What can a bolt do that a semi-auto can't

[zghorner]

Whats your budget?

Semi...go with an AR10. Accuracy is one area that ARs excel and 1 MOA should be no problem at all with a decent scope
Bolt...many options, I decided on the Remington 700 platform but lots of fans for savage and tikka.

Bolt guns have the potential to be super duper accurate...IF the shooter is capable. The semi auto has the ability to go boom again just by pulling the trigger and also easier for high capacity options.

I think the most important things are good rings, scope, and trigger time / putting in the work to get good at precision shooting.

 

[swampratt]

Forget even looking at what kind of group you get at 100 yards.
I have had guns that shot well at 100 yards.. under 1" and move out to 200 it is 1.5" move to 300 and it is 7".
Shoot something in this 20+ mph direction changing Oklahoma wind and find out what I am talking about.

Heavier bullet than those 75 grain things really buck the wind better..But if you can read wind and shoot then no issues there.
Any good bolt or good AR can do what you want.

Have you shot your AR at 500 yards and at paper that you can measure the group?
Just curious.

Now my friend Frank sighted in a 7MM mag that had a brake on it .. a modded custom brake and he said it recoiled less than a semi auto 223.
He was very amazed and decided to set the gun on the bags and let it free recoil..Moved less than 1/2".

The guy that modded the brake took into account the twist direction etc..

So you can have a thumper round with the right stuff.

 

[TSQUARE]

I have a 16" 223 Wylde AR free floated right now. I have a red dot on it. IF I can get better accuracy in general out of a bolt gun then I will just add a bolt gun to the safe.

 

[Wolf44]

Go big or go home......

GAP, SAC, William Roscoe, Gradous, Surgeon, Beanland, APA, KMW, Spartan Rifles .............are the Be all to end all IMO.

Lots of 6mm and 6.5 pushin the best BCs....

6.5x47L, 6.5CM, 260REM, 260AI, 6mm versions......

I like the ability to buy in stores, so 260 and even the 6.5CM has avail......

 

[TSQUARE]

.338 lapua

 

[AVMECH84]

go hk91, delayed blowback roller action acts like a bolt gun with advantage of a semi auto loading.

Us army claims the 308 is deadly at 800 yards, cheap ammo, and most people will never shot that far anyway.

 

[TSQUARE]

Hk91 it is then


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[jc5420]

It is pretty rare that anyone shoots 800 yards.

 

[TSQUARE]

In all seriousness I won't surpass 100 very much. But I want it there


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[Shadowrider]

A quality AR in 6.5 Grendel is what I would tell you to build. Just more fun than bolt guns, plenty accurate and with certain bullets it's still supersonic at 1200 yards out of a 20" barrel which not even the 7.62X51 will do.

You mentioned that you had a red dot on your AR and I got the impression you didn't think it would do 1 MOA. Could be the red dot. I could hit 8" steel at 300 with my wearing an Aimpoint with a 4mil dot but I couldn't call the shots until I put a scope on it. It was a "Shoot all around it" proposition until I got the ring from the hit. With a scope I get actually get bored at 300 on a bench. My ARs are nothing special either. One is a bone stock M&P15 M4 clone and the other is an 18" mid weight DPMS barreled franken upper that I use for 3gun. Both will hit 8" steel at 300 every single shot off the bench with run of the mill 55gr FMJ loads. Will they do better with a killer handload at 69 or 77 grains? Danged if I know, I've never seen a need to find out. Going to 500 will probably need a good 69gr SMK handload. Bottom line is put on a decent piece of glass for distance work. Some red dots are okay for about 200 yards but that's really it. The 1x6 tactical scopes out are really good and some are even up to 1X8 now.

Build a nice 6.5, put in a decent trigger and piece of glass, get a bi-pod and you'll be able to hit farther than you'll want to.