while im at it...
 

so while the rifle (m700 SPS varmint 22-250 26" heavy barrel) is undergoing the trigger job (either custom work on the m700 trigger or a Jewel) and new stock....

is there anything else that y'all think need to be done to a m700?? looking for accuracy and stability and consistency...when a shot is outside of the group, i wanna kick myself and not question anything else..

i know good handloads are a huge part in that as well...

but im looking to get the rifle in shape..i see firing pins, firing pin springs, different action work, etc etc...just dont know if any help much or what not...

so, if y'all were me, and starting a custom build off a m700 action and starting with the stock and trigger job, what else would you do??

keep in mind a new barrel is down the road..probably a good few years down the road...

right now, the caliber isnt really holding me back...so i'll stick with it just because i can...by the time the caliber starts holding me back, it'll be time to upgrade the barrel and chamber and move upto a bigger caliber...

so...thoughts? ideas?? might seem like an odd approach at a custom "long range" rig...but, money doesnt fall from the sky and thats why i chose this route...kind of a build as i go...but all the while, even out of the box, i have a very shootable rifle...as i gain expirience as a shooter and become better, and as time and money come around, i upgrade and have work done...

like i said before, this rifle will always be a long, heavy barreled heavy rig...

so, anything else that should be done this go around?

thanx RR...

rebarreling is gunna be a bit yet..

just didnt know if there was anything else that will help accuracy and isnt a major purchase or major work and smith bill while im starting my build with the stock and trigger...



thats what will hold my barrel back is the 1:14" twist...but, i figure it'll do just fine till i reach its limits...unlike some guys that jump on a message board and want a gun they can shoot 500+yds, i know what it takes to hit anything at 300yds..so by the time i am starting to be held back by the light bullets and low BC, i'll be ready for a bigger caliber built for it...not sure on what i'll go with...thats a few years off..figure i need to start somewhere and figure stock and trigger is a good place to start...

im PROUD of my honest 350yd groundhog shot thats my farthest to date...

ive always wanted a big ole fancy varmint/target rig...its time to start workin towards it...especially now that i started handloading..

Hey 06..that 22/250 is easily a paper puncher out to 500 yards but it's killing capacity at that distance is questionable at best.. a direct head hit might and I said might get er' done but I'd limit my hunting shots to 350 and maybe 400 at the most.. I am the range master at one of the Groundhog matches and I get to see everything made on the planet benchrest all the time.. paper punching and killing power have nothing to do with each other..I myself use the 22/250 in the factory wars for a long time.. it is a superb varmint caliber BUT it's the wind that usually does it in with those little 50-53 grain benchrest bullets.. on calm days they will easily shoot 3-4 inches groups at 500 yards but on windy..the word feet gets involved without question. I get to hear alot of talk about every cartridge and every trick.. without question the powder to use is IMR 4064, half neck size only and seat any good benchrest bullet right where you stop sizing the neck, the primer I hear most often mentioned is Winchester and the Wilson or Belding and Mull straightline seaters..That little 22/250 is about as good as it gets in the varmint world..OH yeah, the case used most in winchester on the line... I would put an after market trigger in and get the weight down and file or flaten the front of the stock.. As for what's next.. I'd say gettin' to see them all, either a 6BR fast twist or a 6X47 Lapua fast twist IS and I mean IS the way to go, the are winning the most out to 600 yards...believe it or not people are shooting groups less than .6 tenths of an inch at 600 yards with them!! That would take an eye out of a hog six football fields away..

thanx for the info Frank!! i appreciate it!

its amazing what the wind does to them little bullets...even at 200yds and a decent crosswind...

for now, that caliber is fine though...ive never shot a competition or any of the shoots yet...and groundhogs dont like to come out n play when its windy..if/when i jump into the matches, i know enough to limit myself to calmer days just due to the caliber..

but, to learn the ropes on, i think the 22-250 will get me to where im goin..when i "grow out of it" i'll have no problem droppin a couple hundred more into a good barrel...

reality is for me, here, my groundhog shooting is limited to 350-400yds due to terrain...cant get any farther without going a REAL far leap farther...but, i got alot of "mastering" that needs done at those ranges before im ready to step it up...

also need to find ATLEAST a 300yd range..ideally id like to finda 500yd range..even if i gotta drive a ways and pay a range fee i know i need to get it done on paper...

hard being i have traveled out of state to work the past 3 summers..(heading to NC sunday...thats why i wont be doing this till winter...) but, once this phase of the project is done and i get time to work up loads next spring, i'll likely take it with me..

only problem will be having enough loads..i was going to go with high end brass just for consistency...but at like 1$ a case theres no way im buying 500 or so to take with me next summer lol...could buy a bulk bag of winchester and weight sort it i suppose...we'll see...just hard to move all the reloading gear and find a place to setup shop when im away...