Custom actions as alternative to trued remmy

[mahalan]

I've got two trued Remington actions and like others have said, they outshoot me.

My next competition rifle will be a custom action, however. Why? Because even though my Remington actions have been trued, the bolt's still much harder to close than I've seen on any custom action. For me, this makes a difference in shooting F-TR. It's one more thing to think about on the firing line that distracts from keeping track of conditions and increases the time going from watching conditions to squeezing the trigger - every time I close the bolt my point of aim shifts by at least a couple MOA. I can either risk cooking a round in the chamber or risk getting caught in a switch/let off/pick up. Granted, the point of aim will shift closing the bolt on a custom action but not nearly as much.

That said, I can't blame my shooting on my equipment. My scores would improve a lot more from getting better at reading wind than from getting a new rifle.

 

[sfldiver]

I've got two trued Remington actions and like others have said, they outshoot me.

My next competition rifle will be a custom action, however. Why? Because even though my Remington actions have been trued, the bolt's still much harder to close than I've seen on any custom action. For me, this makes a difference in shooting F-TR. It's one more thing to think about on the firing line that distracts from keeping track of conditions and increases the time going from watching conditions to squeezing the trigger - every time I close the bolt my point of aim shifts by at least a couple MOA. I can either risk cooking a round in the chamber or risk getting caught in a switch/let off/pick up. Granted, the point of aim will shift closing the bolt on a custom action but not nearly as much.

That said, I can't blame my shooting on my equipment. My scores would improve a lot more from getting better at reading wind than from getting a new rifle.

After shooting Remington actions in FTR for a while and having the same bolt closing results, I recently put together a custom build with a Kelbly F-Class action. I lube the bolt after each cleaning with the lube injector it came with - the bolt closes smooth as butter and barely affects my point of aim! Kelbly makes an amazing product!

 

[sfldiver]

Stiff bolt close is caused from cock on close. So what your after is an action with the ignition cycle timed. Out of the box, Borden actions are the only ones timed. Bats can be setup this way as well with the right trigger hanger, they will have less pin fall setup like this but do plenty of winning. Barnards also do not have cock on close, but they are even shorter on pin fall than a Bat and dont really have closing cams, so if you run an ejector you will have to push the bolt forward to compress the ejector before you can close it, that causes disruption in the bags too. Kelbly actions are excellent quality, one of my favorites for sure. Even better after the ignition has been timed.

I purchased an adjustable trigger hanger from Bullet Central for my Kelbly Panda F-Class Action. By gunsmith adjusted the hanger for me upon assembly to eliminate the cock on close in my action.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

And by doing so sacrificed a lot of firing pin fall. Not a recommended procedure, but if its working for you and not causing accuracy issues cool. Id be sure and keep a fresh spring in that action every season.

 

[sfldiver]

And by doing so sacrificed a lot of firing pin fall. Not a recommended procedure, but if its working for you and not causing accuracy issues cool. Id be sure and keep a fresh spring in that action every season.

No issues so far, but thanks for the heads-up and the tip!

 

[sirspeedy]

Also, quality from Remington these days is pretty awful. Get a custom action with the features you want, desire. Live it up! Cheaper and better in the long hall.

 

[Mickey D]

Also, quality from Remington these days is pretty awful. Get a custom action with the features you want, desire. Live it up! Cheaper and better in the long hall.

I have 3 rifles made on Remington actions. When I was getting ready to have the first one built I was in love with a Lawton action. It was a piece of art. I told my smith what I was planning to buy. I went to high school with Jimmy and have been friends for ever. Anyway he listens to what I have to say then looks me in the eye and says he can work a Remington action and build me a rifle that will be as accurate as a custom action. And that I can buy a bunch of powder to shoot in it from the money I will save. He built a 300wm that shoots way better than I can. That showed me he knew what he was talking about. He has since built a 270 wby and a 308.
The early actions work best.
And if I was shooting comp matches like most of you I would use custom actions. But I don't. So it comes down to what you want to do.

 

[tenring]

I have about $2200 in a 700 complete rifle I shoot in competition that has everything you can think of on it. All the whistles and bells. I also have several custom rifles build on Nesika and Hall actions that shoot lights out compared to the 700, and they cost me just as much. I would not advise anyone to use a 700 action for competition.