I think factory rifle quality and value really went downhill a couple decades ago. Two of the last three factory rifles I have bought were defective and I had to return them. One was a higher end bolt action and the other a gorgeous lever action. Oddly, the one that wasn’t defective and pleasantly surprised me was an AR. I once waited two years with only one update for a custom rifle. I honestly thought I would never hear back from the builder. More than a year after I gave up on it, it just showed up on my doorstep. But then again, several years ago I had a custom SML built and it was fairly quick and turned out to be an amazing rifle I still use often.
For what it’s worth, I don’t seem to have much trouble finding some great values in handguns. Not surprising then that’s where I’ve been spending more of my money lately.
