Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Defiance Machine has been bought out....

Defiance Machine has been sold to the Extreme Group (Bob Beck).....same company that bought out McMillan stocks.

Not sure what to think about this one...😳

Not great if you ask me. McMillan isn't the same company since being taken over. One has to wonder what changes are coming to see a return on investment...

I agree.....don't think this was a good move!!

Surgeon Rifles sold out and their actions/products are no where near the same....

Since it's Americans buying and selling companies in an industry I enjoy, I wish them the best of luck. Highly inflationary and regulatory business environment today, so I am sure this will not be an easy win for them. I hope it goes great though.

Capitalism at work. Develop a product. Build the brand. Cash out to a willing and able buyer for a profit. Most successful entrepreneurial small business owners do not have skills or desire to take their business to the "next level". After years decades of busting their hump to perfect their product/brand/strategy, someone offers them a handful of Benjamin's to go cool their heals relaxing on a beach or on top of a mountain, they take the money...

EG: Paul Allen... He helped Bill Gates build Microsoft to the point where they called in professional business executives to run/grow the company. He cashed out and spent the next 20 years enjoying his proceeds...

Couldn't agree more!

My gut tells me that nothing good for the end customer will come of this . . . .

I had been wanting one of their action for awhile. After reading this the other day, I went on and bought one just in case the quality goes down. It is a Tenacity, 480 bolt face short/med action. Now to figure out what I want to build....

Where did ya find one in stock?? I'd like to get 1 more before the buyout/turnover to the Extreme Group.....

Great news for the competition.

Beck dicked up McMillan. I'd expect the same with Defiance.

https://shop.kaugerarms.com/actions/
Kauger Arms can build you a quality action.

Lots of competition that knows their way around an action.

Only a couple great stock choices though.

I'm sure we'll be ok.

All those saying McMillan isn’t the same since Beck bought them - can you be more specific?

I never had a bad experience with McMillan before the sale, but my one experience since the sale has been better. Easier to order, better communication on their part etc. and the wait time wasn’t as long as usual.

And the fit and finish on the stock is as good as ever. And don’t even get me started on the buying experience compared to Manners. That place is an operational disaster

So what has changed that has some of you saying Beck as “dicked up” the company? Is this based on actual first hand experience or general Campfire grumpiness and herd mentality about anything that changes?

Most recently, McMillan made cuts to their available types of stocks and the actions they inlet for. They are getting rid of less-used molds or storing them away and saying they got rid of them. Also insisting on larger and more constant production runs for the smaller custom stocks they make for rifle builders, etc, refusing to do inlets that they used to do on certain stocks, etc.

Probably making more runs of stocks they can sell in large quantities to Altus, Redhawk, etc...while cutting the one-off stuff that folks on this forum tend to appreciate.

I agree with TX35W..

McMillan was the only synthetic stock maker of different molds for "unusual" rifle actions..
Which I had no problem with waiting 7-8 months for mine, because nobody else made one for my action.

Now its basically Rem 700 and clones, Tikka T3, some Win 70, Something Savage, Howa 1500.


They removed ALOT of different stock models, some molds they removed from website years ago, but still able to buy flattop, but dont list on website, you have to ask, etc etc..


Now they make almost exclusively for Rem 700.. and bought a company that makes Rem 700 clones..
So, I guess we will see rifles made one their actions, in their stocks was well.... Synergy

Jeffobama^^^^^

I’ve just gone to buying flattops and letting my smith make them for whatever rifle I want them on. Ends up being a bit nicer fit anyhow.

So basically they made sound business decisions for themselves.

Knowing a little bit about operations, marginal costs, contribution margins etc. there is absolutely no way that McMillan was turning a profit on their lower volume, more obscure work.

So they had a choice when looking at unprofitable parts of their business - either shelve the molds and stop offering those unprofitable combinations, or raise prices to the point of making them profitable. I can only imagine the meltdown on the campfire if they raised prices on their lower volume, more obscure work to try to turn a profit.

Some of you will undoubtedly say the McMillan family did it - but capitalism is part of what makes america great and when you buy a business for a certain price, it is yours to manage as you please, including running it in a way to turn the profit necessary to justify what you paid for it.

Last i checked businesses don't exist to make your life easier by making an obscure stock at a loss. They exist to make a profit for their shareholders. If Beck has concluded that focusing on larger volume patterns, inlets and dealers is the best way to maximize value of the business, more power to him from my point of view.

If there is a void left behind that is worth filling, capitalism suggests someone will fill it.

PS - so what barrel maker do we expect Beck to buy?

The issue is, Beck is on record (well was until censorship happened) saying that nothing changed at McMillan...until I called him out on it and then he backpedaled saying they did make changes etc etc etc.

It's all about selling to dealers, not individual customers. Defiance will have a 15 min order I bet, including a price increase for sure.

And yes, when Beck took over McMillan the prices went up at least 25%. They aren't worth that price anymore with all the other options available.