Barreled Action and Chassis Help

[Fletcher22]

I'm new in the realm of precision shooting and have been looking into getting a bolt gun setup. Previously I had been considering the Seekins Precision Havak Hit, but after reading a post (possibly from here) and seeing the issue of availability (like ordering a spare barrel, etc), I've decided to look elsewhere.

The Aero Precision Solus looks to be a decent start for a barreled action (6.5 CM) and throwing it into a KRG Whiskey chassis. But I wanted to get some input from folks who have more time behind bolt guns in general.

Primary I want to stick with a barreled action to start (or a complete rifle depending on the chassis) within the same price range (current price for Solus and KRG setup above is ~$1700. Eventually I'd like to have whatever is needed to do a barrel swap and what not, but for now I'd like to keep to just installing a chassis. Also, I could expand that budget if keeping it as a separate barreled action and chassis to avoid to huge cost all at once. Note that the budget above does not include scope and scope rings (for reference considering the Leupold MK4HD or MK5HD).

I'm open to suggestions on other barreled or other info that would be useful for starting the journey on precision shooting.

 

[Chris W.]

The solus action is on sale right now at Patriot Valley Arms for 1099 and it's really hard to find a better deal than that. Once you configure the barrel to have 5/8x24 barrel threading it should be around 1100 bucks. The Osprey barrels usually shoot quite well.

As far as the action itself, it's still pretty new, but I haven't heard anything very negative besides them being a bit rougher than most custom actions, which I think is pretty expected for the price point. I personally don't really like 60 degree bolt throw actions, but that is a preference thing rather than an objective fact.

 

[ChadJamesR]

I just picked up a Solus action and it competes well against my Origin action and CDG action. If I was on a budget and building a bolt gun, it would be my first choice without a doubt. Especially considering I bought the action with tax and shipping under $600. Same place has a barreled 6.5 Creed action for $820, so deals are out there. I think the first production of the Solus had some slight issues but the action I just picked up has some minor changes made compared to reviews I've seen and is smoother then my Origin action. I still prefer my CDG action, but barrels are harder to get and more expensive. Nice thing about the Solus is that barrels are about as low cost and available as you can get in the market.

As for optics it is generally considered that the current Leupold offerings do not offer the value of some of the other brands out there. I've looked through the MK5HD and optically there are many other brands (Leica PRS, Stiener T6Xi, etc) at similar or lower costs that are optically superior. If you like the MK5HD, then go with it as it will work for precision shooting, you might just look around a little before you settle.