PRS Action - Impact 737 or Kelbly Atlas Tactical?

[moondog]

I'm sure Impacts are great actions, never owned one. I see a ton of them at matches. My take on it, I have 2 Bighorn TL 2s, one is a pre-Bighorn (Goddard). I absolutely love them! Not a fan of the TL3s. If A.J. was still making them, I'd still buy em. Fantastic Service! When they sold to Zermatt, things changed. I now own an Atlas and 2 Black Bears. Absolutely love them, Fantastic people and service. I'm betting Kelbly's will be around long after Impact, Mausingfield, Defiance, or whatever the Jersey shooters are using sell. The best shooters would win with any Action made.

 

[Hoser]

I shoot PRS and other field matches.

I have used Impact, Bighorn/Zermatt, Surgeon and Accuracy International.

I have settled on AI and Terminus actions.

 

[J.d. Popkes]

Kelbly will be around once the impact banner disappears from the matches and folks move on to the next vanilla action that advertises. If you want the best get a mausingfield. No shortage of savage barrels that fit it or shouldered prefits are available. You get one in your hands and youll see where the extra money goes i assure you.

What can you tell me about the kelbly bolt release/ejector setup? They offer an “extreme duty” retro fit option. Is that a red flag? And the extreme duty option makes it so you need a torx wrench to get your bolt out if I’m understanding correctly. I’m trying to decide on which actions to go with, I need 3. I’m leaning really hard towards the origin. Can you tell me why I should buy the nucleus, atlas, or whatever. I like the <$1100 range. Thanks

 

[moondog]

The extreme duty bolt stop moves the bolt stop forward to help with ejection of BR size cases. You will need to run mags with spacer kits. Yes, you need to remove it to pull the bolt. It comes with a knurled knob for easy removal and a torx screw if you don't need field removal. Mine was occasionally flipping a br case in the chamber. Moving the bolt forward eliminated it 100%. I run spacer kits in my mags anyhow so it was a non issue.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

What can you tell me about the kelbly bolt release/ejector setup? They offer an “extreme duty” retro fit option. Is that a red flag? And the extreme duty option makes it so you need a torx wrench to get your bolt out if I’m understanding correctly. I’m trying to decide on which actions to go with, I need 3. I’m leaning really hard towards the origin. Can you tell me why I should buy the nucleus, atlas, or whatever. I like the <$1100 range. Thanks

Moondog gave you the kelbly specifics. Ill add that kelbly will bend over backwards if there is an issue. Not saying the others wont but kelblys was doing that customer service before those other guys were even a twinkle in their moms eyes. As for the mausingfield, ted took the strongest parts of the tried and true military actions and blended them in to modern manufacturing. From somebody that works on actions every day and also hear from owners of every action, theres not a more bulletproof and reliable action out there. I know you mentioned nucleus but im specifically saying mausingfield- the 2 are not the same.

 

[LVLAaron]

Moondog gave you the kelbly specifics. Ill add that kelbly will bend over backwards if there is an issue. Not saying the others wont but kelblys was doing that customer service before those other guys were even a twinkle in their moms eyes. As for the mausingfield, ted took the strongest parts of the tried and true military actions and blended them in to modern manufacturing. From somebody that works on actions every day and also hear from owners of every action, theres not a more bulletproof and reliable action out there. I know you mentioned nucleus but im specifically saying mausingfield- the 2 are not the same.

ARC says all parts are in stock... no wait on the Mausingfields. I know I'm getting one this week.

 

[X-Caveman]

The extreme duty bolt stop moves the bolt stop forward to help with ejection of BR size cases. You will need to run mags with spacer kits. Yes, you need to remove it to pull the bolt. It comes with a knurled knob for easy removal and a torx screw if you don't need field removal. Mine was occasionally flipping a br case in the chamber. Moving the bolt forward eliminated it 100%. I run spacer kits in my mags anyhow so it was a non issue.

Thanks, moondog. I built a 30BR repeater on an Atlas with the extreme duty bolt stop. One nit I had to pick was the fact that I needed a tool to remove the bolt. Mine didn't come with the knurled knob. It's 2 years old, so maybe it was before they started doing that, IDK. Regardless, one email to Ian and 15 minutes later he's mailing me one, for $5. That's typical of my experiences with Kelbly's.

 

[Mauser06]

I believe the extreme duty bolt stop is beefier and the possibility of it sheering if you run the bolt hard is lessened.


A tool to remove doesn't bother me. If I need to remove my bolt, I am cleaning or need tools to fix whatever went wrong. I need to grab one...although 2k rounds and I haven't had an issue.


Got my Impact back today. Will be running it the rest of the season. Then I'll decide what I wanna stick with.

 

[moondog]

The new bolt release from Kelbly's has been modified with a elongated slot. Running the bolt hard won't bear on the screw anymore. Kinda hard to explain, but it's been delt with. The extreme duty one moves the bolt stop forward quite a bit. It is really a fix for ejecting BR size cases. If your Running any other case, 6.5x47 GT, creed, I would run the standard modified bolt release. They sent me the modified bolt release with the heavy duty one.

 

[Delfuego]

It really doesn't matter. Everyone of the actions mentioned will win you matches if you practice. PRS is 95% the Indian. If I ever replace my old-ass Bighorns I will likely get an Impact, or whatever is on sale. I like the fact that Impacts are simple and a little sloppy, just like me...

 

[urbanrifleman]

ARC says all parts are in stock... no wait on the Mausingfields. I know I'm getting one this week.

If I were going to do builds I would use the Nucleus. I have no idea why that action isn't more prevalent.

 

[rijndael]

If I were going to do builds I would use the Nucleus. I have no idea why that action isn't more prevalent.

I have a lot of time on a Gen 1. IMO, it's like owning a BMW. Some things are just fiddley. Ever tried replacing the firing pin spring?

I'd rather have a Terminus.

 

[LVLAaron]

Just had a Terminus 3 lug in the shop. It felt awesome, but the lug contact was out so far I could have parked that mentioned BMW between two of the three.

 

[J.d. Popkes]

Why doesn’t the origin get more love? No trigger hanger? No integral rail/lug? People don’t like that savage looking bolt head? To me it and the atlas kinda check all the boxes. Where do these two leave people wanting? Looks like the next price point is another 400 bucks but I’m not seeing the return on that money. But I am new to the customs.

 

[Dgd6mm]

There is two things that make me prefer my Nucleus over my Origin.
1. The size of the cutout for the mechanical ejector
2. My Nucleus bolt run is smoother.
I WOULD OWN another Origin, other than that the Origin hasn't let me down l

 

[mmlook]

Why doesn’t the origin get more love? No trigger hanger? No integral rail/lug? People don’t like that savage looking bolt head? To me it and the atlas kinda check all the boxes. Where do these two leave people wanting? Looks like the next price point is another 400 bucks but I’m not seeing the return on that money. But I am new to the customs.

swept bolt handle, and shorter bolt handle compared to other tactical actions

and the savage style extractor is just not as reliable as an m16 style extractor in dusty conditions

 

[Matt_3479]

Why doesn’t the origin get more love? No trigger hanger? No integral rail/lug? People don’t like that savage looking bolt head? To me it and the atlas kinda check all the boxes. Where do these two leave people wanting? Looks like the next price point is another 400 bucks but I’m not seeing the return on that money. But I am new to the customs.

My thoughts are more this, for 400 dollars in the grand scheme of the entire build which is costing thousands I know I’d always wonder what if it is worth spending the additional money? Hence why I went tl3 vs origin. Is the additional 400 really worth it! Even if it isn’t, the thought alone would eat me alive and I’d build a second one costing me twice as much plus 400 in the long run lol. I’ve done it.

My first build I wanted a defiance but got a stiller as it was much better priced. The build cost me roughly 5000 bucks and the difference was 450 dollars at the time. It is one of my best shooting guns, but I don’t like it cause I regret not getting the defiance when that’s what I wanted and now never use it.

It’s not necessarily that the most expensive actions are better and it’s not my point. I absolutely love my kelbly action and feel not only is it one of the best bang for buck actions going, I feel it’s nicer then a lot of top dollar actions. My point is, get what you want in the first place don’t cut corners to save 100-400 dollars if it’s not what you want.

I own 7 different customs actions and have handled or shot upwards of 10-12 different actions. They are all very nice in there own way, and you can’t really go wrong. Don’t make yourself broke buying one, but if it’s not exactly what you want, then keep saving before pulling the trigger

 

[JaoeyP]

Kelbly will be around once the impact banner disappears from the matches and folks move on to the next vanilla action that advertises. If you want the best get a mausingfield. No shortage of savage barrels that fit it or shouldered prefits are available. You get one in your hands and youll see where the extra money goes i assure you.

Just a thought, but if you haven't noticed benchrest and F-class don't appear to still be growing, while PRS and NRL matches are doing so rapidly. I've never seen a single Kelbly action at any of the PRS matches I've shot. Lots of Impacts, Big Horns/Zermatts, the occasional factory rifle, or other action, but not a single Kelbly. I'm not saying Kelbly's product isn't good or great- I'd actually love to see one at a match and run it on a stage. But I would be hesitant to makes claims that Impacts are a flash in the pan because Kelbly has been around longer. It takes more than that to stay around.

 

[moondog]

Just a thought, but if you haven't noticed benchrest and F-class don't appear to still be growing, while PRS and NRL matches are doing so rapidly. I've never seen a single Kelbly action at any of the PRS matches I've shot. Lots of Impacts, Big Horns/Zermatts, the occasional factory rifle, or other action, but not a single Kelbly. I'm not saying Kelbly's product isn't good or great- I'd actually love to see one at a match and run it on a stage. But I would be hesitant to makes claims that Impacts are a flash in the pan because Kelbly has been around longer. It takes more than that to stay around.

While I will agree that PRS has brought more shooters into the sport, which is a good thing for sure. I disagree that Kelbly's isn't on the line. I personally know a couple of the top shooters who use them. I'm too old and slow for PMS, but have shot a few with my Kelbly's. I'll be running my Black Bear at the Niteforce ELR this weekend in Casper. 250 competitors.

 

[JaoeyP]

While I will agree that PRS has brought more shooters into the sport, which is a good thing for sure. I disagree that Kelbly's isn't on the line. I personally know a couple of the top shooters who use them. I'm too old and slow for PMS, but have shot a few with my Kelbly's. I'll be running my Black Bear at the Niteforce ELR this weekend in Casper. 250 competitors.

My point was from what I've seen (limited to matches in my vicinity) they are far less common than other actions for PMS.