First build ideas and thoughts?

[jpndave]

The Bighorn has CRF and a mechanical ejector (a lot of the other actions do too) . That alone makes it the better choice IMO. Depending on application the CRF may not be that big a deal but I'm a big fan of mechanical ejectors especially at the range. Will it shoot better than a trued Remington? Probably not.

I'd get the Bighorn.

 

[brcfo_outdoors]

I have a Bighorn TL3, and would strongly echo the sentiment that the Origin is a better choice than the Remington. The CRF and floating bolt head set up is much smoother than a 700 and you will wonder why you held onto the latter for so long. As others have mentioned, it has a mechanical ejector, and doesn't suffer from the same issues I experienced with my 700 not actually kicking out brass but. The origin comes with the pinned top rail, and won't have manufacturing defects like poorly brazed and hollow bolt handles, and general lack of fit an finish. The ability to use pre-fit barrels like Proof is also extremely handy. I purchased one myself, had my gunsmith torque it on, and everything was in spec so I walked out the door in about 10 minutes.

I have been extremely happy overall with this combination and is both smoother and more accurate than my friends AI.

For those who have mentioned the Defiance actions, I have heard that the specs and tolerances on them can be a bit tight for a field gun if they run into some dirt, but have zero personal experience to back up that claim. For a hunting gun that is going to get thrashed and dirty, I would lean towards the Origin.

 

[JAYgs8163]

I always hear multiple opinions of the floating bolt head vs fixed. The old less moving parts is less to break argument. I have both types of actions and both are great rigs. I also have a ARC Nucleus which is very nice. The basic 2019 Defiance Tenacity is a overall great hunting action and for $775 at Area419 you can't go wrong. Comes with the Defiance 20 moa rail. Defiance also makes another "Hunter Action" in one of there other variants but the price jumps way up. Decisions, decisions. Good luck

 

[FEENIX]

So I am looking to start collecting parts for my first build. I have it narrowed down to two options. I am looking for accuracy and not necessarily bells and whistles.

First option is to purchase a Remington action and have it trued and chambered normally.

Second option is to purchase a Big Horn Origin action and a shouldered pre-fit barrel.

What are everyone's thoughts? I am a big Remington guy. Will one shoot substantially better than the other?

Thanks all,
Steve

Between the two, BHA Origin especially "IF" you want a custom action for your custom build.

 

[Buck Fever]

As to the last post. Have you ever broke a 700 bolt stop? No. In 30 yrs as a professional gunsmith I have replaced 2 extractors. One of which was on a factory new rifle that had a defect. Now if your going to shoot over pressure loads that need a mallet to open the bolt then maybe you will break an extractor. Everybody keeps talking about misaligned scope mount holes. Sure there may be a few out there but I haven't come across one. They are put in a jig and cnc drilled and tapped how far off can they be. And if you did find one Burris signature rings will fix it easily. As far as the lug being sandwiched between action and barrel. Well I guess Bordin, Nasika,Bat and all the other action that use this method suck too. And the remington safty is not an issue as long as people that don't know how to properly adjust a trigger keep their hands off of them. The safty completely disengages the fire control system and if you don't have enough return spring pressure yes it can go off when disengaged. Not a fault of the safty but of idiots who think they know how to do a trigger job. There is a reason the remington 700 is the most copied action in the world. Sure you can get some more bells and whistles on a custom. So if you need benchrest compatition accuracy build a benchrest rig. It's going to have a 700 clone on it though. But if you want a solid 1/2 minute hunting rifle without breaking the bank do a remington 700. Take the 500 bucks you save and put it towards a better scope. Being that I build rifles for a living I can use any action I want and I have and have used countless custom actions. I still hunt with remington 700s and a few remington 788s that I really like. Now I'm not telling you to go and get a 700 instead of a clone because your wallet has to decide that.
Shep
Shep

And people build racing Honda Civics that can beat Lamborghinis.

The 700 works and can even be pretty nice. It's just not as nice and not unique. If you put a value on nice and unique, custom might be worth the premium.

 

[25WSM]

First of all the OP says he is a big fan of remingtons. Second he says he wants accuracy and not bells and whistles. Sounds like a 700 would fit the bill perfectly.
Shep

 

[25WSM]

I'm not on here to argue if I 700 is better than a Custom. It clearly is not as nice. What I do on this site is answer questions the OP has asked with my honest real world experience.
Shep

 

[Buck Fever]

I always hear multiple opinions of the floating bolt head vs fixed. The old less moving parts is less to break argument. I have both types of actions and both are great rigs. I also have a ARC Nucleus which is very nice. The basic 2019 Defiance Tenacity is a overall great hunting action and for $775 at Area419 you can't go wrong. Comes with the Defiance 20 moa rail. Defiance also makes another "Hunter Action" in one of there other variants but the price jumps way up. Decisions, decisions. Good luck

Savage has floating bolt heads and I think I might have seen pictures of one broken. I think it's rare enough to not be an issue. Savage extractors seem to have more issues but that's easily addressed with an oversized ball bearing.

I think Savage is the other end of the spectrum, you can actually make a pretty decent Savage custom so cheap that it makes sense if you get a few deals here and there. They aren't as nice but that is why they are on the other end. Also instead of buying a custom Savage action, the step up is to change platforms so that makes a pretty good price barrier.

 

[BoomFlop]

I am also not disputing the quality of a custom action (be that Big Horn or any others). I am not looking for resale value, I'm not looking for the feel good that I have a custom action. I want the best shooting action for the money. I've never had an issue with any of my Remington's. I realize they are not perfect, but I have some amazing shooting rifles with both factory and reloads.

Thanks everyone!
Steve

 

[JMW67]

I am also not disputing the quality of a custom action (be that Big Horn or any others). I am not looking for resale value, I'm not looking for the feel good that I have a custom action. I want the best shooting action for the money. I've never had an issue with any of my Remington's. I realize they are not perfect, but I have some amazing shooting rifles with both factory and reloads.

Thanks everyone!
Steve

all this being said I would go with the Remington you will be very happy good luck with your build

 

[25WSM]

If the OP wants to put together a simple inexpensive hunting rifle that anybody can build their self here is a list for a budget build.
Remington 700
New lug
Timney trigger
Remage prefit barrel
HS Precision stock.
No machining required and no glass bedding either. Only work might be sanding a little out of the barrel channel of the stock to make it free float. If you don't want to put the barrel on yourself any gunsmith would probably do it for 25 bucks or less. I mean it literally takes less than 5 minutes to put the barrel on. So like I said the 700 is like the 350 Chevy engine. Tons of proven build list to reach the potential you want. This budget build will shoot 1/2 minute or better.
Shep

 

[BoomFlop]

25WSM

PM sent Sir.

Thanks!!
Steve

 

[Buck Fever]

I am also not disputing the quality of a custom action (be that Big Horn or any others). I am not looking for resale value, I'm not looking for the feel good that I have a custom action. I want the best shooting action for the money. I've never had an issue with any of my Remington's. I realize they are not perfect, but I have some amazing shooting rifles with both factory and reloads.

Thanks everyone!
Steve

I just think an informed decision is best and that just means you should understand what is available, what is the cost and determine value for yourself.

In my opinion some custom actions are a great value. Your values might be different but you still need to know what is out there.

 

[FEENIX]

This is why I do not ask what to build.