Hey everyone,

I'm looking to get into my first centerfire long-range setup and want some real-world feedback before buying anything.

Goals & Experience:

• Target / Distance: Mostly ringing steel with friends at 600 yards, occasionally pushing out to 1,000 yards. Not focused on shooting tiny groups on paper or competitive PRS.
• Experience: Relatively new to centerfire long range. I took a long-range class in college where I stretched a .22lr out to 175-200-250 yards, but that’s about the extent of my experience. I'm definitely not experienced with building any rifle from scratch and don't own gunsmithing tools.
• Budget: Roughly $1,000 – $1,200 total for the rifle, mount, and optic combined.
• Ergonomic Preference: I really prefer a vertical/pistol grip layout. An MDT or similar chassis for a bolt action currently pushes beyond my budget, which is why I’ve been leaning toward an AR platform.

Current Setup Under Consideration:

• Rifle: Bear Creek Arsenal (BCA) BC-15 complete rifle with 24" 416R stainless heavy barrel in 6mm ARC (~$490)
• Trigger: LaRue Tactical MBT-2S Curved 2-Stage (~$135)
• Glass Option 1: Arken EP-5 5-25x56 FFP with 34mm Rigid Precision Mount (~$500 bundle)
• Glass Option 2: Vortex Venom 5-25x56 FFP (~$500)

Questions:

1. For someone on a strict ~$1,100 total budget who wants a pistol grip layout for 600–1,000 yd steel, is this 6mm ARC AR-15 build viable, or is there a better entry route I'm missing ?
2. Between the Arken EP-5 and Vortex Venom 5-25x56, which would you recommend in this price tier for reliable tracking and clarity ?
3. If BCA is a bad idea,, what is other alternative that keeps me within the $1,000–$1,200 ceiling while keeping that pistol grip chassis style ?