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Why are actions+bolt so expensive

LilGucci

Gunny Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 7, 2019
591
2,468
Hi, just a simple question. Why are bolt action receivers and bolts so expensive? Why do they cost more than a barrel, and as much as a high end stock/chassis? From Impact, to Defiance, to BigHorn, Curtis Custom, and Lone Peak Arms. They are $1000 plus. Is it that it takes more complex machining? I understand that if you want quality you are going to have to pay for it, but do we ever see a future where a good action will cost $500 or less? Is it just that it is a small market to begin with?
 
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get a tikka. cheap and good. and they sells more in a year than probably what impact has ever sold so yes some of it is volume

if you understood design and machining you'd understand why they cost what they do.

a chassis doesn't have shit for liability.

also...they last literally forever

compared to a barrel that could last a month or two to some shooters


same token you could get a $40 caldwell harris knockoff or a $1000 triple pull. they arent the same and shouldnt be compared
 
Hi, just a simple question. Why are bolt action receivers and bolts so expensive? Why do they cost more than a barrel, and as much as a high end stock/chassis? From Impact, to Defiance, to BigHorn, Curtis Custom, and Lone Peak Arms. They are $1000 plus. Is it that it takes more complex machining? I understand that if you want quality you are going to have to pay for it, but do we ever see a future where a good action will cost $500 or less? Is it just that it is a small market to begin with?

Ask @LongRifles Inc. to school you on the fixed and variable costs of a precision machining shop
 
Hi, just a simple question. Why are bolt action receivers and bolts so expensive? Why do they cost more than a barrel, and as much as a high end stock/chassis? From Impact, to Defiance, to BigHorn, Curtis Custom, and Lone Peak Arms. They are $1000 plus. Is it that it takes more complex machining? I understand that if you want quality you are going to have to pay for it, but do we ever see a future where a good action will cost $500 or less? Is it just that it is a small market to begin with?
Hi, just a simple question. Why do you ask the same question over and over again?
 
get a tikka. cheap and good. and they sells more in a year than probably what impact has ever sold so yes some of it is volume

if you understood design and machining you'd understand why they cost what they do.

a chassis doesn't have shit for liability.

also...they last literally forever

compared to a barrel that could last a month or two to some shooters


same token you could get a $40 caldwell harris knockoff or a $1000 triple pull. they arent the same and shouldnt be compared

I have 3 American Rifle Company Archimedes actions which I'm going to do my bolt action builds with next year.

Do you think if volume increased and precision rifle shooting shot up in extreme popularity, that the current manufacturers would be able to scale up? I wanted an Impact and a Defiance but the wait times were many months.

It's probably the machining then. I hear Impact's is insanely precise with incredible tolerances.
 
Ask @LongRifles Inc. to school you on the fixed and variable costs of a precision machining shop
Thank you for tagging him. I don't know anything about precision machining shops, and whether their work can be scaled up to produce more actions in far greater batches.
 
it's as much material availability as it is machine time...especially chromoly which is why people have gone away from it

impact is yes. following the footsteps of Bighorn/Zermatt. but there are so many not that have those tolerances...basically everyone was forced into it
 
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Uhm....any good action should last you a lifetime while barrels are considered consumable and only last a few thousand rounds. Since you are already an ARC user have you not heard about the their new coup de gras that should retail for $899?
 
Hi, just a simple question. Why are bolt action receivers and bolts so expensive? Why do they cost more than a barrel, and as much as a high end stock/chassis? From Impact, to Defiance, to BigHorn, Curtis Custom, and Lone Peak Arms. They are $1000 plus. Is it that it takes more complex machining? I understand that if you want quality you are going to have to pay for it, but do we ever see a future where a good action will cost $500 or less? Is it just that it is a small market to begin with?

A37519A2-BCF1-4EF6-9AD7-E30C2AEE48AA.jpeg
 
Gucci which one of these three is factual?
1. I am a Fed
2. I am a rather hot Lady Fed
3. I talk ad nauseam about firearms but have yet to shoot one.
I shoot firearms every weekend. 9mm and 12 gauge and this weekend, 22lr. I just got my firearms this past November, and have been shooting them every weekend.
 
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Uhm....any good action should last you a lifetime while barrels are considered consumable and only last a few thousand rounds. Since you are already an ARC user have you not heard about the their new coup de gras that should retail for $899?

I have, and that is my next action. I hope to order two coup de gras.

That's good to know that a receiver will last that long. In the AR-15 world SPR barrels can be expensive if you go with a Bartlein or Kreiger, but AR-15 receivers are pretty affordable, so it seems to be the reverse here with Bolt Action guns, and it makes sense because they only last a few thousand rounds. Thank you for your response.
 
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it's as much material availability as it is machine time...especially chromoly which is why people have gone away from it

impact is yes. following the footsteps of Bighorn/Zermatt. but there are so many not that have those tolerances...basically everyone was forced into it

Thank you for this!
 
I have 3 American Rifle Company Archimedes actions which I'm going to do my bolt action builds with next year.

Do you think if volume increased and precision rifle shooting shot up in extreme popularity, that the current manufacturers would be able to scale up? I wanted an Impact and a Defiance but the wait times were many months.

It's probably the machining then. I hear Impact's is insanely precise with incredible tolerances.
Impacts are almost always in stock at Altus and several other of the vendors on here. As far as cost Eric cortina had a video talking about the action is the cheapest part of a bolt gun you will buy. Just say you shot 10000 rds from it and say you used 4 or 5 barrels at $600 each that would be $3k for 5 barrels not including the cost of the ammo or reloading supplies if you reload. You need to look at the action as an investment because you can always sell it and recoup probably 90% of your cost.
 
Impacts are almost always in stock at Altus and several other of the vendors on here. As far as cost Eric cortina had a video talking about the action is the cheapest part of a bolt gun you will buy. Just say you shot 10000 rds from it and say you used 4 or 5 barrels at $600 each that would be $3k for 5 barrels not including the cost of the ammo or reloading supplies if you reload. You need to look at the action as an investment because you can always sell it and recoup probably 90% of your cost.
That's an excellent way to look at it. I hadn't thought about it that way. Thank you for this.
 
You are trying to whine about why top end actions cost a bunch of money?

Since it seems you are mostly used to the MSR platform world let me possibly explain it like this:

Your "action" in a high end bolt rifle action is essentially doing most of what your lower receiver, your upper receiver, your complete BCG and most of what your fire control does.

Just like in the MSR platform world you can get "good" setups for cheap, but you can also get premium setups that will cost you a lot more.
(Try seeing how much all the above will set you back from H&K or any of the other higher end MSR type rifle makers).

Same in the bolt action world, you can get "good" setups cheap, like $500 for the whole rifle or $1k for the rifle and part out the parts you don't want.
But you want a high end, exacting tolerance setup that is well regarded and well tested and used by all the top folks, then you will of course pay for it.

Remember also the federal government wants a tax and a whole bunch of reporting for each receiver made.

Then add in that the latest machines to keep up with production demands could be in the $500k and up really easily, not to mention the folks that know how to do that properly would like to be paid very well for their services, or you can go get some mass market produced stuff and call it good.
 
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You are trying to whine about why top end actions cost a bunch of money?

Since it seems you are mostly used to the MSR platform world let me possibly explain it like this:

Your "action" in a high end bolt rifle action is essentially doing most of what your lower receiver, your upper receiver, your complete BCG and most of what your fire control does.

Just like in the MSR platform world you can get "good" setups for cheap, but you can also get premium setups that will cost you a lot more.
(Try seeing how much all the above will set you back from H&K or any of the other higher end MSR type rifle makers).

Same in the bolt action world, you can get "good" setups cheap, like $500 for the whole rifle or $1k for the rifle and part out the parts you don't want.
But you want a high end, exacting tolerance setup that is well regarded and well tested and used by all the top folks, then you will of course pay for it.

Remember also the federal government wants a tax and a whole bunch of reporting for each receiver made.

Then add in that the latest machines to keep up with production demands could be in the $500k and up really easily, not to mention the folks that know how to do that properly would like to be paid very well for their services, or you can go get some mass market produced stuff and call it good.
That's a good way to look at it. So an action is like the upper and lower, plus a BCG and fire control all in one. I hadn't thought about it like that. I hope I don't come off as whining, I was simply wondering why they are priced the way that they are. I now know there are good reasons why the prices are what they are.
 
That's a good way to look at it. So an action is like the upper and lower, plus a BCG and fire control all in one. I hadn't thought about it like that. I hope I don't come off as whining, I was simply wondering why they are priced the way that they are. I now know there are good reasons why the prices are what they are.
you can buy a PSA or a JP or build a $5k AR

likewise you can buy a Savage or build a $5k custom
 
you can buy a PSA or a JP or build a $5k AR

likewise you can buy a Savage or build a $5k custom
I'm a noob to firearms, I'm learning a lot from these posts. One of my noob assumptions without knowing anything about bolt actions is that a Remmington 700-based design would be cheaper to manufacture after all of these years. But that wasn't taking into account all that goes into bringing these to market, from the machining to the materials, to engineering innovative features. One of the reasons I went with ARC Archemdes aside from availability was that it seemed like an innovative product, and the owner Ted was committed to innovation in this space. And that costs money.

My custom builds look like they will be way more expensive than a Savage.
 
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you think actions are expensive, wait till you find out about optics.
haha, I've actually looked into glass prices and they are pretty crazy.

That's why I started this thread:
 
Gucci which one of these three is factual?
1. I am a Fed
2. I am a rather hot Lady Fed
3. I talk ad nauseam about firearms but have yet to shoot one.
I think the most confusing thing about this thread is OP has three custom actions, is planning on buying 2 more, and seemingly not one built out bolt gun. Does anyone else find this odd?
Could have bought a really nice custom off the PX for whats tied up in purchased actions alone. Could buy a nice scope for the cost of the other 2 he's planning to buy. The more he talks, the more I'm inclined to believe option 3
 
I think the most confusing thing about this thread is OP has three custom actions, is planning on buying 2 more, and seemingly not one built out bolt gun. Does anyone else find this odd?
Could have bought a really nice custom off the PX for whats tied up in purchased actions alone. Could buy a nice scope for the cost of the other 2 he's planning to buy. The more he talks, the more I'm inclined to believe option 3
also been a member since 2019 and just got firearms 3 months ago
 
I think the most confusing thing about this thread is OP has three custom actions, is planning on buying 2 more, and seemingly not one built out bolt gun. Does anyone else find this odd?
Could have bought a really nice custom off the PX for whats tied up in purchased actions alone. Could buy a nice scope for the cost of the other 2 he's planning to buy. The more he talks, the more I'm inclined to believe option 3

I spent around $20k in late October, November, and December due to the upcoming gun restrictions here in Oregon with measure 114. I knew it wouldn't pass. So I bought a bunch of handguns, two shotguns, 3 bolt action receivers, a couple of PDW's, 9 AR-15 receivers, 4 AR-10 receivers, a 22 LR gun and a couple of 22 lr receivers. Also magazines and ammo.

I'm now broke and saving up for suppressors. If it were up to me, I'd build my Bolt Action guns right now, but my plan, as I have stated many times on this forum, is to get my suppressors first, then build my AR-15's, then my AR-10's, and if I have any money left over at the end of the year, start on my Bolt Action gun. I have to build out my AR-15's first since there is a semi-auto ban being prepared in Washington, and Oregon will not be too far behind with something similar.

So just to reiterate, my timeline is:

Jan - Apr Suppressors
May - Aug AR-15's
Sep - Nov AR-10's
Dec - Maybe start my first Bolt Action gun

I don't know how fast you guys build guns, but this is the rate I have to go at. I'm tired of being told to BUILD NOW because I don't have the time or money. Some of you are just flooded in cash and have all the time in the world, but I'm not. I'm working two jobs to make this dream a reality. The reason for me buying more bolt action receivers, is because once measure 114 becomes law in Oregon, I will not be buying any new firearms for the foreseeable future. Unless I leave this state. I don't need more than 3 receivers, but I don't want to regret 10 years from now not having had an extra two receivers to do future builds with.
 
better get some long and lapua actions then
Well, originally, that's why I have focused my 3 bolt action builds around 556, 308, and 6.5 Creedmoor. I did this because I was not intending to reload, and I wanted to share my ammo between my AR-15 and AR-10 as well as my bolt action rifle. Having had many threads on the Semi-Auto forum, I've now been convinced to reconsider reloading, and if I go down that route, well then that opens me up to a lot of possibilities. If I reload, then I guess I could replace my 6.5 Creedmoor build with something more exotic like 6.5 PRC, 300 Norma Mag, 300 PRC, or 6/7.5 SAUM. (I know nothing about ammo, I'm still learning)

I don't know if these cartridges require a long action though. I just know that I want a 556 trainer gun, a 308 primary gun for competition and hunting, and a long-distance gun that can hit beyond 1000 yards. My long-distance caliber / ammo considerations are based on this chart:

To finalize Summer 2021 (4).png
 
Well, originally, that's why I have focused my 3 bolt action builds around 556, 308, and 6.5 Creedmoor. I did this because I was not intending to reload, and I wanted to share my ammo between my AR-15 and AR-10 as well as my bolt action rifle. Having had many threads on the Semi-Auto forum, I've now been convinced to reconsider reloading, and if I go down that route, well then that opens me up to a lot of possibilities. If I reload, then I guess I could replace my 6.5 Creedmoor build with something more exotic like 6.5 PRC, 300 Norma Mag, 300 PRC, or 6/7.5 SAUM. (I know nothing about ammo, I'm still learning)

I don't know if these cartridges require a long action though. I just know that I want a 556 trainer gun, a 308 primary gun for competition and hunting, and a long-distance gun that can hit beyond 1000 yards. My long-distance caliber / ammo considerations are based on this chart:

"Beyond 1000 yards" is pretty nebulous.

You aren't totally off with your existing plan since you also have MSR platform rifles
.223 is a nice cheap easy to shoot option and with a long barrel and good loaded ammunition, 1000 yards is possible with a high expectation of accuracy.
.308 is nice since it matches a lot of what you will have, and a good bolt gun will easily get to 1k and a bit beyond
6.5CM is a nice target round that easily reaches out to 1300 yards and beyond.

If you want to go to the mile easily or beyond, then look at the .300prc or the .300NM
.300 PRC will be a lot less recoil, a lot cheaper to shoot and just need a standard magnum long action boltface.
.300NM needs a .338LM bolt face and a pretty long action, both of which put you into a different class of rifle.
 
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I spent around $20k in late October, November, and December due to the upcoming gun restrictions here in Oregon with measure 114. I knew it wouldn't pass. So I bought a bunch of handguns, two shotguns, 3 bolt action receivers, a couple of PDW's, 9 AR-15 receivers, 4 AR-10 receivers, a 22 LR gun and a couple of 22 lr receivers. Also magazines and ammo.

I'm now broke and saving up for suppressors. If it were up to me, I'd build my Bolt Action guns right now, but my plan, as I have stated many times on this forum, is to get my suppressors first, then build my AR-15's, then my AR-10's, and if I have any money left over at the end of the year, start on my Bolt Action gun. I have to build out my AR-15's first since there is a semi-auto ban being prepared in Washington, and Oregon will not be too far behind with something similar.

So just to reiterate, my timeline is:

Jan - Apr Suppressors
May - Aug AR-15's
Sep - Nov AR-10's
Dec - Maybe start my first Bolt Action gun

I don't know how fast you guys build guns, but this is the rate I have to go at. I'm tired of being told to BUILD NOW because I don't have the time or money. Some of you are just flooded in cash and have all the time in the world, but I'm not. I'm working two jobs to make this dream a reality. The reason for me buying more bolt action receivers, is because once measure 114 becomes law in Oregon, I will not be buying any new firearms for the foreseeable future. Unless I leave this state. I don't need more than 3 receivers, but I don't want to regret 10 years from now not having had an extra two receivers to do future builds with.

If you spend that much money building guns (18 builds?) before ever actually shooting a gun you’ll have regrets about your builds. No amount of posting on the internet can replace building a rifle, loading for it, and shooting. I’d consider some more hands on learning before going further with all that.
 
they are firearm related everything firearm related is over priced though that new action posted about in the forums is looking sweet at under 1k
 
You realize it’s the Indian not the Arrow? The old adage of “beware the man with one gun, cuz he knows how to use it”.

Plus, with most of these actions, either a bolt head swap or bolt swap, plus barrel and tools can let you use one action and jump calibers…like say 308 and 223
 
You realize it’s the Indian not the Arrow? The old adage of “beware the man with one gun, cuz he knows how to use it”.

Plus, with most of these actions, either a bolt head swap or bolt swap, plus barrel and tools can let you use one action and jump calibers…like say 308 and 223
I would take an AXSR kitted out with all the goodies over a safe full of bullshit.
 
You guys think nv/thermal shit is expensive, wait until you find a girl to sleep with you
It's not the sleeping with that gets expensive unless your into hookers, its the after math! Raise a few kids for 20 plus years w college..
 
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Everyone in this thread is apparently a non thinker.
Action price cost = 1 word

LIABILITY
 
If only insurance didn't require you to list replacement values on anything fun you want coverage for, that would make the 2nd part there much easier.
The last time I was quoted coverage for items over $10K, so let’s say 3 $10K rifles…the insurance cost alone would have paid for a replacement rifle (system inclusive of scope) every 5 years. Not worth it to insure, IMO.
 
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The last time I was quoted coverage for items over $10K, so let’s say 3 $10K rifles…the insurance cost alone would have paid for a replacement rifle (system inclusive of scope) every 5 years. Not worth it to insure, IMO.
You might want to find a new insurance provider then if you were being quoted at $2,000/year for $30,000 in coverage.

A USAA Valuable Personal Property policy (which includes loss, theft, and even accidental damage that occurs during normal use) for ~$12,000 MSRP of rifle + scope + suppressor comes to a total annual premium of $238. Looking around on Google a company called Baily estimates a similar policy on a $10,000 collection would run ~$351/year from them and a place called SIAI has their rates listed at $125 per $10,000 of coverage, meaning much more than $1,000/year for those 3 items combined would be quite outside of normal market rates.
 
"Beyond 1000 yards" is pretty nebulous.

You aren't totally off with your existing plan since you also have MSR platform rifles
.223 is a nice cheap easy to shoot option and with a long barrel and good loaded ammunition, 1000 yards is possible with a high expectation of accuracy.
.308 is nice since it matches a lot of what you will have, and a good bolt gun will easily get to 1k and a bit beyond
6.5CM is a nice target round that easily reaches out to 1300 yards and beyond.

If you want to go to the mile easily or beyond, then look at the .300prc or the .300NM
.300 PRC will be a lot less recoil, a lot cheaper to shoot and just need a standard magnum long action boltface.
.300NM needs a .338LM bolt face and a pretty long action, both of which put you into a different class of rifle.
Well in that case I can stick with 6.5 CM. That way I can share ammo across multiple platforms. 1300 yards is plenty good enough for me. The closest range to me with that kind of distance caps out at 1000 yards anyways.
 
You might want to find a new insurance provider then if you were being quoted at $2,000/year for $30,000 in coverage.

A USAA Valuable Personal Property policy (which includes loss, theft, and even accidental damage that occurs during normal use) for ~$12,000 MSRP of rifle + scope + suppressor comes to a total annual premium of $238. Looking around on Google a company called Baily estimates a similar policy on a $10,000 collection would run ~$351/year from them and a place called SIAI has their rates listed at $125 per $10,000 of coverage, meaning much more than $1,000/year for those 3 items combined would be quite outside of normal market rates.

$1228 for $40000 in guns and $10000 in jewelry, just dug the quote out from my property insurer.
 
Why is a divorce so expensive? -Cause its worth every penny.

There is much more to bringing a receiver to market than flopping machines on the floor and filling garbage cans with chips. That's the easy part.

Itemizing every little cost is outside of my ambition with this thread, so I'll summarize to say this: We just had the Shot Show a couple of weeks ago. To anyone attending, it's immediately apparent that it's a big deal. That said, the entire sporting industry combined (guns, hunting, fishing, etc...) doesn't make the fortune 500. Now, take all of that and compare it against the micro industry known as custom action manufacturers. They are not even bird poop on a beach. You, as the audience, cannot purchase enough guns/actions in your lifetime to ever change that.

Grab a #2 pencil; what did it cost you? Go make one. Better yet, go make a thousand. What would you have to sell them for to be able to shelter and feed yourself? What would they need to cost for you to enjoy any kind of modern standard of living?

Get the picture?
 
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