I'm in the market for pronghorn/mule deer rifle in .25-06. Since I live in Western Washington, I'd like that rifle to have a stainless steel barreled action. You've got to trust me on this....stainless is just a lot easier around here.

Anyway, I want a 24" sporter weight barrel, as well. It seems the only standard production rifles I can find in this chambering that have SS 24" barrels are the Ruger Hawkeye All-Weather, the Remington SPS and XCR and the Browning X-Bolt.

I'm inclined to drop the XCR from the list as I don't see what it really offers over the SPS for the additional $300. I could use that money to have the SPS' trigger worked, lugs lapped, action trued and stock bedded. Ditto the Ruger.

While the Browning is more expensive than the other two, perhaps it is worth it?

I plan on loading 110gr Accubombs, 115gr and 120gr Partitions and perhaps the 100gr Ballistic Tip for speed goats. Might even try Fusion 120gr factory ammo, as well. This rifle will not be used for varmints...just pronghorn, mule deer and whitetails in hay fields.

Anyway, which would be the best bet? I'm resigned to the fact I'll probably have to spend a bit of money with a 'smith for any of these rifles. Considering that, which would you choose? Any I've left out?

I'd toss the Browning off the list because I prefer rifles I can unload the chamber with the safety on, yes I know muzzle control and my brain are the ultimate safeties however that is my preference.

Mike

I'd definately go with the Remington.

Thanks, swamp. If you don't mind, which one...and why?

I'd most definately go T3

Dober

If I did that I'd get a .260. I want my .25-06 to have a 24" tube (or longer).

The T3 will have plenty of tube. I'd not get hung up on 24", although there was a time when I really thought that extra 1.5" or so would do something for me. Then, after a bunch experience I found out how truly little it meant.

Fast tubes, slow tubes, fast lots of powders, slow lots of powders and so on. You get my drift...

Don't think that they make the T3 in a 260 either so I'd still go 25/06 and I would even if they did make the 260.

Best of luck to ya.

Dober

Thanks, Dober. For me, the 24" tube is more of a balance thing for shooting on the prairie and for heping out with a bit larger scope (Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14x44) than normal...not so much to do with gaining extra velocity. I just like the way a long action rifle feels with a 24" tube.

Hell, either a .260 or a .25-06 can make shots a heckuva lot farther than I can.

Get the Rem. The cheapest ugly $350 Model 700 will group better than the BIG dollar pretty rifles. You'll have to do the trigger, bed it, and tinker around with bullet/powder combinations, but it WILL be a shooter. I wouldn't do anything to the action. The Browning will be a shooter too. I'm just a Rem guy....

Roger

I'm with Mark- T3

The new X-Bolt has a Bolt unlock button that allows you to cycle rounds thru without taking the safety off.

I've got a new Hunter in 7MM WSM and it shoots pretty good. So far avg. .810 with Federal 140 Gr. Nosler BT's and .929 with Winchester 160 Gr. Accubonds.

I really like the new stock design, much better than the abolt in my opinion. I bought a lighter trigger spring and installed it for about 8 bucks. It now has a little over a 2 lb. pull.

With the X-Bolt you'll get a 24" tube.

All in all it's a nice rifle, I'm satisfied.

Gotcha about the balance thingy, makes sense to me.
Then I'd go 700 so I could give it a Jewell...grin
Best of luck to ya.

Dober

Kimber in the Classic Stainless, but they catalog those in 7mm-08, .243 and .308. I love the wood and stainless combination.

I like that combo, too. If Weatherby offered the Vanguard Sporter Stainless in .25-06 or if Remington offered the CDL SF in .25-06, I'd have it narrowed to two rifles pretty easily. And if Winchester offered the M70 Featherweight in .25-06, SS with a 24" barrel, this discussion would be over!

I have a Rem sps stainless and neighbor has the Ruger Hawkeye stainless.

Both of these rifles shoot extremely well, with 1/2" groups at 100 or smaller being the normal.

The Rem has the advantage of having an adjustable trigger.

We shoot R#19, Win Brass, Win primer, with the 100g Speer BT and I am getting 1 1/2" at 300 yards with mine...hot load at 3475 fps.

R#25 with the Win mag primer with the 100's also gets extreme accuracy with 3500 fps velocity on the 100's.

Goats are easy to kill, spend some time on a ballistics program and tape a drop and wind chart to the side of your stock.

Good luck!

Johnmoses where did you get the spring for your x-bolt trigger I like mine the way it is but a bit lighter would make it perfect.

The only Remington that you asked about was the SPS. I'd get it because it's really accurate right out of the box. Scope it and you're done.

It's also lighter, stronger, & better looking than the other choices.

go with the 700 xcr

You know, if you want something really festive, Browning did a special run of White Gold Grade 6 A-Bolts with a 24" stainless steel octagon barrel. A distributor still catalogs them, but I don't know if they will ever get more. Just .30-06 and .300 Win Mag are left, I'm on a waiting list if they ever get another .280 in.
Look like this, it's not in the Browning catalog:
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=134176043

Me to all day long, can't bet it.

Take a look at the Vanguard.

Weatherby Vanguard

g

I would go
Weatherby Vanguard
Reimington
Ruger

In that order. It's mostly a personal preferance thing. I could never warm up to the Browing design.

GB

Seattlesetters, of the rifles you are interested in, I would buy the browning. I had a 25-06 in rem 700 sps, and browning A-bolt stainless, now have 25-06 in Kimber 8400 classic. I was a Remington only man for several years, but, I like the X-bolt much better than the current Remingtons or Rugers.

Thanks for that Info John Moses I have not seen one yet!
Been on a shotgun kick lately!

Mike

I wish. The Vanguard is not an option. It is not offered in .25-06 (SS). If it was, the search would be over.

Ernie the gunsmith

Sells 'em for $6.95. The trigger is already good on X-bolt's. This will make 'em better. It's made by Pault Fireams Specialties.

Best,

Dee

Remington 700 BDL . One of the older versions if you can find one.

LotK - What does the XCR offer for the extra $400 over the SPS? I've been trying to figure that out.

If you can stomach the crappy metal finish of the 700 SPS stainless, I'd go that direction. Matter of fact I did, but I personally despise it's porous, gravel beaded like finish. It was bought sight unseen. (lesson learned)

If you're truly looking for/wanting a "sporter" weight rifle, be aware that every Ruger M77 (in 25-06) that I've ever seen has had a mag countour barrel on it. Can't say I've personally seen or laid hands on the newer H'eye model in 25-06, but I'd be surprised if Ruger changed gears and put sporter barrels on them. Just FWIW/FYI...

If you're stuck on Rem & SS be aware they also made 25-06s in the BDL SS model w/ the nicer satin stainless finish & synthetic stock, though they're rare and hard to find used.

IMHO, the 700 XCR is simply not worth the extra $300-350 for their proprietary metal finish.

I have several Rem 700 BDL SS rifles and sold another here, a .30-06 to replace it with an XCR. They all really shoot well right out of the box, and they shoot all the factory and military ammo well. I don't have to worry about a pet load for them. Definitely look for an older BDL over the SPS.

A hunting companion has a Browning A-Bolt II SS in .25-06 with a 22 inch barrel. He loads it for accuracy, not the max velocity and has settled on a single 120-gr Nosler Partition load that shoots under .75 inch 5 shot groups every day, any day. He might give up a little velocity, but he wanted a stainless rifle that was easy to handle in the woods and in treestands overlooking grain fields. The deer don't notice that the bullets start out at "only" 2,900 fps.

Had a Rem Classic 25-06, Ruger 25-06 and now own a Browning 25-06. The Rem just would not shoot, so it is now a 280AI.

The Ruger, like someone said, had the magnum contour barrel. It felt way too muzzle heavy, just did not balance well. Plus, shooting max loads, the velocity just barely hit 3000 fps. To me, there was no point lugging around a 9 pound rifle that shoots like a 257 Roberts.

The Browning has been the best of the bunch. It is light enough, pretty dang accurate and didnt need a bunch of tinkering to make it shoot. This gun hit max velocity well below max loads.

You can't run fast enough to give me a Browning A-Bolt or anything like it. Too many instances with field break downs, especially in really wet, rough conditions. Apparently it doesn't take much rust or corrosion to put them out of bussiness.
I would prefer the Ruger. I've had less trouble with mine and the very similar Winchester M70 than any of the other choices.
I use Remingtons. They are not my first choice for rough going, but I've never had a serious reliability issue with them either. E

Not had any of the problems you mention with mine. They have been in some rough weather too.

I'm with ya' on the running though, the Rugers I've shot, (only 3), were about as accurate as a sling shot.

I'm sure they make some accurate rifles. I just haven't run into one yet.

Not my first,second or third choice in Rifles either but I know of no one that has had problem one with a Browning Bolt gun. Your mentor JB also likes Brownings . Do you have personal experiences with brownings?

I followed the link to the Weatherby site. I see now that the 25-06 is not offered in stainless.

That being the case, I would go with the Rem. Stainless SPS.

I currently own 5 Remington rifles that have been produed in the last 3 years. All of them are shooters right out of the box. The SPS is ugly--no question about it. But I have a 30-06 right now, that if I told you how good it shoots--unmodified--in its factory stock--you might question my truthfulness. So I'll put it like this; all 5 of my Remington standard production rifles will shoot less than 1" at 100 yards with my handloads (thats all I shoot).

The thing about the 06 is the fact that though the outside of the action is not smooth--the bolt glinds like its on butter. The barrel does not foul badly and cleans up with min. effort.

You can still get a stainless SPS for under 6 bills if you look around. The 700 is a great action to build on latter if you desire, and drop in upgrades are much more common and varied for the Remington than for the other two rifles you mentioned.

I can't remember exactly, but I think that the bottom metal on the X-Bolt was plactic when they first came out. Maybe someone can correct me if I am wrong.
Plastic bottom metal (an oximoron) is a deal killer for me.

I have my flame suit on for all you Tika lovers.

GB



I wish. The Vanguard is not an option. It is not offered in .25-06 (SS). If it was, the search would be over. [/quote]

My thoughts exactly, I bought a 700 SPS Youth rifle in .243 Winchester and it absolutely has the worst factory finish I've ever seen on a rifle. 30m in wet conditions last year and it started to rust. Since it shot very well with the factory tube, I've sent it off to Walter Birdsong to have it coated in BlackT.

I also totally agree with you on the M77 in .25-06. I am a fan of the M77, but the .25-06 uses a magnum contour barrel and it's extremely heavy.

That actually sparks my interest. Ruger's website says 8 1/4 pounds.

Mark,

when i was looking for a .25 caliber rifle, i knew which rifle that i wanted... i had been shooting the m 70 classic featherwieghts for some years, and they are what i want a rifle to be... at least the new haven rifles with the winchester trigger are...

my problem was that the m70 classic featherweight was never made in 25-06 and the .257 bobs are mostly selling for way too much money...
i had a model 70 fwt in 30-06 in the cabinet, and it never performed like i wanted it to... i ordered a barrel and shipped the rifle off to have it rebarrelled and tweaked...
i expect to have exactly the rifle that i want in my hands pretty soon...

i guess what i'm saying is that you've probly got a rifle that you wished was a .25 cal.... and it can be, if you want...

I would say it's every bit of that, I have the same rifle in .300 Win Mag and scoped (plus a 1" decelerator) it's a 9lb 6oz rifle.

Hi Geo. Boy,

The Bottom metal on Browning X-Bolt's is Metal. The only thing Polymer is the clip.

Best,

Dee

Make it 3 of us. I have a T3 in a 25.06 and it is awesome!

Thanks for the clairification.

GB

I would have chosen the SPS but after handling a SS Hawkeye the other day at the gunstore I think that would get my vote - it just somehow felt right. It was a LH 270 with the laminate stock and didn't feel too heavy and seemed to balance well. Can't see that the 25-06 would be any different.

Have to admit have never warmed to Browning bolt guns but plenty of others have.

The difference is that Ruger typically uses a magnum contour barrel on thier 25-06 models, thus making them seem muzzle heavy. The .270 you saw likely had a slimmer sporter barrel on it.

I did manage to get my hands on a wood-stocked .25-06 Hawkeye. It does indeed sport a heavier barrel and felt awkward. However, this is going to be a long-range rifle for speed goats, muleys and whitetails in hay fields...not a mountain rifle...so I may be able to live with it.

If I was going to buy a new rifle I would like the one you want I would go with the Kimber 8400 montana. But out of the 3 that you listed I would say the ruger, but that is just a personal preferance. 3 different people will have 3 different oppinions and it just boils down to what you like.

Update: Thanks to all who responded. It looks like I'll be getting the Remington 700 SPS Stainless. I'll have the trigger worked before I ever chamber a round in it, and plan to "semi-customize" the rifle over a period of time, first having the action trued then eventually adding a McMillan stock.

I think I'll top it with a Burris Fullfield II 4.5-14x42 with Ballistic Plex reticle in Talley mounts. It should make a fine, value-oriented speed goat rig!

try the savage weather war. it less then 1 in. at 100

Another T3 in 25-06 here.Just scope it and shoot it.You will be be happy.

Remington in the CDL.
It will be accurate, has good ergonomics, American made.

I like the T3 and was a Tikka rep in the NW at one time.
But to much plastic for my taste.

I won't get the Tikka in .25-06. That is definite. I want a 24" barrel, minimum.

I like the CDL and its stock design, but Remington doesn't offer it in SS in .25-06. If they did, it would be an eaasy choice. And if they hadn't put a 1-9" twist in their .260 offerings, I would have snapped up the CDL SF Special Edition they offered in .260 a few years ago.

Sometimes, Remington's product offerings are perplexing, to say the least.

I enjoy my T3 .25-06.........

The x-bolt can be unloaded with the safety on. I have the stainless syn. x-bolt, and I shoot the winchester 110 gr accubonds. Works excellent on MO whitetail.

I've never been happy with the complicated way the A-Bolts are made. I've seen a fair number of hook style extractors and plunger style ejectors malfunction.
What turned me off of them were JJHack's comments about their failing in the field. Comments like "I've seen more A-Bolts fail than everything else put together." And, "I've seen every make fail in the field except Winchesters and Rugers." I've noted that his personal rifles are Winchester CRF and the similar Rugers. So, when given a choice, I tend to go for those as well. E

SS - good man. I looked into the 25-06 cartridge and bought an SPS after looking at all the options. The Hawkeye wasn't out yet or I would have looked at that as well.

I had mine squared, lugs lapped, trigger tuned. I also changed out the Rem firing pin for a Callaghan. I just bedded it last weekend in the SPS stock but plans are to put it in a McEdge.

Topped with Talleys and 3-9x40 Leupie it weighs a shade over 7.5 w/o boolits. It is a nice rifle and will balance well although I wouldn't put more than a 3-9x40 on it.

You'll like it.

seattlesetters: It looks like you've picked the Rem. Good choice. But I'll toss my 2 cents your way for the heck of it. My .25-06 is a Ruger MK2 SS with the mag contour barrel It fits me well and balances nicely, and SHOOTS! Like you, I use it for prohghorns and open country mule deer. If the extra 1lb is no biggie, I'd give the Ruger alook. Good luck. Tom