Custom Rifle Barrels

[jpmimproved]

I'm not sure if there is any hard data on this, but I've been wondering what the effect of "precision" factory rifle like the Ruger, Bergara, Tikka etc. has been on the custom rifle shop. I've noticed that in the past few years factory rifle accuracy seems to be getting better, but only in the past year or so have I heard people saying that they are so accurate that there is no need to build a custom rifle.

Are people really shying away from full customs, or are these only a starting point for most shooters, that then go on to have customs built?

 

[TAJ45]

The way I would look at it, at 70 yrs old, is shoot what you can afford untill you can out shoot, out precision reload, out wind dope.
Yes, we all want whatever edge we can afford to buy, no harm there. If $$ aren't super plentiful, put the few extras into the best glass you can buy. That isn't a consumable. A very experienced BR bud told me it took three bbls before he had a good handle on the wind. This was shooting non bbl burner chamberings....PPC etc. The Xcal bbls are a super deal. He has a handful and they clean up and shoot as well as any he has tried. He told me he has shot more zeroes and ones with XCal than with any other brand on his Pandas, etc etc.

 

[GerryM]

I'm not sure about Ruger rifles but I do know the Bergara barrels are excellent. The quality control and specs were developed by ED Shilen , when he was their adviser.
I doubt that people will stop having custom rifles for many reasons.
stock choices, calibers weights , action choices just to name a few.

 

[CaptainMal]

Strange that I have never seen a factory "precision" rifle shoot competitively. Maybe because the buyers are not into myriad of things needed to precisely load and shoot them?

Then again, maybe they are just not that good of a rifle?

 

[stacy]

The way I would look at it, at 70 yrs old, is shoot what you can afford untill you can out shoot, out precision reload, out wind dope.
Yes, we all want whatever edge we can afford to buy, no harm there. If $$ aren't super plentiful, put the few extras into the best glass you can buy. That isn't a consumable. A very experienced BR bud told me it took three bbls before he had a good handle on the wind. This was shooting non bbl burner chamberings....PPC etc. The Xcal bbls are a super deal. He has a handful and they clean up and shoot as well as any he has tried. He told me he has shot more zeroes and ones with XCal than with any other brand on his Pandas, etc etc.

I AM FAN OF THOSE X-CALIBERS MYSELF FIXING TO HAVE ANOTHER ONE IN MY CAMP!!!!

 

[jvw2008]

RPRs are starting to show up in 600 F-Class with respectable results. Many of them do have custom barrels though. The commercial "precision" rifles are a fairly inexpensive way for new shooters to get into the sport, learn the basics, and prepare themselves for the next step up with a full custom. I think the surge in these commercial rifles is good for the sport and won't hinder the demand for the custom rifle maker because there will be a larger population of shooters looking to advance to the custum build

 

[K22]

Depends on your shooting purpose. For the big game hunter I don't believe you need a custom rifle or barrel unless you're one of those long range specialist you see on the Outdoor Channel. Current factory rifles are acccurate enough, even with factory premium ammo such as Federal Premium ammo. You should reasonable expect a 1 1/2 to 2" group at 100 yards. This is plenty accurate for big game hunting. Many will shoot tighter than this especially with tailored reloads. Accuracy can be improved by bedding, free floating and purchasing an after market stock that is stiffer and you'll still be under the cost of a custom rifle by a large margin.

Long range precision varmint and predator hunting is a different case. By long range I mean over 300 yards. In this case, because of the size of the target you need a rifle in the 1/2 moa range. I've had a few factory rifles with heavy contour barrels acheive this with handloads. I even has a few sporters that could get close to this with handloads. If the majority of your shots are under 250 yards I think you can have a lot of success with factory rifle especially with handloads. The problem with factory rifles is that sometimes its a roll of the dice, you may or may not get a tack driver.

With that said, I've had three rifles rebarreled with Douglas match barrels because I shot out the factory barrels. The accuracy improvement was significant. My heavy varminter, 26" number 5 contour, 223 group in theh 1/4 moa range. My two model seven with 20", number 2 contours group in the 1/2 moa range, one closer to 1/4 moa. So in my limited experience with custom barrels I have experience noticable improvement.

Target shooting is a whole other ball game and I'll defer to those guys. The benchrest shooters I know all shoot custom build rifles and shoot amazing tiny tiny groups; a lot of one holers.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

Definitely depends on one's intended use.

I use a stock, factory rifle for varminting, I have a semi custom for big game and low round count midrange use. I also have a semi custom for F/TR, but I've only shot full-custom rifles in F-Open.

I think that the barrel and ammo have the greatest impact on the raw precision of a rifle. Even with that, I think a full custom is an advantage at long range. Mid range is a different animal, and I wouldn't hesitate to campaign a semi custom there.

Sorry, I don't believe for a second that any manufacturer is consistently turning out competitive rifles from the factory. One luck shooter here and another there is not good enough odds to engage in such a lottery.

 

[newbieshooter]

thought this was good read:
http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2009/08/savage-f-tr-team-world-beaters-on-a-budget/

 

[Ned Ludd]

I don't believe for a minute that on average, the best factory rifles have the precision capability of a top custom built rifle. You might get lucky and get a good one, no doubt. However, you may still potentially be limited by the barrel length and twist rate, chamber specs, trigger, etc. So there might still be other factors such as limited bullet choices that could limit the capability of a factory rifle, even one that shoots extremely well with a given load.

In the grand scheme of things, I think most people that have gone the factory rifle route were unlikely to go the custom route anyhow, so I doubt it's cutting into the custom manufacturer's business all that much. Another route that is somewhat in-between than a number of people have chosen to go is to buy a factory rifle, but immediately have it re-chambered with a Bartlein/Kreiger/Brux/etc. barrel using their reamer of choice. That option is obviously more expensive than a bone-stock factory rifle, but may be significantly less than a high-end custom build.

 

[6MMsteve]

I have shot some good groups with factory barrels but not quite the constist as a custom, on the higher end stuff, imho

 

[Grimstod]

The Achilles heal of the factory rifle is that the bean counters dictate its components and features. For this reason the truly discriminating and knowledgable shooters stick with customs. Also there seams to be no factory rifles chambered in the ultra accurate cases like the 6PPC.

 

[hogpatrol]

In the past few years, advances in machining and productivity have allowed factory to narrow the gap to customs. How close they can get with more advances is anybody's guess. Are they going to come up with a process to lap barrels equal to today's customs and single point the chambers dead nuts to the bore and tenon? Hold to customs' tolerances?
There's some pretty stiff competition in the rifle market and I see them getting better all the time. One thing I see is the ammo companies working in concert with the rifle manufacturers and producing ammo more precisely matched to their caliber twists.

 

[Sonic Crack]

I work for Short Action Customs. We have not seen any kind of loss of business for custom builds. I know a few other shops have most likely pick up more work because of making custom barrels for the RPR ect. The RPR is a great example of a relatively low cost rifle that shoots well and you can get custom barrels for cheap. Plus you can stick all your extra AR crap all over it. Its a triple win for a lot of folks.

 

[hogpatrol]

Hey, we need all that AR crap for the zombie apocalypse. This guy is ready.

 

[TAJ45]

I LUV it!!!! But hey! WAIT. !!...... Where's the microwave with cell tower????

 

[Phil]

Also there seams to be no factory rifles chambered in the ultra accurate cases like the 6PPC.

Sako??????????



Honestly, I have no dog in this fight, but I do know that the Sako 6 PPC is quite a sought after rifle for it`s accuracy.

Enjoy the debate.....

 

[hogpatrol]

Sako PPC thread:

http://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/sako-6ppc-usa-rifle.3767710/

 

[gat]

I wonder why your top level shooters go to the trouble and wait long amounts of time to procure actions, barrels, stocks, then have them assembled by artisans who have stood in front of lathe for 20yrs plus. All they have to do is run down to Wally World and grab a budget priced, built by the hundreds, modern marvel of manufacturing Precision Rawful. While they are there they can also grab a Center Point scope with the multi colored reticle, then run over to the Hardware dept and grab a screwdriver assemble it all in the car on the way to the range and then produce less than 1" at 1000yds with Wolf Ammo. That's all it takes if you believe the bull that the shooting world calls facts. Not saying that factory rifles aren't capable of very good accuracy but not as good as most shooter have convinced themselves. If factory offerings are that great why do I still true them up on a near daily basis? Not ranting just saying!!

 

[jpmimproved]

I often wonder if most of the accuracy of these factory rifles is much better on the internet than in the real world. It seems like every gun writer that tests a $400 rifle is getting .5-.75" groups. I've spent time behind factory rifles that perform pretty well, but never have had them in the realm of any of the rifles that I've had built.