The 223 bolt gun is, as they say, a niche item.
I'm not trying to start an argument here, because we all see things the way we want to see them, but I don't see it as a niche item. I shoot my 223 bolt rifles a lot more than I do my AR's, and even though I have a few AR's that are very accurate, I consider my bolt rifles to be more so. I have 3 bolt 223's, a M7 stainless, M7 Predator, and a 700 XCR Compact Tactical. The Predator is the most accurate, followed closely by the XCR, The little stainless 223 is my truck gun, and it shoots as good as my most accurate AR.
I expect someone will say that maybe I don't have an "accurate" AR, but that's not the case. It may very well be that I am partial to bolt action rifles for hunting, as that's what I grew up hunting with. I just prefer them over an AR for most of my uses, and go to great lengths finding accurate loads for them. I'm sure I'm not the only one who does that either.
On a side note, a year or so ago I snagged one of those 700 ADL 223's that Walmart had marked down on clearance at $89. I had the 24 inch barrel cut back to 20 inches, restocked to a BDL style, and experiment with some reloads until I found one it liked. Gave it to my son, and he's now using it for a coyote rifle because he likes it better than the AR he was using.
