I want an accurate rifle to learn benchrest shooting techniquest. A beginners rifle if you will and am now soliciting suggestions from you all as to what that might be, and calibre. I would also use it to pick off pesky critters from around the farm.

Initially I am thinking .223 as all shooting would be done 200n yards or less, but am open to suggestions.

I would prefer a bolt rifle. I have had a look at the savage and CZ rifles that were somewhat affordable, but there is a lot out there i haven't seen and am keeping a open mind.

thanks everyone.

Can't go wrong with a Ruger M77MkII V/T - a heavy barrel/heavy stock varmit or target rifle. A little heavy for toting about all day, but if wanting something for off the bench or a sitting spot for varmits, it's a fine rifle for the purpose. Mine's in .223 Rem chambering and is a tack driver with the Burris 8X24 scope on it.

Can't go wrong with a Ruger M77MkII V/T - a heavy barrel/heavy stock varmit or target rifle. A little heavy for toting about all day, but if wanting something for off the bench or a sitting spot for varmits, it's a fine rifle for the purpose. Mine's in .223 Rem chambering and is a tack driver with the Burris 8X24 scope on it.

If you want to get into a little Bench Rest as well and you say most shots on critters will be under 200yrds I would maybe look into the .222

Keith

You are in a good area to pick up a used BR Rifle. A decent used BR rifle will probably not run you much more than a factory Varmint Gun. A proven BR Rifle from a name maker takes the "Was it me or the rifle?" out of the equation. Men like Tooley, and Shehane should be able to help you. Precision Shooting Magazine also has a classified section with good rifles. You can also check out the Benchrest forums. Sean

TIKKA, SAKO, Remington, and Savage all build very accurate rifles. Although less costly, Savage is the one to buy.

Black Hills Ammo is best .223 ammo I've ever tried. ULTRAMAX is almost as good.
TR

There is some good advice in the replies you have so far. If you buy a Ruger V/T, try to find a good used one in .223 that is the early model. The trigger in the 77 Mk II is terrible and is not adjustable, though I have met people who said they could do a decent trigger job on it. The early model 77 has an adjustable trigger. You may want to have an aftermarket trigger installed by a competent gunsmith. The early Ruger 77s were, in my humble opinion, somewhat better made than the current ones. I have an old heavy barreled 77 varmint rifle in .22-250 that is a real tack-driver. It is fussy about loads and requires a bit of re-loading know-how, but with the right loads, it's a winner.
The Savage varmint and target rifles in .223 would be good choices but try to get one with the Accu-trigger option. I haven't much experience with the C-Z, but the guys I shoot with at the club love 'em. I've never heard a bad word about a C-Z and there are quite a few around these days.

If you are well heeled, try a Cooper Rifle (www.cooperfirearms.com) they offer extremely accurate rifles in about any caliber you could want. May take a little savings up for but you will have something that not only works, but is esthetically pleasing. They run around $1,000 and up.

The Ruger mentioned by Kdub above is excellent. I had an old Ruger 77 in .257 Roberts that would shoot groups under .5" all day. It accounted for more ground squirrels than all the tires in California.

Also the Remington varmint offerings are good. I have a Remington 40X BR in .22-250 that will outshoot my abilities, and a Rem. 700 Varminter in the same class. You can trick the Remingtons out with a Hogue Overmolded stock or a lightweight composite from any number of manufacturers, speed-lock firing pin from Sinclair International (www.sinclairintl.com), a Jewel Trigger and just about anything you want. There are more accessories available for the Remington action than any other. While in the Sinclair site you can look at true benchrest actions from Kelby/Stolle. A real custom bench gun is going to run $3,000 to $5,000 by the time all is said and done.

I would not recommend any Mauser action based rifles other than the Sako's in .22 or 6m/m PPC because the selection of accessories are very limited.

If you are thinking of benchrest competition, then there are weight and equipment limits to consider, but this gets you going in the right direction. Have fun!

axlenut

Can't go wrong with a Ruger M77MkII V/T - a heavy barrel/heavy stock varmit or target rifle. A little heavy for toting about all day, but if wanting something for off the bench or a sitting spot for varmits, it's a fine rifle for the purpose. Mine's in .223 Rem chambering and is a tack driver with the Burris 8X24 scope on it.

Hey kdub, Glad to see some good stuff about the Ruger. I got the same setup a couple of months ago, Burris scope too (4.5X14 42 mm ballistic plex). I was hoping I had made a good choice. There are entirely too many choices out there. Haven't got to shoot it yet but looking forward to it.

I guess the question is whether you want to enter benchrest matches, or not?
Most rifles in serious benchrest matches- and certainly most of the competitive rifles- use custom actions, like Nesika, Shilen,and a bunch of others.
A used benchrest rifle is the best way to start if you want to shoot in matches.
The most common caliber in benchrest now is probably the 6mm PPC, which has replaced the 222.
Either one would get you started.
Handloading- pretty advanced handloading- will be required.
You can see a lot of benchrest equipment at the Sinclair website: www.sinclairintl.com
Another place to look (I don't have their web addy) is Kelbley's. I think they may sell used BR rifles.
Another good idea is to go to a benchrest match and watch, and ask questions. Might find out if it's your cup of tea without laying out any money. Probably can find used rifles there, too.
If, on the other hand, you want a rifle for varminting, and your own amusement at the bench, any of the major makers probably would work- Savage seems to have an excellent reputation for out of the box accuracy of late, especially one of their models with the new Accu Trigger.

Competition benchrest shooter, hunter and target shooter, or ? You have to make that more plan because it does change things a bunch.

There are several calibers that are more prone to better accuracy than some others on the list for starters. I have always like the .222 myself in years past. Now it is outdated by other more accurate calibers for the sake of competitioin anyway. I think you would be very satisfied to have a rifle in the 22-250 caliber if shooting predators and varmints out to 350 yards. It is very fast at 3800fps.

There are some new very accurate calibers on the market, like the .17 rim fire (150 yards Max) and the new Ruger centerfire in the .204 caliber at 4000fps plus. These are both very capable of shooting less than 1/2 inch groups right out the box. I have seen 2 of the 17 rim fires that have shot 1/4 inch groups at 100 yrds. However I prefer the centerfire .204 caliber myself.

There are also several different factory production rifles that are offered to the general public, like Savage Arms, Remington, Winchester and Ruger to name a few. I prefer the Remington 700 type action in a heavy barrel rifle for accuracy over the renowned Winchester control fed or Ruger control fed rifle etc.

There are at least a bakers dozen (2 dozen) of very good barrel makers and custom gun makers also. The price of the gun goes upwards in dollars accordingly by 3 to 5 times for a complete rifle. The sky is the limit almost in that respect! A good scope is going to run you around $500 to a $1000 dollars.

I vote for the 222. I just bought a remington 700 bdl 222 bolt action, put a cheap $80 scope on it and shot 5/8 groups at 100 yds with factory ammo off a less than stable bench. didn't miss a chuck with it all weekend, including one just over 400 yds. it was the most winning bench rest caliber for many yrs and I just read a paragraph on the Leeprecision site that it is probably the most accurate round ever made. the new 204 is getting great reveiws and it was based of the 222mag case. the 204 might turn out to be a good option as well. if you want to spend the bucks, Fred Bulberry will build you a benchrest shooter in any caliber and the cooper is a nice high end gun as well.

tarheel,

If you really want to learn technique, I agree with those that suggest a used custom benchrest rifle. Go ahead and look for a 6PPC. They are cheap to shoot, extremely easy to reload, very low recoil and very accurate if not entirely shot out. A 'shot out' benchrest rifle is still going to shoot more consistently than most any factory rifle. Once you completely shoot the barrel out, you still have something. Just rebarrel it. I wish I had originally taken that route. Sako has made some good ones, but do not get an old Ruger PPC. Factory guns, even great ones, occassionally throw a flier. The PPC is great for varmints and deer in the RTP area. My old PPC was great on groundhogs, crows and head/neck shots on deer when I was living there. If you want some help I know some guys that could help you out in that area.

Enjoy those crows and groundhogs!!