Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles One NULA for all of North America?

I'd love to dig up a thread from 15 years ago on this same topic. I imagine the word magnum would have appeared more frequently. A do-it-all, if you are going to include big bears, would start at the 30-06 for me. Whoop, that choice is a good one. Take big bears off the list, and that opens up options considerably. I'd have a hard time passing up a 6.5 PRC for the task. Load it way down to Creedmoor levels if you want something easy on the shoulder, or run it full speed for potent medicine on larger game.

I wrote Barrett about doing just that with the Fieldcraft. Me and one other person want one from what I have seen in their comment section. Haven't looked in awhile though.

Actions are made for Melvin. Out of 3 Nula’s and one Montana re-barrel with Douglas, all clean easily. His rifles and stocks are made in house-at one time his garage-stocks are painted by another away from the shop. Melvin oversees perhaps 4 or 5 employees and his phone rings constantly with people who want to buy or talk rifles. Melvin shoots the finished product.

You think Barrett has his hands on every rifle that leaves the shop?

Between 7mm-08 and .284W, Melvin said 7mm-08 is the winner based on the constant availability of good brass.

Different loads do most often come close to the same POI. Close, but not 3 inches away or on top of one another.

Been to his shop perhaps 5 times and unless things have changed, I’m not guessing.

I have a ULA 7 08, 30.06, and 300 Win as well as the 284. All good shooters and nice rifles. Any of them would work for your purposes.

The "I'd go .284W" always gives me a chuckle, when today, he probably would go 7mm-08.

Things have changed. . .Melvin is doing almost all the work himself now. Since the coal mines re-opened and one or more employees retired, the wait time is somewhat longer. I have had his .284 for 15 years, no issues at all with it. Just received the ultimate imo for everything, a 24" .338-06. I have known Melvin for 48 years and am honored to have more than 1 of his. The .338-06 was engraved with his signature, a rarity. His rifles are an opportunity, not merely a commodity. He has built about 7000 of them since the 1980s.

As Elmer Keith decided in the 1940s, the .33 based on the 06 case is the way to go, unless you go "high velocity" as he called it.

Well Sir I've shot 284 Wins since 1965 when I was 12 years old. Melvin made me my first 284 in 1990 and I now have 3. I am kind of partial to that rifle since I have carried it all over North America from the Brooks Range in AK to the Baja in MX and most places in between. While the 284 may not be the "in cartridge" right now I like mine just fine and yes I'd order another one. You ever even shoot one?

Fast forward this video to the 5:35 mark

https://hah.life/video/yHZiaHsFzw2Q...-%20Melvin%20Forbes%20And%20His%20Rifles

I do believe that at one point in time Melvin had hands on all his rifles, either he doesn’t anymore or age is having its effect on him. My first rifle was shipped with a crooked trigger, sticking out past the right side of the trigger guard. It was the first thing I noticed when I got the rifle, then I noticed a couple small chips in the paint (even the paint seemed easy to scuff off). This was my first Nula so I wasn’t sure if this was normal, I called Melvin and told him this is the sort of QC I’d expect from a $500 factory rifle not a $3800 semi custom order.

If I were ever to buy another Nula it would be second hand and no newer than 2014, after he lost his cnc operator and his painter, his workload got too big for him to teach those skills to new employees, those two guys were a huge part of the Nula’s the legend was built on.

You are right....





And Douglas barrels suck....

I concur. A Fieldcraft in 270 covers a lot of ground. The Kimber Talkeetna covers what is left.

Get something else, but your words tell what you have always wanted....The mind is a strange unit....

Hi Joe, I suppose I can't see any reason for a NULA if you already own the Fieldcraft. It's essentially the same thing, unless of course you "must have" a NULA in 30-06... but I just can't see what it's going to do for you the 270 doesn't do, ballistic minutiae aside.

Shoot, no, just going off of what he told me.

Now I do own a NULA .22LR, .223AI, .22-250, 7mm-08 along with one of his smokeless muzzleloaders. You shot all of them?

And while I haven’t been to most places in between, I did shoot one of two Mountain Goats with the 7mm-08.

I’m not going to talk about accuracy with you because it’s a personal opinion and clearly we have different opinions on accuracy. I didn’t say Douglas barrels suck, I said they are average. My son’s youth model savage axis will print patterns like the ones you posted with factory ammo, After I seen the results guys were getting with their Barrett Fieldcraft’s I sold my Nula’s. It doesn’t matter who built my rifle because they won’t be there holding my hand while I shoot.

The target I posted the picture of was made with a 7rem mag the first day I had it at the range. I sighted the rifle in at 100yds, shot over a chronograph, then entered the info into my ballistic calculator then went straight out to 1000yds.

Here are my first 3 shots at 1000yds, one shot is at the -1” mark on the left hand side of the target. Had approximately a 10mph crosswind left to right and was holding about 5’ left of center. This rifle comes in at about 8-1/2lb with a 28oz scope and sling, My Nula came in at about 6-1/4lb with an 11oz scope and no sling,

bigwhoop. “for all of North America”, you didn’t list it! .338 WM! Maybe “not” the best for extended varmint shooting sessions, but for “all” big game.....a sub 9 pound .338 WM is very hard to beat! memtb

The Douglas post was a general comment re all who mentioned them and not just you. Although for some reason your sensitivity side was poked. Didn’t mean to, but you just happened to be part of Mule Deers post.

Now, Nice shooting, but you have made a mistake if you think I couldn’t do the same, if I put my mind to it. Or that I care all that much what you shoot, use or how good you are at it. .

Shotguns have always interested me more than rifles, but I do find them interesting.

RBO,

Gee, and I thought a .37 group was OK for 200 yards....

You're right, many rifles shoot extremely well these days, and I've owned Ruger Americans that shot as well as many custom rifles. Had 6.5 CM which shot a 5-shot 100-yard group of .33 with the first handload tried. But it did not weigh under 6 pounds scoped--in fact was about like your 7mm Remington Mag.

But in my limited experience with Fieldcrafts is they don't shoot as well as the majority of NULAs tried over the years, and I have tried quite a few NULAs. On the other hand, have not shot any NULAs made in the last decade.

Yup do have a 22LR and a 260 Rem. All of mine are ULA's and yes I also shot 2 Mountain Goats with my 284 as well as about 20 North American Rams all four kinds, Mountain Caribou, Elk several, Mule Deer, Whitetail Deer, Antelope, and have probably forgotten a few. What else you got?

I don’t mean to imply that I have shooting skills you don’t posses, I’m sure you can shoot tight groups...... with a capable rifle.

A Nula is no doubt a nice rifle, but so are Fieldcraft’s, Kimber’s, and several other rifles. What I’ve found is carbon wrapped barrels offer a great balance of light weight and accuracy. The Christensen Ridgeline is in my opinion one of the best values dollar for dollar in the lightweight market. I don’t think they quite qualify as an ultralight weight rifle but the accuracy they offer outweighs the extra few oz saved with a conventional #1 contour barrel imo. Plus they come out of the box with a muzzle brake and thread protector, I had one in 300rum that was a pussycat to shoot, try that with a Nula or Fieldcraft, lol.

You know, I did a lot of research before settling on my first Nula, before owning one I had Tikka ultralites, Sako Finnlights, Kimber Montana’s along with my go to model 70 Featherweight. After reading many reviews, some of yours included I decided on the Nula.

My first Nula had a couple issues, but I was able to get about 3/4 moa out of it. I figured maybe I got the 1/1,000,000 that wasn’t perfect so I figured I’d buy the second one. In the interim I bought a Forbes in 25-06, that rifle was shooting 1/2” moa with factory ammo! Then my second Nula arrived and along with the safety issue I could only get 1-1/4 moa out of it, although admittedly I only owned it for a few months before I sold it.

A Nula is a good ultralight weight hunting rifle, but in my opinion is no better than a Forbes, Fieldcraft, or Kimber Montana (I’m just basing my opinion of the Fieldcraft off of reviews as I’ve never owned one).

I missed the part where your group was shot at 200yds, that’s a pretty nice group!