Official (DTA) SRS, HTI, Covert, Hunter Thread

From what little time I had behind an HTI I gathered these impressions:
1. the factory brake for both .375 & .50 wasn't very effective and was better suited as a suppressor attachment
2. just feels like a big SRS, so good ergonomics, nice trigger, very accurate
3. magazines feel a little less wonky than the SRS mags
Having a fifty already, I would probably put an Armalite AR50 brake on it. So far it is the most effective I have used.
 
With the big bore cartridges, if you're using a brake without suppressor, I've found the boxy rectangular brakes tend to prevent dust being kicked-up anywhere near as much as the more common cylindrical brakes. With the smaller cartridges it's not a big deal.
 
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I have two set ups for the SRS. I have an Elite Iron 338 can that I use on my 6xc, 6.5cm, 308 win 338lm barrels. They are all 26” or better. Then I have a Griffin Armament Optimus that I use with 223, 6.5cm, 308win and 300prc barrels that are 16-22”. I use Griffin taper mounts and elite iron taper mount respectively. And yes I have to switch handguards but no big deal.
I use the shorter barrels for hunting. I do use the longer barrels in stands on occasion but mostly for plinking steel at distance.
 
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Does anyone have reviews of the DTA barrels from DMR Rifles out of Vegas? Lead times and communication efficiency?
Yes, what would you like to know, they are freaking tack drivers! Dane is quick to respond! Excellent price. I have 300 PRC, 6.5 SAUM barrels for my personal DT. He has spun up barrels for my brother's DT as well. All insane performers.

He built me a custom rifle as well in 7.82 Warbird and a 6.5 Creedmoor for my gay brother.

Highly recommend! The only guy I'd get my barrels from.
 
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Yes, what would you like to know, they are freaking tack drivers! Dane is quick to respond! Excellent price. I have 300 PRC, 6.5 SAUM barrels for my personal DT. He has spun up barrels for my brother's DT as well. All insane performers.

He built me a custom rifle as well in 7.82 Warbird and a 6.5 Creedmoor for my gay brother.

Highly recommend! The only guy I'd get my barrels from.
What does he charge for a barrel? Any discount if you send him a barrel extension?
 
I have two set ups for the SRS. I have an Elite Iron 338 can that I use on my 6xc, 6.5cm, 308 win 338lm barrels. They are all 26” or better. Then I have a Griffin Armament Optimus that I use with 223, 6.5cm, 308win and 300prc barrels that are 16-22”. I use Griffin taper mounts and elite iron taper mount respectively. And yes I have to switch handguards but no big deal.
I use the shorter barrels for hunting. I do use the longer barrels in stands on occasion but mostly for plinking steel at distance.
How do you like that Elite Iron can? With the Thunderbeast backlog I have been thinking about Elite or Silencerco as options for my .338LP.
 
How do you like that Elite Iron can? With the Thunderbeast backlog I have been thinking about Elite or Silencerco as options for my .338LP.
The guys at Elite Iron are great. Their cans are very good accuracy wise, but a touch heavy. Really good people and willing to work with your needs if you call them.
 
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The Elite Iron cans are built like Russian tanks. They allow for great accuracy. I really think they are the best choice for shooting distance.
However they are heavy and that does not lend itself well for spot&stalk hunting so that’s why I use the Griffin Optimus for hunting. Tend not to be shooting greater than 800yds and with the shorter hand guard and barrels it makes the SRS a pleasure to carry all day.
 
It's time for me to move beyond a single conversion for my A2 Covert...and I'm looking for some validation of my choice... :)

I currently run a 16" 308 (ES-Tactical), it's a laser and I love it (1/4" groups on paper at 300, bangs steel at 1k all day, super handy in the woods and drops hogs & deer just fine).

However, I just competed in my first long-range match (NRL Hunter), and it did me no favors on unknown distance targets (furthest was 1025 yards) in 20-25 mph wind, from less-stable positions. I've learned a ton about wind with my shorty 308 but I'd like something that cuts through it now. :)

So I'm looking for a good compliment to my current setup, with the following priorities:
  1. Hunting NA big game (mostly deer, pigs, hopefully elk at some point).
  2. Occasional field-style matches.
  3. Access to a range (a few times a year) with steel out to 1 mile.
I reload. I would prefer a shorter barrel (in the 18-22 inch range) to keep it handy in the woods/mountains (and it's an SRS Covert so go short or go home). If possible I'd skew a little more towards barrel life over maximum velocity, but this isn't critical.

As of right now I'm leaning towards 300 PRC or 300 Norma. Does anyone have any strong opinions between these two, given the above context? Anything else I should be considering?

Pic for fun.

DTSRS1000.jpg
 
This is the start of a project I've been working on. Seems like several guys are interested early in the development phase. I wanted to show off the finished product here and see what everyone thinks and go from there. I am trying to work with a supplier for the part that will give a discount for multiple orders so I'd kinda like to get as big of a group as I can for my initial order.... Not sure if it makes sense to do that here, or use this for discussion only and then if everything seems good to go, create a topic in the group buy area?

View attachment 7583697
How much more does it lengthen the LOP on an HTI chassis?
 
It's time for me to move beyond a single conversion for my A2 Covert...and I'm looking for some validation of my choice... :)

I currently run a 16" 308 (ES-Tactical), it's a laser and I love it (1/4" groups on paper at 300, bangs steel at 1k all day, super handy in the woods and drops hogs & deer just fine).

However, I just competed in my first long-range match (NRL Hunter), and it did me no favors on unknown distance targets (furthest was 1025 yards) in 20-25 mph wind, from less-stable positions. I've learned a ton about wind with my shorty 308 but I'd like something that cuts through it now. :)

So I'm looking for a good compliment to my current setup, with the following priorities:
  1. Hunting NA big game (mostly deer, pigs, hopefully elk at some point).
  2. Occasional field-style matches.
  3. Access to a range (a few times a year) with steel out to 1 mile.
I reload. I would prefer a shorter barrel (in the 18-22 inch range) to keep it handy in the woods/mountains (and it's an SRS Covert so go short or go home). If possible I'd skew a little more towards barrel life over maximum velocity, but this isn't critical.

As of right now I'm leaning towards 300 PRC or 300 Norma. Does anyone have any strong opinions between these two, given the above context? Anything else I should be considering?

Pic for fun.

View attachment 7596071
I have both 300 prc and 300 Norma. You won’t go wrong either way. The 300 prc pushes the same bullet about 94% as fast as the 300 Norma. I bought the 300 prc because at the time the price of factory ammo was half that of 300 Norma. But now, with the federal gold medal Berger factory ammo, I’d go 300 Norma all day. Like I said though, you’ll be in good hands either way. No elk will know the difference!
 
That’s good to know, 284 is another great round I would love to have.
I figured it would be guaranteed that I would be doing some magazine work. I re-worked and modified mags in the past so I have some practice at it. I don’t have a long action mag yet, maybe I should buy one first to see if it’s possible to make the case work.

Are all long action mags the same dimension wise?
 
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Has anyone built a 280ai barrel for their SRS? Or any case like it like 270, 280, 30-06 etc? I can’t see why it wouldn’t work, just curious if anyone here knows any reason why it wouldn’t.

I looked into 280 ackley for my DTech. When I spoke with Mark at SAC his biggest concern with that case was potential feeding issues. I have a different rifle chambered in 280 ackley and love the catridge, but decided against it for my DTech. I didn't want a potential "project" to resolve any feeding issues.
 
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I looked into 280 ackley for my DTech. When I spoke with Mark at SAC his biggest concern with that case was potential feeding issues. I have a different rifle chambered in 280 ackley and love the catridge, but decided against it for my DTech. I didn't want a potential "project" to resolve any feeding issues.
I don't have a 280 Ackley, so this is purely out of curiosity, but what is the cause of potential feeding issues?
 
I don't have a 280 Ackley, so this is purely out of curiosity, but what is the cause of potential feeding issues?
I don't recall what it was exactly. It was either the shoulder angle, or the length of the case and the mag used. The case would come out of the mag lips before the bullet started up the feed ramp. Something along those lines. It's been awhile since I looked into this
 
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Is anyone shooting PRS matches with an SRS?

I’ve shot plenty of less dynamic precision matches with my SRS, but am considering having a 6mm barrel made so I can compete over the summer now that my favorite local BLM spot is closed during fire season.

6mm Creedmoor? 6GT? I have a ton of 6.5x47L brass so I could go the 6x47 route, but I’m more inclined to try something else.
 
^^ would take too much weight up front to balance it off a bag imo. At the end of the day you can be competitive with any style rifle though.
I can balance mine off a bag with an Atlas super cal installed and a Area419 weighted arca rail. Thinking about making my custom stainless steel handguard one day to streamline the whole thing. That being said I don’t compete PRS but I shoot a lot off tripod and barricades around the farm. But yeah if I was competing, I’d get a 26” heavy varmint countour with the heaviest brake or even a can if you can.
 
Yup, I was thinking 26" barrel with no taper, just straight 1.045" OD would be reasonable. I have a 20" 6.5x47L barrel with that profile and it's extremely accurate and well balanced overall, so pushing it out to 26" would move the CG forward a bit to be better support a bag.

But not really at all familiar with the hot rod 6mm cartridges guys are competing with these days. 6mm Creedmoor seems like the safe bet as components are available and Lapua makes native brass, but 6GT has me intrigued.
 
personally I’d just go with the 6 creed (or the 6x47 if you already got the brass) and spend more time outside practicing positional shooting than perfecting a single digit es load at the reloading bench. One of the reason I got the 223 DTA conv kit was that I could buy couple of Ks of 223 brass already resized and trimmed for dirt cheap and just drop some XBR powder and 75 eld-m and spend more time shooting than worrying about a 50FPS ES. I mean some shooters do exceptionally well even with factory hornady ammo
 
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Is anyone shooting PRS matches with an SRS?

I’ve shot plenty of less dynamic precision matches with my SRS, but am considering having a 6mm barrel made so I can compete over the summer now that my favorite local BLM spot is closed during fire season.

6mm Creedmoor? 6GT? I have a ton of 6.5x47L brass so I could go the 6x47 route, but I’m more inclined to try something else.
I gave my SRS a try in the PRS matches for about 6 months and found out that for me it was not a good way to go. I added as much weight up front and got a decent balance point but it still had some nasty muzzle rise. The trigger is great but it doesn’t compare to a TT diamond. Manipulating the bolt was a pain when using tripod rear and I hated breaking cheek weld on weak side stages. I still have the SRS and love it for other things, just not PRS.
 
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Now that I’ve had the SRS for a couple weeks and shot a match with it, I’m trying to get the tripod integration setup right. How are y’all running your SRSs on tripods? For reference, I intend to run this in a few field matches and this year big game hunting.
 
Now that I’ve had the SRS for a couple weeks and shot a match with it, I’m trying to get the tripod integration setup right. How are y’all running your SRSs on tripods? For reference, I intend to run this in a few field matches and this year big game hunting.
Need a little more info. What kind of tripod are you using, or are you looking for recommendations? What kind of interface do you have: cradle style, like a Hog Saddle, Arca, throw a small bag on the ball head and shoot off that, etc?

I started with a Hog Saddle. I used that for a few years before I moved to a RRS leveling base, and now the Anvil 30. For a while, I used the RRS plate, but they seem to be really hard to find now. I now have a Sawtooth rail on my fore end.
 
The guys at Elite Iron are great. Their cans are very good accuracy wise, but a touch heavy. Really good people and willing to work with your needs if you call them.
Heavy because he uses SS. Cost less because he uses SS. Performance-wise they're peerless in the same ways TBAC is. Dale does really great custom work too. I use his .338 Sierra and .50 Alpha, the Sierra is a thread over brake. Super nice people with excellent CS.

.338. He custom cut the MRAD barrel in order to fit the brake. Everything is indexed TDC despite being a thread over. The BMG thread on is the same way (and the brake is too so it doesn't require shims if you swap in the field or range).

MRAD barrel and can:
IMG_1403-2.JPG

IMG_1401-2.JPG

IMG_1402-2.JPG


.50HTI w/Elite can. Elite makes the brakes for Harris, so this one also has a Harris brake that's indexed the same way the can is. Some people think it's not worthwhile to suppress a BMG. Bullshit! It's really the only way I wanna shoot this thing.
IMG_0863.JPG


The Elite Iron cans are built like Russian tanks. They allow for great accuracy. I really think they are the best choice for shooting distance.
However they are heavy and that does not lend itself well for spot&stalk hunting so that’s why I use the Griffin Optimus for hunting. Tend not to be shooting greater than 800yds and with the shorter hand guard and barrels it makes the SRS a pleasure to carry all day.
I THINK he makes lighter cans now but I'm not privy to all the new stuff?

But yeah, those two above are certainly built like tanks. The baffles on the BMG look like 3/4" thick! I think he uses 316SS exclusively for these two, he may use an exotic for the blast baffle only though, but don't quote me on that. The BMG can is quite a bit heavier than the .338 FWIW. The .338 can ain't light but it's not as heavy as it looks either.
 
@canezach I've got one of the Leofoto tripods, a ball head with the Arca clamp and a Hog Saddle knockoff. I'm pretty new to tripod shooting so I was mainly just curious to see what other folks were using so I could go looking for something similar to try
 
@canezach I've got one of the Leofoto tripods, a ball head with the Arca clamp and a Hog Saddle knockoff. I'm pretty new to tripod shooting so I was mainly just curious to see what other folks were using so I could go looking for something similar to try
I had a Hog Saddle on top of a Manfrotto ballhead and tripodfor years. It was very stable, in my opinion, but once I switched from the ballhead and saddle to direct mounting via arca rail and leveling base, I noticed how much less wobble I had. Every time you add another connection point, you run the risk of having a little less stability, so connecting ballhead to tripod, Saddle to ballhead, rifle to Saddle gave me less stability than I was looking for. I would recommend looking for a rail from Sawtooth and connecting straight to the arca clamp on your ballhead. I don't know about your ballhead, but I can't recommend a good leveling base enough.
 
thank you. I have tried the rifle direct to arcs clamp on the ball head and it still doesn’t feel as stable as I’d like. A lot of it is probably my poor technique but I’d like to try the leveling base in the bowl style. Does it limit your pitch angle or amount of incline/decline you can get vs a ball head?
 
thank you. I have tried the rifle direct to arcs clamp on the ball head and it still doesn’t feel as stable as I’d like. A lot of it is probably my poor technique but I’d like to try the leveling base in the bowl style. Does it limit your pitch angle or amount of incline/decline you can get vs a ball head?
The ballhead will give you more inclination and declination, but unless you're taking really high or low angle shots, you aren't handicapping yourself with a leveling base. And if you do, you can always adjust the tripod legs to give you the up or down angle you need. There's a thread about leveling base angles from a couple of years ago. I'll see if I can find it and you'll see the leveling base so give you plenty of range
 
Now that I’ve had the SRS for a couple weeks and shot a match with it, I’m trying to get the tripod integration setup right. How are y’all running your SRSs on tripods? For reference, I intend to run this in a few field matches and this year big game hunting.

 
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Anybody want to talk about bumping the bolt problems? When I'm prone shooting prairie dogs or sitting coyote hunting I tend to bump the bolt knob with my right forearm and it opens it slightly. Just enough so that when you pull the trigger you get a click instead of a bang. So then you have to run the bolt and put another round in to shoot. The geometry of the SRS bolt location seems to cause this problem. I wish it locked closed with the safety on like a savage. This is annoying when shooting P dogs but damn near cost me a coyote. I can't trust it as a coyote rifle. Anybody else have this problem? Can anything be done?
 
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