I am stuck in between a MPA build, RimX with ModX from Modacam or Rachel Precision or the newer L3I Stinger barreled action. A 4th option is a used Vudoo V22 G2 action
I can only speak to Vudoo (especially gen-1) and unmodified Rim-X. I have zero experience with any of the other actions... but with that said, I suppose a dedicated tinkerer might enjoy messing with the lesser-known actions... not me. At this point in my life, I want something proven*.
- I have not had a feeding malfunction in my first-gen Vudoo in literally years and many thousands of rounds of Lapua and SK ammo fed from 10-round polymer and (discontinued) 15-round magazines.
- I did have feeding issues when I first got the rifle in 2019. Problem was the MPA BA Comp chassis did not hold the magazine quite high enough. Solution was installation of the now-standard adjustable magazine latch.
- I moved the barreled action to a Manners MCS-TCS stock a few weeks ago - a very different look and feel, and no adjustable mag latch. I only have a few hundred rounds through it since the switch, but so far reliability has been 100%.
- I do know other Vudoo owners who have experienced feeding issues with a specific copy of "Stock Brand A" and perfect reliability with another copy of the exact same stock. Ideally, I would prefer a stock or chassis with an adjustable latch.
- I owned a Rim-X for over two years. Competed with it a little in the first year. Then it mainly lived in the safe because I liked - and trusted - my Vudoo more.
- The Rim-X fed more smoothly than the Vudoo... until it didn't. It's a known design thing that Rim-X MUST feed from a magazine; it cannot be single-loaded into the chamber. If a round pops off the mag too early, the rim ends up in front of the flat extractor claw and all too often the cartridge is pushed into the chamber - where it has to be pried out with a sool of some sort or pushed out with a rod.
- In my case and in the case of another Rim-X owner I just talked to yesterday, misfeeds happen most frequently when the Zermatt 5-round extension is in place. The extension does not ship with a stronger spring; insufficient spring force seems to be the root cause.
- While I have personally met and worked with Jonathan at Modacam, I have to say it puzzles me why anyone would buy a Rim-X and then try to make it work like a Vudoo (Mod-X)...
- I sold my Rim-X to a gentleman who loves it. I see him regularly; the rifle's doing well for him.
With all that said, there is no way on God's green earth I would deal with whatever "Vudoo" is at this point in time. I don't even want to wear my Team Vudoo shirt to matches anymore, lest a newbie think the company is what it was 2017-2022 or so. And then Zermatt screwed the pooch with whatever went wrong with Rim-X actions whose locking lugs galled within a couple hundred rounds (which, given the apparent lack of ongoing uproar, must be resolved).
So what is OP to do? Based
ONLY on my personal knowledge and opinion, I would suggest buying a used Vudoo or RimX (avoiding the serial range where the soft lugs were an issue, although I would expect Zermatt to fix one that was dumped onto an unsuspecting buyer). For Vudoo, I would go with gen-1 or gen-2).
I have centerfires with both 60- and 90-degree bolt. The difference is inconsequential to me. I know of no real advantage one over the other for competition. Comes down to preference.
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* Although I'll be at the front of the line when MB releases his new design
