First Look: Springfield’s New Model 2020 Boundary Rifle (Full Review)

Traditionally, Springfield Armory has leaned into the fashionable with their Mannequin 2020 Waypoint and Redline bolt-action rifles. However not all hunters like a removable field journal or a competition-style inventory. Some want extra conventional traces, and that’s what they get with the most recent addition to the Mannequin 2020 steady: the Boundary.

The idea behind the Boundary, like that well-known Outdated El Paso meme, is, “Why not each?” The Boundary combines the hinged floorplate and conventional sporter-style inventory of your grandfather’s deer rifle with all-modern options and elements. The result’s a lighter, extra streamlined model of the 2020 Waypoint that, Springfield hopes, will attraction to the Charlton Heston-types who wouldn’t be caught lifeless within the woods with something that smacks of the newfangled.

Springfield simply launched the Springfield Mannequin 2020 Boundary final week (backside), a number of years after their unique Mannequin 2020 Waypoint (prime).

Caliber: 6.5 Creedmoor
Colour: Rogue Camo
Barrel: 22″ Carbon Fiber, 1:8, Tactical Gray Cerakote® H-227
Receiver: Mannequin 2020 Stainless Metal, Tactical Gray Cerakote® H-227
Optic Mounting: Picatinny Mount, Rem 700 SA Sample, 6-48 Screws
Bolt: Fluted 4140 Instrument Metal, Nitride
Inventory: AG Sportsman, Carbon Fiber, M-Lok®, QD Cups
Set off: TriggerTech Adjustable, 2.5 – 5 lbs
Muzzle System: SA Radial Brake, Tactical Gray Cerakote® H-227
Magazines: 4-Spherical Inside
Weight: 6 lbs 15 oz
Size: 43″
MSRP: $2,599

Different chamberings: .308 Win., 6.5 PRC, .300 PRC, .300 Win. Magazine., 7mm Rem. Magazine. or 7mm PRC

The Boundary was simply launched final week, however I’ve had a pattern for the final two months. This one is chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor and encompasses a 22-inch carbon-wrapped barrel (it can save you about $400 by choosing the metal fluted barrel).

I’ve had a blast placing the Boundary via its paces.

At only a hair beneath seven kilos, the Boundary is not precisely a featherweight, which is shocking given its all-carbon options. Nonetheless, its heft absorbs recoil and makes it snug to shoot in most discipline positions. The 22-inch barrel can be a very good size for a 6.5 Creedmoor. It’s lengthy sufficient to squeeze about 2,700 fps out of the cartridge, but it surely isn’t so lengthy {that a} suppressor makes it really feel like capturing a broomstick.

The gun is fitted with Springfield’s proprietary Mannequin 2020 motion–the identical one on the Waypoint and Redline. It encompasses a 90-degree bolt throw, detachable bolt head, twin locking lugs, and a fluted bolt. I want a shorter throw for faster followup photographs, but it surely’s a clean motion, and I haven’t had any hassle with loading or extraction within the months I’ve had it.

The Mannequin 2020 motion is Springfield’s proprietary design.

Like many rifles as of late, the motion, picatinny rail, floorplate, and set off are all patterned after the Remington 700. This lets you swap out the inventory or set off with something that matches a Remmy 700, which is handy for sourcing aftermarket merchandise.

Springfield payments the rifle as “custom-grade,” which I consider is a reference to its premium elements since “custom-grade” is not an actual class. But when I am proper, they don’t seem to be unsuitable. The BSF barrel on this rifle is $750, and the AG Sportsman inventory is about $700. Springfield is not paying these costs, after all, however when you have been to construct an analogous rifle by your self, these elements are three-quarters the price of the Boundary. Consumers can derive consolation from the truth that, if nothing else, Springfield is not ripping them off.

However are these premium elements well worth the squeeze? That depends upon who you ask, however there’s no use pretending that that is a reasonable firearm. The older Mannequin 2020 Waypoint has the identical MSRP because the Boundary, and that rifle will be discovered on the road for proper round $2,000. For many hunters, that’s essentially the most they’ll ever spend on a rifle, they usually need to make sure they’re getting their cash’s value.

The receiver is constructed from stainless-steel and Cerakoted in H-227 Tactical Grey. Cerakote has lengthy been the business normal for shielding steel firearm elements from the weather, so hunters needn’t fear that the rifle’s most vital half will succumb to rain, snow, and rust. Similar goes for the fluted bolt, which is constructed from 4140 instrument metal and completed with a nitride coating course of.

The receiver is Cerakoted to guard in opposition to the weather.

Carbon fiber barrels have grow to be pretty frequent, and there’s a cause. Wrapping a barrel in carbon fiber offers it the identical profile as a bull barrel with a weight nearer to that of a sporter barrel. This, theoretically, produces a extra correct rifle with out having to hold a contest gun via the woods. The knock on carbon fiber barrels has at all times been that they don’t dissipate warmth effectively, however the barrel on the Boundary mitigates in opposition to that in a number of methods.

First, it’s jacketed in a roll-wrapped carbon fiber sleeve and loaded beneath stress. In response to Springfield, which means 95 p.c of the carbon fiber sleeve doesn’t contact the barrel, which offers cooling air gaps. As well as, the barrel can be fluted beneath the sleeve, which reduces weight and will increase floor cooling space. Most hunters don’t fear about lengthy shot strings within the discipline (except they’re having a really, very unhealthy day), however the Boundary’s barrel avoids a few of the errors that earlier generations of carbon fiber barrels have made.

Is carbon fiber well worth the added price?

The query, after all, is whether or not a carbon fiber barrel is value an additional $400. That’s the one distinction between the 2 fashions of 6.5 Creedmoor Boundary rifles, and the all-steel rifle solely weighs two ounces extra. For prime-mountain backcountry hunters, two ounces on a rifle is likely to be value it; for others, not a lot.

Carbon fiber barrels have their detractors, however I don’t know anybody who doesn’t like a carbon fiber inventory. The Boundary makes use of a one hundred pc carbon inventory from AG Composites known as the Sportsman. It has a 13.5-inch size of pull, and contains two quick-detach cups for mounting a sling together with a one-inch Pachmayr Decelerator Pad. That capturing pad isn’t crucial for a 6.5 Creedmoor however would undoubtedly come in useful for warmer cartridges.

Most significantly, the inventory saves weight. The AG Sportsman solely weighs about 27 ounces, which makes it one of many lightest sporter-style shares in the marketplace. Aluminum pillars additionally preserve photographs heading in the right direction, and AG Composites says that no bedding is required to attain ½ MOA accuracy.

The inventory reduces general weight and affords a sturdy dwelling for the receiver and motion.

I additionally respect the addition of a TriggerTech Subject set off. The Subject mannequin is user-adjustable between 2.5 and 5 kilos, and the mannequin I acquired clocked in at 3.5 kilos. The set off is adjustable through a small Allen-wrench-style set screw situated beneath the motion, which will be accessed with out eradicating the motion from the inventory.

The set off has zero creep, takeup, or grittiness. It doesn’t transfer in any respect till it breaks, and the break is clear and constant. TriggerTech’s Frictionless Launch Expertise paired with hardened 440C stainless-steel inside elements additionally helps resist corrosion within the discipline. The Subject is essentially the most budget-friendly of TriggerTech’s choices at about $130, but it surely’s nonetheless a helpful and efficient product.

The Subject is TriggerTech’s base mannequin, but it surely nonetheless affords wonderful efficiency.

I’m personally ambivalent concerning the hinged floorplate journal, however I perceive why some hunters want this model. It’s much less prone to get snagged on a department and fall out than a removable field magazine, and it offers the rifle a cleaner, extra streamlined look. Nonetheless, you’ll be able to normally discover a flush-fitting field magazine, and I a lot want coming out a field journal than popping open a hinged floorplate and hoping I catch all of the falling cartridges. Field mags are additionally simpler to load.

In both case, it’s unlikely that you just’ll unintentionally disengage the journal on the Boundary. The magazine launch is tucked contained in the set off guard and requires a very good quantity of pressure to depress. Springfield’s design can be fairly slick. Quite than have the journal field be a separate piece, they built-in the field and backside steel. This offers one common backside steel setup for short-action calibers, and retains all the things collectively when you resolve to take it out.

Are you a fan of the hinged floorplate or removeable field journal?

I do have one or two gripes. The radial muzzle brake efficiently reduces recoil, but it surely’s loud as all getout. That’s true of most muzzle brakes, however radial brakes have a value that directional brakes don’t: they blast dust and particles into the air when shot from the susceptible place. The benefit of a radial brake is that it doesn’t need to be tuned–it has holes across the complete circumference, so it doesn’t matter the place it finally ends up tightening down. However these holes that find yourself on the underside trigger a minor mud storm when you’re ever unlucky sufficient to shoot the rifle from the bottom in a dry setting.

The excellent news is that the brake will be eliminated simply, and the Boundary comes with a thread protector when you don’t have your individual muzzle machine or suppressor to make use of.

Not a giant fan of those radial muzzle gadgets.

I used to be excited to get the Boundary to the vary and make sure Springfield’s accuracy assure, which stays probably the greatest within the enterprise: 0.75 MOA, or about three-quarters of an inch at 100 yards. In fact, as with most accuracy ensures, there’s some fantastic print, however Springfield doesn’t attempt to conceal it. It’s listed on their web site and in most advertising and marketing supplies as, “for a three-shot group at 100 yards with high quality match-grade manufacturing facility ammunition, within the arms of a talented shooter.”

That’s lots of caveats. Most accuracy exams are carried out utilizing five-shot teams. That quantity is considerably arbitrary, however for good or in poor health, it’s grow to be the usual by which rifles are in contrast. What’s extra, most hunters don’t hunt with match-grade ammunition, so an accuracy assure with match ammo isn’t value as a lot. And the definition of a “expert shooter” is anybody’s guess.

A foul day on the vary is best than a very good day on the workplace.

Nonetheless, for a searching rifle, a three-shot group from a cool barrel is a fantastic take a look at. That’s as many photographs as most hunters will tackle a single animal. If a rifle can put three photographs in a row in the identical place, you will be certain it’ll carry out effectively within the discipline.

With that in thoughts, I shot 5, five-shot teams with every kind of ammunition, however I additionally recorded the dimensions of every group after the primary three photographs. As you’ll be able to see, the fourth and fifth photographs of most teams are the place the group dimension began to develop.

A strong five-shot group from the Boundary with these 130-grain masses from Sig.

Ammo
140g Open Tip Match

140g Accubond

130g Managed Growth Tip

Three-Shot
5-Shot
Three-Shot
5-Shot
Three-Shot
5-Shot

Small Group (in)
0.4
0.9
0.5
0.9
0.5
0.7

Common Group (in)
0.62
1.02
0.66
1.07
0.61
0.98

Common Velocity (fps)
2690

2638

2743

(All teams have been shot from 100 yards utilizing an MDT CKYE-POD and rear baggage. Velocities have been recorded with a Garmin Xero C1 Professional Chronograph.)

I would say that the Boundary holds up Springfield’s accuracy assure. Almost each three-shot group clocked in beneath an inch, and 75% of them measured lower than 0.75 inches. I noticed these outcomes whether or not I used match-grade or searching ammunition, which is nice information for anybody who takes this rifle into the sector. Some searching rigs are choosy about their ammunition, however the Boundary dealt with all the things I threw at it (or, extra precisely, threw with it) about the identical.

The Boundary would even be an important suppressor host.

The five-shot teams tended to be bigger. Whereas the gun is definitely able to sub-MOA accuracy, I wouldn’t say it’s a three-quarter-inch gun utilizing the five-shot group take a look at. At this worth level, that’s a knock on the Boundary. True sub-MOA weapons–which means, weapons that shoot lower than an inch on just about each group–are much less frequent than the gun boards would have you ever consider. Nonetheless, I’ve examined and reviewed searching rigs which are lighter and cheaper than the Boundary and do a greater job dealing with 5 consecutive photographs in a row.

I didn’t take a look at each kind of 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition, after all. Whereas the rifle shot all three ammo varieties effectively in a three-shot group take a look at, the Boundary would possibly shoot higher five-shot teams with a distinct bullet weight or powder. In the event you pull the set off on a Boundary, preserve testing ammo till you discover one which it shoots to your requirements. Contemplating the standard of its elements, I wouldn’t be shocked to listen to that it could possibly enhance upon my outcomes.

The Boundary makes use of a easy two-position security.

No matter you concentrate on the rifle’s accuracy, the gun is a pleasure to shoot. It doesn’t produce a large amount of felt recoil (even sans muzzle brake), it’s pure to shoulder and fireplace off-hand, and the set off helps preserve photographs heading in the right direction. I used to be in a position to ring six- and eight-inch metal plates at 400 yards from discipline capturing positions, which, for me, is an correct real-world take a look at of the rifle’s capabilities within the discipline.

I typically take into consideration how spoiled we’re for searching rifle choice as of late. It wasn’t that way back that wood-stock bolt weapons have been the one sport on the town. Now, whether or not you’re a traditionalist or a modernist, you could find a gun that floats your boat and shoots the lights out, in addition. The Mannequin 2020 Boundary affords a lot to like for each camps. It makes use of space-age elements however suits them right into a form your grandfather would acknowledge. Whether or not it’s value the associated fee is a private determination, however when you’re available in the market for a premium rifle, it’s not less than value a glance.

Everyone seems to be within the Boundary rifle, together with roosters that Tractor Provide assured me have been hens.