PRS Talk Off the shelf PRS rifle??

[oldschoolhdmike]

I am trying to help my friends dad decide on a rifle. It will be mainly used at target shooting but he is wanting to get into PRS in the near future. He can shoot pretty well and has been shooting for a while. He saw my 6cm build and wants one now. He does not want to spend "custom" gun money on his first rifle, which is like many of us I am sure. He has a great scope basically begging for this rifle. He will probably do 6.5 cm, maybe 6cm but more guns are available in 6.5. what are you opinions on these options he is looking at and what I see as pros/cons

Remington 700 pcr - $900
pros- its a Remington 700...lots of parts available and a proven platform. easily upgraded

howa hcr $1100
con on this could be I am not sure it there is parts/ upgrades available if you want to modify/ change at a later date

tca t/c lrr -$1000
comes with the most for the money it seems. reviews look good. 20moa base and bipod on it (cheap bipod)
not sure what parts/ upgrades are like on these.

There was a tikka he was talking about but he said it was quite a bit higher than the rest and so it kinda ruled it out.

I am leaving Ruger precision of this list because this is one he specifically does not want. He has had one in 308 and it never shot well. It is probably just a fluke but from a guy who shoots sub moa pretty easily he could never get it to group well. It was a first gen. It will be hard to convince him of this but it is one of the few available in 6cm.

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

Personally, I'd say he needs to look at Bergara. The T/C and Howa are somewhat lacking in aftermarket support (which will come in if he gets serious about PRS matches), and Remington's QC has taken a crap in recent years. Bergara has better aftermarket options (especially the Bergara, as it's a Remington footprint) and better QC than Remington. I will also add that some of the early 308 RPRs did seem to have issues (I know at least one other person that had one never group worth a damn), but I have yet to hear any complaints with the later models, or any of the 6 and 6.5 Creedmoor options.

 

[Sutherlandsd]

He needs to suck it up and get the rpr in 6cm for cheap if grabagun still has any

Nevermind that deal is over I think

 

[oldschoolhdmike]

the bergara was on the list but ruled out because it is a little over what he wanted to spend. The rpr might be the way to go for him but are parts available, especially if he goes with a 6cm because of barrel life. which will only be a concern if he does a lot of prs

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

the bergara was on the list but ruled out because it is a little over what he wanted to spend. The rpr might be the way to go for him but are parts available, especially if he goes with a 6cm because of barrel life. which will only be a concern if he does a lot of prs

Depends on what you mean by "parts".

Barrels, handguards, stocks, muzzle brakes, and grips are readily available. There's at least one or two aftermarket triggers, and probably more in the works. However, getting a replacement bolt or spare small parts is somewhere between highly difficult and impossible.

 

[2Barrels]

the bergara was on the list but ruled out because it is a little over what he wanted to spend. The rpr might be the way to go for him but are parts available, especially if he goes with a 6cm because of barrel life. which will only be a concern if he does a lot of prs

The Bergara ruled out because it was too much $$? R U kidding? Basic HMR is ~$900 on the street. HMR Pro in the $1500 range. RPRs are in the neighborhood of $1100 last I looked. Buy the basic HMR, put a TriggerTech in it and go shoot.

 

[oldschoolhdmike]

the bergara bmp, not bmr was the rifle in question, which is about $1200-$1400.

 

[lte82]

the bergara bmp, not bmr was the rifle in question, which is about $1200-$1400.

I would save up the extra coin for it. Once you go to modifying the Remington you'll be in the same price range or higher, and you won't get your money back out of it. The Bergara is going to be a better platform to start with (needs no upgrades) and is going to retain value better.

 

[AustinTom]

If I had to chose a Howa, I’d seriously consider the Howa bravo. The chassis in the hcr’s I’ve handle was pretty aweful.

 

[acudaowner]

rpr 308 or 243 win or 6.5 tons of after market if you want them just saw a 26' barrel rpr 243 win for sale $989 online just another choice .

 

[Lkwoolsey]

the bergara bmp, not bmr was the rifle in question, which is about $1200-$1400.

Set on a chassis? If not the HMR is a solid choice, if he is ok with more of a traditional precision stock instead. With the right ammo, they shoot 1/2 moa groups no problem. On it's (my) best day with factory ammo, I was getting 1/4 moa groups. Just a thought. I really like mine and because it's footprinted off a Remington 700, aftermarket parts are easy to come by. Plus, bergara will rebarrel, cerakote, true and test fire the gun when you burn out the barrel for $500. That's coming directly from Bergara, who I emailed to find out. I've been happy with it.

 

[anotherwannabe]

I know you left a RPR off the lift since he had a bad experience but,

$790: RPR in 6 creed - https://www.gunbroker.com/item/813866845
$110: Sawtooth ARCA rail for it - https://www.anarchyoutdoors.com/arca-swiss-hand-guard-adapter-for-ruger-precision/

You'll have the same gun as the two guys (of not a lot) shooting national PRS production class. Clearly won't be at an equip disadvantage if thats what he wants to do (slightly different than off the shelf). The only substantial problem with the RPR is that its really stock heavy. Fortunately its really easy to add weight to the forend for $100 to solve that problem if he gets serious about positional shooting.

 

[ffjoey]

Another vote for Bergara. Really nice rifles for the money

 

[Centuriator]

Get a Ruger American and an inexpensive VORTEX ... master the fundamentals and then decise where he wants to go. My guess is he will not be able to do better with inexepensive equipment at 400-500 yards. If he is? Great, time to upgrade. I see way too many people spending way too much money on hardware before they have mastered the "software" ... don't ask me how I know.