Well…that’s the goal.
The stock is a B&C Medalist with CDI Precision DBM that greatly improves loading and feeding of the rifle.
The action is a standard Savage 12/10.
The barrel should be here early next week. It’s a Shilen Stainless Selected Match 1/8 twist; 26” wylde chamber.

To be followed…..

Nice start to a good build.

What bullet are you planning to run? Something in the 75 - 80 gr range?

Mine is a 7mm08 but same stock and stainless varmit contour barrel. I have enjoyed it, but it is heavy.

I had a choice between 223 match chamber (longer throat) and Wylde chamber.
It's a Varmint barrel profile, so I won't have to sand the stock.

I'm planning to shoot mostly 69/77smk and Hornady 75 ELDM.

I went with a 1/8 twist so I can also shoot 55gr HP as well.

For those who don't already know, a heavier rifle is easier to hold steady.

Blanket statement that is not true.

Rifle forend supported on a fixed object, heavier can be easier to hold steady.

Only man and machine, heavy is much more difficult to hold steady. Especially off-hand.

One thing you'll notice about that stock is the really flat bottom on the forearm. A bipod like a Harris that has the angled sides meant for a more rounded forearm will loosen up real easy. Check and tighten that screw often.

That's true.
Fortunately I have a Harris #9 adaptor that completely mitigates the issue.

F=MA dictates that it takes more force to move a greater/heavier mass. Muscles that are exerting greater force to hold a heavier rifle are less likely to over compensate, as is the case when holding a much lighter rifle. It's something that can be easily observed by taking off-hand aim with a BB gun and comparing it with aiming a center fire rifle. The small changes in muscle force when holding the heavier rifle have far less impact than when trying to hold steady a BB gun. Or, to put it another way, greater weight helps dampen muscle twitches that otherwise impact taking aim with a lighter rifle.

You can throw all the physics at it you want, for me (and many others I have spoken with), it is much easier to hold a lighter gun steady when shooting freehand.

Of course the heavier the rifle is the more stable it will be off hand. That's why the guys who do 3 position shooting have heavy rifle to stabilize better.

But for the purpose of this post, I couldn't care less about shooting off hand. This rifle will be only be shot from the bench and prone. The benefit of the weight for me is to tam the recoil.

I have to agree with JG here, lighter is easier to hold steady. While a heavy rifle can be shot unsupported, there’s techniques other than dead hood that work, but aren’t as precise. If you’re going to make me hold steady and make a precision shot, I’m going for my 7 pound AR over my much more accurate 14 pound Savage. Now, weight is nice when bench, prone, or using barricades.

The title of your post noted accuracy, and someone later mentioned their rifle being heavy. I was simply adding a comment which tied the two together for the benefit of others.

Apologies....I read my last post again and the tone is not reflecting my intent. What I wanted to say is that I agree with you that a heavier rifle will be more stable for shooting off hand. But regarding this rifle the weight is going to help reduce the recoil as I’m not planning to shoot it off hands.

Everything is assembled....
I'll let you know how it shoots.

Very nice, I bet your really going to like how it shoots. I built a similar rifle on a 12FV action, Choate tactical stock, 26" Criterion 8" twist barrel in 223 Rem. Using a 77gr TMKs over 24.1 gr of Varget its consistently under .5 MOA out to 500yds. Generally high .3s to.4s if the wind is light.

For the love of Pete! The two of you would argue over which exact hue of blue the sky is! I think you are both right. A heavier rifle is easier to hold steady...but to a point. Once the weight gets to a certain point, it is too heavy to hold steady. I have a plain jane standard henry and a octagon barreled henry. The heavier octagon model seems easier to hold steady. However, a heavy barreled varmint rifle with a heavy scope is tough to hold steady offhand...because it is too heavy.

I was planning to go with a Criterion barrel, but it was out of stock. That's why I ended up getting the more expensive Shilen. My last Shilen was a 308 and I though the throat was a little short. The chamber and the finish inside of this new barrel are really good though.
I would have preferred to build a Remage, especially because you can get so many really nice after market triggers. But I already had the B&C stock from my first build. I then send it to get a BDM because the factory 223 was a pain to load and wasn't cycling that good. At that point, I had a good chunk of money in the stock, BDM, rifle, rail and figured I'd just spend another $350 for a new barrel. The factory barrel was shooting fine. But with reloading component scarcity, I only want to shoot super accurate guns (like 1/3 MOA).

Cool rifle, I totally dig it. I too am trying now to how how far I can stretch out a 1:8 twist 223. I've had some good luck with 70gr Nosler rdf's with Varget. I am having a terrible time finding 22 match type bullets.
Good luck and let us know how it shoots and what you're shooting.

Speaking of offhand wouldn't it be nice to have matches again that were three position?

With the factory Savage barrel and 75 ELDM I was consistently hitting steel at 800Y.
The ballistics are actually superior to the 175 SMK.

Here's my post if you'd like more details.


https://www.snipershide.com/shootin...d-match-better-than-175-smk-308.6420929/

PM me and tell me what you're looking for. I've got a pretty good selection of Berger 22's and maybe some of them will fit your needs.

I shot the rifle for the first time.
I usually put 1 to 2 hundred rounds through a new barrel before I start loading with high end components.

The load I shot today gives decent results with my other rifles.

LC resized brass
24.9 gr H335
55 GR HP factory second bullets I bough super cheap from Midway.

All are 5 shot groups.
The group in the middle is also a 5 shot group and is probably the best 5 shot group I've ever shot.

The guy who took my order for the barrel almost laughed at me when I told him I'm also planning to shoot 55 gr bullets....

Next time I'll load 69 SMK/Varget/Lapua brass