need action advice

[gphil]

Im in the market for a 338. Im thinking the 338 rum. from what ive read its equivilent to the 338 lapua in performance with cheaper brass, and a little slower than the 338-378 but the weatehrby also requires some expensive brass. I have never had a rifle built before but my game plan was to get a action, have it barreled and put a stock of choice on the rig. I have always liked remington 700 actions so thats what I was going for. But weatherby and sako actions seem solid built too. I mainly seem to hear of people building rifles on rem 700 based actions tho is there a reason for this

I guess my question is how do I go about getting an action? Maybe Im not looking in the right place, but I never seem to see actions for sale? where does everyone get there actions for a build IF there using factory actions? So is my best game plan to buy a used rifle and just rob the action? Im not agianst custom actions they just seem a little spendy

Next question for example lets say i get an action and bolt from a 300win mag. Since this is a LA could it work for a 338 rum? Is the "extractor" on the bolt replaceable? or can it be machined out to fit the 338rum case? or do I just want to look for a 300 or 338 rum action to base my build on?

I am open to all suggestions!

 

[BillR]

The .338 Rum and .338 Edge both use the same bolt face as the .300 Win mag or the standard Remington Large bolt face.
Nice part about this is you can find Rem 700's on the used gun racks in the long action large bolt face in just about any gun store that sells used guns. Pawn shops are another location.
Wal-Mart carry's a number of Remington 700's and puts them on sale and you can pick up a whole rifle in .300 Win Mag or 7MM Rem Mag which the latter is most times easier to find for some reason at a price that is cheaper than you can find a action alone. From there it is pretty easy to find a competent gunsmith on this site that can blueprint the action and build you whatever you want. Its not uncommon to find one of the large bolt face long action guns in the neighborhood of $350. It just takes time. Don't worry about pretty. You can always make it pretty.
The .338 Rum is the easiest to build as the .338 Lapua takes a larger bolt face.

 

[Outlaw6.0]

The RUM, Lapua & Edge are all within 50-100FPS of each other. Not exactly a deal breaker. Most feel the Rem 700 action is a little on the small side to run the Lapua but heck, they started chambering factory rifles in Lapua last year

The RUM & Edge will be the cheapest to reload for, brass wise. The one fact that will usually be over looked is brass life, if your brass is 1/3 the cost yet has to be replaced 3x a fast, you really aren't gaining any ground. I love my RUM, don't get me wrong. It'll hang with the Lapua velocity wise, any day of the week, at the the cost of my brass (3x-4x reloads before they're toast, usually).

Shawn Carlock (of Edge fame) has the ability to acquire Lapua "quality" brass for the Edge, effectively increasing the appeal of that particular cartridge. The Lapua has long been the .338 mag gold standard, nuff said. The RUM has had brass availability issues in the past... The RUM also has the shortest powder column, allowing the end user to seat the bullets out farther while still feeding through a magazine system.

Actions:

When I really got interested/involved in custom rifles, I did like everyone else & started with a Rem 700. I no longer do this. Unless you already have a donor action, I feel you are at a disadvantage buying a complete rifle just to tear it apart. Unnecessary expendatures on a stock, barrel, trigger & bolt that won't be used for anything exept collecting dust.

By the time you buy a complete rifle, send it to your smith to have it torn apart, trued & basically completely rebuilt, you are at or near the cost of a custom action. And in the end, you still have a Remington 700.

As far as finding custom actions, you will need to go directly to the source or a retailer. They just don't pop up for sale all that often & when they do, they're gone in a heartbeat.

Search, Defiance, BAT, Stiller, Allen Precision, Borden, Surgeon, McMillan etc. They all make actions to accomodate any cartrridge you can imagine & even some you can't.


Hope this helps,


t

 

[Joe King]

Myself I'd get a savage LRH in 338 laupa, by the time your ready for a new barrel you'll have a chance to have all the other new parts just sittin there waiting. And you'll be starting off with an accurate rifle from the get go. That will get you started for about $1050 for the rifle.

 

[Greyfox]

Myself I'd get a savage LRH in 338 laupa, by the time your ready for a new barrel you'll have a chance to have all the other new parts just sittin there waiting. And you'll be starting off with an accurate rifle from the get go. That will get you started for about $1050 for the rifle.

+1. I thought long and hard about what direction to go when I decided to get into a .338. I got the Savage, except I went with the HS/FCP version. No regrets at all. I'm very pleased with the performance of this rifle.

 

[albertakid]

Myself I'd get a savage LRH in 338 laupa, by the time your ready for a new barrel you'll have a chance to have all the other new parts just sittin there waiting. And you'll be starting off with an accurate rifle from the get go. That will get you started for about $1050 for the rifle.

I started with the savage fcp/ hs and then sent it off to deadly precision and had Lorenzo work his magic on it and now I have a verified 1/2 moa shooter fo well under what a custom cost.

Rifle has surpassed all my expectations Lorenzo did an awesome job. And I couldn't be more pleased with the brux barrel

 

[sp6x6]

Alot of the actions mentioned start at about $900.MY Defiance dressed out is about $1200.The Sako TRG in a 338 lapua is close to a custom and fully adjustable.I have seen groups out of them that match any custom.You can look at the at euro optic to see rifle specs.

 

[albertakid]

The sako is a nice rifle as close to a custom as you can get out of a factory rig my shooting buddy has one and I have seen a lot of rounds head down range out of one sweet set-up to say the least.

 

[gphil]

I don't post a lot so I'm not sure if everyone can view the poll but I looked at the poll and I see that 13/17 people voted 338 laupa and 2 people for 338 EDGE, and 2 338 RUM. I find this interesting why is this? Considering there so close in performance? Is this just due to case life?

BillR just to clarify any long action magnum action will accept a 338 rum case on the bolt face with no modification whether it be a 300 win mag, 7mm rem mag, or 338 win mag? All I would have to do is have it rebarreled right?

I've never had a smith put on a barrel do they automatically true the action and barrel when they put the barrel on or do they just spec it for headspace, and truing is extra?

How much more accuracy is gained from a custom action? I looked at all of the actions that outlaw6.0 posted and it looks like custom actions roughly run from 1000-$1400. Is there a pretty significant difference between a trued stock action and a custom action? I'm just curious because I would think I could get a stainless rem action for $500, and even if there's $300 in labor to true it there's still a $200-$600 dollar difference between custom and stock action.

I have looked at the savage FCP/HS and bet the price for performance is hard to beat, my only neg is I am hoping to stay stainless. I live in Idaho and hunt in lots of bad weather and stainless is a little more convenient.

The Sako TRG is blued also correct?

I apologize for the page of questions, Im just trying to get educated! Thanks for the cooperation!

 

[.284]

Any long action rem that currently has a magnum boltface can be used for a rum cartridge. If it was not a rum cartridge it will not feed well though because the rums are fatter.

I don't actually have any proof but I have had a few customs built on common commercial actions and IMO I don't think you would notice any appreciable difference in accuracy going to a custom action. I'm sure that if you were going to use a smaller cartridge and have a custom reamer made up as well as get right carried away in your brass prep you may notice a difference in accuracy though

Sounds like you just wanna build something for long range fun, and there is so many other variables involved that I would just build on your savage action. Being your first build just save your money and go shoot. You're always gonna want to try something different anyways.

It's a vicious circle

 

[Outlaw6.0]

...
I've never had a smith put on a barrel do they automatically true the action and barrel when they put the barrel on or do they just spec it for headspace, and truing is extra?

How much more accuracy is gained from a custom action? I looked at all of the actions that outlaw6.0 posted and it looks like custom actions roughly run from 1000-$1400. Is there a pretty significant difference between a trued stock action and a custom action? I'm just curious because I would think I could get a stainless rem action for $500, and even if there's $300 in labor to true it there's still a $200-$600 dollar difference between custom and stock action.

I have looked at the savage FCP/HS and bet the price for performance is hard to beat, my only neg is I am hoping to stay stainless. I live in Idaho and hunt in lots of bad weather and stainless is a little more convenient.

The Sako TRG is blued also correct?

I apologize for the page of questions, Im just trying to get educated! Thanks for the cooperation!

As truing the action will be be an extra expense, I don't imagine that they would just true the action without consent. With a PROPERLY trued 700, accuracy will be pretty close. The custom action will offer enhancements that aren't available or possible on the 700. Plus down the road when you decide to sell your rig, the custom action will be inherently more valuable.


t

 

[joe0121]

I agree about the cost of a trued remy action vs custom. Though selling the old barrel and stock MAY get you SOME of that back. I still dont know what I'm gonna do. May just buy the savage and be done with it. I really like the Edge or a 338 Norma mag. Decisions... I might even sell my WM which I would hate because I have a lot of time and money tied up in it or convert it to an edge and buy a cheap WM to replace it. Or better yet buy a savage in 300 win and take it bear hunting and use my remmy for the 338 edge. gun)

 

[gphil]

alright I find that pretty interesting. I will more than like use a stock action then if I can achieve the same accuracy. is truing something that any gunsmith should be good at? or do I was to have a smith that is known for long range build but a barrel on and true it?

also .284 mentioned that a 338 rum wont feed as smooth out of a mag action, can this be fixed by replacing the hinged floor plate or what causes the rough feed?

 

[Outlaw6.0]

alright I find that pretty interesting. I will more than like use a stock action then if I can achieve the same accuracy. is truing something that any gunsmith should be good at? or do I was to have a smith that is known for long range build but a barrel on and true it?

also .284 mentioned that a 338 rum wont feed as smooth out of a mag action, can this be fixed by replacing the hinged floor plate or what causes the rough feed?

A 'smith worth your time & money will know how to true an action, if they don't


.284's comment was: If your donor action wasn't originally a RUM there will be additional modifications to accomodate the fatter cartridge. Just like going from .308 to .300WSM, you have to modify the action to properly feed the fatter cartridge.


t