Factory vs modifying vs custom build

[marksman]

Can the average shooter use the extra precision that a top end build offers? - or, not unlike the populace being faster on a track in a standard car than a v8 super car, because it takes regular and ongoing practice to get the best out of that supercar??

practise does make perfect
IMO a bad shooter will be able to shoot a good rifle good but a good shooter will shoot a bad rifle bad,
it is always better to have a rifle that shoots better than you

[FNQ]

My JW15 is a $200 rifle.

The quality and workmanship looks atrocious. Poor girl has also had a hard life & possibly 1 millions rounds up her.. Same could probably be said for ex military weapons.

Its shoot 1 inch groups til about 80 yards with a fixed power scope and isn't overly fussy with ammo.

To me guns are a personal preference, custom guns do nothing for me but I understand some shooters fetish.

[GQshayne]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

[duncan61]

The HOWA .243 I purchased for $700 came in a cardboard box with a bit of paper saying it would shoot straight and it did with the 3-10x40 scope it came with.My Remington Sendero with a 26 inch stainless steel fluted barrel that is floated on a kevlar stock will shoot touching at 100m and 15-20mm at 200 metres off a plastic benchrest on the bonnet using 168gn Match Kings.You would have to do a lot of work to a .243 to out shoot the factory Remington

[SCJ429]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

I still don't understand, do you get a custom action from the 70s and make yourself a walnut stock for it? Or you get a 70s Tikka action and modify it?

I like 70s Ruger #1s and have several, none of them have their original barrels or chamberings and I have upgraded the stocks or modified them. I like an oiled finish rather than the original varnish. This is fun and makes them unique to me. But you can also have a sense of pride from a rifle you researched and had built by a gunsmith, especially when it shoots well.

I wish I had a nice rifle handed down by my Pop, I would treasure that too. Be a nice way to remember someone who loved hunting also.

[Stix]

Can the average shooter use the extra precision that a top end build offers? - or, not unlike the populace being faster on a track in a standard car than a v8 super car, because it takes regular and ongoing practice to get the best out of that supercar??

practise does make perfect
IMO a bad shooter will be able to shoot a good rifle good but a good shooter will shoot a bad rifle bad,
it is always better to have a rifle that shoots better than you

Ah that explains it...thankyou marksman...!!

Clearly all my rifles are bad ones...!!!...

[Stix]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

I still don't understand, do you get a custom action from the 70s and make yourself a walnut stock for it? Or you get a 70s Tikka action and modify it?

I like 70s Ruger #1s and have several, none of them have their original barrels or chamberings and I have upgraded the stocks or modified them. I like an oiled finish rather than the original varnish. This is fun and makes them unique to me. But you can also have a sense of pride from a rifle you researched and had built by a gunsmith, especially when it shoots well.

I wish I had a nice rifle handed down by my Pop, I would treasure that too. Be a nice way to remember someone who loved hunting also.

And isnt it funny how this sense of getting pleasure out of personalising a rifle is also what many of us dispise ourselves...

What i mean, is, if we see an older rifle for sale thats been altered from new--lets say hypothetically, an early Win mod 70 with nice grain timber stock...that isnt sporting the original barrel or chambering, the stock has been re-finished & slightly altered by someone long in the past, most of us would view it as having been butchered...

[duncan61]

I am enjoying this thread and would like to share this analogy.I have a 2001 jeep Cherokee the last of the square ones made with metal not plastic and I was given it by a buddy who drove it till the rear diff exploded.I bought him a Magna as he needed transport and I rebuilt the diff myself.The satisfaction I get every day driving it around as a plumber is a good feeling .Today I towed a trailer to the tip with 1.04 tonne of broken concrete no problem .I am about to spend 3-4 thousand on a turbo and performance exhaust because I would like more horses.If I go to sell the car it is still and old banger.Same if you spend a heap of money on a custom rifle.Its unlikely you will ever get your money back but its the joy of doing it.Who would buy someone elses custom when they could get their own built

[bigrich]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

I still don't understand, do you get a custom action from the 70s and make yourself a walnut stock for it? Or you get a 70s Tikka action and modify it?

I like 70s Ruger #1s and have several, none of them have their original barrels or chamberings and I have upgraded the stocks or modified them. I like an oiled finish rather than the original varnish. This is fun and makes them unique to me. But you can also have a sense of pride from a rifle you researched and had built by a gunsmith, especially when it shoots well.

I wish I had a nice rifle handed down by my Pop, I would treasure that too. Be a nice way to remember someone who loved hunting also.

And isnt it funny how this sense of getting pleasure out of personalising a rifle is also what many of us dispise ourselves...

What i mean, is, if we see an older rifle for sale thats been altered from new--lets say hypothetically, an early Win mod 70 with nice grain timber stock...that isnt sporting the original barrel or chambering, the stock has been re-finished & slightly altered by someone long in the past, most of us would view it as having been butchered...

Whether or not it’s “butchered” depends on your point of view. If the modifications have been done well and tastefully it’s a “custom” rifle . Some folks like stuff for it’s collectibility, in factory condition. I used to rebuild and hot rod old cars , so customising to build what I want, using my hands to put my mark on something gives me a great satisfaction.

It’s not so much the destination, it’s enjoying the journey to get there

I could just go buy a sako, but that’s boring for me

JMHO

[marksman]

No matter what you do to a Tikka or a Howa you won't be setting any records with it. The custom actions use quality billet steel, great design and fantastic machine work. If you have the inclination and opportunity you should treat yourself.

Not taking anything away from what you have done with your Mauser 98 there Marksman, quite inspirational as I have a 1909 Argentine there I should slip a barrel onto.

you are very lucky to have a 1909 argentine action, very lucky and shame on you for not having it made into a custom rifle already
its a real shame bill Hambly-Clark jr is not building rifles anymore, he would be my choice of smith for a custom mauser on a 1909 action

[bigrich]

No matter what you do to a Tikka or a Howa you won't be setting any records with it. The custom actions use quality billet steel, great design and fantastic machine work. If you have the inclination and opportunity you should treat yourself.

Not taking anything away from what you have done with your Mauser 98 there Marksman, quite inspirational as I have a 1909 Argentine there I should slip a barrel onto.

you are very lucky to have a 1909 argentine action, very lucky and shame on you for not having it made into a custom rifle already
its a real shame bill Hambly-Clark jr is not building rifles anymore, he would be my choice of smith for a custom mauser on a 1909 action

1909 argentine is the "intermediate" length oberndorf built action, the same as my 1903 turk ? that model turk was the same 7.65x54 chambering as the argentine i think i'm curious if they have the same unique bolt with longer firing pin as well

[GQshayne]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

I still don't understand, do you get a custom action from the 70s and make yourself a walnut stock for it? Or you get a 70s Tikka action and modify it?

I like 70s Ruger #1s and have several, none of them have their original barrels or chamberings and I have upgraded the stocks or modified them. I like an oiled finish rather than the original varnish. This is fun and makes them unique to me. But you can also have a sense of pride from a rifle you researched and had built by a gunsmith, especially when it shoots well.

I wish I had a nice rifle handed down by my Pop, I would treasure that too. Be a nice way to remember someone who loved hunting also.

No custom action mate, just a standard action. My version of "custom" is simply not as the factory made it, so not as it came off the shelf. I have looked at new rifles, but ended up buying old ones that I could restore to how I wanted. Only basic stuff. My current one has a different stock, LOP changed with a grind to fit recoil pad, second hand stock restored and my own version of stock finish being done, custom made timber bolt handle knob, and metal work polished and cerakoted. Nothing special really, but just as I want it.

And I take the point made about collectible rifles too, but I do not have one of those. I have an FN made BLR which is not exactly common but not rare either. If I had something rare I would be reluctant to mess with it.

[SCJ429]

It is already a full custom that I built in the 80s, I chambered it in a caliber I have not had much luck with 338 WM. I am thinking about going smaller like a 30 cal or 7mm.

[bigrich]

It is already a full custom that I built in the 80s, I chambered it in a caliber I have not had much luck with 338 WM. I am thinking about going smaller like a 30 cal or 7mm.

have you considered 8mm remington magnum ? quite a powerhouse , resonable projectile choice as well . rebel gun works has brass , just saying ....

358 norma magnum maybe you'd be able to turn a large pig inside out at 500 yards with either of these i reckon

[Bill]

I have 8mm dies if you do go down that route, you can have em for free just pay postage

[SCJ429]

My problem is the 338 is not particularly accurate or powerful. I would much rather use my 378 or 416 if I need something with a bit of grunt. I think I would shoot the Mauser more if it were a 7mm WSM or similar. No offence to the 8mm but anything it can do the 378 can do better.

[SCJ429]

I have 8mm dies if you do go down that route, you can have em for free just pay postage

Thanks for the offer Bill.

[Bill]

Ive always had a hankering for an 8mm Rem mag SCJ429 but a lack of quality pills has always put me off

[Stix]

But this is a thread about modifying a factory rifle or building a custom one.

You can buy a new Ruger #1 or Weatherby Mark 5 with a nice bit of walnut attached.

And I am saying that in my case a custom one gives me greater satisfaction. More work yes, but that is part of it too. It is unique, and gives pride of ownership. Something a factory rifle cannot give me.

I still don't understand, do you get a custom action from the 70s and make yourself a walnut stock for it? Or you get a 70s Tikka action and modify it?

I like 70s Ruger #1s and have several, none of them have their original barrels or chamberings and I have upgraded the stocks or modified them. I like an oiled finish rather than the original varnish. This is fun and makes them unique to me. But you can also have a sense of pride from a rifle you researched and had built by a gunsmith, especially when it shoots well.

I wish I had a nice rifle handed down by my Pop, I would treasure that too. Be a nice way to remember someone who loved hunting also.

And isnt it funny how this sense of getting pleasure out of personalising a rifle is also what many of us dispise ourselves...

What i mean, is, if we see an older rifle for sale thats been altered from new--lets say hypothetically, an early Win mod 70 with nice grain timber stock...that isnt sporting the original barrel or chambering, the stock has been re-finished & slightly altered by someone long in the past, most of us would view it as having been butchered...

Whether or not it’s “butchered” depends on your point of view. If the modifications have been done well and tastefully it’s a “custom” rifle . Some folks like stuff for it’s collectibility, in factory condition. I used to rebuild and hot rod old cars , so customising to build what I want, using my hands to put my mark on something gives me a great satisfaction.

It’s not so much the destination, it’s enjoying the journey to get there

I could just go buy a sako, but that’s boring for me

JMHO

I wasnt suggesting putting our own touches to a rifle is all butchering up rifles BR...

Im of the same opinion & have no problem with what you do...

Im also not a fan of the 'varnished' type finish of many older type stocks, & just like scj, am a fan of an oiled finish...

I was just making a reference to monetary values i guess--meaning if there were 2 old win mid 70's for sale sitting next to each other, the non-altered all original will most likely not only have the higher price tag, but also sell quicker, whether that be to a collector, OR to somrone like you who wants to modify it.

And yes "butchering" is in the eye of the beholder...
---the amount of old brno's out there with sights hacked off for scope use, old sportco's with such poorly refinished stocks that would jump themselves into a fire if they looked in a mirror, & the ridiculous stock mods on some nice old rifles-like the tops of combs or Montecarlo cheek pieces hacked off, not to mention trigger hacks by "my mate the gunsmith" are more slong the lines of what i was referring to. ..all probably rifles we'd all avoid, but that were at some point done done with pride by the owner that supposedly loved their rifle.

[bigrich]

no dramas stix , ol mate you have a wonderful way with words at times stix. i can just imagine a "bubba" modified rifle walking past a mirror, shreiking hysterically , and throwing itself in the fireplace

[Stix]

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