Whats the best beginner build

[d_sinsley]

I came on here tolearn how to fix a problem with my daughters rifle. It has me thingking.

I would like to try and build me up a savage shooter.

Here is what I want. Light weight mountain rifle that will drop elk to about three hundred. I like my daughters rifle which is a youth model with a short stock (yes shortened beyond youth size) and a twenty inch (I think, maybe 22) in 308 win. What I like. The gun is short light and compact will be easy to carry. I want something that can be strapped to a back back and easily go through the woods. I hunt in brush not parks. So with that said what is a good cailiber and combination of goodies to make a real elk moutain Rifle. I was thinking the .308 win is a good one. But what about some of the short mags. My concern here is enough barrel to do the powder justice. I would like to build this off of the short action and keep it .308 or bigger. Anythoughts. Whats out there in .33 cal. I reload so ammo availability isn't an issue but I don't want to spend a fortune on having stuff specially chambered.

[kemmercur]

Perhaps a 338 Federal, 308 case with a bigger bullet.

[ellobo]

.284 with a 22 inch barrel meets your criteria. A 7MM with plenty of oomph to well over 300 yds. Check it out. The .284 is a great short action cartridge.

El Lobo

[handirifle]

Perhaps a 338 Federal, 308 case with a bigger bullet.


+1 on the 338 fed. When it first came out, one magazine writer took it on an elk hunt, and shot an elk at, if I remember correctly, 285 yds. He used a Barnes 185gr TSX (factory load) and it hit the near shoulder, and exited the off side rib cage. Elk ran about 30-40 yds and dropped dead.

If not the 338, then I would suggest the 300 RCM (Ruger Compact Magnum). It was DESIGNED for the short 20" barrel. Matches, or closely so, the 300 WM with a 24" barrel, from the 20" barrel with the RCM. I think if recoil is a consideration, the 308 with a 165gr bullet, but the short barrel will require a fairly high starting velocity to be effective at 300, on an elk.

[GaCop]

+1 with the 284. And also look at the 7mm/08.

[Dennis]

All the above are GREAT choices! Good Luck!

[d_sinsley]

After pouring over the rounds suggested I am really liking the one not mentioned. .338 RCM. The 338 federal caught my attention. Then reading that the the 338 RCM is more on the lines of the short mags but only takes a 20" barrel to achieve decent veloctiy with bone crushing 225 gr bullets is fantastic.

I do have a question. Overall loaded length. The factory spec is 2.840 for the the .338 RCM. Will this fit and feed in savage short actions? The .308 is 2.800. And the .338 Federal is shorter at 2.75 and one diagram I saw took it to 2.820

[jpdown]

Out to 300 yd with today's powders and bullets, the .260, .308 and .338 Federal in a mountain rifle would seem the logical answer given you're looking at short action with 20" barrel. The claims for the 300 and 338 RCM are many, but the Hornady powder used to deliver these results is available in factory loads only. Take a look at the the new Savage 11 LWH (Light Weight Hunter). This will be the lightest weight Savage platform on which to begin a mountain rifle build.

[d_sinsley]

After looking deeper into it I agree the 300 or 338 RCM is limited at least for now. I am really liking the looks of the 338 federal. Although If i picked up another .308 Win I wouldn't complain. The 338 Fed is available, do-able, and only lacks just a little in energy over the RCM.

I really want to stick to a larger cal. either .308 or .338. The reason why? I have a great feather weight .270 win that fits this bill pretty well. Loaded with 160 gr noslers it drops Elk like they were lead filled. So in order to justify spending alot of money on a rifle it has to be different. I also have a long (er) range .308 Norma mag that does the trick to 800 and beyond if I get the notion to shoot that far. What I want is a small compact rifle that fires bowling balls through light brush and is easy to carry and shoulders quickly. And I want it becasue I want it not because I need it which I am sure everyone on here can relate to.

So unless there are any other votes I think I will start drawing up my plans for a 338 Federal that will plunk 225 gr Nolser partitions down range.

Anyone have some cash they don't need and would like to give away?

[d_sinsley]

Ok now that caliber is pretty well figured next the rifle.

I am new to savage world. My daughters rifle (in another post about extractor issues) is a Stephens 110E series K in .308 win. So what I have gathered is that this is a Long Action Gun. Right? and if so Why? Will I be looking for a 110 or a 10. The whole purpose of this build is short and compact. The .308 is a short action round so why is it built on a Long action gun? Do I have to have the long action for a .338 fed or will it work in a short action gun? Is there anyhting I should be avoiding? What is with the staggered or center feed and which would be prefereable?

I want to start with an existing rifle if I can find one for a good price and work it up fro the ground up. Again this is more about wanting to build it than needing it. So I pretty much want to start from scratch.

Thanks for all the help so far.

[ellobo]

Your best bet is to call Jim Briggs at Northlander (advertises here) and get an action and barrel from him. Avoid older model Savages. In the beggining Savage built thier short action cartridge guns on a long action. After a few more iterations they finaly came up with a real short action. Reworking one of the old actions can be a pain, I know, been there, done that. An action from Jim will cost you about what a donor rifle will go for. He may also have the barrel you are looking for. And the action will have the proper bolt head for your cartridge. If the action you get from Jim has the Savage 3 screw trigger ask him for instuction on adjusting or maybe he will do it for you. They do make a good hunting trigger when adjusted properly. Good luck.

El Lobo

[d_sinsley]

Makes sense what your saying about the action. As for trigger, I am picky about triggers. Not insanely picky but I do like good triggers. I have a .308 norma mag built on an 03A3 action. Worst trigger known to man in my opinion. You had to mash it to fire it; very long hard and uneven. Replaced it with a drop in timney and fell in love. I didn't even adjust it. I left with factory settings. It is short, crisp, and even. Breaks at about 4.5 #s which is fine. I want positive trigger control not a hare trigger for hunting. I do not like my daughters savage trigger either. I am thinking of replaceing it. Maybe I am just a timney fan but I am not sure I would keep the savage trigger unless I had a chance to feel one for myself that was tweeked.

Thanks for the help. Still haven't recieved donations....lol.

[GaCop]

Don't overlook the Rifle Basix triggers, good value for the money and they adjust to the weight of pull needed for a hunting rifle. As stated, Jim can also supply you with the older 3 screw trigger (IIRC $25) and they adjust to about four pounds. It would be cheaper than the Rifle Basix if you wish to go that route.

[jonbearman]

I would go with the rifle basix 1 for a hunting gun.After you shoot it alittle readjust to the exact poudage you like. Thr rifle basix 2 is a little lite for adrenilin days on the range in my opinion. You could buy a stevens and build off of that cheaper than buying a reciever and the rest of the componenets.There is a guy on accurate shooter who has a complete reciever for around 225.00 right now.His name is thud I believe.

[DonArkie]

+1 with the 284. And also look at the 7mm/08.


I have to agree, you cant beat this caliber for the subject at hand