Im getting interested in putting together a rifle. Im completely new at it and looking for some insight on what the order of operations are. Where to get the parts. What different options I have in the process. Can educate me on it and start the conversation about it for others too. Thanks.

Pick your bullet.
Decide how fast you want it to go.
Decide what barrel length you want.
That will all help pick your cartridge.

Barrel contour. Do you want a heavy barrel for extended shot strings, or a lightweight barrel for carrying and hunting? Or do you want something in between?

Look at actions that suite you well. If you're going all in, it makes more sense to buy a custom action, or for money savings and a great action, a Tikka action re-purposed. Unless it's a long action magnum. Their feed ramp can hand-cuff you.

You might as well plan on a great trigger. Trigger Tech and Timney are the only two brands I consider. What weight trigger pull do you want?

Look at stocks you like.

What type or magazine? Hinged floor plate? Detachable bottom metal? Flush mount mag? Or a 5 or 10 round A.I. mag that hangs down?

Brake on the muzzle? Suppressor on the muzzle? Nothing on the muzzle?

What Cerakote colors do you want on the barreled action and on the stock?

What is your budget?
What are you using it for? Multitasker rifles are seldom optional for anything.

I’ve never had a custom rifle built myself but my thoughts are why would you build a custom? I feel like unless you have an extra $4000-$5000 laying around, you probably can’t have one built that will out shoot some of the nice factory rifle.

Bergara Premier series, Tikka CTR with stock upgrade, Sig Cross chassis rifles are just some that are going to be hard to beat.

You most certainly can have one built that will out shoot a factory rifle. Which is why custom rifle builders are many months, if not years back-logged.

In a custom, you get every single detail exactly like you want it. You sacrifice no feature as "close enough". Which is why the first time a man goes down the path of the custom rifle, his eyes are opened. And that first one turns into more of them.

Budget and purpose are big questions here. Don’t be afraid to give a budget, I’ll give you a 10k build without any directions. Lol

I agree it can be done but at a cost, high cost. If you have a half moa rifle at $2500 what are you going to gain at $5000. Is it worth it?

This is an average shooter web site, most shooters are probably average at best with a few better than average and a couple exceptional. Without knowing what he’s looking for that’s the best I had.

Based on his title and post he’s not interested in a factory rifle.

One thing I gained was left bolt right eject. That’s without discussing accuracy, ergonomics, etc

Like anything, and I mean anything, generally, money can get you bigger better things. If he has it; go for it. That second thought, do you need it…that’s a big question. I’ve got some very expensive stupid things, that I cannot use to their full potential, but I’ve got that gene. He can filter and get some good advice from these custom gun guys.

Several factors have gone right over your head, without notice. As I mentioned before. Cartridge, barrel length, twist rate, flutes yes/no, muzzle device, weight of the rifle, type of bottom metal, stock color(s), barrel color(s). All are factors in the custom rifle build.

All of them are selected prior to ever squeezing the trigger. Those are taken care of, build to suit. As well as premium parts, machining, and finish work to ensure it also shoots exceptionally well.

Going back and forth when the OP hasn't returned to answer the build questions is kinda sad. Talking about what he needs before finding out what he wants is futile.

For anyone else looking at this thread - it's actually super easy to put one together (with the help of a gunsmith or lathe). In the style of J.G.:

Pick your cartridge
Pick your action (w/ correct bolt face)
Pick your trigger
Pick your stock/chassis
Order your barrel
Slap it all together and shoot!

Different actions offer various features, but the basic Remington 700 action is still a great choice. And in some cases you can grab an ADL on sale for a great donor action w/ basic trigger already installed. Your gunsmith can essentially just spin off the factory barrel and throw on your chosen replacement.

Most more expensive actions are machined to very tight tolerances and barrel manufacturers can offer shouldered, headspaced "prefits" where all you have to do is torque them into the receiver and your headspace is set perfectly. No headspace gauges necessary, just a barrel clamp and an action wrench. This is not possible with stock Remington 700 actions, so that's one possible ding against them. However, using a "remage" barrel is an easy alternative to this where the barrel is simply screwed into the receiver until the headspace is set, and then a barrel nut is tightened to hold it in place. Some people don't like the look of the barrel nut, but it really is a good solution as evidenced by all the Savages out there. I have a build using a Remage-style barrel that will shoot absolutely lights out.

You can get your barrel from all sorts of places like Patriot Valley Arms, X-Caliber, etc, etc. They'll chamber it, and you can specify what action you want it to fit, or if you want Remage/Savage. Choose your length, barrel profile, and muzzle threads. Wait a couple months, and then you can take it right to the gunsmith for installation. You can also buy a barrel blank from someone like Krieger or Bartlein if your gunsmith is capable of chambering a barrel, but I wouldn't trust any old yahoo to do that work.

Expect to pay ~$500 for a stock Remington action, $700 for one that is blueprinted, ~$650 for an Aero Solus, and $900+ minimum for a premium action like an ARC Coup de Grace, Impact, Defiance, or other. Expect to pay $500-$800 for the barrel, and a bit more for installation, or do it yourself with $200 in tools.

I'll be honest, though: It would be stupid to do this and then shoot factory ammo through it. When guns like the Savage 110 Elite Precision, Aero Solus, Bergara Premier series, etc all exist, you will likely not put together a custom/semi-custom for cheaper. And while there is something to be said for having the exact build you want even with superfluous bs like barrel fluting, the real advantage is accuracy. And to not maximize the accuracy potential through reloading is kind of silly.

Barrel twist, chamber caveats,overall weight, action types, balance etc. Also for alot of builders $5k would include load work up.

A lot of people dog on the Gunwerks, Redrock, MOA, etc $10k type package deals, but if you have the coin what’s wrong with one stop shop for everrrry thing to your spec. Grab, verify zero, kill

I'm on both sides of this slippery slope (not a roof).

1. Custom rifles are great but can get VERY pricey. If you have the budget and want to compete or hunt at extreme range, then a custom could be your answer.

2. For a +/- 400 yard shooter, there are many factory rifles which can do this with premium factory ammo.


your choice.

sorry, I don't have one for sale right now

A friend of mine had me build a full rig for an employee of his last year. We did cross the $10K mark.

However, every part was some of the best on my market. And when you do that, the ticker tape on the register adds up. Action $1400, barrel $450, stock $650, bottom metal $250, trigger $200, rings $175, scope $2000. Brass, primers, powder, bullets are more parts. No labor costs have been mentioned yet. What he went home with was a scoped rifle, with load development, DOPE to 800 yards, and 200 rounds of ammunition that had an ES of 12 fps. It's a system, and the system works perfect.

I bet most THF members can look in their safe and see ten one thousand dollar rigs.

Buying a custom 2nd hand is the best. Got my $3.5k McWhorter for $1500.

was it mine?

^^^ those deals are out there but you have to be really patient…there was an Origin in the classifieds in 6 Gaymoor this week for $2600, it was the deal of the week.

You can get customs done pretty easily for less than $4k. I have a brand new custom 7prc sitting in my safe right now built with top of the line products for $3800…I built it to sell. Defiance Anti, McMillan Game Hunter, Carbon Six barrel, Trigger Tech Diamond, Hawkins bottom metal. I’m not advertising, just showing you whats possible if you look around.

I don’t mess with factory actions…I’ve done more than a few but by the time I would charge what they are worth to true up…you might as well buy a decent custom around 1k…fortunately we have lots of options in that neighborhood…Stiller, Defiance, Zermatt, Kelbly, Mack Bros (in no order), etc.

I do not recommend the Solus it has a big mistake in my opine…dual ejectors. They are dumb and in my experience with dual ejectors, they pressure up faster.

Hicks and JG have the order of operations correct. I’d add that I factor in weight to the items I pick. Example, the 7prc above…weighs 6.5lb with a 22” barrel…for a hunting gun, I want it less than 7-7.5lb before I add scope and suppressor…obviously weight helps more with the big boomers. I have a 300wsm that fully rigged weighs right at 10lb…it’s a cream puff.

Good luck, for those saying you don’t need a custom…they are right but I’d bet most drive more vehicle or live in bigger house than they need…custom rifles is not about need, it’s about getting exactly what you want and stacking the deck in your favor for accuracy.

I will give you this free advice

If you go with one of the M stock which you do want you will probably have a hard time finding a sporter barrel inlet ready to go. You can find a ton of sendero contours ready to go including the Manners PH , hint.
If you do find a sporter in stock it will probably be a bdl.
So if you want a sporter I would get to ordering because of the long wait.

Look for in stock stocks at manners and McMillan

Exactly.

If a person wants a nice custom and can afford it, go for it.

Never seen the sense in stacking the safe with a bunch of overlap calibers in cheap factory guns. Higher end factory may give you ( it gave me) everything I was looking for, so a full custom build was not necessary but I won’t count it out in the future.

Some people just see rifles as tools. Some people see them as collectibles. Some see them as status symbols. Some really enjoy building exactly what they want and having something different.

There is no wrong way.

I'm down to:

1. one Deer rifle
2. one .223 bolt
3. one AR
4. one .22lr rifle
5. one shotgun

scaling back

I grew up around old people ( most are in their mid to late 70’s-early 80’s now) and it was uncommon for a person to own more than 1 or 2 rifles chambered in a centerfire caliber.

Many owned a combination of a .30-30 lever gun and a .270 or 30-06 bolt action.

These were all deer hunters, hogs were not nearly as common 25 years ago as they are today.


Now it’s common for a guy to own a whole battery of guns that all start with a “2” or its metric equivalent.

And they are still shooting the same deer and occasional pig as their forebearers.

Speaking of building a custom bolt action. I've been working on one for myself today.






Bartlein carbon fiber 7mm.
Kelbly's Nanook LH magnum bolt face, long action.

Neither of which will you find in a mass production rifle. Especially left handed.

No sir.

I see both sides.

I own exactly one bolt gun. It shoots .5 moa or better with handloads, runs extremely smooth with a great trigger, and cost $1k brand new. I did add a $500 Manners stock and a nice scope.

On the flip side, I didn’t get to pick much of anything on it. Barrel length, weight, caliber, fluting, finish, twist, stock color (mine was on clearance and had limited color choice). So it’s not like I have a half dozen $1000 guns in the safe that I could replace with one custom. But if I was gonna buy another bolt gun, I’d consider an affordable custom. If I had a bunch of money, I’d definitely consider one of the nicer customs. At the same time….I wouldn’t really expect it to shoot any better than my Tikka CTR even though it cost way more. And that part is a little unfortunate. But that’s not always what you’re paying for.

The right Smith, the right hand loader, and the right shooter it will shoot better and more consistently. And that is part of what you're paying for.

Preventing stress in the barrel steel while cutting, proper stock bedding, hand loading attention to detail, trigger control and follow-through. These are some small details that do add up when the rifle is getting proven.

Accuracy is just one part of it.

Back up a few decades and most factory rifles, at best, could do about an inch give or take, with decent hand loads you could maybe get a tad bit better.

You could order a custom gun from Rifle Inc, Jarrett, Kliengunther or Hill Country rifles that would shoot small groups or you could take your factory gun and have the barrel floated, action bedded and in some cases the barrel re-crowned and it could shoot pretty good.


Now we have cheap savages sitting on the rack at wal-mart that will shoot the same group as those customs from yesteryear.

It’s not all about accuracy. I am a hunter, not a shooter, so I live in the world of “good enough”. As long as the rifle shoots “ good enough” for what I’m doing I don’t expect any additional accuracy. But the fit, finish, options available, etc. are just so much greater than a factory gun, that’s why you go with them.

Accuracy is everything for a rifle, it’s only job is to impact where it’s pointed. If it doesn’t do that it doesn’t matter how pretty it is or if the barrel fit in the channel properly.

I also want it to feed and extract properly and be generally reliable.

Quoting myself after another day of people arguing with a wall...

OP never asked about OEM vs. custom nor has he posted since the topic started. It was cloudy yesterday so it seems there were a lot of people yelling at the sky.

If he has $; why not. With that said, on the Texas “HUNTING” Forum, say you buy a $800 Tikka, that shoots .58. And then you buy a custom that shoots, say .29 (which I think would seem dang good for the typical 85% of the guys in this forum, assuming they were CAPABLE. For you shooters of animals like a deer, with a typical heart/lung shot, at what range would that make a difference, 80 yards(most deer shot there), 150 yards, 400, 600…? Maybe that’s a separate post.

Huntmaster I see no reason to have anything past a Tikka CTR unless you’re competing in some manner. Now, some people, myself included, want what we want and the only way to get that is build it or have it built. As stated above, the money is not relevant for most people when they realize they have a safe full of rifles that are not exactly what they want. Those can be sold to finance the project making it little or no money out of pocket.

It’s simply about having what you want vs a tool that will do the job.

Who appointmented you hall monitor?

News flash, probably 10:1 people learn from threads that didn't start them nor do they comment on them.

The custom rifle is going to shoot better than any factory rifle out there. So let's just let that be a foundational fact and brush it aside.

From page one. Stock type, barrel contour, barrel length, twist rate, muzzle device, ect, ect are chosen by the end user. As Judd pointed out, he's built a very light 7 PRC, and a barrel shorter than what factory rifles offer. As one example. There are millions of combinations a person can create. There are not millions of combinations of factory rifle offerings.

It seems reasonable to expect that a custom rifle will shoot better than a factory rifle. But how much accuracy for a deer hunter is needed? And is the hunter/shooter good enough to utilize the better accuracy. Nobody (no Hunter) needs to spend huge money for an excellent rifle, but if you want it and can afford it, have it made. It’s a matter of “want”, not “need”.

Did you know that people hunt things other than whitetail deer?
Did you know that not everyone sits in a blind and looks at a feeder 100 yards away?
Did you know that some people hunt in the mountains and might need to shoot farther than 200 yards?
Did you know there are hunters that walk many miles per day and carry everything they need, including their rifle?

Did you know some people don't hunt? OP never mentioned hunting either.

Yes I did. Have you ever been to a rifle match? Very few rifles there are not custom rifles. Pick you discipline, it doesn't matter.

When you’re talking about a sheep hunt that cost you upwards of $50k, then yeah, you want an excellent rifle.

Yup. I've got one here I did not build the rifle, but a great builder did. I was responsible for load development ammunition, and DOPE. He is coming to pick it back up next week. He is soon going on a Dall Sheep hunt in Alaska. My bill is a drop in the bucket compared to the rest of the hunt.

cost is relative as JG points out above.

I want to see the 7mmPRC Judd built to sell

Depends on the use and needs of the shooter as to what they need. The vast majority of hunters are deer/hog hunters that will never shoot over 200 yards and shooting skill is not up to taking advantage of a custom build rifle. For those that can or will put in the time to get that shooting skill a custom can make sense.

I figured I’d stir things up a bit. It still comes back to want versus need. That said, I don’t own a bone stock rifle. They have all been upgraded in some fashion and to some degree.

I will make one concession though. If a fellow was going to hike up mountains for a shot at some very elusive critter, he (and me for sure) would want a very light rifle that was extremely accurate. There might be a factory rifle that meets those general specs, but probably not. And then there’s the scope to consider. If you only get one shot, you better make it. That might push a fellow to spend way more than he needs to.

Want versus need…

This barrel came out of the lathe this morning. 20" 28 Nosler, carbon fiber Bartlein, Kelby's Nanook action, Manners EH-1 carbon fiber. The stock and barreled action are 6 pounds 1 ounce. This is mine, and it was all about cutting weight, and having a barrel length that will still let a "magnum" be a magnum, but also still be maneuversble with a suppressor.

It will change colors, for some that blend in better west of I-35

That looks good JG. Love the weight.

Looks like a mulie killer

True to a degree, I’m not taking a 10lb rifle all in into mountains. But I’m also no skimping on cheap failure points to make up weight, So I will build a sub 6lb rifle so that I can use HD rings and over built optics, that can take miles of trail abuse where that be horse back or back pack.

Nothing worse the being 9 miles in and having optics knocked off because you tried to cut weight via optics components

I’m also not buying a factory rifle that has twist rates that don’t allow you to take full advantage of the cartridge design

If you run some numbers you’ll find the answer is much, much farther than anyone should be shooting at game. Far enough that some loads will flat run out of gas before reaching the target!

I guess I was thinking with a kill zone of 10” to 12” plus, on a given animal
and a legit shooter who is capable of .28 groups; would .58 make any difference? He would be .28 off; but would it matter if he couldn’t get the shot within the 12” kill zone?

.30 MOA at 600 yards equates to 1.89" at 600 yards. So yes, it can make a difference. But that is only if the error is linear, and it is not. Just because it holds .58 MOA at 100 yards, does not mean it holds that at all distances. I never load test rifles at 100 yards, because a bad load can still look good. I test at 200 yards or greater. And even then, that .58 MOA might not hold up at triple the distance.

After all of that, the wind is the biggest problem to manage for anyone. It's always there, and it takes lots of practice to get good at reading and properly correcting for. Since that is a fact, some people want to reduce any further shot errors created by the rifle and/or the load.

If you only consider accuracy as a pre-requisite there are several mass builder you should entertain, you still have to work through their accuracy small print if it doesnt meet it though

Springfield
Sako
Tikka
Bergera
Seekins
Fierce

Been big game hunting for 53 years, guided hunts for 16. Most hunters don't shoot good enough to know the difference between a .58 gun and a .25 gun, and sure as heck have no business shooting at game animals past 300 yards, a distance in which 95+% of big game animals are taken, or less. I grew up in wide open West Texas and have never taken a shot at a deer, antelope, or aoudad sheep past 500 yds, and only a handful of them at that distance. Customs are great if you want one, but hardly mandatory.

Just to echo Jgraider: While we all measure our dicks in MOA, let's be honest that maybe one dude on this forum with one gun is capable of shooting .28" groups reliably (and it isn't me, even though I spend a lot of time behind a PRS rifle). That is entirely unrealistic for the majority of shooters, even given the best custom rifle and perfect handloads.

AND let's also be realistic about the other issues of shooting game at range: the majority of people suck at windcalls. It isn't just an extrapolation of saying "Oh I shoot .28" at 100 yards (you don't), that means I can ethically shoot a deer at 800 yards."

On a good day I can squeeze an inch group out of my rifles.

Give me a .25” gun and I could squeeze an inch out of them too



I can’t shoot good enough off a bench to impress anyone.

400 yards is my max and I haven’t had to test it yet.

What happened to a guy asking about building a custom bolt action rifle, and for a whole lot of reasons beside how it shoots.

No wonder so many topics end up in PMs. Avoid the peanut gallery.

What’s the long list of other things beside accuracy? Who wants a beautiful light rifle that’s not accurate?

Go read this thread.

You actually can have both. And reputable rifle builders will make sure you have both. What makes you think it's one or the other?

Often times the "peanut gallery" is correct, as they are in this specific case regarding accuracy. If someone is that thin skinned they need to go over to the birdwatcher's forum and hang out a while. I've got two customs, the McWhorter and a Hill Country Rifles 7mag. Some of today's production rifles (Tikka, Sako) shoot so good they will be my last ones. YMMV

Good discussions but the original poster never really gave any information. He could just as easily want to build a 15 lb custom to shoot out to 1200 yards. Nothing was ever said about hunting.

I've already said let's put accuracy aside. Yes, mass production rifles can shoot very well, I've shot a whole bunch of them. Hill Country, Horizon, West Texas Ordnance, Alamo Precision, Judd's builds, my builds, they are all going to shoot very well.

But, the future owner gets to pick every feature he wants before the rifle is produced. Action, cartridge, barrel contour, barrel length, twist rate, which trigger, which muzzle device, flutes yes or no, carbon fiber barrel yes or no, stock type, cerakote colors. That's where it becomes millions of combinations.

A whole lot of THF members assemble their own AR's for exactly the same reason. They get every part just the way they want, and did not buy a complete rifle only to remove parts and add the parts they like. But the AR is far more easy for a DIY-er to assemble in his garage with all the tools to do so costing less than $100.

Have you ever seen Brian Litz's shoot through target challenge? Turns out the error is mostly linear. I know a lot of people say that sometimes a rifle shoots better at 200yd than at 100yd and he's a pretty staunch opponent of that.


https://www.facebook.com/story.php?id=100078986374844&story_fbid=120708483879458

That's great, but you aren't the OP. Accuracy is the only reason to even think about building a custom.

I cant agree with that, there are several combinations of components you may desire that are not offered in factory packages.

OK, I probably should have said accuracy is by far the most important criteria for building a custom. Without it, all the rest is just fluff.

Proof that some folks like to argue...whether they are right or wrong and others carry axes to grind on

Buzz...we had a custom rifle thread years ago I think BIL started. There is enough folks that build rifles or have rifles built we need to start one and just keep it updated. I'll start one tonite and post the 7prc...I can't post pics right now.

Third time that's been stated. Some people do not possess reading comprehension.

nobody reads the entire thread when they are this long with banter

I think y'all have been had. He posed the question, three pages later not a single reply back, unless I missed it. It's been a very good discussion though. Few things I would have asked. I know y'all have covered some of this.
- What's the purpose of this rifle?
- What is your budget?
- Is for paper punching, benchrest, short or long range hunting?
- If hunting what class of animal will he be hunting?
- Different requirements for small game, deer, hog or antelope sized game, larger game or verses dangerous game and so on.
- What caliber, bullet(s) does he want to shoot?
This list could go on and on,

Someone once said, custom rifles are like custom golf clubs. In the hands of a skilled shooter or good golfer, the results are usually outstanding. In the hands of someone who doesn't have the skills, they won't help much. I'm sure like me, a lot of you have been to a range, the shooter next to you can't shoot a decent sized group with their custom rifles. The don't blame themselves, they blame the rifle or load. They could use a day or three with JG or another qualified rifle coach to teach fundamentals and help get rid of bad/horrific habits.

Great topic!