Rifles 106: Non-Tikka Bolt Guns
Non-Tikka Repeating Rifles
Different systems require different configurations and operating parameters.
Non-semi-automatic repeating actions such as those found on bolt guns and breech loaders broadly fall into two categories: production actions and custom actions. There are a broad array of production and custom actions with different characteristics and price points. Not a single one of them is best for every application. Rather, certain actions are best suited for benchrest competition, certain are best for Precision Rifle Series competition, certain are best for hunting in cold weather, and so forth. It’s impossible to cover every action in this post but I’ll do my best to cover the broad strokes that matter.
Most Customs are Clones
Specifically, almost all custom actions are clones of the uber-popular Remington 700 action. This does not mean that they are internally identical to the r700, but rather that they share an external footprint with the r700 and share some number of internal parts with that design. We’ll call these actions, whether they are $800 (Aero Solus) or $1800 (BAT Machine Vampire), clones. That’s the popular industry term of art, not an insult.
Clones exist on a broad spectrum of quality and features. Savvy buyers will prize standard features like a true integrated 20MOA rail (not pinned) and an integral recoil lug. Both of these increase the cost of manufacture but retire worthwhile risks to the user. Buyers who will not be using a local high quality gunsmith for chambering should ensure their action has guaranteed headspace and a robust pre-fit market for its particular tenon pattern. Buyers who wish to switch not only cartridges but cartridge families (such as .223 to .308 or .308 to .300wsm) might pick an action which has a floating replaceable bolt head like the popular Zermatt Bighorn Origin. Finally, buyers should ensure that their action is compatible with their desired accessories. Large scopes with extended windage knobs can interfere with 90 degree bolt knob throws, pointing a buyer towards acquiring a 60 degree 3-lug action like the popular Terminus or new Aero Solus.
The nature of clones confers benefits and downsides:
Benefits
Most clones fit the r700 stock inlet, making the vast majority of popular stocks (high end and budget alike) compatible with these actions.
The 90 degree cocking angle (which many, not all, clones have) reduces the force required to open the bolt by spreading that cocking force over a greater angular distance.
Higher end clones can be exceptionally smooth with very little binding or bolt force.
The common hole patterns used mean that aftermarket products like rails, optics mounts, triggers, bottom metals, magazines, and bolt handles are readily available.
Most clones take a standard pre-fit barrel so long as they are held to appropriate tolerances, making switching cartridges or replacing barrels simple for the end-user.
The aftermarket supports these pre-fit specs with a dizzying array of ready to buy options in various profiles, lengths, and chamberings.
Downsides
100% of clones use the r700 trigger, which is insufficiently reliable for hunting in cold precipitation and insufficiently safe for hunting with a round in the chamber.
Freezing rain and snow cause dangerous slam-firing where the remington will discharge a round without the trigger being pressed, just by cycling the bolt.
Only one r700 trigger is consistently drop-safe from waist height with the safety on, and that is the unobtainable discontinued $400 Geissele Super 700.
Timney, TriggerTech, Jewel, Bix’n’Andy, and other very nice r700 triggers are still not drop safe, even with the safety on.
Hunting without a round in the chamber is safe, but requires cycling the bolt before shooting an animal. This may lead to lost opportunities due to time or noise.
Small differences in clones can cause frustrating disconnects during assembly.
A growing collection of action sizes require different stock inlets and bottom metals. This is of particular concern with the new crop of “medium actions.”
Factory Rifles are not Inferior to Customs
The most universally practical rifle, the Tikka T3x lite, is a $750 factory gun - making it half the price of many custom actions. Despite that, it comes with an excellent and reliable trigger, and a light barrel capable of MOA accuracy during extended strings of fire. While the bolt lift is as heavy as any 60 degree throw 3-lug action, the bolt movement in the action itself is notoriously smoother than most customs.
The Savage 110 is a sub-$1,000 factory gun which is a switch-barrel right out of the box due to its barrel nut system and replaceable bolt heads. The Savage is also an accurate rifle due to the emphasis placed on its barrel and chambering. Every gun has a downside, and traditionally Savage’s has been the difficulty of its bolt lift and cheap stock design. Bolt lifts have improved and aftermarket stocks are readily available. The trigger remains inferior to the Tikka design, making the Savage really a specialist’s choice based on a priority of switching barrels often.
The Ruger American is a $300 rifle that takes excellent magazines and routinely prints 1.5MOA groups. The bolt is gritty, the trigger is bad, and the stock is floppy, but it is proof that accuracy is attainable at any price. Everything beyond a Tikka, and to some extent beyond a Ruger American, is “nice to have.”
Howa makes a mini version of its 1500 action (found in the much pricier Weatherby Vanguard), which is available in factory format well below 5 pounds in hunting cartridges. While custom actions such as the Defiance Anti-X are extremely light, the Howa mini is proof that factory rifles can be even lighter if they’re designed for it.
Conclusion
A custom rifle built off a high-end clone by a reputable shop (Gunwerks, Proof, Snowy Mountain, Desert Precision, etc.) is a beautiful thing to own. It will be smooth, it will shoot small groups, and it will inspire pride of ownership. So long as the owner understands the compromises inherent to the clone design, they should enjoy the many benefits conferred by their fine tool. Should an owner not wish to make those compromises, they can save considerable money by having a Tikka-focused shop like NSI, Unknown Munitions or Long Rifles, Inc. build them a custom rifle off a T3x action.
However, owners of factory rifles should not feel as though they are working with inferior hardware. Factory rifles have killed and continue to kill with regularity, and in many instances have characteristics better suited to the environments where that killing will be done.