I started a thread on the new Sabatti Rover Tactical rifle, which got me to thinking about the nice selection of "precision" rifles currently available very near the $1,000-$1,100 "street" price point.
These would include the:
Sabatti Rover Tactical;
Ruger Precision Rifle;
Tikka Compact Tactical Rifle;
Bergara B14 HMR;
Savage M10 Stealth;
Mossberg MVP LR Precision;
and probably several others.
I am very tempted to try one of these rifles in either 6mm Creedmoor or 6.5 Creedmoor. I am not aware of any PRS courses near my location, but my thought is one of these rifles would be a pleasure to work up loads for even at moderate distances. My local range goes to 300 yards and there are some longer ranges within a 90-minute drive or so.
That said, it's a lot of fun just to try work up a load that consitently shoots in the .3s at 100. The last rifle I had that did that was a pre-Accutrigger Savage 12BVSS in .223 that shot the 69-grain SMK very nicely at 100. The 77-grain SMK was a relatively new bullet in those days and probably would have fallen short out of the 1:9 twist Savage used at that time.
I am not terribly clear on the quality of the triggers in the various rifles listed, and I am not a huge fan of the blade-safety triggers, but could likely get used to one.
Kind of leaning toward the Ruger Precision Rifle in 6mm Creedmoor; it has the accuracy potential of the 6.5 but at slightly reduced recoil, which extends the pleasure of a long day at the range.
Who else is playing with rifles of this class, or thinking about doing so?

Bill, I've been intrigued by the Ruger Precision Rifle since it was introduced. I'm much more of a hunter than a target or long-distance shooter, so I don't know what I'd do with one. But who knows...maybe I'll start down that path.

I will let you know when my son gets his Remington 700 Magpul 6.5 running. He has ordered the scope mounts, so it should be within a few weeks, depending on weather and work. The first such 6.5 he put together shot well, but it was for a friend that likes it too much to sell it back.

Check out the howa HCR. Same category you're talking about, and the howa has a good reputation for accuracy, smooth action, good trigger. There are a variety of online reviews if you can't find one nearby:

https://www.snipershide.com/howa-hcr-6-5cm-review/

If you want to shoot long range, new mexico is loaded with public land. It's pretty easy to find a place to shoot that's further than the gun is capable of. BLM and forest service rules are pretty reasonable. Read up on the rules, grab a map and pack up the truck.

The albuquerque area has a few different precision rifle type matches if you're interested in that. Raton has some options too, but that's a bit further.

Jpl, the Howa is a nice enough rifle -- definitely a contender. I re-registered over at Sniper's Hide again yesterday. Some great info there.
Biebs, an unrushed morning shooting sub-half-inch groups is a morning pleasantly spent. Truth is, a .223 with 1:7 -1:8 twist barrel covers things out to 600-8000 with minimal fuss and bother, and can be pushed further if you can dope wind. I don't have any formal experience beyond 600.

I'd likely look at the Tikka, reputation for stellar accuracy, very good trigger (without the blade), and very smooth action. I did get a Howa HB 6.5 Creedmoor (24") for a customer and heavily fluted the barrel to lighten it for a factory class local match and he's getting very solid 1/4-1/3rd MOA out of it with handloads. All factory with the exception of recrowned muzzle and fluted the factory barrel.

Matt, thanks for telling us how the Howa is performing. Any rifle that shoots in the .3s or tighter gets pretty interesting to me.
We have a standard Tikka T3 hunting rifle in the stable and it is very capable. The Tikka CTR has a lot going for it. I wish it came with a bit more weight and an adjustable stock -- and I am not sure what additional magazines cost.

Bill, the guy I did this for is a very capable F-class competitor/precision shooter and a no BS kind of guy. I actually did the work for him last summer. I just talked to him last week about pillar bedding another project for him and he gave me the skinny on the Howa. This was the factory 24” heavy barrel with plain houge stock. I don’t remember now if I didn’t cast a lap and lightly lap the bore, I don’t think I did. He bragged on the rifle a bit as he was really happy with it and said it would shoot that 1/3rd MOA 5 shot groups VERY reliably. I was pretty happy to hear it as we had discussed exactly what your looking for when I mentioned the price I could get the Howa bbl’d action for, and I had a HB 223 Howa sitting in the corner I could steal the stock off of.

That one example shot extremely well, and the majority of the Howa barrels i’ve Borescoped in the last few years have looked impressive, and performed very well.

I bought a Howa 1500 in 6.5 Creedmoor and ordered a GRS Berserk stock for it.

The whole package shot 1/2 inch with factory ammo. Kind of hard to beat that.

If I was stateside, I'd have it opened up for an AICS magazine system and never look back.

Seth, that Berserk stock sets a high bar.

A friend has a M70 243 Win that is very accurate with the Lapua Scenar 90 gr bullet to the 300 yard range. The rifle has a 1 - 10" twist so that is about as heavy as he can go with it. It would be nice to have a twist tight enough to handle the 105s- I'd think that for 900-1000 yards the 105 would be REALLY good.

Ray, the Ruger Precision Rifle in 6mm Creedmoor has a 1:7.7 twist and should handle the heavies -- although Sierra recommends 1:7 for the 110 SMK.
By the way, Grabagun in Texas is practically giving away the RPR in 6 Creed for $799 plus $8 shipping. I could not say no.

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
Bill, I've been intrigued by the Ruger Precision Rifle since it was introduced. I'm much more of a hunter than a target or long-distance shooter, so I don't know what I'd do with one. But who knows...maybe I'll start down that path.

So this is what dementia looks like - sell blasers to buy ruger precession rifles

Mike

Mike -- or it is confusing me with someone who does admit to owning Blasers ...

Bill, thanks again for the tip. I picked them up in 6mm Creedmoor and 308 :-)