DI vs Factory Vudoo vs Various Reamers for First Time Buyer

[warrantchief]

Hi folks, I'm researching for my first prs rimfire / nrl22 bolt action. To date I've been shooting my 10/22 which has been a great gun to learn on but now I want something shiny and fancy. I don't currently try to hunt for the ideal lot # of whichever match ammo the rifle shoots best, but if I'm going to buy a custom rifle I expect I will. I find the idea of sending it to Lapua's test center as a pretty intriguing way to remove myself as a variable.

Based on what I've read the factory Vudoos are reamed for lapua. DI seems popular on the forum, do they ream for a particular manufacturer? Is that something you can specify?

What's the purported benefit of having DI build an action vs the factory?

Are there other options of builders / reamers that I should be aware of and research?

What do folks think about the risks of a used rifle? There is a feller selling a nicely priced barreled action on this forum that I could get quickest of all, but I'm a little worried about my lack of experience and either buying the wrong gun or chasing my tail.

Thank you

 

[Rob01]

Vudoo is not reamed only for Lapua. The chamber works well with Lapua/SK but you can shoot other ammo in it as well. I have shot thousands of Eley Match and Edge through mine and also thousands of Fed Ultra match. Have shot Norma also but it wasn't as accurate.

Only reason I can see to go DI is if you can't find what you want at Vudoo in their offerings for barrels.

As for used, you can find some deals but just need to buy what you want and buying used might lead to some compromise.

 

[red man]

I have both a DI Vudoo and a factory built vudoo. The DI gun is my main competition gun, while my factory vudoo is a spare/backup. With DI you can order faster twist barrels, which could be a deciding factor. The action is nitrided from DI and has a much tighter bolt close and isn't quite as smooth as the factory built rifle, admittedly. However, my DI rifle is 24" and balances better than the rifle I ordered from vudoo.

I bought my DI after I had constant feeding issues out of the Vudoo built rifle, to the point I sent it back to vudoo bc I couldn't get it to stop shaving lead off of the nose of at least a few rounds per magazine. I replaced the mag latch and honed it until there was no movement in the mag when inserted, still wouldn't feed reliably. It was as if the round was being 'captured' too late and was running the nose of the bullet into the breech face as a result. Vudoo "couldn't replicate the problem" even though it was happening when shooting prone not loading the mag and the complete rifle was sent back to me in the same partially working order it was in before. I ordered the DI rifle 3 months after receiving my factory built vudoo bc I was so tired of dealing with feeding issues, I don't have feeding issues out of the DI rifle with proper mag latch adjustment.

I originally ordered a complete rifle from vudoo so that I didn't have to spend as much time tweaking and fixing feeding issues, it didn't work out that way. Both rifles are capable of great groups and I do realize I am an outlier as far as the factory vudoo having issues that vudoo couldn't/wouldn't fix, that's just my luck. Having said all that I don't think you could go wrong with buying from Vudoo or DI. I know many people with rifles built by both and they love them.

DI will thread for a tuner without adapter, this does eliminate running a suppressor. While Vudoo will thread a standard 5/8ths which would allow an adapter and tuner or suppressor to be mounted.

DI gun is in a manners tcs with mini chassis; Factory gun is in a manners PRS1 with mini chassis.

As far as buying a used barreled action, I don't see how you could go too wrong as long as you are saving some money and buying the barrel length you are wanting. Buying new or used just depends on if you are settling for something or buying exactly what you want.

Both DI and Vudoo chamber their rifles around sk/lapua, but as Rob01 said they will shoot other ammo too.

I'll stop rambling, those are just my experiences and sleep deprived thoughts.

 

[warrantchief]

Thanks red man! Did you get a faster twist on your DI? How many grooves on the barrel? I don't anticipate running a tuner and would prefer 1/2x28 so I can use my normal 22 suppressors.

 

[Rob01]

Your welcome. Oh wait......

 

[warrantchief]

Haha, I'm sorry bud! I appreciate your input as well. I didn't have any follow up questions so I wasn't gonna bump the thread just for that. My bad!

 

[red man]

Thanks red man! Did you get a faster twist on your DI? How many grooves on the barrel? I don't anticipate running a tuner and would prefer 1/2x28 so I can use my normal 22 suppressors.

I got a 1 in 13 twist mueller barrel mtu profile in 24in, I don't remember the grooves off the top of my head. I believe they are testing some 1 in 11 twist but don't know how that is going. DI would probably cut any thread you want but I'm sure he will recommend threading for a tuner. In my previous post I meant 1/2 not 5/8ths.

The mtu profile from DI is a true mtu, the Vudoo built rifle is also a MTU but it is a smaller profile and therefore quite a bit lighter.

A group from our area went to the rimfire PRS nationals last year and stopped by DI while we were down there. They are good people and easy to deal with just like vudoo. David gave us a tour around their shop and Chase Stroud was full of information, especially concerning the tuners.

 

[Bradu]

I bought a barreled action that Vudoo built and it's been great. It's a lot of fun to shoot and haven't had any complaints.

 

[GIXXER2000]

In my Vudoo the current 5 best shooting ammo are
1 Lapua Long Range /Super long range. I saw no difference other then the S L R being about $6 more a box.
The other 4 all shoot about the same.
2 Lapua Polar Biathlon
3 RWS 50
4 Eley Tenex
5 RWS Match Rifle

 

[warrantchief]

Thanks everyone. I'm currently torn on a couple topics, but working my way towards a decision. Still pondering 13t vs 16t and 1/2x28 threading for a suppressor or not. I'm leaning towards a factory vudoo with a threaded 16t bartlein mtu at 22"

 

[Rob01]

Thanks everyone. I'm currently torn on a couple topics, but working my way towards a decision. Still pondering 13t vs 16t and 1/2x28 threading for a suppressor or not. I'm leaning towards a factory vudoo with a threaded 16t bartlein mtu at 22"

Not a bad option. What my Gen 2 is and it’s very accurate.

 

[whatsupdoc]

I bought a new Vudoo and had them use a 52d reamer, shoots excellent. The only issue is you can NEVER extract a
live round. I knew this going in.

 

[ECK]

I ordered a Vudoo from VGW last winter after visiting with them at their shop in SGU and couldn’t be happier. Ended up going with a 22” 1.200” contour V-22 action since my other rifles are 90 deg throw. I did ask for it to be threaded, which they did despite their reluctance to thread the 1.200” to 1/2x28. I wanted it threaded to give me the option of running a can or tuner on it, but to be honest the way the rifle is shooting I doubt I’ll ever do that.

I came from a CZ w/ a 20” varmint barrel (.820” dia). It was a PITA to get it to balance right, so that’s why I wanted the 1.200” contour barrel. I did waffle between 22” and 24”, but was concerned with velocity drop (in retrospect, it probably wouldn’t have made much difference). If I had to do it again, I’d probably go with 24” non-threaded in 1.200” contour.

I dropped the Vudoo BA into an XLR Envy Pro chassis which balanced nicely without needing any weights on the chassis. Total weight w/ scope & bipod is 17 lbs and change. No feeding issues (XLR has an adjustable mag catch) and the rifle runs pretty sweet. My match finish at my local PRS22 and NRL22 matches jumped up ever since I started shooting the Vudoo, as I said: I couldn’t be happier.