Remington KS and North American Custom Rifles
I have looked at the KS and North American Custom turned out by Remington's custom shop. Can anyone out there give me any real world feedback on these guns? Are they worth the money or just Model 700s with custom gun prices? I noted that the NAC is in a Bell & Carlson stock - which really surprised me. Why wouldn't they be using a McMillan or other Kevlar stock (like on the KS)? Why wouldn't one just buy a Cooper Model 52 or similar rifle for less or comparable money and get accuracy guarantees, etc.? What am I missing here?
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I think you answered your own question with your last remark.
also my thinking as well.0 -
You'll pay the price for any custom work, it does not matter who does them but for those prices you can get the action you want and other components and have your reputable gunsmith (you know exactly who is working it) put it all together at a comparable price. 0 -
famous wolf,
It's important to break down all of the information about 'custom' rifles before even getting close to making a decision about which one to buy. You need to have a method of comparison that will allow you to see the similarities as well as the disparities. Only then can you arrive at a fully reasoned decision.
North American Custom
* "Blue printed" Model 700 carbon steel action to ensure receiver face and bolt face squareness and uniform locking lug contract
* Satin blued metal finish or satin stainless finish and jeweled bolt body
* Custom turned and chambered hammer forged fluted Model 700 carbon steel barrel (24" standard calibers, 26" magnum calibers)
* Machined steel trigger guard and floorplate assembly
* Bell & Carlson composite stock - desert tan with black webbing or black with gray webbing
* Full length aluminum bedding block
* Model 40-X adjustable trigger turned and set by Custom Shop at 3 lbs.
* All rifles .30 caliber and under must meet a sub-MOA
* Packaged in soft case within a hard case
Addressing some of these points quickly:
Blueprinting an action and bolt is usually required for any of the factory actions. They just aren't made that critically. Besides, using the buzz-term is a huge selling point because it costs more money and it's a 'custom' feature.
I wouldn't 'custom turn' any hammer-forged barrel due to the stresses involved in the initial product. I think there's more to this than they are letting on. But the barrels are cheap to produce.
The difference in cost between a cast piece of junk like the standard Remington's use and machined steel bottom metal is huge. The time/cost of production is significant also.
There is nothing wrong with the B&C stock that a little skim bedding won't fix. Besides, this is a matter of dollars for profit in the long run not just one rifle on a custom basis. B&C cost Remington about $100.00 or less per stock, McMillan's cost about $350.00/each. This is with their discount. You do the math.
Kevlar is a holdover from the Dupont days. Unless absolutely stated otherwise, all you get is a little strip of Kevlar running down each side of the stock. Nothing significant. This includes McMillan. The stocks that feature a Kevlar shell are using Kevlar cloth and are true to the advertising. These less expensive stocks aren't.
The 40x trigger is a good one. They can stand some tweaking sometimes but for the most part, they're good triggers.
Accuracy guarantees are usually pretty bogus. Most shooters can't hold the accuracy as stated in the guarantee but someone at the factory can. You shoot some marginal targets and send the rifle back because it doesn't meet the specs. They shoot a small group at the factory and send it back marked 'passed' and you eat the shipping. You will not win on this debate.
You aren't missing anything. I think Remington has exceeded their price points and needs to drop back since their products can be under-delivered based on price. But the corporation/conglomerate requires a bigger profit margin so up go the prices and the quality doesn't rise with it.
Best.0 -
Remember, Remington is now owned by Cerberus. Does that name mean anything to anyone here? That is the huge private equity group that also owns Chrysisler, among many of its holdings. Hmmmmm. Let me see, has Chrysisler ever marketed its crap with much hyperbole? Hmmmm. Is the Pope Catholic?
Further, has anyone here ever heard the phrase "form over substance"? Or, perhaps, 'caveat emptor'? Or, better yet, "used car salesman"? Marketing, marketing, marketing.0
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