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Terminus vs Curtis Quick Change

Jeremiah Johnson

Jeremiah Johnson

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Oct 19, 2019
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Texas
I am wanting to build a Quick Change Rifle. I am eyeing Terminus Zeus and the Curtis. Which do you prefer?

I already have 3 custom actions with shouldered prefits. So wanting something quick change to play with.

Anyone mess with both of them? I am going to use to put on my varmint rifle.

One barrel for Coyotes and then another with subsonic. Likely a 6Dasher (light weight version of my comp rifle) and 8.6BLK (just because). I know they won't be exact on POI for 2 totally different types of calibers.
 
I went terminus because the barrels were easier to find and I’ve been happy

ETA: some are saying Zeus QC barrels are interchangeable with Curtis. I went long action
 
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TEUFEL820 said:
I have a Curtis Axiom switch lug (WTO) and a Terminus Zeus. They are both great. I lean more towards the Terminus.
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how is the bolt lift on the zeus vs the curtis ?
 
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I just bought a qc valor and terminus prefit so I’ll let you know how it works out
 
Action should be here tomorrow barrel arrived today and is a tank lol proof comp contour 😂 I went with valor because I got a good deal on one in the px brand new but I don’t think you could go wrong with eather one I know that there was another brand new valor in px so you wouldn’t have to wait
 
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I have that proof barrel on my Impact for my Dasher. It is a beast of a barrel.

I am a lefty… So I am probably going to have to wait no matter which one I choose.
 
Jeremiah Johnson said:
I have that proof barrel on my Impact for my Dasher. It is a beast of a barrel.

I am a lefty… So I am probably going to have to wait no matter which one I choose.
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Oh yeah probably and yeah that barrel is heavy I have it on my tl3
 
I owned a vector for a relatively short period of time and sold it for a Zeus. The Valor fixed some issues on the vector so it’s not exactly a direct comparison but I much prefer the Zeus.

The Valor is suppose to be a great action, and they are very similar. The threaded trigger pins on the terminus is one of the best features on actions today!! That alone makes the decision easy for me between the two.

Joel (owner of terminus) is phenomenal as well! He’s extremely informative, friendly and willing to help out. Joel helped me some years back when I was in high school over the phone and emails. Back and forth on a project for some kid he never met! That was the main reason I switched to terminus, as I was looking to support Joel.
 
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I have both and both are great. I didn't have a good experience with terminus cs and had great experience with Curtis but I know some have had just the opposite. I shoot all 4 of my barrels in all 3 actions (I don't actually change which gets which barrel back and forth but can and have put them all on each action and they all headspace perfectly) and they all are terminus zeus barrels shot on 1 zues and 2 Valor actions. I kind of prefer running the Valors because of bolt lift but the zues seems to be "nicer" if that makes sense.
 
BuildingConceptsllc said:
I have both and both are great. I didn't have a good experience with terminus cs and had great experience with Curtis but I know some have had just the opposite. I shoot all 4 of my barrels in all 3 actions (I don't actually change which gets which barrel back and forth but can and have put them all on each action and they all headspace perfectly) and they all are terminus zeus barrels shot on 1 zues and 2 Valor actions. I kind of prefer running the Valors because of bolt lift but the zues seems to be "nicer" if that makes sense.
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Care to try and explain lol I know bolt lift is a hard one to explain
 
Ty21 said:
Care to try and explain lol I know bolt lift is a hard one to explain
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Yeah it is hard to explain. I think some may prefer the zues more snappy kind of feel and a little more of a "break" that's required to overcome to lift on the zeus, I just don't. The Valor is just a little less of a snap is the best way I can say it. When removing the firing pin it ceels like a stronger spring in the zeus so maybe thats it? Don't get me wrong though, I like the zeus a lot but there's a reason the barrels for the 6.5cm and 6cm are both on valors, because they are easier and more enjoyable for me to run and I shoot those way more than anything else. I don't even know how they are different feeling because they are almost identical in every way.
 
BuildingConceptsllc said:
Yeah it is hard to explain. I think some may prefer the zues more snappy kind of feel and a little more of a "break" that's required to overcome to lift on the zeus, I just don't. The Valor is just a little less of a snap is the best way I can say it. When removing the firing pin it ceels like a stronger spring in the zeus so maybe thats it? Don't get me wrong though, I like the zeus a lot but there's a reason the barrels for the 6.5cm and 6cm are both on valors, because they are easier and more enjoyable for me to run and I shoot those way more than anything else. I don't even know how they are different feeling because they are almost identical in every way.
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Oh okay that’s kinda makes sense so the valor is kinda like a 90 degree action where it just pops at the end. Kinda sounds like the tl3 I have it just does a light snap
 
Ty21 said:
Oh okay that’s kinda makes sense so the valor is kinda like a 90 degree action where it just pops at the end. Kinda sounds like the tl3 I have it just does a light snap
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No, the zues seems to have more snap to it when it shuts and when you lift it, the Valor is just less so that way . That's the best way I can describe it. It's not a huge amount of difference but I notice it when I go back and forth and they all have the exact same set up otherwise. Trigger, chassis, ect
 
Oh okay well I can’t wait for my valor to come in so I can try it what trigger are you running?
 
BuildingConceptsllc said:
Yeah it is hard to explain. I think some may prefer the zues more snappy kind of feel and a little more of a "break" that's required to overcome to lift on the zeus, I just don't. The Valor is just a little less of a snap is the best way I can say it. When removing the firing pin it ceels like a stronger spring in the zeus so maybe thats it? Don't get me wrong though, I like the zeus a lot but there's a reason the barrels for the 6.5cm and 6cm are both on valors, because they are easier and more enjoyable for me to run and I shoot those way more than anything else. I don't even know how they are different feeling because they are almost identical in every way.
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I have also felt what you are talking about. The Terminus has more snap to it compared to my Axiom. Most likely the firing spring weight is the difference in the feel. My Axiom feels softer and less stiffer bolt lift. As mentioned before the threaded trigger pins are great but not really a deciding factor unless you change triggers frequently. I see this as a benefit to have if I have to replace a trigger at a match on the fly and just needing an Allen key. I drifted towards Terminus mainly because of the customer service. Customer service can make or break a company no matter how good your product is....
 
I’ve got an Apollo, a valor qc, and an axiom. I can say that I significantly prefer running the Apollo over both curtis actions. The coating is definitely better on the terminus. It runs much smoother, even after I had over 1k rounds on the valor. I find the Apollo to actually feel lighter on bolt lift than both curtis actions. I’d expect the Zeus to be similar. The bolt handle is also a touch shorter on the terminus, which translates to an even quicker bolt throw feel (to me anyway).

Another fun fact is apparently the coating that curtis used on his bolts is softer than that used on the action body, resulting in bolt/lug wear that’s significantly increasing headspace. Mine increased by and 6 thou over the course of around 1800 rounds. That bolt got replaced. It’s my understanding that he’s in process right now of resolving that.

The only reason I’m going to hang on to the valor is because I have the 22lr conversion kit with a qc barrel. I’ll likely sell off the axiom and get a zeus qc soon.
 
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FLguy55 said:
I’ve got an Apollo, a valor qc, and an axiom. I can say that I significantly prefer running the Apollo over both curtis actions. The coating is definitely better on the terminus. It runs much smoother, even after I had over 1k rounds on the valor. I find the Apollo to actually feel lighter on bolt lift than both curtis actions. I’d expect the Zeus to be similar. The bolt handle is also a touch shorter on the terminus, which translates to an even quicker bolt throw feel (to me anyway).

Another fun fact is apparently the coating that curtis used on his bolts is softer than that used on the action body, resulting in bolt/lug wear that’s significantly increasing headspace. Mine increased by and 6 thou over the course of around 1800 rounds. That bolt got replaced. It’s my understanding that he’s in process right now of resolving that.

The only reason I’m going to hang on to the valor is because I have the 22lr conversion kit with a qc barrel. I’ll likely sell off the axiom and get a zeus qc soon.
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Thanks! Talked to terminus and probably ordering today. He had a quick lead time for the one I want.
 
Crossbow Hunter said:
If you don’t mind me asking, what action and lead time? I am going to call him in the morning to place an order for a short action Zeus with full length threads.
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Well having recently ordered one, the turn around for my short action was right at 30 days. My long action is still pending. Just order and forget about it.

Ordered first week of November.
 
I have both of these actions and agree with much that has been said. I have had the Curtis for about six years. The biggest thing for me was having to file down the feed lips on magazines so the bolt will not catch on them. I also had to round off the corners of the action above the feed ramps to run AW magazines. maybe it was just my action but I doubt it since they are very tight tolerances.

That being said as soon as I got everything to work I have had zero issues with it and it has burned multiple barrels. The reason to go with the Terminus was due to the trigger pins and to compare. I can confirm the "snappy" part as well but the Curtis is well worn in and it would not be fair to make a judgement on that.
 
B1C7DA48-80F4-4856-800C-0AB92DFA4219.jpeg

Picked it up this week
 
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Following up to my previous comment, I’ve also got my hands on a zeus qc to run along with my valor qc. As expected, the zeus just feels nicer and smoother, same as my apollo. I couldn’t be happier.

I shot a match this past weekend with the valor where my bolt stop decided to fail on the 3rd stage and my bolt started randomly leaving my action while cycling. That made for a fun day. I had the same issue with my axiom back in 2020. These continued issues with curtis actions are getting frustrating, especially when they’re known and are still not resolved. Hopefully this bolt doesn’t also wear down like the last one did.

Cool thing is I can move all my barrels between the actions at will. Once I get the Zeus bedded into its new chassis, it’ll certainly be my primary rig.
 
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I have an axiom and I was shooting last week with a guy shooting a Zeus. Man, there is not much difference in those actions. I may not be tuned up on coatings, but running them side by side, they are nearly identical in function. Both 60°, both 3 lug. They even look alike. I was told the zues bolt body is a couple thousands thinner, but they look identical side by side. I really don't have any complaints about my axiom. Maybe I just got a good one.
 
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Hecouldgoalltheway said:
I have an axiom and I was shooting last week with a guy shooting a Zeus. Man, there is not much difference in those actions. I may not be tuned up on coatings, but running them side by side, they are nearly identical in function. Both 60°, both 3 lug. They even look alike. I was told the zues bolt body is a couple thousands thinner, but they look identical side by side. I really don't have any complaints about my axiom. Maybe I just got a good one.
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The Axiom works just fine but I would argue the Zeus is a good sized and cost-justified step up. Big differences between the two are the recoil lug & rail are integral on the Zeus, the Zeus provides the QC option, the Zeus is fully coated, the Zeus does have the slightly narrower bolt diameter to supposedly help with feeding using certain cartridges and mags, the Zeus can accept AW mags, Zeus has a thicker recoil lug. Some people find all these differences tangible, some do not. For me, the QC is a big one and having run an Apollo next to my Axiom for a while I can confidently say the Terminus actions feel much better in comparison. It's hard to explain until you're behind a Terminus and actually feeding ammo with one live. Just cycling two actions next to each other rarely tells much of the story.

The Terminus Apollo most certainly is the sort of Axiom 2.0 and is better. Same with the Zeus vs Valor. Better coatings, smoother, lighter bolt lift, shorter lift. For a budget-minded, fully featured action, the Apollo is incredible.
 
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Queation for the Terminus experts here:

Will Terninus Apollo short action prefit barrels install and headspace correctly in Terminus Zeus short actions (or similar Curtis short actions) for a given caliber with correct bolt face?
 
CaseFinder said:
Queation for the Terminus experts here:

Will Terninus Apollo short action prefit barrels install and headspace correctly in Terminus Zeus short actions (or similar Curtis short actions) for a given caliber with correct bolt face?
Click to expand...
No
 
CaseFinder said:
Queation for the Terminus experts here:

Will Terninus Apollo short action prefit barrels install and headspace correctly in Terminus Zeus short actions (or similar Curtis short actions) for a given caliber with correct bolt face?
Click to expand...
No the Recoil lug thickness is different. On my Axiom I bought a .300 thick recoil lug to run some of my old Valor /Zues barrels
 
Wanted to see if anyone could help me out but I have the Apollo action myself and was wondering it can be used on a stock inletted for the Axiom? I'll probably email the manufacturer also but thought I might have a quicker answer here.

Thanks!
 
Reaper 31 said:
Wanted to see if anyone could help me out but I have the Apollo action myself and was wondering it can be used on a stock inletted for the Axiom? I'll probably email the manufacturer also but thought I might have a quicker answer here.

Thanks!
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You can Google the prints for them I'm pretty sure
 
I am looking at putting together a rifle using the terminus zues action. I have a few questions, as far as triggers go I want to use a trigger tech. Would I get the trigger with or without bolt release? I believe the zues has a side bolt release?

Also, I am looking at running the long action but getting another bolt with 308 bolt face to run SA cartridges as well. Has anyone here attempted that? If so, what bottom metal and magazines would I need to be able to do that?
 
Jeremiah Johnson said:
The Zeus has a bolt release on the action. I have a trigger tech diamond with mine
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I am looking at trigger techs website, and some of the triggers have the option of getting a bolt release or not getting one. Does it matter if I get a diamond with bolt release? Would it still work with the zues action?
 
Get a trigger without the bolt release. I believe there’s a video on Joel’s Instagram page of running 6.5cm in a long action but I’m not 100% on that.
 
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Cagey-platpus said:
I am looking at trigger techs website, and some of the triggers have the option of getting a bolt release or not getting one. Does it matter if I get a diamond with bolt release? Would it still work with the zues action?
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The bolt release function is already built in your action, as noted above in post #44.
 
I don’t know anything else about it, but it does look like he shared it from Barbour creek
 
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