Wonder from where or who comes up with these ideas?

[Darryle]

I have a few full custom rifles, but I am a Browning nerd. It started back in the 80s with a new Auto-5 Mag-12, then they introduced plastic, well, I was sold all over again.

I have a hard time walking away from Browning X-Bolt rifles, I just like them for everyday running around the farm, plus they are in cheap to shoot calibers. They fill a need that I don't require a full custom for.

I have 4 bare custom stainless actions, Defiance, Stiller and Mack Brothers, in the safe. 2 definite planned builds in the near future, enough Manners stocks and Hawkins M5 Hunter DBM bottom metal for them all, just need time and money to complete them all.

Problem is, I don't think I will stop there.

 

[Mark37082]

Yeah, and once you go the route of "custom" then you will never go back to factory offerings…my case anyway.

I hear you. Although the reality of being able to buy 2 high quality factory rifles for the cost of one high quality custom can be compelling if you just like trying new rifles out.

 

[Rich Coyle]

I'm not a bench rest shooter, so factor that in. I bought a Savage. 223 that I fired great groups all the time. This would include two impressive ten shot groups. At 100 yard .437" group and and at 200 yards an .870". I've had several custom barrels and two custom rifles. None could match the Savage.

By the way, the Savage cost about $200.

 

[Fiftydriver]

I'm not a bench rest shooter, so factor that in. I bought a Savage. 223 that I fired great groups all the time. This would include two impressive ten shot groups. At 100 yard .437" group and and at 200 yards an .870". I've had several custom barrels and two custom rifles. None could match the Savage.

By the way, the Savage cost about $200.

I have seen factory 223 rifles with a completely floating bolt lug that would shoot 1/4" groups. Small guns just dont impose much bolt thrust to bring out the flaws in the machining. the larger the rifle, the more difficult it is to build them to shoot. Anyone can build a small gun and get small groups, getting small groups with big guns….. totally different game and perfection is the name of the game. That said, on average, if i had to randomly choose a factory rifle brand and hope for small groups, savage would be near the top or at the top of my list. Have owned several over the years that were amazing.

 

[CMP70306]

So, were you able to out-shoot him at 600yds?

If it were a cold bore accuracy challenge, anything is possible.
A shooter who put in disciplined testing,, knows what he doing,, might be able to hit his mark with a cheap gun.

Nope, haven't been up to their cabin in years but it was a combo gun that someone else sighted in for him, he has no idea how ballistic calculators work and he shoots like 3 times a year. Last time we had said shoot out was over 10 years ago when I just started getting into long range shooting. On his first shot he hit several feet low with his .243 and on my first shot I hit the milk jug shooting 180gr Nosler Partition out of a .300 Win Mag, the first time I had ever hit anything over 200 yards.

That was probably the most expensive shot I ever took as it got me hooked on long range shooting.

 

[Old Rooster]

It would amaze you how many guys will buy these, shoot them a bit at 200-300 yards and then make claims that they will run head to head all day with full custom rifles in the $3000-$4000 range even though thats totally laughable. Get a dozen emails a week from guys asking about the cost if my rifles and then saying thats just way to high as they can get a long range factory rifle for less then $1000. Knowing they likely do not have the need for one of my rifles and would not use them in a way to see the huge difference at longer ranges, i let the conversation die there……

So the old saying is true,"You get what you pay for"?.
On occasion I have seen cheap rifles shoot exceptionally well but if you go to sell one it's not worth much.A custom rifle rarely loses much value from my observations.Yep you get what you pay for all right.

 

[Nwimport]

My brother has one of those buddies, we all grew up together and last time he went up to their cabin his buddy was telling a bunch of people there that with his new rifle he could beat me in a shooting competition out to 600 yards which is the max for their cabin.

Which was laughable because I had just shot a clay pigeon at 1038 yards with my custom 6.5 PRC and his savage axis in 6.5 creed didn't even eject shells right because of a burr in the chamber.

Tell him to run his bolt instead of his mouth

 

[Nwimport]

Nope, haven't been up to their cabin in years but it was a combo gun that someone else sighted in for him, he has no idea how ballistic calculators work and he shoots like 3 times a year. Last time we had said shoot out was over 10 years ago when I just started getting into long range shooting. On his first shot he hit several feet low with his .243 and on my first shot I hit the milk jug shooting 180gr Nosler Partition out of a .300 Win Mag, the first time I had ever hit anything over 200 yards.

That was probably the most expensive shot I ever took as it got me hooked on long range shooting.

Expensive is right. Like any addiction it starts small and we think we can manage it. It's like getting on a tiger's back. How the **** do you get off?

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

..remember what Barnum & Bailey said, " a sucker is born everyday ".... the even funnier part it's chambered in the NEEDSOMUCHMORE !!

 

[Fiftydriver]

So the old saying is true,"You get what you pay for"?.
On occasion I have seen cheap rifles shoot exceptionally well but if you go to sell one it's not worth much.A custom rifle rarely loses much value from my observations.Yep you get what you pay for all right.

That is true but you need to be a smart investor as well!! You can spend a load of money and not get the results. I used to have guys send me other builders "Top End" rifles often wanting me to find out why they would not shoot. Most of these rifles used quality components and certainly charged prices for this class of parts but the rifles simply did not shoot. Part of it goes back to the fact that its EASY to make a small rifle that shoots great, its much challenging to make a big rifle that shoots great. Its not DIFFICULT per say, you just need to focus and pay extreme detail to make sure EVERY step in the build process is as perfect as possible, which, if your a precision rifle builder should be the way every rifle is built, no matter the chambering.

sadly, many that claim to be precision builders lack this fine attention to detail and the rifles suffer, that said, there are many great builders out there so like everything do your research before laying money down.

Sad to see a $3000-$5000 rifle come to me that shoots 1.5-2 moa at 500 yards and find out the reason is often simple errors in machining such as poorly aligned barrel threads and shoulders, off center chambers, poorly machined crowns, poor bedding……. All things that are simply from lack of attention or lack of education on how to properly build a precision rifle. Sadly, many if these rifles come from companies that sell a very large number of rifles…. Somehow

as far as rifle value, i totally agree and your correct. The first decade or so of my professional career as a precision rifle builder i rebuild many, MANY rem 700 rifles and while they shot great, a modified factory rifle holds very little resell value. No more and at times less then the original factory rifle. I would tell customers that they need to realize this. If they never plan to sell the rifle, no worries at all but something to keep in mind.

when i started building my full custom rifles, and especially my name brand Stalker and Raptor rifles, their retained value was extremely high on the used market so yes, resell value with a full custom build is much higher then a rebuild factory rifle.

 

[Fiftydriver]

Expensive is right. Like any addiction it starts small and we think we can manage it. It's like getting on a tiger's back. How the **** do you get off?

Why would you want to get off??

 

[Nwimport]

Why would you want to get off??

Does the phrase Happy Wife Happy Life mean anything to you? LOL

Old joke- she said if I buy one more gun she'll leave me….. I miss her already.

 

[codyadams]

My brother has one of those buddies, we all grew up together and last time he went up to their cabin his buddy was telling a bunch of people there that with his new rifle he could beat me in a shooting competition out to 600 yards which is the max for their cabin.

Which was laughable because I had just shot a clay pigeon at 1038 yards with my custom 6.5 PRC and his savage axis in 6.5 creed didn't even eject shells right because of a burr in the chamber.

You mean like this one? It's a stupidly common thing for savages. I have personally seen two 6.5 creeds like this, one of them couldn't even chamber a round, strait from the factory. One was an axis, the other was a model 10 trophy hunter xp. If they head spaced it, they some how managed to eff the chamber up like this after the barrel was installed. Don't even know how that happens. I won't buy a factory Savage any more. Maybe a tikka or browning, but I prefer to build customs. Also, neither one of those 6.5 creeds, and also one of the proof research barreled 300 wsm's would eject the cases, ever. Had to change the ejector ball and the extractor claw to get it up to 70% reliability.

 

[Fiftydriver]

You mean like this one? It's a stupidly common thing for savages. I have personally seen two 6.5 creeds like this, one of them couldn't even chamber a round, strait from the factory. One was an axis, the other was a model 10 trophy hunter xp. If they head spaced it, they some how managed to eff the chamber up like this after the barrel was installed. Don't even know how that happens. I won't buy a factory Savage any more. Maybe a tikka or browning, but I prefer to build customs. Also, neither one of those 6.5 creeds, and also one of the proof research barreled 300 wsm's would eject the cases, ever. Had to change the ejector ball and the extractor claw to get it up to 70% reliability.

View attachment 410353

I saw one savage m12 that had a foot long section of barrel with no rifling on one half side of the bore……. Needless to say it did not shoot well!!. Savage did replace that rifle to their credit, sent a complete new rifle to the guy. Just goes to show its not worth their time to replace a barrel…..