Guessing there were very few customs, or Benchrest builds competing. Most I belive would put that amount of money into a 6ppc or 30 br just because they are more dominant in the benchrest community.
I was lucky and only built this for the ridiculously cheap cost I have in it. Honestly less than most factory offerings from the older days. Way cheaper than I see 40x Rifles selling for in these calibers.
But I can't stress enough how surprised I am at this gun, my first ever in almost 70 years 222 duece. So much so, I invested in my own custom reamer, and vintage uncut Krieger LV barrel, and will be upgrading this outfit after seeing the promise.
This is the third match I've shot, and I am still learning this rifle. It does not like squeaky clean, which I am sure will change with the Krieger when I replace this Shilen.
My point, anyone looking for a 22 centerfire, that is easy to load for, gives top accuracy, inexpensive to load for, and long barrel life, and in my opinion, more plusses than most bigger faster 22 centerfire rounds for varminting, and as competative as any other 22 for benchrest competition, better than most, should take a good look at the old 222 Remington. Yes I've had 22ppc, and 22br both, and still rank this 222 Remington as capable as them for this purpose! One thing is for sure, it held the world record for smallest 5 shot group longer than any other cartridge!