Budget rifle suggestions

[bugeye]

As the owner of 3 Mosin's I say get a new rifle. While Mosin's are fun they aren't as accurate as a good new bargain rifles. Also, you can't scope one very well, and scout scopes are low power and too far from the eyeball to do a first rate job at distance. Also, installing a scout scope takes some work and the mounts that fit on the rear leaf sight holder are either expensive or they stink. If you drill the receiver for a scope mount then you have to bend the bolt and that adds another $50. That $100 rifle becomes a $200 + rifle real fast. Then you have the ancient wooden stock to deal with, the lack of any recoil buffer for your shoulder, the heavy trigger, and a host of tiny problems that while easily solvable will take some time.

I think you'd be far more accurate with the Marlin XL, Vanguard or Stevens.
I have a Steven's in 223 and it is better than 2moa with wolf 62gr. ammo and less than 1 moa with 69 grain ammo at 100 yards. I had to put a lighter spring return in the trigger and fill the stock with BB's to get the weight up for bench shooting. Really minor fixes compared to a Mosin.

 

[unionguy]

I have a Howa .308 with a Nighteater scope that I picked up on sale at GI Joe's (RIP) for under $450...its very accurate and I'm happy with it.

 

[onearmedswordsman]

As the owner of 3 Mosin's I say get a new rifle. While Mosin's are fun they aren't as accurate as a good new bargain rifles. Also, you can't scope one very well, and scout scopes are low power and too far from the eyeball to do a first rate job at distance. Also, installing a scout scope takes some work and the mounts that fit on the rear leaf sight holder are either expensive or they stink. If you drill the receiver for a scope mount then you have to bend the bolt and that adds another $50. That $100 rifle becomes a $200 + rifle real fast. Then you have the ancient wooden stock to deal with, the lack of any recoil buffer for your shoulder, the heavy trigger, and a host of tiny problems that while easily solvable will take some time.

I think you'd be far more accurate with the Marlin XL, Vanguard or Stevens.
I have a Steven's in 223 and it is better than 2moa with wolf 62gr. ammo and less than 1 moa with 69 grain ammo at 100 yards. I had to put a lighter spring return in the trigger and fill the stock with BB's to get the weight up for bench shooting. Really minor fixes compared to a Mosin.

I could re-write this post verbatim. 3 M/N, one scout scoped, and extensively bubba-dized. Marlin and Savage / Stevens are good advice. You might even bet a rifle package deal for ~ $400. If you are too concerned about cost of shooting over time, 308 ammo will be about x2 223rem. Over time, your ammo/caliber choice can be a more significant expense than your initial rifle/scope expense.

 

[shelt]

As the owner of 3 Mosin's I say get a new rifle. While Mosin's are fun they aren't as accurate as a good new bargain rifles. Also, you can't scope one very well, and scout scopes are low power and too far from the eyeball to do a first rate job at distance. Also, installing a scout scope takes some work and the mounts that fit on the rear leaf sight holder are either expensive or they stink. If you drill the receiver for a scope mount then you have to bend the bolt and that adds another $50. That $100 rifle becomes a $200 + rifle real fast. Then you have the ancient wooden stock to deal with, the lack of any recoil buffer for your shoulder, the heavy trigger, and a host of tiny problems that while easily solvable will take some time.

I think you'd be far more accurate with the Marlin XL, Vanguard or Stevens.
I have a Steven's in 223 and it is better than 2moa with wolf 62gr. ammo and less than 1 moa with 69 grain ammo at 100 yards. I had to put a lighter spring return in the trigger and fill the stock with BB's to get the weight up for bench shooting. Really minor fixes compared to a Mosin.

I was just talking to a guy at the gun shop about this. I definitely want to go scoped so Mosin isn't looking like a good option at this point.

In that case I'm leanin more towards a .223

 

[the4thshake]

1 MOA @ 500 yards is over 5 inches. Not only will cheap ammo not give you that performance, any wind will blow you all over the place. With that said, good ammo for a .223 is cheaper then .308. I think a .308 has a slight ballistic advange at that distance but with heavier bullets the .223 will hold its own. I use 77grain bullets out to 600 yards with the .223.

Any caliber is going to drop a bunch at that distance. You are going to need a quality scope that tracks well and has large turrets to dial in elevation and windage. Clarity and repeatablily will be of far more importance then magnification. Don't skimp on the scope. You will do better with a good scope on a cheap gun then a cheap scope on a good gun.

My suggestion for an out of the box set up would be a Savage heavy barrel model 10 or 12. For a scope you can run a Bushnell Elite 3200 fixed 10x. Put it atop a EGW base and some decent rings. That should put you around the $800 mark which is cheap for a long range setup. Twice that amount is still cheap for a long range shooting.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

As the owner of 3 Mosin's I say get a new rifle. While Mosin's are fun they aren't as accurate as a good new bargain rifles. Also, you can't scope one very well, and scout scopes are low power and too far from the eyeball to do a first rate job at distance. Also, installing a scout scope takes some work and the mounts that fit on the rear leaf sight holder are either expensive or they stink. If you drill the receiver for a scope mount then you have to bend the bolt and that adds another $50. That $100 rifle becomes a $200 + rifle real fast. Then you have the ancient wooden stock to deal with, the lack of any recoil buffer for your shoulder, the heavy trigger, and a host of tiny problems that while easily solvable will take some time.

I think you'd be far more accurate with the Marlin XL, Vanguard or Stevens.
I have a Steven's in 223 and it is better than 2moa with wolf 62gr. ammo and less than 1 moa with 69 grain ammo at 100 yards. I had to put a lighter spring return in the trigger and fill the stock with BB's to get the weight up for bench shooting. Really minor fixes compared to a Mosin.

Limb Saver makes an excellent and inexpensive slip on recoil pad

I have had excellent results with the rear sight scout scope mounts.. you need to replace the cheap Chinese allens with new allens from Tacoma Screw, however, and use red loctite

The OPer wants an inexpensive gun to plink with at up to 500 yards. The Nagant is the cheapest way to get there, IMO. I have less than $150 in any of my scoped Nagants, and then there's the caliber and the cost to shoot..

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I could re-write this post verbatim. 3 M/N, one scout scoped, and extensively bubba-dized. Marlin and Savage / Stevens are good advice. You might even bet a rifle package deal for ~ $400. If you are too concerned about cost of shooting over time, 308 ammo will be about x2 223rem. Over time, your ammo/caliber choice can be a more significant expense than your initial rifle/scope expense.

Quality 5.56 surplus or factory is the same or more than 7.62 NATO these days. Yeah, for cheap Russian bear it might be cheaper..

 

[HahnsXD]

I'm a big fan of Savage rifles, great bang for buck IMO, the accutrigger is also very nice.

May look into H&R/NEFs too, I've heard they're pretty accurate.

 

[Riot]

Mosin Nagants can be found for less than $100. You can buy bulk ammo for less than $100 as well.

www.aimsurplus.com

 

[bogeycentral]

I have to say either the Stevens or the Marlin XL7 would be a great choice. I had a Marlin XS7 in .243 that was a screamer. Shooting the Winchester Silvertip's in 55gr, it stated they were doing 3900 fps, which out to the ranges you are mentioning, it is a very flat shooting round. Never got around to shoot gong's with it or I would still have it.

I found the trigger in the Steven's to be heavy, but the Marlin XL7 has an adjustable trigger and is very similar to the Accu-Trigger by Savage.

 

[onearmedswordsman]

Quality 5.56 surplus or factory is the same or more than 7.62 NATO these days. Yeah, for cheap Russian bear it might be cheaper..

Milspec, surplus, both 5.56 and 7.62 may not be too far off. But for match/long range ammo, 308win gets pricier. I am feeling it in my pocket. I handload for both. I pay twice for 308 match grade bullets, use almost twice as much of the same powder, and so on... Of course, YMMV.

 

[shelt]

So much good information. This morning I had no clue what to even look for in a rifle that can effectively shoot at 500 yards and now I have a good direction to head toward.

I think I will be looking at a Savage Stevens, they seem to provide great bang for the buck but I will also be picking up a Mosin eventually (probably M44) because, why not? You can get one at a great price and surplus ammo is readily available at the moment.


Any thoughts on optics? I need a good scope but money is a huge factor. I have to use up my GI Bill so I will be starting school soon and I imagine I won't have a whole lot of extra cash.

Who makes a good sub-$200 scope?

 

[shelt]

I should also ask all the Savage fans, Why the Stevens over the Edge? anyone had any experience with one of these?

 

[tionico]

If you get your new Stevens chambered in .308, you win.. cause its the same thing as 7.62 NATO. Cheap milsurp ammo for the plinkenschootting (sub .30/round is not unheard of, I turned down some military match team ammo in chehalis last weekend at about .35 the round, didn't have the scratch in my poke. He had a few thousand rounds......

As to scopes, check out the Nikon line.... their entry level scopes are an incredible bargain at near $150, and the Buckmark line is the best out there until you start getting three, four times the price. Buckmark 3 x 9 40mm (super bright and sharp) start at right near $250. They've higher quality lines, more dear.... but I'm hard put to see the difference, and I'm picky about optics, haveing been in pro photography and cinema for some years. When I find them used for the same price as the Buckmark line, I don't pass them by.

The .308 is truly a great round, not quite as powerful as a standard .30/06, but every bit as accurate... particularly when hand loaded.

I've become quite the fan of the European made Mauser military weapons, but for the most part, scoping these with modern optics can be a bit of a sticky affair. I've managed to turn up a sweet 6.5 Swede, a Swiss 7.5 Rubin Schmidt, and a couple of German 8mm Mausers. Milsurp ammo is fairly easy to come by for them.... as are good hunting loads, which surprised me a lot. Most of these are a bit more dear than the Mosins, most of what I've found so far I've acquired for around $200 each....... but I've been patient, and checked carefully.

 

[bugeye]

Limb Saver makes an excellent and inexpensive slip on recoil pad

I have had excellent results with the rear sight scout scope mounts.. you need to replace the cheap Chinese allens with new allens from Tacoma Screw, however, and use red loctite

The OPer wants an inexpensive gun to plink with at up to 500 yards. The Nagant is the cheapest way to get there, IMO. I have less than $150 in any of my scoped Nagants, and then there's the caliber and the cost to shoot..

Yes I have a limbsaver for my Mosin's, add $20 for it, and consider that it is built in to the new cheap rifles.

I'm not saying your advice is bad, I love my Mosin's. I'm am saying the odds of the orignal poster getting what he wanted from a Mosin seems pretty slight. Maybe if one of you big 5 gurus handpick him a 2 moa one the odds improve. So far my three are more like 8 moa with surplus ammo at 100 yards.

I just cut 2 inches off the barrel of my Bubba Mosin and can't wait to go be disapointed once again at it's accuracy, but it is fun pretending I know what I'm doing and destroying things is one way I've managed to learn many mechanical skills, lol.

If you remove the whole rear site base you can use slot rings directly on the dovetail that is right on the Mosin barrel. This is the best stable scout scope mount, and I used an offset set of rings on it to bring the eyepiece of the scout scope nearly to the bolt. Even given this it is the worst scope arrangement I've ever used. The cheap NcStar scout scopes are just very cheap scopes, with poor adjustments that require a screwdriver and on the 2 I have they act more like 1/2 moa settings then the 1/4 settings the scope says it is. Other than that the choices for scout scopes are few, and they are all low power.

I'd think you'd want at least 24 power going for the gongs at distance. I use 24 power target shooting at 100 yards.

I just saw a Marlin XL in 243 at a Bi Mart for $267, I think you can get them for $250 if you wait for a $30 off sale. If the original poster wants a 223 I think he should look at the Vanguard, they have a slower twist barrel that should be better with the normal cheap 55 gr. bullets than the stevens and I hear the trigger can be set down to about 2 pounds.

 

[Phillyfan]

marlin xl7 in .270 (if you would like to hunt), and a pentax pioneer II 4.5-14x42. This combo will piss off many a shooter next to you who paid three times as much for their set-up. And it will be much more versatile than what they have as well. Combo would be closer to $600 though, unless you find both on sale.

 

[Brandon44647]

Got a Remington 700 30.06 with a Remington branded scope for around $350 at Walmart. I replaced the scope as it was not the best, I put on a $100 Nikon which on x9 power is crystal clear

Not sure what your planning on using it for but IMO I got an excellent combo at a good price, I also stuck on a browning sling, DedNutz scope mount, butler creek flip scope caps, and a butt stock shell holder.

So for about $500 a got an a hunting rifle and a capable distance rifle, never took it past 200 yards though.

It would of been about $40 cheaper if I got the gun originally without the scope but I got excited when I seen a combo

New REM 700 30.06 FOR $350 ? I'd buy 2 of them ! I'm thinking you mean Rem 770 The 700 models are a bit more, In my opinion it's worth while to save up a few more bucks and spend a lil more. When talking quality you generally get what you pay for......

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Yes I have a limbsaver for my Mosin's, add $20 for it, and consider that it is built in to the new cheap rifles.

I'm not saying your advice is bad, I love my Mosin's. I'm am saying the odds of the orignal poster getting what he wanted from a Mosin seems pretty slight. Maybe if one of you big 5 gurus handpick him a 2 moa one the odds improve. So far my three are more like 8 moa with surplus ammo at 100 yards.

I just cut 2 inches off the barrel of my Bubba Mosin and can't wait to go be disapointed once again at it's accuracy, but it is fun pretending I know what I'm doing and destroying things is one way I've managed to learn many mechanical skills, lol.

If you remove the whole rear site base you can use slot rings directly on the dovetail that is right on the Mosin barrel. This is the best stable scout scope mount, and I used an offset set of rings on it to bring the eyepiece of the scout scope nearly to the bolt. Even given this it is the worst scope arrangement I've ever used. The cheap NcStar scout scopes are just very cheap scopes, with poor adjustments that require a screwdriver and on the 2 I have they act more like 1/2 moa settings then the 1/4 settings the scope says it is. Other than that the choices for scout scopes are few, and they are all low power.

I'd think you'd want at least 24 power going for the gongs at distance. I use 24 power target shooting at 100 yards.

I just saw a Marlin XL in 243 at a Bi Mart for $267, I think you can get them for $250 if you wait for a $30 off sale. If the original poster wants a 223 I think he should look at the Vanguard, they have a slower twist barrel that should be better with the normal cheap 55 gr. bullets than the stevens and I hear the trigger can be set down to about 2 pounds.

4 x is plenty for 500 yards. Sure, more X is always nicer for long distance, but not required. WW2 snipers killed a lot of men at that range with 4 x and lower power scopes..

 

[bugeye]

4 x is plenty for 500 yards. Sure, more X is always nicer for long distance, but not required. WW2 snipers killed a lot of men at that range with 4 x and lower power scopes..

The use of a higher power scope makes sense since they are now available, and common, the WW2 snipers didn't have the choices we do now and we have no need to go all retro. One huge advantage of using 24 power for target shooting at 100 yards is that you can see where the impact is on the target without having to look through the spotting scope. Also, at 500 yards the 4 power scope will be showing you about 100 feet filed of view, giving you a very tiny effective view of a target. Given 24 power the field of view will be about 20 feet and that has a lot of advantages. When I use 24 at 100 yards, the field of view is only about 4 feet giving a good view of the fine lines of the targets.

I know there are people of amazing skill who can do all manner of magic things, I'm not so I take whatever advantages are easy to come by.

 

[fijekladias]

I picked up a Weatherby Vanguard Synthetic in .308 for $399 recently. Out of the box I was just a hair over 1.5" @ 100yds. Having dialed in down in now it is a great shooter, plus you can't beat that price.