stage 2.5# Timney trigger, DBM mod, & two “low-budget” scopes (< &200 each) that were moderately capable out to 200-300m, but no better.
Two Thursdays ago my new optics arrived (another ghetto-rich indulgent purchase, but one I couldn’t turn down); though I couldn’t afford the $1k price tag on the object of my scope-lust (Vortex Viper PST Gen II 5-25x50, MOA, FFL) I stumbled on a deal that was too good to turn down... EuroOptics.com was advertising brand new Gen ONE Vortex Viper PST 6-24x50, MOA, FFL for $550!? Granted, not $2,500 - $5,000 “high-end glass”, but an earlier model of the exact optic I wanted for almost half the price; my IRS stimulus check arrived WHILE I was looking at the bargain priced Gen I, & saw it as a sign... I pulled the trigger on the purchase that very minute.
So, long story told, my tinker obsession for the last week has been shopping / buying a new 20 MOA rail & tactical quality rings. adjusting eye relief, tweaking the adjustable cheek rest, as well as playing around with the best LOP for the buttstock / trigger pull & trying to establish proper vertical on the reticle... the next tinker on the docket is to establish a (semi-precise) zero; splurged on a .308 laser bore-site kit because it’s easier & more precise than a manual bore site, plus I was feeling lazy & - like you, D - am a certifiable gear whore when I can afford to be.
The “come to Jesus” reality of my R700 build that I refuse to submit to is that, for all intents & purposes, for all the love, tweak attention, time & money I’ve thrown at my sexy bitch in the last two years, I’ve got no “community” to shoot / learn from, & worst of all there’s no accessible place to shoot past 100m (that doesn’t require a membership with a $500 / year price tag). Best I’ve ever been able to do is about 200m along a power line corridor when I visited my brother in Maine over two years ago...
Point being, I’ve buried $2,000 (+/-) in an LRP rifle that’s capable of 800m all day long - especially now that I have proper glass (albeit “budget” proper) - but never had the chance to reach out past 200m but once, & NO options past 100m unless I join a club, or am willing to pay $80 for ONE day at an 800m range about an hour or so from me... I’ll spare you the weepy details of my current station in life, but needless to say after investing nearly $700 in a new optic set-up in the last week & a half, $80 for a day, plus match-grade ammo, is just not in the cards at the moment.
So there ya go, I’m such a lunatic gear whore that I’ve invested $2,000 (not discounting the pure joy I’ve gotten from building it, mind you) in an LRP rifle build that I can’t shoot past 100m on the reg... I just need a farmer friend, or to meet a rare, obscure “club member” willing to take me as a guest. Doesn’t make much (fiscal) sense, really, but to be honest... I don’t have much going on in my life that doesn’t burden me with stress, anxiety or worry on a daily basis, & that kind of daily grind is a real beatdown... the effort & mental passion that’s gone into this build - & the hope that I’ll eventually find good folks in an LRP community as well as a place to really reach out one of these days - has been my only real outlet to “refill the tank”... so, I keep paying, playing, researching & tinkering until the day I can do PROPER work with my R700.
There’s GOTTA be no shortage of opps to shoot at distance in CO!? What’s your go-to tool for LRPS, & what’s your latest tinker, D?
Best - Scott
