Custom bolt gun

[kcstott]

Sheep hunting is a pain.

I'd like it if i could hike in with nothing but a PRC27 and call in an air strike and an extraction. Screw climbing the crap thouse frigging sheep can climb

[ar15barrels]

Good to know for when I start to get into the project. I'm in Northern California.

I rebarrel rifles same-day.
Many people have driven down to southern california to see me for a few hours and been home a little after dinner time with their rebarrelled rifle.

[Whiterabbit]

I've had fun putting together a couple AR lowers, obviously not rocket science. I love to hunt a wanted to see what the level of difficulty would be to build a bolt action hunting rifle.

Maybe certain portions need to be bought complete. Your thoughts would be appreciated on the extent of this potential DIY adventure.

Actually pretty easy, though more involved than an AR15, if you want it done fairly nicely.

For a first time bolt rifle, best way to go is start WITH a bolt rifle, then customize to your taste. Technically, that makes it a customized rifle, not a custom rifle. But still, you can get away without a comma showing up in the price tag.

Most common reason to do it is a cartridge conversion. 762 to 6.5 grendel, 243 to anything with that bolt face, etc. Basically bolt face driven for the most part.

If there is anything to buy rather than fit for the first time, it's the barrel. PacNor does this very reasonably. Even more so if you are going for a savage action.

Then the fun begins. You can stone all the internals to perfection, replace bottom metal if desired, polish feed lips, swap springs, change or add sights (NECG. seriously.) drill and tap as needed, and reblue.

Woodwork. You can replace the stock, or just open up the stock channel for the new barrel, refit as you feel, give it a proper bed, and build it how you want. My last hunting rifle was full bedded from the action to the front of the forearm. Why? It's a hunting rifle. I can take 2 weeks to sight it in if I need, and shot #5 can fly off into god's creation for all I care. I want that fist cold bore shot going into EXACTLY where I expect it to. I would bed a target rifle very, very differently. Then there is recoil pad, swivel lugs as desired, fitting pillars if desired, ensuring the action and bottom metal flow proper, you can even adjust cheekpiece if you want then refinish the wood to whatever color you want.

When you finish it, it's yours. Your spec, as you want it. And if you bought the barreled action, you didn't even need a lathe.



(OK, I admit. this one had a price tag with a comma in it. But not much over the comma)

[milotrain]

Buy some old 700 hunting rifle that no one wants at your LGS on the consignment rack. Re-barrel it and have a gunsmith look at the action.

Done.

[willidru]

Who sells actions separately? I found savage and defiance, but no weatherby, sako, Winchester ...

[milotrain]

Most of the manufacturers don't sell actions separately. Remington does and other companies who make 700 clones do (Kelbly, Bat, Borden, Defiance, Pierce, Stiller, Surgeon).

Non 700 clones that I can think of:
Hall
RPA
Barnard
Savage

[ElvenSoul]

You can buy finished guns for cheap. The Custom Bolt Rifle Market is in a bit of decline.

[Hateca]

You can buy finished guns for cheap. The Custom Bolt Rifle Market is in a bit of decline.

Not based on my work load it's not.

[ElvenSoul]

.257wby loves sheep and goats!

[liber]

You can buy finished guns for cheap. The Custom Bolt Rifle Market is in a bit of decline.

What can you gauge your comment on?

I believe good quality bolt rifles will hold their value, just like any fine things in life.

[ElvenSoul]

What can you gauge your comment on?

I believe good quality bolt rifles will hold their value, just like any fine things in life.

I was pricing on gunbroker.com

Lots selling at price for parts. Sellers taking a loss on the gunsmithing.

[ar15barrels]

Not based on my work load it's not.

Too true!

[ElvenSoul]

Too true!

It's becoming like the AR15 Market. Driven by the latest do dad's and what nots on your gun. The ones selling on gun broker for cheap have older design stocks and other last year accessories. Just like in the AR15 Market. As long as you Smiths are keeping up with the latest fashions you should have plenty of work.

[kcstott]

It's becoming like the AR15 Market. Driven by the latest do dad's and what nots on your gun. The ones selling on gun broker for cheap have older design stocks and other last year accessories. Just like in the AR15 Market. As long as you Smiths are keeping up with the latest fashions you should have plenty of work.

Man nothing could be further from the truth.

There may be some following trends with accessories and some being sold off at a cheaper rate than others.

but I'm not seeing the foundation changing with anything "trendy"

No one is going to scrap their entire rifle just for the sake of a new chassis.
Maybe in your mind the market is on the decline But if that was the case why is there a wait to get an action from nearly every custom manufacturer out there??

[milotrain]

I suspect that CNC machines are the reason the custom bolt rifle market is in a bloom. We have a lot of new custom manufacturers out there who can make small batch runs of complex parts far cheaper than it would have cost 20 years ago when CNC machines were 10x as expensive and few people knew how to run them.

Look at the old Palma and Match rifles. They were all the same design, a 40x style action or a W70 action in a wood stock, stripper clip fed with a heavy kreiger out on the end. Sights were some sort of redfield/lymann.

Now we have bottom metal from 20 different makers, stocks and chassis that fit everyone and every style of shooting, piles of actions from different price points with different attributes for different kinds of shooting. Sights and Optics have also seen a bloom. Following all of this we now have a new and popular rifle competition (PRS) that people want to be a part of, or hope that one day they will be a part of it.

Don't forget that many rifles get built only to sit unused in a safe. More options for building and shooting make more safe queens because the people who safe queen rifles want "things" and there are only so many off the shelf things you can buy. Custom things are unlimited and they come with stories.