Re: What is the most versatile twist rate for .308?
I just sold a R700 with a 1:12 twist Krieger on it. It shot everything up to the lenght of a 175gr SMK. It pretty much choked on the 178gr A-Max. Either it just didn't like it or I just hadn't found the right load.
The rifle that I'm shooting now has a 1:10 twist Krieger on it and it shoots everything from 155 Palma SMKs to the 178 A-Maxes very well.
As for your choice of rifle, I really don't ruffle any feathers, but I've been down the road you're on. I'd say, either get a cheap rifle and upgrade it as money allows or just have one built. I wouldn't pay anything approaching $1K for a stock Remington.
I know that they shoot well, but the fact of the matter is that, these days, lots of rifles shoot well. My reasons for this opinion are:
1. The stock barrel sucks. It is a straight shooter, but it still suffers from a rough bore like any other stock barrel. The chamber is fat and the throat long. Does some research here and take a look at how long some guys are loading their rounds just to get to the lands of a stock 700. What all of this means is that you're going to be spending time cleaning out copper fouling and you'll get lower velocities due to the chamber.
2. The stock may or may not suck. If you get one with a Hogue stock, you may or may not be able to live with it. Many choose to upgrade pretty quickly, but it is serviceable. If you get a model with an HS Precision stock, well...I don't know what to say. I don't want to get overly long winded on this, but I really don't know how it is that HSP has gotten the fine reputation that they have. On the ones that I've worked on, I found that you HAVE to bed the recoil lug because the bedding block doesn't even come close to contacting the recoil lug. I've also noticed that there is a lot of overspray so that a lot of the rear tang is actually riding on overspray rather than aluminum. The palm swell is also large. Really large. You may or may not like it. I know that I thought that I had gotten used to it, but my shooting got better when I switched to a Bell & Carlson M40 stock, which oddly enough, seemed to be better built to me.
So, if you're out to spend a good chunck of change on a rifle, I'd suggest another route.
First, find yourself an action. Brownell's has a short action Remington 700 receiver with bolt, safety and X-Mark Pro trigger for $369.
Second, get either an HS Precision or Bell & Carlson stock for around $200.
Third, find a used bottom metal for around $60 or just go for broke and get yourself a nice DBM setup.
Fourth, get yourself a Krieger 1:10 twist stainless barrel for around $300.
Fifth, give it to a good smith to put it all together.
You spend a little more going this route and it takes a little more time, but you will truly get what you pay for.
This is how my current rifle was put together and it makes me look good, when I shoot it. I now have a solid semi custom rifle that I can shoot until my heart is content on any given day or weekend without having to worry about copper fouling or POI shift and I get the benefit of the chamber being cut the way that I wanted it. On mine, I can load a 175gr SMK to the spec'd 2.8" OAL and the projectile is 10/1000ths in the lands. This rifle shoots really small groups so consistently that I don't even bother worrying about that aspect any longer.
Of course, I'm not saying that Krieger is the only game in town. It's just what I like, but there are others that are of the same quality.