what would you expect to pay.

M

MrGee

New member
ok.. i.m a first time project person .. i/m looking to put together a varmint type rifle .. i'm wonder how much it will wind up costing [ approx.-- ball park figure ] me when i'm done, i can figure in all the small stuff.. triggers, stock, sites, an the cost of special dies if needed, an the blank barrel.. etc... but what will a smitty charge to do the work on a new barrel blank .. pre rifled
[ its a SS barrel.. varmint weight] .. an install it onto the an action...

here is what needs to done ....
need to have the barrel threaded to fit the action
have the chamber cut for said cartridge ,.,an head spaced
[say i have the needed reamer for the chamber]
cut back the barrel [maybe 1" off] the muzzle, an put a crown on it

whats your guess on the that.......??
 
Project guns are neat, and fun, BUT unless you can do all or almost all the work yourself, you will be better off in the pocket book to just buy a commercial sporter. And that is assuming you consider your work of no value.

Same thing goes for "sporterizing" a milsurp rifle if it is to be the equivalent of a commercial sporter (new stock, drilled and tapped, blued, bolt bent, etc., etc.)

Jim
 
project

Sir:
As Jim correctly states (as usual) go and buy a Savage - they are the best rifle for the money out there!
Harry B.
 
Have had a few built. ALWAYS more costly than off the shelf but also different. Have done two myslef and working on another. By the time I buy all the parts, reamers, headspace guages, stock (has to be good wood), etc I will spend more than a new off the shelf buy even doing the work myself. But it will be by me, for me. Even put my name on the bbl. Satisfaction.

And, after I shoot craps if someone complains about my name being on he bbl ... ask me if I care!

Enjoy!
 
Hi, WilliamD,

You well state the reasons for wanting to build your own rifle, it will always be something you did for yourself, and unique to you.

But MrGee appears to be concerned with the costs and IMHO, the old joke about asking the price of a yacht applies to building a rifle as well. The path of least expense and least trouble is buying a rifle. Plus, you can shoot it now, not in two or three years.

At one time, a custom rifle put together by a competent gunsmith would shoot rings around any factory rifle. Those days are gone. The sad truth is that unless one uses the best materials and engages the services of one of the very top smiths (who have long wait times) the custom rifle may not shoot as well as an "off the rack" Savage or Remington, but may cost three times as much.

Jim
 
Jim Keenan .. agree that there is no need to build a custom gun and expect the beat the off-the-shelf guns these days. Even a decade+ ago I was using essentially o-t-s rifles in some benchrest classes, and winning! That was fun. Savage is the relative new-comer to his class but I had a M110 in hte late '70s that was very good. Remington has been there for some time. Even had one mid-weight bbl Ruger M77 that won the 'hunting class' at local shoots consistently. Must admit that other than quite expensive, specialized BR rifles I have not had a custom gun that shot one bit better than many o-t-s. I have had a few o-t-s that did not do as well but stiil great for hunting.

The one gun type I like but have never made one shoot like I think it should is the Ruger No.1. Probably me!
 
rifle

Sir:
Positive side - you, by building your own you can make sure both locking lugs will bear in the receiver - 90% of factory rifles only bear on one!
Harry B.
 
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