First Custom Build

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Around $750. Maybe a bit more.

There's different levels and definitions of custom. For instance I was looking at a couple actions today that would blow your budget, just the action alone was just shy of $1000. Last barrel I had done was $660 to my door. You might be able to go for $750 IF you had a donor rifle and were willing to build over time. But $750 doesn't buy a lot in the custom realm. Some of the suggestions you've received would easily hit the 2K mark.

A basic Savage and an aftermarket barrel for around $350-400 in your chamber would probably a good start. Then build over time; another $150-200 for a trigger. Stock...if you want a Manners or Micky you're looking at about another $450+ before bedding. A B&C or HS will save you a couple hundred.
 
Yeah - disregard everything in my post if you only have $750 to spend.

Can’t even get a proper action, or even get a decent action and blueprinting done for $750.

Lightweight, half MOA rifle for $750. I wish you luck on your quest.
 
A basic Savage and an aftermarket barrel for around $350-400 in your chamber would probably a good start. Then build over time; another $150-200 for a trigger. Stock...if you want a Manners or Micky you're looking at about another $450+ before bedding. A B&C or HS will save you a couple hundred.

If you started with a Savage 110 or 111, .25-06's are out there. If the factory barrel is giving good accuracy, the only real reason to re-barrel would be if you wanted a different chamber, twist rate, contour... Really, you could start with your choice of sight system... see how that shoots. Consider a Timney or other improved trigger. Then look at stocks and think through what would fit best... see how that works. Then last look at rebarreling, maybe, depending on actually observed performance. That's my thoughts, anyway. Who says you can't take your time and have fun with this process?
 
There's different levels and definitions of custom. For instance I was looking at a couple actions today that would blow your budget, just the action alone was just shy of $1000. Last barrel I had done was $660 to my door. You might be able to go for $750 IF you had a donor rifle and were willing to build over time. But $750 doesn't buy a lot in the custom realm. Some of the suggestions you've received would easily hit the 2K mark.

A basic Savage and an aftermarket barrel for around $350-400 in your chamber would probably a good start. Then build over time; another $150-200 for a trigger. Stock...if you want a Manners or Micky you're looking at about another $450+ before bedding. A B&C or HS will save you a couple hundred.

That's about how i'm looking to do it. I see Boyd's has a new adjustable stock in their line but i'm thinking of a walnut thumbhole.
 
Yeah - disregard everything in my post if you only have $750 to spend.

Can’t even get a proper action, or even get a decent action and blueprinting done for $750.

Lightweight, half MOA rifle for $750. I wish you luck on your quest.

It's not impossible. My cousin did one last year in 7mm-08 and he had to buy everything but the scope and rings.
 
It's not impossible. My cousin did one last year in 7mm-08 and he had to buy everything but the scope and rings.

What were his build specs?

I’d assume cobbling together used parts, or lower quality components across the board. $750 might buy a Plain Jane 700 donor action and a Remage barrel ($300+$450), but then you’re still talking about bottom metal, trigger, and stock.

Cobbling together a take-off barrel with a donor action and take-off stock might yield a non-catalog rifle for $750, but it’s not doing anything a factory rifle wouldn’t.
 
If you started with a Savage 110 or 111, .25-06's are out there. If the factory barrel is giving good accuracy, the only real reason to re-barrel would be if you wanted a different chamber, twist rate, contour... Really, you could start with your choice of sight system... see how that shoots. Consider a Timney or other improved trigger. Then look at stocks and think through what would fit best... see how that works. Then last look at rebarreling, maybe, depending on actually observed performance. That's my thoughts, anyway. Who says you can't take your time and have fun with this process?

IF I was looking to go custom......on a budget, it's the approach I'd take. Upgrade over time... The OP didn't state up front what budget he was working with, which is why I asked my original question. To me, the OP's specs of .5MOA and a total weight of 7.25 lbs screens out a lot of cheaper options and would be difficult to achieve within his budget. 25-06 for example goes with long action, which again makes the 7.25 lb overall tough to do.
 
IF I was looking to go custom......on a budget, it's the approach I'd take. Upgrade over time... The OP didn't state up front what budget he was working with, which is why I asked my original question. To me, the OP's specs of .5MOA and a total weight of 7.25 lbs screens out a lot of cheaper options and would be difficult to achieve within his budget. 25-06 for example goes with long action, which again makes the 7.25 lb overall tough to do.

He won't be able to use a heavier barrel either. Yeah, lightweight and super-accurate on a tight budget sounds nice... some attributes might be attainable to the detriment of others.

I never bothered to weigh my old .25-06, but while it shot good with 117's, it wasn't real heavy. But then, it wasn't scoped either... Lyman #57WJS and Redfield front ramp/sight/hood... all new old stock. Also, I used a stock for a 110D with a ladies/youth LOP.
 
For $750 I would look at tikka or Bergara factory rifle

Pick a caliber you like, have a good gun in a stock that works well and shoot to your heart’s content

I think a 1/2moa gun is a stretch but a 1 Moa gun should be easy. The law of diminishing returns kicks in and that last half inch costs a whole lot

These provide a good action for future use and the stocks/barrels will be better than most Remington factory rifles with a much “nicer” action than a savage
 
I hope we are all in agreement that a 1/2MOA rifle is not one that’s managed 1 or 2 or even a dozen 3-shot groups into ~.5 If you can put 20 rounds through one very small hole time after time yes, but I’ve got several that have shot sub-MOA on occasion and none that are true 1/2. Finding anything off the shelf in the OP’s price range capable of such groups would be a lottery win for sure but not at all likely. $750 equating to a semi-custom rifle would be rarer still.

I know the OP wants “traditional” looks and a bolt action but from a budget standpoint I don’t feel it’s realistic.

Tossing out the sub-MOA goal for a more realistic cheap to shoot, good for varmint to medium size game to 400 yards that’s deer legal, and not a barrel burner that can be reloaded for (inferred by reference to bullet supply), still gets me back to an AR in .25-45


IF it must be all of those things, a CZ 527 Youth in .223 could be rebarreled to .25-45 Sharps by Bullberry for $550 and they’ll true the action. That gets you blued and walnut, short action, light weight, low cost to feed, and I should think close to your accuracy requirement. It would use the factory bolt and magazine and .223 Rem as a parent case. 2800-3100 FPS with an 87 gr. bullet, and 25-30 grains of powder to do it.

The powder savings alone would make it an easy pick, figuring 25-40% less than .257 Roberts and .25-06 respectively. If you plan to really shoot it rather than gaze at it, it’s worth considering if you can live with the shorter LOP in a Youth model (which saves a few hundred over the standard 527) and can spring for a c-note. Not what I would call custom or even semi-custom, but it might work.
 
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After some more research in my dad's old reloading manuals I've chosen 257 roberts. For some strange reason there's also set of hornady dies on the shelf...
 
After some more research in my dad's old reloading manuals I've chosen 257 roberts. For some strange reason there's also set of hornady dies on the shelf...

That's based on the 7x57 Mauser case. If you can get a military 98 Mauser action in nice condition, there you go.
 
A 257 Roberts is a fine choice.

I have had rifles built on Mauser actions before. A Mauser action will be heavy and end up costing too much of the budget considering the gunsmithing required to get a reasonably accurate result. It felt like I was just running $100 bills through a shredder
 
.257 Roberts is a fine round, but I’d disagree on fine choice. Have a look at brass availability and price for a guy on a tight budget; it ain’t gonna be cheap.

Yup. This. The x57 Mauser based cartridges are among my favorites, based on sentimentality, but in 2019, nothing exists which would persuade me to think any of them are a good choice for a custom build.
 
Let's not leave out the .25 WSSM if the OP is determined to have a .25. It's like the Roberts on steroids, fits in a short action, and best of all, he'll probably have the only one in his neighborhood..
 
I won’t argue my suggestion is an odd one, and one I’d never own myself unless my home State gets off their stupid pills and allows centerfire State wide. Even then Grendel would probably be my choice; but the OP seems intent on his choice of bullet diameter and so the die is cast.
 
It is not an impossible task to get a Bob to shoot well below MOA. It is not a BR cartridge, nor is it a long range superstar, but it is a classic with excellent performance on medium size game. I currently have only one Bob. Usually I fire four groups of five rounds each to measure when I put the old Bob on the bags and it is consistently somewhere around .8 with AccuBond bullets. That is pretty good for a light sporter.

Unless a fellow has a fair few gunsmithing skills and tools it would be nearly an impossible task to build a "custom" rifle for anywhere near the OP's budget but if he makes smart picks for the action and barrel it could turn into a fine rifle.
 
You will love the .257 ROB. It is my absolute favorite rifle caliber. I have a pre 64 Winchester model 70 that was my Grandfathers. I don’t shoot it that much anymore. I also ordered ordered one of the Kimber 84 M, select grade rifles a when Kimber first put .257 ROB in the catalog. I put a Lupold vxiii on it and with Remington corelocks, it is a one hole 100 yard, shot group gun. It is so light and dainty, it is a joy to carry. It is so light and handy. It has a beautiful French walnut stock, and it is a sight to behold. The .257 ROB is a great round. I know there are better 1/4 bores calibers out there now. There is just something that will draw you to the .257 ROB if you ever lay a hand on one and more so if you pull the trigger and ever send a bullet downrange. If you reload don’t try to make it something it is not. Keep it around 2600-2700 FPS with 115-120 grain bullets and it is a fine deer round. When you go over that, they begin to act squirrelly. The .257 is not a magnum, it is just enough to get the job done, and do it with class. It will serve you well and I bet you will fall in love with it. It’s just one of those rounds, That if you ever use it, it has got you hooked.
 
Okay, here's another thought... OP said a Savage 110/111 action is an option. Can a barrel still be had in a Roberts?
 
I’d run a 25-45 Sharps, 25 Creed, 25 Souper, or 25-06, in that order, before I built a 257 Roberts in 2019, for the purposes the OP has described.
 
If that’s all that’s needed Savage sold a 111 in .257 Roberts with laminated stock for $400 a few years back. That’s not custom though, that’s “this bone stock vanilla is imbued with a non-distinct yet familiar vanilla-esque flavor that is both bland and exceptionally mild”. No one with common sense would buy a donor rifle much less a Savage to convert it to .257 Roberts when Savage offered that very thing.

If the thread was more about the merits of a caliber choice it still falls flat in today’s marketplace of better choices for same bullet.
 
This thread has become another point where "I don't like Savage" meets "I don't like .257Roberts".

I don't know about others, but if I'm sitting there looking at a Savage 110/111 action and a .257Roberts barrel that fits it, I think I'll have some fun. Might carry it huntin too.

I guess this could be compared to a tobacco spitting contest... maybe who can throw a gripe the farthest... if you're not into it, you won't get into it.
 
This thread has become another point where "I don't like Savage" meets "I don't like .257Roberts".

No, this thread has become about leading someone toward what they asked for and has become an likely unsuccessful intervention. I own and have used Savage rifles. You’ve not once read anything I’ve written suggesting another brand save SRC who happens to be the developer of .25-45 (which would facilitate the easiest transition to “semi-custom”).

No I wouldn’t suggest buying a Savage, tearing it apart fot the action, then rebarreling in in a caliber it was already built in. That would be a true waste of money and $750 isn’t taking the OP far enough to plunge down that pitfall. Better to suggest he simply hunt one down and put a Boyd’s Stock on it; both cheaper and perhaps useful.

If my statement about Savage not being a serious contender for a full build offends you? Well, I’m keeping it honest without having spit my Skoal. Most guys won’t start there because the juice isn’t worth the squeeze. Why pay a machine shop to fix so-so for what a better action costs.

What I find appealing about .257 Roberts I find even more appealing in more modern chamberings. Does that make it a lemon? Asked another way, when was the last time you gapped points or changed your distributor? If the answer is never or sometime last Century might I equate that with a disdain for classic muscle cars on your part? Advancement has replaced many long in the tooth favorites with more practical, efficient choices. If you can afford the upkeep and don’t care about performance then rock on. Either way the facts and my opinion remain unchanged.
 
I see the problem now... everybody thinks they gotta intervene, probably early and often too.

Some of us who have experience with Savage... mileage varies.

Has anyone suggested disassembling a Savage for the action as if such an action weren't available somewhere waiting for a barrel, etc?

So, Savage offered the 111 in the Roberts... I don't expect any naysayers to know where to find one. But, whether anyone likes the platform or the cartridge, Savage apparently showed it can be had. Depending on the source, it may come in under budget, although that gets more unlikely as time goes on.
 
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