Has anyone on the fire even seen a Forbes rifle in the flesh? There was a bunch of hoop la and magazine articles, but no rifles. I personally called Forbes rifles twice and spoke with a really nice lady that could not tell me anything about delivery. I e-mailed both Melvin and some other guy three times and was never responded too. Seems very un Melvin like. I kind of gave up. I was just trying to find out a price and how to maybe get one. I am guessing there must have been some sort of problem with the new product or delivery. That's ok, but I'm not the east bit impressed with the Forbes co as far as communication. Seem a bit bogus to create the hype and not follow thru. As a product manager I understand there can be hang ups etc when launching a new product, but that is no excuse for poor communication .

If you're talking about the ones made in Maine, they are for real. Co worker has a friend who works there in the factory. They are slowly turning them out, but he hasn't said when they will hit the shelves yet.

Glad to hear it. I have met Melvin at the shot show a couple of times and he was a really nice man and very knowledgable . I'm thinking about one of the new rifles, but just have not been able to get any information from the Forbes Co. I guess patience is in order (not one of my best qualities )thanks for the feedback.
Goodshot

There's a Forbes rifle on Gunbroker right now.

Just checked it out. It has potential....Wonder what it will go for?

A 270 no less. Going to be interesting. Good looking rifle from the posted photos.

Not that good looking or desirable a rifle to my view. It lacks a safety that controls the firing pin, CRF, and if your going to have a plastic stock then why not SS?



http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=297245808

http://www.forbesriflellc.com/

It screams!!! Remington

Most modern day solid rifles do.

Yep. Melvin Forbes and remington both make rifles. That however is where the comparison ends.

Still looks like a Remmy

who uses a safety?

so, how much is one of these remington look-alike rifles?

Aout $1500

MSRP is $1400 according to the recent article in American Hunter. (August '12)

donsm70

Ever handle a NULA or CLR?

The Forbes rifle is worlds apart even though it took some of the better features from the Remington. I'm glad Remington doesn't even come close so we have fine rifles like these on the market.

Just need a Left hand Forbes rifle now.

I couldnt justify a blued push feed for 1500$. Even given its obvious quality.

A 1500$ SS Forbes would really make Kimber sweat/step up their game though. As well as get my attention.

Not much interest on the auction. Very few views for something that's drawn attention since it was introduced.....

Please explain the differences in the NULA, CLR and Forbes for me, I assume you've handled all?

i was expecting the price to be considerably higher...

i came very close to buying a model 20 in 22-250 back in 1990 when i first began to seriously delve into the construction of these rigs (and if i recall correctly, i saw a photo of one for the first time in an article in a guns and ammo magazine published in October 1985--the article may have been called "space-age stocks" and written by jon sundra).

i decided to call and talk to melvin at that time--to get any/all information firsthand--we had a great visit, and he answered all of my questions very patiently--and i became even more interested in the rifle, the precision construction, the very light weight, the method of bedding it by "wedging the barreled action into the stock", and the materials in the stock itself--and at that time my dealer told me the tariff would be $2100.00, and though expensive, it seemed like a fitting price for a rifle so well thought out, and constructed.

with the rig costing about 2100 back then--over 20 years ago--what might be the reason why they are apparently going to sell for so much less today--are they in fact essentially the same rifle/construction?

Very familiar with the NULA and CLR I have not handled a Forbes rifle. All three basically have a custom tubular action scaled down to fit the cartridge with garand style extractor. NULA is a custom or semi custom rifle, CLR is the M28 but different trigger, barrel, firing pin, stock and trigger guard.

The Forbes from what I can tell is identical to the M24 but out sourced action and barrel. I do not think there will be any loss in tolerances or quality control on the Forbes Rifle. It is the production set up and process that can reduce the cost.

You couldn't build a rifle like the Forbes for that price. A custom action alone will be around $1,000 bare and it will weigh more. Just the parts would run over $2,000.

I'm sure the first Forbes rifles out of the box will come close to the real deal and some will be their equal. Presently all involved with the Forbes rifle are paying attention. Down the road when it becomes just another rifle to those putting them together and they try to get another couple rifles out before making sure all the tooling is up to snuff and squared away, you may run into some that are not the equal. Mr. Forbes will not be there to watch over the birthing like he is when they come out of his WV shop. He will not be there to shoot them, although he doesn't shoot each and every rifle that comes out of that shop. However, he is there to shoot them if problems are discovered-and believe me, he is a better than good hand at the bench-and will personally discover any real problems if they exist. Part of the extra cost is having an almost iron clad guarantee that it will be done right the first time.

Melvin knows how to make his rifle. It will be interesting to see how many buy a Forbes-remember once they get up and going, his hands on will be essentially limited to supplying the stock-and are or are not satisfied.

When they make a model chambered in 7-08, I'll buy one.

It's a blued .270. Can't sink much lower than that.

If it was a stainless '06 I'd be bidding.

I'll take one of those to

I wish it had been. Beer and Gunbroker don't mix well. Looks like I'll be trying one out soon...in a 270 no less.

You bought it? Congrats!!

Yeah. I was the only bidder. Up late Friday or Saturday(?) -- thought what the heck. I really expected to get sniped. I'm still surprised there wasn't more interest. Only about 290 views is five days and I was probably 50 of those!

I imagine a lot of folks aren't actively looking for them now because they don't know they're available. You can chalk me up for a half dozen of those 290 views, I would have never known it was there unless for this thread.

Congratulations on the new rifle, I'd be interested to hear your opinion of the rifle once you get your paws on it and shoot it.

Great, hoping it is everything you expect. I'm thinking it will be.

Thanks Battue.

The more I read, the more I liked it. My assessment may be a little optimistic, but it appears the rifle is a Nula at less than half the price. Granted the barrel is ER Shaw and I'm sure it's not hand fitted as well as Melvin does his custom jobs, but I'm hoping its close. If given the choice, I would have chosen a 7-08 or maybe a 308, but those aren't in production at this price.

I know it's not stainless, but that really doesn't bother me. I have stainless rifles that can be pulled into duty when needed.

My expectations are simple. I want it to perform as well as a faux Nula should....nothing more, nothing less.

Congrats, please do a follow up when you see how it shoots.

It is about the price of a CLR/NULA clone and should be as good or better. I would buy one in complete faith that if it wasn't as expected the worst thing that could happen would be a trip back to NULA.

Waiting for a lefty model.

I look forward to seeing the range results from your late night acquisition.

My Forbes finally arrived today. Long story.

I just got in from my 5 year olds flag football practice. I'll post some pics of the bedding and stuff as soon as I get the tribe to bed.

It does have a nice trigger......

Even though these are not custom-made NULA's, Melvin is supervising production every step of the way. They ARE being built the way he wants them to be (he is part owner of the "out-source" company), and in my experience Shaw barrels are very comparable to Douglas barrels these days.

The price is lot less than a NULA because of no options other than .25-06, .270 or .30-06, and mass production of the action.

I'll know more soon, as a .30-06 is supposed to turn up any day for testing, but heard really good things from another gun writer who tested a prototype.

The barrel measures .615" at the muzzle. That's a good thing in my book. The bolt is a little stiff, but I'm sure it will smooth up. Fit and finish is nice! I ran some factory ammo through it for feeding and it was perfect. A couple of bedding pictures below.



Full length bedding..no big pillar in the rear. The manual says 80lbs on the front screw and 36lbs on the rear.

Interesting facts....

http://www.forbesriflellc.com/FAQs.aspx

Oh hot damn...

I like the looks of that. If you don't mind, how does the 2pos.- 3 function safety work? Does it lock the bolt when ON?

When the safety is on, the bolt is locked. You can depress (push straight down) on the safety and then work the bolt with the safety still engaged.

I thought that may be how, but I've never handled a ULA/NULA/CLR/Forbes.

If they offer a 260 Rem as part of the short action offering I may have to start stealing from the kiddos college fund. I think I could REALLY like one of those. If my willpower doesn't hold out, I'm sure any of their offerings between .277 and .308 in the 24B wouldn't suck either.

Oh boy, all I need is one of these then send it to Mickey Coleman for the .280 AI reamer treatment then I will be in the high cotton.


I guess I better start saving the egg money and deciding which rifles are going to be culled out for cash.

Please post a range report when you get a good load worked up.Actually,I would like to see the bad as well as the good,even how factory ammo does.I am interested to see the consistency with different ammo and loads.

Honestly, I've not decided if I'm going to keep it or not. I bought it in a moment of weakness and the 270 is not my thing. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with a 270 -- I'm just a 308 family guy.

It's a super nice rifle. I may buy a couple boxes of factory stuff and shoot it this weekend. I may even work up a couple of handloads. I have some old 270 handloading stuff around.

Oh yeah! Lots of interesting info there. The fact that they have put that out there is nice....means they are listening to folks and doing something about what they hear....and letting us know what they are doing....NICE!

I was surprised they shared all of that info. That's the way it should be!! I see a stainless 20B in my near future...maybe more than one!

I had thoughts of purchasing a 308 Montana. I think I'll wait until I can try a 20B now...

Range report -- I rushed home from work and mounted a VX2 2-7. I ran a few patches down the bore and headed out back. I don't have any hand loads developed yet, so I had lastround pic me up some factory blue box Federal 130's.



Performed my usual bore sighting routine, then fired one at 25 yards. Adjusted scope and fired one more to verify adjustments. Put up a target at 100 and fired a 3 shot group. I waited two minutes between shots. The first group from the Forbes:



Went out and checked the target, came back, adjusted the scope and put 3 more in the gun. I waited three minutes between shots on the second group. It was getting dark quick, but the barrel was warming up too. This is the second group from the rifle:



Needless to say, I'm happy. I'm going to start working up a few loads tomorrow with the 130 NBT and H4831sc. I think the rifle has some potential!! Actually, I'd be more than satisfied if it performed exactly like it did today...

Good to see it clicking right away. I've got about 3 months to wait for my .270Win. Do you have any 150gr. Partitions to try?
Keep us posted with your subsequent range reports.

I'll be buying more bullets tomorrow at Whittaker's. I have about 20 of the old Nosler solid base 130's and full box of 130gr NBT's. They're pretty deep in Nosler, Barnes and Hornady out there. I'll buy a little variety and post results -- good or bad.

Very nice! Looks like it is gonna be a shooter.

That's about the way my ULA .270 shoots blue box 130s. Keep us posted on how the other loads shoot.

I think one of these in .25-06 would be fun to play with.

If that bad boy comes out in a lefty in 270 or 280 I'm gonna get brain damage trying to figure out which one I want!!! I've got a Remy 7600 in 280 but would prolly go 270 with the Forbes, just cuz...

Model 20 Lefty would sure get me twitching.............<grin>

Nice and thanks for shaing. Do you have a scale? I'd like to know the weight field-ready.

Oh yeah, I could fly with one of those!

Dober

Digging around the Forbes web site, I noticed the price list for current and future 24B rifle offerings.

http://www.forbesriflellc.com/Catalog/RetailPricing.aspx

What is the weight with scope?

Don't know yet. I plan on borrowing a scale tomorrow. Mine is not working. I will say it feels heavier than the advertised weight, but I could be wrong. I'll know for sure tomorrow...I'll post a pic showing the weight.

I had the same impression after handling one at the NRA convention. I think it's just a very solid rifle with a stock that isn't skimpy and is very firm and rigid. Will be watching for your results.

I'd be surprised if they weigh the advertised 5.25 pounds with a .615 muzzle. My .270 with a #2 Douglas goes about 5.75 before scope.

By the way in my ULA, 5.75 pounds with a #2'ish barrel balances and handles well. If that is roughly what these are I may have to get one of in .25-06, stainless with a blued action.

Why the preference for a blued action with stainless barrel?

In theory, chrome moly is less susceptible to galling. Also, the barrel is where I worry about rust, less so the action. I kind of like the two-tone look also.

this is just me but, if it weighs 5.75 and not 5.25 that'd be fine with me

Dober

Me too, especially with a little weight out front and .615 muzzle.

Busy day, so I didn't have time for much load development or shooting. I picked up a box of Hornady 150's early this morning. I loaded 3 rounds of 130 NBT's and 3 of the 150 HILFB. I loaded both loads .030 off the lands. I used H4831sc for both bullets and chose a mid-range charge for both bullets. 57 for the 130's and 55.5 for the 150's.





IMO, not bad for thrown together rushed loads. Tomorrow I'll start real load development with the 130's. I'll increase the powder charge and I might mess with OAL as well. Loads will be checked for velocity too. I fully expect to see something that really shines!

I've only shot four, three shot 100 yard groups with the rifle. I'm impressed so far. I truly believe I'll find several bullet/powder combo's that will average around an inch or less.

Just weighed the rifle. I didn't have the opportunity to weigh it bare. After subtracting the weight of the VX2 2-7 and the Talley's, I'm guessing the bare rifle weighed approximately 5.6ish lbs. 6.4lbs all up or about 6lbs 6ozs....I can live with that.

Not bad by any standard, I bet 60 gr of H4831sc will cut that group by a third. and give you around 3100 to 3200 fps. Its going to be a superb hunting rifle for you. The whole thing at about 7 lbs carry don't get any better that than. Going to have to get one next year!!

That's really decent grouping for the first time out and just
guessing on loads. Load tweaking could get her to at least
3/4" groups.

Those are really nice targets. Where did you find them? Who
makes them? Thanks

Danno

I ordered the targets out of the Varmint Hunter magazine. They're called WriteOn Targets. I don't have a website, but I do have a phone number 1-800-528-4868. You may be able to order them from varmint hunter.org--I don't know?

I've loaded a few more at 59 and 60 grains. If the wind dies a little, I'll try them later.

That's fairly impressive,especially with a 7X scope.I love the VX2 2-7 and think it is a perfect choice for that rifle but I can shoot much tighter groups with more magnification.I like to use 12X or slightly more to test accuracy.

Those Write-On targets by Briarbank are also available from Sinclair's catalog (a bit cheaper from VHM, though). I think the design was by Layne Simpson if I remember correctly.

You may not be doing a good job of putting together a target/distance/reticle combination for your lower magnification scopes. With a capable rifle and load it's not big problem to hold half MOA to 300 yards with a 6x scope and the right target.

SAS - Who had the rifle? I mean they are rarer then hens teeth unless your a writer...

Friend called today and they said delivery in 120 days... again....

Saw the link where you bought it....

Like I said in the beginning, beer and Gunbroker don't mix. As time passed, I had every intention of selling it as soon as I got it. The 270 isn't my thing...nothing wrong with a 270, just not my thing.

Even after it shipped, I really didn't know if I would even shoot it. I'm glad I did! I've not had much (any) luck with light rifles in the past. After I had the rifle in my hands, I knew I had to try it out. It is an extremely nice rifle. In my opinion, it's light done right. Having a .615" muzzle doesn't hurt things. I truly believe this rifle could easily be a 3/4" inch gun (3 shots).

I may still sell the rifle soon....but I know I'll be all over the 20B when it hits the shelf. I see multiples of that rifle ending up in my safe.

FYI--I put the rifle in the classifieds here. I had to try it out and glad I did! I can't wait for the 20B to be released....

Just giving you all a heads up if anyone is interested.

I like these a lot. If they will release one in .243, it's gonna be high on my list.