Target Sports

Recommendation for low recoil bolt action rifle

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  • Acera

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    What for? Target? Hunting? Learning tool? Gift?

    You can always get a 5.56mm bolt gun, pretty low recoil, centerfire, inexpensive ammo.

    http://www.cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-527-m1-american/

    Q: "Can CZ rifles chambered in .223 fire 5.56 ammunition safely?" A: All of our .223s will happily eat 5.56. Since our factory is in Europe, we build everything to CIP spec, which doesn’t differentiate between the two cartridges and just has the higher pressure as its standard. So the CZ .223s will shoot everything from the cheapest Russian steel to match .223 brass ammo.
     
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    benenglish

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    Acera - Good link. I've got a CZ 527 and I think it's great. Between their .223 and 7.62x39 offerings, pretty much any hunting or informal target shooting need in Texas is covered.

    Still, without a statement of purpose and budget from the OP, any answer is a shot in the dark.
     

    Stormbringer

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    Not into hunting but never know if the need should arise and wanted something other than a .22 or other rimfire rifle. Mostly target. I like the idea of a .223 once I already have an AR-15 but would like a good bolt action rifle as well.
     

    Dhayes

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    I've got my eye on a Mossberg MVP Predator bolt action rifle. It is chambered in 5.56 and has a laminate stock. And, it takes the 30 round AR mags too
     

    Younggun

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    .223 will probably be cheapest.

    .243 is a great all around caliber with light recoil also. Will handle pretty much any type of varmint hunting as well as whitetail. Not as cheap as .223 but very versatile. I've seen videos of guys taking them out to 600 yrds punching paper.

    The .22 hornet, 22-250 etc are good varmint guns and can be pretty accurate but ammo savings aren't much over .243 and .223 can do more and cost less.

    Do you plan to do any hand loading? If so I vote .243 cause it will be pretty cheap to reload and more versatile than .223. If not I would vote .223 because you can buy twice as much ammo if you aren't buying premium stuff.

    If you only plan to shoot premium stuff my vote goes back to .243.

    There are some others but those are the main options that come to mind. A 7.62X39 could also be pretty versatile but I'm not sure how common good hunting or target ammo is for it. I've only seen milsurp stuff but never looked for anything else.
     

    9x19

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    Not into hunting but never know if the need should arise and wanted something other than a .22 or other rimfire rifle. Mostly target. I like the idea of a .223 once I already have an AR-15 but would like a good bolt action rifle as well.

    My Remington 700 SPS in .223 is about as easy on the shoulder as you're likely to find in a popular center-fire cartridge.

    RemingtonSPSTbfllc_zps1f1ca5cf.gif
     

    AustinN4

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    I've got my eye on a Mossberg MVP Predator bolt action rifle. It is chambered in 5.56 and has a laminate stock. And, it takes the 30 round AR mags too
    The MVP Patrol is a less expensive version of the Predator: Mossberg & Sons | MVP Patrol

    And as 9x19 posted the R700 SPS AAC-SD in 223 is a good choice also.

    But, yes, I agree, for a soft shooting bolt gun, 223/556 is a winner, espcially since you already have an AR.
     

    shortround

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    +1 on .243. Beats .223 for game, and is easy on the shoulder. In a pinch, you can neck down .308 brass for reloading.
     

    benenglish

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    OP has said he's not into hunting so for casual target shooting I'd definitely go for the .223. Frankly, even if he decides to start hunting there are bullets and factory ammo intended for deer-size game, at least the small whitetail that cover most of Texas. ;)

    There are about a thousand alternatives to consider after that, though.
     

    ArmyZach

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    I've got my eye on a Mossberg MVP Predator bolt action rifle. It is chambered in 5.56 and has a laminate stock. And, it takes the 30 round AR mags too

    This has become one of my favorite rifles. A real tack driver.
    y7ubyzug.jpg


    Sent from my AN/PRC-77 using Tapatalk.
     

    Younggun

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    OP has said he's not into hunting so for casual target shooting I'd definitely go for the .223. Frankly, even if he decides to start hunting there are bullets and factory ammo intended for deer-size game, at least the small whitetail that cover most of Texas. ;)

    There are about a thousand alternatives to consider after that, though.

    Check post #4, hunting was not ruled out.

    I agree that a .223 is suitable for hunting deer but going a little bigger allows for a lot more options when taking the shot and at longer distances if needed. There is a reason most hunters use something a little bigger.
     

    Vaquero

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    I'm wanting a rifle in tcm .22

    Should be strong medicine for varmints.
     

    M. Sage

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    Not into hunting but never know if the need should arise and wanted something other than a .22 or other rimfire rifle. Mostly target. I like the idea of a .223 once I already have an AR-15 but would like a good bolt action rifle as well.

    Exactly how recoil sensitive are you (or the intended user)? How much muzzle blast are you willing to put up with? Personal preference plays a huge role here. I'm of the opinion that .308 is pretty low recoil, but other people will say the same rifle in the same caliber is brutal to shoot. Brakes can really tame recoil, but the people next to you on the range might not be your friends for long after you touch the trigger...

    If it's not for hunting, going to a heavier rifle can make it easier on your shoulder.

    But if it's just a range gun, why go bolt action? Unless you want to spend big $$ on an accurized rifle, or want to shoot a magnum cartridge, about the only big advantages I can think of for a bolt are that they're less expensive and can be made very light compared to a semi auto.
     
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