npaden
Well-known member
Okay,
I had a thread a while back about getting a custom rifle made but never followed through on it. I have since bought a Kimber Montana in .300 WSM that I put a Leupold VX 3i scope on it and have been able to get to group just under an inch with Barnes Vortec 165gr TTSX bullets and thought I was set. Total weight of the rifle and mounted scope is 7 pounds 6 oz which was right at 2 pounds lighter than my old Browning A-Bolt Stainless Stalker in 7mm Rem Mag and it shoots better.
Now I've stumbled across what seems to be a great deal on a true custom rifle and I'm trying to decide what to do.
It's a HS Precision PHL in .300 WSM. Guaranteed 1/2" MOA and it is setup with a Leupold VX 6 scope with CDS dialed in with the same Barnes Vortec load I ended up with on the Kimber. Current owner bought this setup for his wife and it is just too much recoil for her even with the muzzle break. Current owner says it is grouping 1/2 MOA from a bench with the factory ammo.
The only thing I don't like about it is that it has a non-removable muzzle break. Talking with HS Precision it a threaded barrel and the muzzle break is silver soldered on but I should be able to have a gunsmith heat it up and remove it and put a cap on it. It just isn't setup to be screwed on and off on a regular basis so they call it non-removable. The current owner says getting a gunsmith to take it off and put a cap on it is a very minor thing that shouldn't affect ballistics or anything. Should be under $100 to fix. Does this sound right?
The length of pull is 13.5" and I prefer a tiny bit longer (the Kimber Montana and Browning A-Bolt are both 13.75") but not sure if that is something I would really notice.
If you factor in the scope and ammo he would be throwing in, it's about a $1,250 upgrade to go from the Kimber Montana to the HS Precision PHL. The weight difference actually wouldn't be much at all, I would be just losing about 1/2 pound on the rifle and adding about 1/2 pound on the heavier scope.
Trigger and action on the HS Precision would be a big improvement, I also am not a huge fan of not having anyway to remove the ammo on the Kimber other than cycling through the action.
I doubt this deal will stick around very long, just having a hard time deciding on it.
I'm kind of wanting something that I can gain enough confidence in to get out past that 300 - 400 yard mark that I currently limit myself too. I'm not sure if the Kimber is quite there but it is pretty close. Is it worth the $1,250 upgrade to go to the HS Precision? Based on the retail price the PHL is $3,800 with a 6 month wait so evidently some people think so.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Nathan
I had a thread a while back about getting a custom rifle made but never followed through on it. I have since bought a Kimber Montana in .300 WSM that I put a Leupold VX 3i scope on it and have been able to get to group just under an inch with Barnes Vortec 165gr TTSX bullets and thought I was set. Total weight of the rifle and mounted scope is 7 pounds 6 oz which was right at 2 pounds lighter than my old Browning A-Bolt Stainless Stalker in 7mm Rem Mag and it shoots better.
Now I've stumbled across what seems to be a great deal on a true custom rifle and I'm trying to decide what to do.
It's a HS Precision PHL in .300 WSM. Guaranteed 1/2" MOA and it is setup with a Leupold VX 6 scope with CDS dialed in with the same Barnes Vortec load I ended up with on the Kimber. Current owner bought this setup for his wife and it is just too much recoil for her even with the muzzle break. Current owner says it is grouping 1/2 MOA from a bench with the factory ammo.
The only thing I don't like about it is that it has a non-removable muzzle break. Talking with HS Precision it a threaded barrel and the muzzle break is silver soldered on but I should be able to have a gunsmith heat it up and remove it and put a cap on it. It just isn't setup to be screwed on and off on a regular basis so they call it non-removable. The current owner says getting a gunsmith to take it off and put a cap on it is a very minor thing that shouldn't affect ballistics or anything. Should be under $100 to fix. Does this sound right?
The length of pull is 13.5" and I prefer a tiny bit longer (the Kimber Montana and Browning A-Bolt are both 13.75") but not sure if that is something I would really notice.
If you factor in the scope and ammo he would be throwing in, it's about a $1,250 upgrade to go from the Kimber Montana to the HS Precision PHL. The weight difference actually wouldn't be much at all, I would be just losing about 1/2 pound on the rifle and adding about 1/2 pound on the heavier scope.
Trigger and action on the HS Precision would be a big improvement, I also am not a huge fan of not having anyway to remove the ammo on the Kimber other than cycling through the action.
I doubt this deal will stick around very long, just having a hard time deciding on it.
I'm kind of wanting something that I can gain enough confidence in to get out past that 300 - 400 yard mark that I currently limit myself too. I'm not sure if the Kimber is quite there but it is pretty close. Is it worth the $1,250 upgrade to go to the HS Precision? Based on the retail price the PHL is $3,800 with a 6 month wait so evidently some people think so.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Nathan
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