Custom Rifles

[Big Fin]

How many of you have a custom rifle? By that, I mean stock rifle that you have spent a lot of money to customize, or from one of the custom gun shops.

Just curious. Some of the custom gun makers think the On Your Own hunter is a ripe market for custom guns. I am not sure, but would be interested to know your thoughts.

I have many times looked at custom guns, and love them. And, will probably have one some day. Or, more likely have a couple, but rather than go with the highest end custom rifle, more likely go with a mid-range custom rifle and allow my budget to accomodate a couple different calibers.

Comments or thoughts are greatly appreciated.

 

[sturge]

Personally, I am not a gun nut. Have friends who are, and my uncle certainly was. When it comes to hunting, a rifle is just a tool, and if it will put a shot within a few inches @ 300 yds, good enough for me. I would spend more money on optics before I would on a rifle.

 

[Drake4]

I had a custom rilfe built. Started from scratch on my Remington 700 action and went from there. I absolutely love it and would highly reccomend, especially if you are into reloading. I am having a blast figuring out what this thing is capable of.
Other than the Rem. 700 action, every other piece is custom and I've got probably around $2000 into it including brass, dies, etc, not including the scope.

I know you can easily drop $3000+ into a custom job, but I can't imagine mine shooting any better.

 

[duckhead59]

I dont own any customs...I think they are nice and represrent a certain pride in ownership...but with todays manufacturing processes, good gunmakers are turning out some pretty good stuff.
My big 'focus' (pun intended) is putting a good piece of glass on top of a regular rifle. For me that makes the most sense.

 

[sturge]

To clarify, is a brake and a trigger considered custom? I dont think so, but if it is, then I am all for them.

 

[MNHunter]

I don't have the disposable cash for a custom gun but if I did I think I'd go with better glass on my current rifles first.

 

[elk_hunter]

Custom guns are cool, but usually expensive. That being said, none of my guns are "factory" -- they have mods ranging from scopes to triggers to finishes, etc.

 

[Ridge Runner]

A Weatherby is as close to a custom as I have. Lots of good features that appeal to me and mine seem to shoot very well. No complaints and have been shooting one for the last 27 yrs. Geez that makes me feel old

 

[hueydoyle]

If I was into nothing but competition shooting where the size of the hole after 5 shots is all that counts I would surelly have the custom. For now I would rather spend that kind of money on a hunt!!

 

[schmalts]

any gun with a custom barrel and a trigger job/replacement is a custom in my book. I built one up for long range shooting and will use it again for lopes this year. I was shooting my gong @ 600yrds this past weekend and doing 3" groups. No wind, calm as can be. it brings a smile to your face when you have a gun that can pull that off, even more so after fighting a factory SOB that wont shoot for half a year and spending almost the cost of a custom barrel doing so. (yes, that Kimber is long gone)

 

[Calif. Hunter]

I am just guessing on what the final cost was. I had a stainless 1999 Montana action with one of their hand-lapped barrels (21-inches - cuz I could) put together in .358 Win and bedded by Serengeti Stockworks with a Leopard pattern stock, ironwood fore-end tip and hand checkering. Then I ordered a MacMillan EDGE stock for it, too. Topped with a silver Leupold compact scope. There were some pictures of it in both stocks on the old website but I haven't been able to retrieve them.

It likes the Serengeti stock better - I've gotten a few 1/4-inch groups from it - but is still well under MOA in the EDGE stock, too.

 

[Spitz]

Buying an custom gun from the get-go is an excellent way to get a great gun from the start. Personally, I don't have the cash to dump in at once, but like to tinker and make changes each year. I'd really like to have my current setup (Remington Custom KS that's been glass and pillar bedded and been re-crowned) coated with something like Cerakote. I think getting the bolt skeletonized and fluted looks pretty cool as well.

 

[BuzzH]

I dont currently have any custom rifles, but I did take my 338 in for a new stock just this year. I picked out the raw blank and will have my smith in Missoula do the work. While he's at it I'll have him reblue it, glass bedded as well. This will be my first semi-custom rifle.

It will be sharp when done, but I will use it for hunting. Wont own a rifle I cant hunt with.

 

[shoots-straight]

All of my guns get ran through he11. I'll just have put up with being a trailor trash gun toter. No high class here. My .280 Rem, has duct tape for bedding. If it aint broke_______ ___ __.

 

[T Bone]

No interest in full customs. Like others mentioned, most off the shelf offerings will shoot real well.

I'm happy with a trigger job and a good scope.

 

[arffdog875]

The closest rifle I have to being " custom " is a new Remington 700xcr 338RUM, for hunting purposes I don't think I would go custom, If I were shooting comp match I probably would. Hunting I am tough on rifles, I won't buy wood stocks anymore, between the oak brush, rocks, horses and the weather the Remington 700xcr's do everything I need a rifle to do, plus I have money left for more tags!

 

[Layin_It_Down]

No custom guns at this point. I have had some work done, but not custom. My neighbor builds custom rifles for "extreme accuracy". He showed me a 1-2" group one day and asked me what I thought. I said not bad, but then he informed me that it was a 6 shot group at 600 yards. This was a coyote rifle he built for someone, not a bench rifle. I would love to have one some day but it's not in the budget for now. I do have a rem. 700 in 243 that I bought that I'm hoping some day to do a custom 243 AI through him.

 

[duckhead59]

schmalts...nice gun!...has to be a real sweet one to shoot.
Hey...whats the scoop on the scope (power etc), what caliber, action, etc?
Man you're teasin us...like showin a pic of a hot gal you dated and not given any details!

 

[Oak]

I like the idea of a custom rifle, but I'm not a gun nut and wouldn't know where to start. It's also hard for me to justify spending the coin with my shooting skills.

If I ever buy a custom rifle, it will probably be something designed completely by the builder, with my input on what I want to get out of the rifle.

 

[schmalts]

schmalts...nice gun!...has to be a real sweet one to shoot.
Hey...whats the scoop on the scope (power etc), what caliber, action, etc?
Man you're teasin us...like showin a pic of a hot gal you dated and not given any details!

Duck, i did this on a real good budget as I did most of the work myself. It is a 7WSM. I bought a WSM action for a savage (good one to do yourself) because of the barrel nut allows a guy to set head-space on your own real easy by turning in the barrel to desired position and locking down the nut. The barrel was made by benchmark and installed by me. The trigger is a custom I ordered and installed, although a good accutrigger would have been just as nice. The stock I ordered as a rough "money saver" stage through Stockade stocks http://www.stockadegunstocks.com/stocks.html and did the final seam and air hole filling and smoothing, then bedded the action in with Devcon steel epoxy. Anyone can bed an action, just takes a little reading and basic tools you already have and some release agent
Painted it up with some Krylon texture paint of a couple colors for a nice semi-rough camo finish. The scope is what has been rated as the "best buy in tactical scopes" under 500$ by more than a couple gun rags, a bushnell ELITE (Baush and Lomb makes the elite scopes) and is a 5-15 power Mil dot.
All in all scope and all I have under 1300$ into it. .
BTW, that 3" group @ 600yrds was with 120 ballistic tips going 3520FPS that extra couple inches of barrel makes a little more speed I guess