Near Mfg. - Opinions?

[scout338]

Near was the only one who had exactly what I wanted. A heavy blacked stainless 20-25MOA base for a Weatherby Mark-5 action and 34mm rings for a S&B scope. As was said before, they are expensive, but superb quality and precision. Second to none.

[James Jones]

The same base that is used on rem 700 long actions will fit the Weatherby MK-V , sorry your wasted your money

[scout338]

Originally Posted by James Jones

The same base that is used on rem 700 long actions will fit the Weatherby MK-V , sorry your wasted your money

Interesting. I called Weatherby on that and they said no, there will be a small difference. Anyway, that is not what I wanted. I wanted a heavy blacked stainless 25MOA base for a Weatherby Mark-5 action and heavy blacked stainless 34mm rings, all from the same mfg.

[LRHWAL]

I have a Near MFG picatinny base on my Sako TRG-S (M995). Near MFG are the only guys I could find who make one. Quality and fit is superb. I agree that the price is high compared to others, but this was my first base, so I can't compare quality, but it would surprise me if there was something better (I couldn't buy another brand anyway).

I called Richard Near several times about the bases and their installation as I'm in South Africa and wanted to be sure that I got it done right as I was getting instructions and passing them on to my gunsmith / machinist. Richard was really helpful and prepared to chat and give up his time. At one point he even offered to swap my (by then) older model base for a new model that attached a little differently if I wanted. We talked a bit about hunting and optics too. My experince was very positive.

Richard struck me as someone who would stand behind his product and he seems rightfully proud of it. But it's pricey, in my opinion.

I'd buy one again as my first choice if I wasn't too sensitive to price differences.

Hope that helps.

[BHP9]

I have a set of Richard's rings (30mm) and a Rem700 base.

The cost? $475 Cdn.

Absolutely top notch.

Richard is a nice guy but can (and will) be flippant.

Would I buy his stuff again? I really don't know, as there's a lot of good stuff out there. Badger, Nightforce, Seekins, TPS etc.

[uncleB]

Originally Posted by BHP9

I have a set of Richard's rings (30mm) and a Rem700 base.

The cost? $475 Cdn.

Absolutely top notch.

Richard is a nice guy but can (and will) be flippant.

Would I buy his stuff again? I really don't know, as there's a lot of good stuff out there. Badger, Nightforce, Seekins, TPS etc.

BHP9,
You have added a new word to my vocabulary !!!!!!!!!!! and it is absolutely the perfect description.
After my dealings with Richard I tried Ken Farrell on a couple of projects and have been very happy (equal quality or better and MUCH more friendly).
UB