The AR-30 is a good rifle for sure. The AR-50 is also a great rifle, in fact its my preferred platform for my 510 ALLEN MAGNUM wildcat custom rifles. They are quite affordable for what you get. Why is that, well lets be honest, their finishes are pretty rough. The stocks are very simplistic as are the receivers and muzzle brakes. They flat out look like a mil spec weapon. This is not a bad thing but they are not all that pretty either. Some like a rifle that looks as good as it shoots.
Also, staying with being honest, some of these rifles shoot EXTEMELY well, some shoot alright, some are quite bad, just like every commercial rifle out there. If every commercial rifle shot as well as the best examples of each rifle, I would be out of work. Fortunately for me, companies will generally hold their rifles to a 2 moa accuracy standard. If the rifles shoot better then 2 moa, they will generally not do anything to warrantee their rifles as long as they are functionally sound.
A BAD group with a quality factory rifle would be around 1 moa. GOOD groups will be in the 1/4 moa range and that is at distance, not at 100 yards.
Another thing is making a rifle that is personally suited to you. I am working on 1000 rifles out the shop door since I opened up my shop. Very few of these have looked like any others. In fact most of the ones that have looked similiar have been rifles I have built on factory rifles such as the Rem 700 or Armalite platforms.
SO what do you get with a custom rifle that makes it worth the extra cost. Well if you go through a good shop like my shop and all of my fellow builders here on LRH, you get our full attention to detail. You also get:
-An accuracy potential guarantee, usually 1/2 moa
-You get personal attention from the builder
-You get your choice of receivers and all the options that come with custom receivers
-You get your choice of custom barrels
-You get your choice of muzzle accessaries
-You get your choice of barrel flutting options
-You get your choice of metal finish options
-You get your choice of magazine systems
-You get your choice of nearly and endless list of stock choices
-You get your choice of stock finish and color
-You get a quality pillar bedding job on the stock
-You get your choice of the best triggers in the world
-You get your choice of chamberings, standard or wildcats
-You can get custom load development for your rifle
-You get a sounding board to ask questions to in the custom builder
-You get long term support for your rifle
-Most of all, you have a full custom rifle built for you and nobody else, no cookie cutter rifles, all are made custom specifically for each customer.
-Generally you get a friend in the rifle builder.
Just a few things you get with a custom rifle that you do not with a factory rifle. Is it worth it, thats the call of each shooter for their own needs. Now, you can certainly overspend on a rifle. Just like everything, you need to do your homework, do some research and talk to customers to see how their products are performing. Do not take the word of the builder, get third party references. You can spend $3K and you can spend $6K and get the same quality rifle. YOu can spend $3K and you can get better quality then some $6K rifles.