A Feature-Rich Backcountry Hunter: The Bergara B-14 Ridge Carbon Wilderness (Full Review)

The Spanish rifle firm reduce its enamel as a premium barrel maker, and so they nonetheless fabricate barrels for a number of American gun firms you’d acknowledge. However in addition they construct their very own full rifles, and their high quality components and a focus to element has earned them a devoted following of hunters, aggressive shooters, and weekend warriors.

For this evaluate, I bought my fingers on the B-14 Ridge Carbon Wilderness, courtesy of our pals at Scheels. “B-14” refers back to the motion, “Ridge” is the sub-category of searching rifles beneath the bigger “Wilderness” sequence, and “Carbon” signifies the carbon-wrapped barrel. This one is chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor.

Caliber: 6.5 Creedmoor
Platform: Rem 700-Type
Inventory Materials: Artificial
OAL: 41.50″
Sights: Drilled & Tapped
Barrel Materials: Metal core, Carbon fiber wrapped
Muzzle System: Omni Muzzle Brake
Thread Sample: 5/8″x24
Twist: 1:9.5″
Receiver Materials: Chrome steel
Receiver End: Grey Cerakote
Security: Two-position
Barrel Size: 22″
Max Capability: 4
Set off: Adjustable, 2.8-4.4 lbs.
Weight: 6.50 lbs
Worth at Scheels: $1,399.99

Bergara claims that their B-14 motion is “tremendous easy,” so I got down to put that to the check. First impressions have been constructive. I obtained this rifle with a number of different evaluate rifles, together with a Ruger American Gen II and a Savage Axis 2. Unboxing the three bolt-action lengthy weapons aspect by aspect, the Bergara’s easy motion actually stood out.

The 2-position security permits the bolt to cycle on “protected” however the set off doesn’t have interaction the firing pin.

The Bergara prices twice what the Ruger and Savage do, in order that’s to be anticipated. Motion smoothness additionally tends to be overvalued, and bolt weapons get smoother with time and put on. However biking this Bergara feels smoother than many different (costlier) bolt weapons I’ve owned over time. A easy motion contributes to sooner followup pictures, and makes all the taking pictures expertise extra pleasant.

What’s extra, the B-14 isn’t a kind of glass-like actions that seize up the second they encounter a speck of grime. It’s designed for the sphere, and though I didn’t get the possibility to hunt with this rifle, I did put it by way of its paces.

One of many days I took this rifle on the vary, the temps dropped to 17 levels (which is chilly for us right here in East Texas), the head-on north wind whipped round at 20 mph, and the snow and sleet got here in flurries. The gun I constructed on this Aero motion froze and refused to shut on manufacturing unit or reloaded rounds. However the Bergara saved chugging, and I by no means bumped into any cold-related reliability or accuracy points.

I am unable to recall the final time I went to the vary in such chilly climate.

You northerners hunt in much more excessive circumstances, however I used to be happy with how easy the motion remained even with frozen rain whipping round. The simplicity of the bolt is a part of what makes it dependable. Its two-lug design locks up tight, and it’s barely fluted to save lots of a bit of weight. It additionally makes use of a sliding plate extractor and a coned bolt nostril and breech, which ensures easy feeding and extraction of the cartridge. I by no means had any points with feeding or extraction in my whole time testing and taking pictures the rifle.

To additional check the reliability of the motion, I eliminated the bolt from the receiver, dropped it within the grime, returned it to the receiver, and tried to cycle it. A rational particular person would brush the grime off the bolt earlier than shoving it again into the receiver, however I figured if it cycled easily, it might deal with something the true world would possibly throw at it.

Do not do that at dwelling as a result of it may trigger the set off to malfunction. However in my thoughts, that is good proof for the B-14’s sturdiness.

The bolt continued to run like a champ. I cycled by way of a number of rounds of stay ammunition and didn’t expertise any failures to feed or extract. The bolt ran alongside the rails and locked up tight though I might really feel the grit by way of the deal with. After all, introducing that a lot grime into the set off mechanism is a recipe for catastrophe for any bolt gun, and after a couple of rounds the sear failed to have interaction correctly with the firing pin mechanism. Dusting off the bolt and blowing out the set off solved that drawback, however I ended taking pictures it till I had the possibility to present it a radical cleansing.

The motion is easy and sturdy, however what about Bergar’s signature part, the barrel? Not like gun makers that supply their barrels from different firms, this 22-inch barrel is Bergara’s proprietary carbon-steel mix that, they are saying, solves an issue different carbon-wrapped barrels undergo from.

Bergara makes all their carbon-wrapped barrels in-house utilizing proprietary strategies and supplies.

The theoretical good thing about wrapping a metal barrel in carbon fiber is that you simply get the consistency of a heavy profile barrel with out the related weight. That helps the rifle keep a dependable level of affect even throughout lengthy shot strings with out having to lug round a bull barrel. The issue is, some carbon fiber barrels don’t truly deal with warmth like a heavy barrel does. They entice the warmth between the metal core and the carbon wrapping, which makes the purpose of affect change much more drastically.

Bergara tried to beat this problem by utilizing a chrome steel mesh between the barrel and the carbon wrap to raised dissipate warmth. Additionally they use a labor-intensive manufacturing course of that ensures the middle wrap carbon weave is aligned directionally true to the middle of the barrel’s bore. Each options mitigate shot-to-shot variation because the barrel heats up and helps be certain that your first chilly bore shot is heading in the right direction.

That’s the declare, anyway. The outcomes of my accuracy testing didn’t blow the doorways off (extra on that under), however I did discover that the middle of every group didn’t change a lot from group to group. Some rifles I’ve examined shoot respectable teams, however the middle of every group shifts drastically. Because the barrel heats up and cools down time and again, the purpose of affect drifts left or proper, up or down. This may be attributable to quite a lot of elements, however the barrel is actually one in every of them. I didn’t see that with this Bergara barrel, which I take as an indication of its high quality.

Plus, regardless of how the rifle shoots, that carbon fiber wrapping saves a couple of ounces. This rifle clocks in at 6.5 kilos with out a scope and eight.5 kilos with Sig Sauer rings and a WHISKEY6 3-18x scope. It’s gentle, however not too gentle, which is nice information when you go for a higher-power cartridge than the 6.5 Creedmoor.

The rifle’s cheap weight is a part of what makes it a great-shooting piece. It’s comfy to shoulder and hearth from the standing place, however the recoil is straightforward on the shoulder even with none form of muzzle machine. Slap a muzzle brake or a suppressor on there (which I did), and also you’ve bought a particularly comfy, useful rifle that may take just about any huge sport animal in North America.

Standing pictures are doable with an general scoped weight of 8.5 kilos, and recoil could be very tame.

The set off helps loads, too. It’s crisp and constant, and undoubtedly gained’t be the explanation you whiff a shot. The load might be adjusted between 2.8 and 4.4 kilos (per the proprietor’s guide) utilizing an exterior screw situated simply ahead of the set off. My set off weight scale indicated the set off on the mannequin I obtained was breaking only a hair above two kilos. That’s nice for me, so I felt no want to vary it.

The set off is adjustable utilizing an exterior screw.

Bergara makes rifles with removable field magazines, however this isn’t one in every of them. That’s one in every of my solely gripes in regards to the rifle’s function set. I understand there are robust opinions on either side of this debate, and I get it–blind field mags with hinged metal floorplates, just like the one on this B-14, keep snag free within the woods and also you by no means have to fret about forgetting {a magazine} within the truck. On the similar time, they’re a ache to load, particularly with gloves on, and a flush-fitting removable magazine gained’t snag on something, both.

Not my favourite journal model, however I see why individuals prefer it.

That one grievance apart, the B-14 Ridge Carbon Wilderness is a sturdy, useful rifle with an awesome function set and an attainable value level. The rifle’s greatest flaw? The pattern I obtained wasn’t terribly correct. As you may see within the chart under, solely one in every of three Sig Sauer masses averaged lower than an inch, and that was the match ammunition taking pictures three-shot teams.

Now, as I’ve identified elsewhere, even costly firearms can battle to hit that magical one-inch-at-100-yards benchmark. If you happen to get a Bergara B-14 and it shoots related teams, I wouldn’t be too indignant. In spite of everything, like most rifle firms, Bergara’s sub-MOA accuracy assure solely guarantees a median of lower than one inch at 100 yards taking pictures three, three-shot teams with manufacturing unit match ammunition. This rifle handed that check, though it didn’t shoot both of the searching masses as effectively.

A reasonably consultant three-shot group.

I additionally didn’t use each sort of ammunition out there. Bergara recommends Hornady’s 140-grain ELD Match or 143-grain ELD-X bullets, and also you might be able to discover one thing your rifle actually likes.

Nonetheless, for a $1,400 rifle, I might have favored to see a bit of extra consistency, particularly with these 120-grain copper bullets. Monolithic bullets aren’t at all times essentially the most correct, however I like the choice of utilizing them, particularly with some federal properties contemplating a ban on conventional lead ammo.

Bergara rifles stay in a candy spot between high-end and finances that a whole lot of of us actually recognize. The B-14 Ridge Carbon Wilderness isn’t an affordable rifle, but it surely’s attainable for a lot of hunters, and it comes with a set of options you’d anticipate on lengthy weapons within the $2,000+ vary.

Whether or not you’re proud of the gun’s accuracy relies on your particular person requirements. I’ve spoken with B-14 homeowners whose weapons shoot sub-MOA with most sorts of ammunition, so whether or not you get a standard searching rifle (like this one) or an actual tack driver is usually a luck of the draw scenario. Possibly that’s not ok for you, however with Bergara’s intensive barrel-making pedigree, I’d say it’s a greater guess than most you’ll discover within the gun world.

To choose one up for your self, head on over to Scheels.