Thread: $5k plus rigs, what do you have? Favour?

Originally Posted by Tentman

I'm just back from the range - a guy very keen to sight in his "Christmas " rifle - an "as new" Howa 6.5 CM $700 with suppressor. He'd put a Vortex crossfire or something like that on it. Seemed like a knowledgeable sorta guy.

We bore sighted it. He fired a shot at 100. Just as well we used a big sheet of paper. Miles off. He adjusted. Mostly the wrong way. At my suggestion he held the rifle while I turned turrets. He fired another shot. An inch low and the same to the right. He adjusted. Smack through the dot. Try another one I suggested - he put it about 15mm away. I asked if he wanted to be an inch or two high at 100 so he had a 175ish zero. Nope was the reply, I like to dial, the can we go to 200 and shoot a 6" gong?. Yup sure. He dialed and shot. Ding. Can we go to 300? Yup sure. He dialed and missed, just a hair right, but it was windy and he'd held centre plate. Try holding left edge I suggested. Bang. DING!

He went home. He's going hunting.

Given what you describe, do you feel he should be dialing or trying longer shots under non perfect conditions while hunting?

Spent not far off the title on my semi custom 7mm SAUM.

Spent $9000 + gst on my custom short barreled 243, puts 40 shots in one hole at 700 yards

What struck me when I first got into clay busting, and still astounds me, is the price for some italian jobs. It's pretty easy to spend $5k on a run-of-the-mill shotgun, and not difficult to spend way more, even on a second hand one. $10k for a 15 year old Zoli, anyone? I said thanks, but no thanks.

Originally Posted by schwen

What struck me when I first got into clay busting, and still astounds me, is the price for some italian jobs. It's pretty easy to spend $5k on a run-of-the-mill shotgun, and not difficult to spend way more, even on a second hand one. $10k for a 15 year old Zoli, anyone? I said thanks, but no thanks.

Don't forget most people will shoot as well with a $300 lanber, but when you miss with a Beretta dt 11 it looks more stylish.

Il stick with my standard $1700 tikka x3 308 n $500 nikko stirling scope.Paired up they shoot a few deer no trouble at all.

I think too some extent, a high quality shotgun, and maybe a similar grade of rifle are wasted on the inexperienced. Purely because they dont have the experience to recognise the small things or touches that make such a firearm just that bit nicer. The tightness of the action when it closes, the crispness of the trigger break, the extraction of spent cartridges, the ability to work totally flawlessly over thousands of shots.

Well, by my count, we got slightly north of a doz responses that are "on point", plus a few side forays of interest.
For me I've decided my course of action is first, save some more pennies within my budget for shooting (yes, if I raided the cookie jar I could buy pretty much what I want but that's not how it works, eh?), second, sidle up to some expensive rigs on the range and check out what sort of glass to spend said pennies on.

Truth is, I have at least a couple of rifles that if I bought high end glass for they would elevate my gear quality considerably..maybe not reaching 5k but...

Then of course the trick would be to shoot a rig like that better than I do with what I've got.

The candidate rifle I have in mind is the Thompson ugly duckling, a Centre Dimension, currently wearing its 22-250 barrel but with a unfired 308Win barrel still in its wrapping. Not everyone's idea of a pretty rifle but I've loved using it as a 22-250 on rabbits and hares. I'll first see what I can do on the range out past 250m with the Vortex Crossfire II current on it. So off now to learn about longer range more capable glass.

Second hand custom rigs come up fairly regularly and sell for about half their build cost. Worth checking out if something ticks the boxes.

Priority for me is quality barrel, trigger, hand loads /ammo, optics, assuming ergonomics are all good. After this is aesthetics/brand.


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Originally Posted by Sakoswarosorted

Spent $9000 + gst on my custom short barreled 243, puts 40 shots in one hole at 700 yards

Attachment 239952

Is that mag legal

I’ve only bought 2 rifles new, an early T3 in 708 and a 17HMR. Including scopes neither went near $2k, let alone $5k. But that’s quite a few years back now.
All other rifles & optics I’ve bought have been 2nd hand, sometimes as donor actions to be re-barrel into semi-customs. All of these including optics (Swaros 3 &Z5, VX5 & VX6, plus a few Zeiss) never got much above $3.5 - $4k. Today you’d spend more for sure, but you can pickup some very good 2nd hand gear at good prices if you’re patient.
The only set up that topped $5k was a near new Christensen Arms Mesa in N28 plus Zeiss Z6 5-30x50 (also 2nd hand). All up that probably came in at $5500.
Now for a different kind of price point I have a story about a Sporting Goods shop I found while wandering around Vienna one weekend. Street level in the shop nothing was was under $10,000 euros and most were in 25 - 40,000 euro range. Got talking to the shop attendant who was very interested to know about hunting in NZ. When I asked him about the fancy rifles, he said you better go down stairs & check out some of the fancier stuff. Fark me that was $50,000 to 90,000 euros. Then he said now go up to the mezzanine level, well that was all $100,000 euro plus!!! Nearly all the rifles were handmade & exquisite pieces of craftsmanship. Often they were double rifles u/o like 500 NE over a7x57, or 3006 over 243, or 12 gauge over 6.5x55. In some parts of Germany or Austria you’re only allowed 1 fire arm hence the 2 caliber doubles or shottie/centrefire. I asked him who bought the really pricey stuff. He said mostly Russian oligarchs. Buy one just for one African safari hunt, or one hunt in Siberia. A very different world aye.

Tikka 7mm saum bartlein barrel, stug stock, bix n Andy trigger etc, add whatever scope that spins your wheels and I reckon that is near on perfection
Reliable, dependable, deadly accurate

Originally Posted by Gkp

Tikka 7mm saum bartlein barrel, stug stock, bix n Andy trigger etc, add whatever scope that spins your wheels and I reckon that is near on perfection
Reliable, dependable, deadly accurate

Attachment 239978

A winning combo for sure!

Yup, that's nice!