Comparison of 6.5PRC Action Options

[tmfisher57]

Help me. I am acronymically impaired. What is CRF?

Controlled Round Feed

 

[Littlehud]

I can't seem to find a custom action fro less than twice the price of a trued remington 700 action. I must be missing something here.

http://northlandshooterssupply.com/actions/remington/

 

[smokepoler]

I can't seem to find a custom action fro less than twice the price of a trued remington 700 action. I must be missing something here.

http://northlandshooterssupply.com/actions/remington/

Their definition of "trued" is fairly loose. A quality trued 700 with a re-timed bolt (every one of them isn't correct), recut threads, face, abutments, and bolt lugs will set you back within a hundred dollars of a custom like Stiller, Kelbly's or Pierce. Your resale value will be at a loss also.

 

[Tangent]

I can't seem to find a custom action fro less than twice the price of a trued remington 700 action. I must be missing something here.

http://northlandshooterssupply.com/actions/remington/

I'd be pretty skeptical of those factory 'trued' action. Truing/blueprinting means a lot of different things to a lot of different folks. But any gunsmith that I've used charges $200 - $300 to blueprint an action. Upgrading extractor is $150 - $250, timing & tig'ing bolt handle is ~$100, pinning recoil lug is $50 - $75, fluting bolt is $35, adding bolt knob is $75 - $100, side bolt release is $100 range, coating the receiver & bolt will be $200 range, upsize base threads is $80, etc. etc. etc.

I get you don't need everything on that list, but those are the comparative differences to most custom actions. Also, if you factor in the cost of a action and then just add a few things on that list, you're at the cost of a lot of these new custom actions.

I've been down the rabbit hole of re-working an R700 action, and I've also bought pretty expensive custom actions. I just think we have better options now than either of those routes I've taken in the past.

 

[highdrum]

I'd recommend the Ragged Hole Barrels version of the defiance tenacity they call it the hell Betty, it has an integral recoil lug machine into the action for the same price as a tenacity, I believe black Friday pricing was 800$. Tikka work great on intermediate length cases. A rem 700 opened up for a bainey 3b box or wyatt's prc box works, but by the time you get a donor rifle and send to a smith for all the upgrade, you'll be into it for 800$. I suggest you shop around for a smith who has a prc reamer with shorter freebore, in the 150 range. It'll still shoot factory ammo, although closer to lands, but is much friendlier for mag loading ammo from a short action, not many bullets prefer to be 50-60 thou off like the eld line of bullets.

 

[Danehunter]

1. Be sure the action is long enough to handle an "adequate length" magazine (i.e. a magazine that can handle the longest SAAMI COAL).
2. Try to match "adequate length magazine" to the action and maybe get an action that already has the proper size bottom metal to accommodate your "adequate" magazine.

I suggest a 3 lug action for several reasons: faster cycling and bolt handle good scope clearance for gloved hands among them.

Eric B.

 

[Canhunter35]

Tikka action hands down for a hunting rifle

 

[hokiehunter]

A tikka action is phenomenal for that build.

I'll second this

 

[Ronald W Schaefer]

Look into Fierce actions...they sell them separately on their website...patterned off the Sako 85, very nice.

 

[L.Sherm]

Tikka action hands down for a hunting rifle

If I was building a WSM cartridge, PRC, Saum or anything like that and was gonna use a factory action that's exactly what I would do.
I cant stand being limited to mag box length.

 

[hweissert]

For the price of a trued rem 700, you can get an origin kelbly or tenacity for maybe 200$. Then there is resale value, I'm sorry but people arent willing to pay close to what a builds worth for something that starts on a rem 700.

So are we building rifles to sell? Or building a hunting rifle like the original post? Again all is matter of opinion. You have yours, I have mine, everyone else has theirs. I have only sold a handful of custom built rifles over the years. None have ever made money or netted what I had in them no matter if on a Remington, Shelby defiance etc... Most folks would spend the same amount it cost to build a brand new unfired one rather than pay what I or whoever has in one that has 50, 100, 500 or how many ever rounds through it. I don't think unless you're a smith or custom rifle builder, there's much profit to be made. If a gun shoots well used, and it's proven, I would pay the same about for a ringer barrel build on a 700 action vs a defiance or whatever brand that was a 1/2-1" gun. Again my opinion.

 

[22250imp]

I am going to have a 6.5PRC custom built for western hunting....not PRS or competition work. The gunsmith will do any action I want. I can get a Rem 700 tuned and blueprinted action for approx $500-$600. A Stiller Predator will run about $1K and a Defence Deviant for about $1300.

If I'm not going to resale right away, is there any major reason to spend 2x or 2.x more $'s for these actions? Is there anything these specialty actions do for me that the Rem 700 won't? Are we just discussing buying a Chevrolet or a BMW? Both will drive 75mph but just get there differently in style.

Hope some of you LRH hunters have made these choices. Thanks.

Do some shopping around and pick up a winchester short mag rifle for cheap. the shadow models are pretty reasonable.

 

[ron jaege]

If you build it on a 700, you will need to build it on a LA to get the performance out of the cartridge. Even though it is considered a short action cartridge, like most, they are too long with the high b c bullets to fit without stuffing the bullet in the case and using up case capacity.

i

 

[RockyRandy]

Why wouldn't it be fine? There have been plenty of good rifles built on 700 actions.
Lots of us, myself included buy rifles SO far beyond our abilities that's it's a waste of money! Watch the classifieds here..Paid ABC..Asking..XYZ Then the price drops
No one ever gets what they paid..Spend less Lose Less!

I think you have already made your mind up!