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Medium Actions

Good Boi

Private
Minuteman
Mar 21, 2019
70
11
Sadly, California.
Invitation to discuss medium actions in general.
Below are some of the notable traits traits I've seen:
  • Lone Peak
    • Integral picatinny rail and lug
    • Lots of prefits
    • Titanium option
    • Nitride
    • M-16 style extractor
  • Zermatt
    • Origin supports WTO and HLR lugs
    • Integral lug on TL3, Ti3, & SR3
    • Interchangeable bolt faces
    • Mechanical ejection
    • Lots of prefits
    • Titanium option
    • Tang options
    • DLC and/or nitride
    • Savage style extractor?
  • Defiance XM Plus
    • Most customizable
    • Nitride optional
    • M-16 style extractor
  • BAT Vesper
    • 17-4 steel is comparable in weight to titanium alternatives.
    • Integral picatinny rail and lug
    • Longest COAL using UM bottom metal
    • Interchangeable bolt bodies.
    • Nitride
    • M-16 style extractor
  • Stiller
    • No clue, do people actually buy these with the other options being available?
Oddballs:
  • Tikka
    • Probably most economical, is very lightweight, and has an amazing trigger with just the change of a spring
    • No chassis options that accept MDT medium action magazines
    • 70 degree bolt throw
    • Sako extractor
  • Defiance XM
    • Probably no point to getting this now that the XM Plus is out.
Would love to hear corrections or additions to the above, comparisons, etc. Much appreciated.
 
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Is the tikka the only one listed that isn’t 90 degree? I think bolt throw would be worth noting
 
I've been looking into this as well. Seems to be the best of both for the PRC, sauna, and anything of the 284 win variants. Could even run a long 260 Remington. The major mind duck is the stock with the right bottom metal and mags. Anyone have any solid info on those pieces.
 
Medium action chassis' are available from XLR, MPA, and MDT. Foundation said there are MA inlet stocks on the way. Uknown munitions has a bottom metal, I'm sure there are some other brands out there too. I think Stockey's might have some stock options. I personally went with an MPA Matrix chassis.
 
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McMillan, Manners, AG, TS Customs will all inlet for medium actions. M5 medium bdl and hunter dbm are available. I have not found a m5 tactical style dbm that takes the mdt medium length 10rd aics mags. They do work in their chassis tho, my buddy uses them on his Badrock southfork which is on essentially a xm length tenacity that utilized a coned breech crf defiance action.
 
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My medium action sits in a pure precision carbon fiber stock. Bottom metal is unknown munitions, because it is a hunting rifle and the initial chambering is 7-08 AI loaded a bit long.
They have a .308 based medium magazine that will work with cartridges like the 6.5 swede, 7x57 and 8x57.
We did have to mod the magazine to seat properly with an origin action.
 
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Fdkay thanks for that info. I'll check them out
The bottom metal and magazine are both very well made, we had to mill off a bit from both the front and back of the magazine.
It feeds flawlessly, my only gripe is there is no taper in either the magazine or the magazine well and they have to be aligned perfectly for the mag to go in. Here are photos of the modification
 

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Ok thanks for that little tidbit. I take it that's there hunter style mag.3 rounds?
Are there any 10 round ones that fit there bottom metal?
I'm looking to build a hunting/ target in 1 stock for now
 
Ok thanks for that little tidbit. I take it that's there hunter style mag.3 rounds?
Are there any 10 round ones that fit there bottom metal?
I'm looking to build a hunting/ target in 1 stock for now
No 10 Rd mags that'll fit the hawkins hunter dbm. Mdt makes a 10rd 3.25" internal mag, but I don't know if/what bottom metals it works with other than their medium cut chassis.
 
Ok thanks for that little tidbit. I take it that's there hunter style mag.3 rounds?
Are there any 10 round ones that fit there bottom metal?
I'm looking to build a hunting/ target in 1 stock for now
There is a 10 round magazine for .308 based cartridges for the hawkins (medium action), but no 3 or 5 round ones. You can buy the 10 rounder and there is a guy the can mod it to 5 rounds. That puts your single magazine cost to about 230 bucks. (It's 120 plus change for the modification)
My rifle is strictly a hunting rifle, so I went with the unknown munitions.
 
Thanks for the info - will be trying those MDT mags in a TS Customs XM/Manners 300 WSM.
 
Is there a list of cartridges the medium is appropriate for? Wishful thinking that a 7prc would fit?
 
Is there a list of cartridges the medium is appropriate for? Wishful thinking that a 7prc would fit?
I know that unknown munitions built a 7 prc on a medium action, but if you look at the numbers, you're really cutting its nuts off. 7 Saum is a better option in a medium action, but then you are almost exclusively handloading.
 
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Ya you can’t really load heavier projectiles in a 7 PRC / medium action build without single loading it. You may have luck with the lighter projectiles but you’re better off just getting a long action for 7 PRC. Alternatively, you could go with a Tikka, which I believe is in between a medium and a long action.
 
I have considered building a TL3 Medium action for a 6.5 PRC.
 
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Anything 284 Winchester and smaller/ shorter would do good on a medium action. 260 AI and 7-08 AI loaded long. I'm feeling some barrels in 257 Roberts AI as well. All the saums would benefit