Going on a bear hunt in April and needed to build a rifle to take on the trip. I have a Remington 700 LA Magnum Action I'm going to build from. Is it worth sending off to get blueprinted? And if y'all have anybody you know that could do the job let me know. Still trying to decide between 338 Lapua or 300 PRC. Ammo is definitely pricier for the 338 but I don't plan on going out and shooting a ton of it anyway. I also need a barrel as well. Most I've looked at are 12 weeks out. Any recommendations for a barrel mfg. I've also been seeing a lot of Rem 700 with barrel nut upgrades. Is this beneficial in semi custom bolt actions. Thanks for any input.

And of course after I bought the Remington Action I saw PFG had blueprinted actions for one hundred or so more dollars. I guess that's what I get for not shopping around.

Outside of my comfort zone with bolt guns so excuse my ignorance.please.

I thought about just buying a Bergara Ridgeback Premier in 300 PRC but takes some.of the fun learning about these bolt actions.

I just built a 300PRC from a Rem700 donor that was originally a 7mag I had and never used. By the time you open the feed rails, cut the bottom to accept a longer magazine box, blueprint the action, you would be financially better off just getting a custom action to begin with. I didn’t mention sleeving the bolt, installing a Sako extractor, adding a side bolt release, bushing the firing pin, all of this would be on top of the before mentioned items, but included on most if not all custom actions. If I didn’t do my own work, I would have not done this. Also note that that Lapua requires a bigger bolt face, and opening up a Remmy magnum has been done, most will advise against doing so.

Just sell it and buy a Bighorn Origin

Bug holes has a .30 cal number 4 on the shelf and Remington varmint contour. You could get fluted to save weight

I would go 338 edge vs the 338 Lapua when using a R700 action. It would not require any bolt modification and is a ballistic twin to the lapua plus you can always rebarrel to a 300 prc or many other options later if you want vs being stuck with a lapua BF.
I want a 338 Edge but 300 PRC makes more sense for me.
300 PRC will realistically do anything I need done with less cost, recoil, and weight.

Factory vs blueprinted is going to vary from person to person. I don't do it anymore. Money better spent on a custom action. I didn't see any accuracy difference. I stick with factory or go custom action.
The only plus for a trued action for me is that my gunsmith will have the measurement on file and then from that point on I can have him chamber a shouldered barrel without ever taking them the action again.

Black or brown bear?

I'll probably just stick with the 300 PRC. I'd rather not do any questionable work to open up the bolt face.

You hunting blk or browns?

Black Bear, Wolf, and Mountain Lion

That's definitely worth looking at. My son is also building a 300 Win Mag for the same hunt. And he's a lefty so those would definitely suit our needs. Thanks for the heads up on that.

April 2023 ??

You better hurry !!!

Just buy the Bergara , you wont be dissapointed

Yeah the lead time on the barreled action is 22 weeks. That Ridgeback Premier is a bad bitch. No custom but it'll be here on time.

Alamo precision is the only gunsmith that can make your time frame that I know. Prolly have a suitable barrel in hand.

If your going to go lapua. You’re better off with a proper action suited for that big boomer.

I had pass throughs w/6.5 CM. Just stay mid body. They aren’t real tough

I think I'm gonna go 300 PRC for now. And build a 6.5 PRC and 338 LM over the next year or so.

By the way thanks for all of the insight into customs. Realized I was in way over my head but sounds like a good challenge. Looking forward to building a few over the next year. Hopefully we can make good use of them.

I was looking on Wilson Combat and noticed they also have rifle in 338 Federal and 358 Winchester. I have a few WC-10 and could build those as well. What are y'all thoughts on that? Kinda got me thinking with those options

Lots of rifles and chamberings should work for this hunt, depending on shot distances. Am interested in your experience, so please post the details after your hunt. Good luck!

Will do. Thanks

Me 338 Federal is a Tikka and for sure is a shooter, good thumper inside 300 yards

x2 on this...if you can do the machining yourself it's worth doing...otherwise, just get a Zermatt Origin, Stiller, Defiance, Kelbly and start there.

Yeah I'm still gonna do a custom bolt. The Orgin is probably the route I'll go. But may still do a 338 Federal Wilson.

If you go that route, PM me. I have a lot of different bullets you can try for load development. I have a 338 Federal bolt gun and more 338 bullets than I can shoot in 2 lifetimes.

I'll do that. Thank you