I've handled quite a few Montana rifles at the local Sportsman & Ski Haus and find them to be "clunky" and heavy for caliber with poor balance. The fit of the barreled action in the stock of the five I handled was less than impressive. The machining looked good but the grit blast stainless finish looks like an afterthought.
Buying a custom rifle. What to get.
- Thread starter Agsalaska
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I would call up the special order department at Savage and put together a stainless barrel and receiver with the Target AccuTrigger action and a McMillan stock. You could build your self a rock solid rifle that will stand up to any weather you're likely going to want to hunt in. Accuracy, dependability and durability are all words that come to mind when I think about a Savage custom setup. And yes they still have a custom order department from the looks of their web site. A well known gun journalist and reviewer called Savage the "definition of accuracy" not too long ago. Add a McMillan stock to one of their Target AccuTrigger setups and you're going to have a rifle that will endure about anything and still shoot tiny groups at long distances. Where I live Savage dominates the 600 yard competitions. That's as far as we get around this area when it comes to long range shooting. I can say without reservation that the bone stock Savage 12 LRPV that I own has shot very nice groups at 500 yards and that's with me doing the shooting. And I'm not all that experienced at shooting distances like that. I learned to shoot pretty well at that distance because the Savage made it easy to be honest. I have the H-S Precision stock on my rifle and from all accounts the McMillan stocks are much better.
I know you said you wanted wood but like you I end up making safe queens out of my beautiful wood rifles. I shoot them at the range if it isn't raining. That's why I think a great hunting rifle beings with a stock like the McMillan. From there add stainless steel. It's a proven combination from a company that is committed to quality. They certainly make nice wood stocks for their rifles but other people do that better to be honest.
I know you said you wanted wood but like you I end up making safe queens out of my beautiful wood rifles. I shoot them at the range if it isn't raining. That's why I think a great hunting rifle beings with a stock like the McMillan. From there add stainless steel. It's a proven combination from a company that is committed to quality. They certainly make nice wood stocks for their rifles but other people do that better to be honest.
I was in a similar situation back in 2010. I wanted a rifle for everything. Fancy enough to make me feel good, durable enough to serve me for the rest of my life and most of all, reliable and accurate. The definitive rifle for myself. I ended up choosing Weatherby MarkV action for the project, mainly because it can handle even the hottest handloads with ease, 9-lug 60° design is quick to operate and I managed to source one in .375H&H with unusual (for Weatherby) matte finish.
What really sets it apart from everything else is the stock. I contacted Accurate Innovations for a 100% custom job; I selected a very nice exhibition grade english walnut blank and had AI build a slightly modified MarkV-style high comb design with customized pull length and drop. Externally it's very traditional high grade stock, but it has an aluminum frame inside the walnut for extremely precise bedding. I didn't want a muzzle break so I opted for a mercury recoil reducer and 1" Decelerator pad. I was prepared to have the action rebarreled, but there was no need. Once assembled, the rifle printed consistent .7-.9" groups at 150yd with Weatherby recommended factory soft points and just over an inch with Norma solids. All it really needed was very slight smoothing out of the bolt and trigger surfaces. I've been experimenting with different scopes and it currently has a Zeiss HD5 2-10x42 as a compromise for big game and medium to long(ish) distance hunting. Rapid-Z reticle isn't ideal for all purposes but I'm getting used to it and it makes longer shots a bit easier.
The whole project set me back about $6k when everything was said and done, which was a fair bit less than I originally expected.
All in all, Accurate Innovations' customer service is first class, fit and finish is second to none and aluminum frame and bedding makes the best of a quality action regardless of ambient temperature and humidity. Originally my choices were MarkV, Sako L691 or Mauser-style action, all of which are great for building a custom gun. All of them are available in left hand configuration if need be. My son is left-handed and I've been thinking about having a similar rifle built for him as well.
As far as caliber choice is concerned, I'd probably chosen .300WinMag over .375H&H had there been no need to hunt in Africa. Bull elks can grow fairly big so you might want to consider the old "bring enough gun" -principle, even though hunting deer with a .375 is a bit overkill. If you handload, you can always adjust your loads according to game, too.
GAMEOVER44
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sage5907
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I would stick to the idea of a 30-06. Take a serious look at the Dakota Arms Model 76 Classic. They build a classic rifle on a Model 70 type action and it doesn't get any better than that. Remember that a custom rifle is quality wood, finish, fit, superb metal work and fit & finish with a top of the line barrel. Also, a favorite hunting rifle won't turn out to be the one you try to pick. It happens to be the one that is easy to carry, easy to acquire the target, and hits every thing that you shoot at.
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