I'm considering the purchase of a Montana Rifle Co. gun in the ASR configuration. As a left hander, I have limited choices, and MRC offers a .260 that might be a great Pennsylvania deer rifle. Does anyone have experience with these guns? How do they shoot? What can I reasonably expect to spend for this model? Thank you for any assistance.

I'm a lefty too, and some years ago bought an MRC rifle. However, MRC did not keep their word, and when called out on it, got really ugly. Would not do business with them again.

There are also a number of members here at the Fire who had some bad experiences with MRC.

They may chime in here.

You may want to check out the Cooper left hand rifles. I have one and love it, and doing business with them was a pleasure.

Steve

As I understand it they are now making production and delivering pretty nice rifles. Lots of bad stories early on for sure.

I have a .257 Roberts built on an MRC action (Lilja barrel). It's a chrome action and stainless bolt as they promised delivery in 4 months and 8 months later I finally said send me that. The product is fine (excellent trigger out of the box) but the business practices are substandard.

That's been three years ago for a time reference.

+1. If you don't have good customer service then you don't get the positive comments. This is just part of a good business model. They don't understand this. Their customer service was horrible when I delt with them several years ago. They may be better now.

All GOOD experiences with Montana Rifles. I bought one in the original charter offering, built a 338 WSM on it and shot out a barrel. Rebarreled to 325 WSM and it's still going with never a problem.

I bought another of the original charter actions, earlier number than the first, and the guy from whom I bought it had fouled up something, forget what it was, maybe the safety. Contacted them, they asked for the bolt, sent it and got it repaired free with fast turnaround. The problem was not theirs.

Can't say anything but good things about them. Love the actions!

This is my MRC .338 RUM

This is the group it shot with 90 grains of RL-25, Fed-215 Mag primer,250 NP.

I don't use this load because it's average was 2850 fps,now I use H-1000,Fed-215,and 210 NP at 3170 fps.

The accuracy is a little larger,but,that's ok with me.

I also purchased a charter issue LH short action CM in 03. I had them barrel it also, in a 358. They talked me into a much heavier barrel than was needed though. It shot very good groups with my handloads. I could not be any happier with them and their rifle. I just had it rebarreled to a 308, much happier with the weight.
I had very good luck with them, some others didn't. Two sides to every experience.

I recently bought and sold one of the AWR SS rifles in 7-08. The rifle was extremely nice and well finished. The barrel was the smoothest of any production rifle I've ever owned, including Cooper. I didn't shoot the rifle much, but it shot really well with loads I'd worked up for another 7-08. It had a 24" barrel and was a little heavier than I liked. Instead of spending money to trim it down, I tripped it. I'll order the next exactly to my liking.

I think the company has taken a new direction. In my experience, customer service is great. Emails were returned immediately and phone calls were to a real person. I didn't have any problems -- just questions before I bought the rifle.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy another and will in the near future.

I am glad others have had good experiences with this company. I love the rifle I have once the problems were ironed out. May have been start up problems, mine is an early one too.

I bought two barreled actions from them and they shoot great with no problems.

I bought one of the left handed actions on their original charter offer. I had them barrel it to 375 H&H. I've no complaints other than I let them talk me into a fairly heavy barrel. Not necessarily a bad thing with a 375. I've gotten to where I don't mind the weight. I don't back pack with the rifle so it has not been a big issue. It makes for a very comfortable shooting 375 at 9.5 pounds. I reworked a model 70 take off stock to fit and had the metal ceracoated and have been well pleased with the way it turned out. This is the only picture I have currently.

I bought two barrel actions, one in 04 and one in 08. Both shoot great, no issues at all. The one in 08 was a couple months late on its delivery, but they let me know ahead of time and it shipped when they finally told me it would.

I have a custom rifle built on a "short' (actually medium-length) Montana 1999 action. The company that built the rifle (Serengeti, now Kilimanjaro Rifles) did a little work on the action to slick it up. The barrel is a Montana as well, chambered with a custom reamer I borrowed from a fellow rifle loony. The 7x57 has worked fine for several years now and is one of my favorite rifles.

Right now I have one of Montana's semi-production rifles in .270 in for testing. Haven't shot it yet (hope to later this month) but it looks to be really well made and finished.

I have almost the same story here with a LH SS 375 H&H from the charter offer. Ended up with too much barrel contour. I didn't have any major problems, though the action could've used some "slicking up". Overall pretty happy with the gun, though I sold it in a fit of rifle loonacy.

My Dad has a 1 in 9 twist 220 Swift made with a MRC barrel from the big discount sale they had a couple years ago (purchased for something like 75 bucks). It shoots like most Swifts (quite well).

I had a lot of problems with my rifle from them also. They were always nice to talk to but really lacked in follow through. Held onto my rifle for months every year and it still wouldn't shoot right or feed.
They try to tell me they took it out and it shot sub-moa. They obviously didn't because you could not even single feed a round without it binding up. So either they didn't care about binding up and that was acceptable or they never shot it.
If you get one that works, it works great. But for the money, I'd buy a used Kimber that doesn't shoot and screw a new barrel on and be ahead of the game.

I got the one I had several years ago as a barreled action. They must have given me 6 or 7 promise dates and missed them all. When I finnaly got the action is was rough as a cob. You could hear that thing grating as it was closed. I had the action lapped and now it is slick as butter. They sent the bottom metal for a magnum when it was barreled for a 30/06, which explained why it wouldn't feed rounds from the magazine. They replaced it with no problems and I think were a little embarssed about letting it get out and having a gunsmith catch them in a problem.

I have had good luck with Montana Rifleman barrels, but the one on that rifle wouldn't shoot worth a flip. They didn't want to talk about that. It seems the company had split up and even though their desks touched, the action people didn't have anything to do with the barrel people. The guy I sold the rifle to (he was the one working on it so he knew about the problems) replaced the barrel and it shoots bug holes now and is as smooth feeding as a well worn pre 64 Model 70.

To be fair, evidently the actions and barreled actions, they sold early on, were not supposedly sold as finished actions. They were supposed to be gunsmith slicked up and finished. I just never got that message. Minus the bad barrel, and plus a Serengeti stock, it made into a very nice and accurate rifle.

Mart - that's a good looking rifle.

A local shop has a new MRC rifle in .30-06, and though I sure don't need it - it's tempting. Appears to be a very nicely made rifle, though heavier than I like in a general purpose hunting rifle.

Enjoying the responses and learning a bit too.

Guy

Guy,

They are a bit on the heavy side. I think they are a good choice for heavier calibers were a little extra weight is a good thing. I don't think I would try to make an ultralight out of even the short action. Mine had none of the roughness that several have mentioned. I guess I lucked out. Mine has been pretty good from day one. It certainly isn't as smooth as a well worn pre-64 or a pre-war Mauser but as good as most factory rifles.

I've toyed with the idea of reboring my 375 to 458 Win, 450 Ackley, or even 475 OKH as the barrel is large enough to allow any of them, but then it shoots so comfortably as a 375 I almost hate to consider it. The trials of a rifle looney. Will they never end? Hopefully not.

Mart

I have almost an identical rifle to jbmi's, except right-handed and in stainless, also stocked and bedded by Serengeti in the same stock pattern as his. Mine is #67 of the short stainless barreled actions. Like his, MRC would not chamber the barrel in .358 under a certain profile so it is heavier than needed. Mine has shot several one-hole groups, barely larger than bullet diameter. (I got a fast-twist barrel so it would handle heavy bullets and it likes 250's, but 225's shoot very well, too.)

Those initial actiosn were not sold as 100% finished. It took longer to get via the inital offering than promised, but I was ni no hurry. I couldn;t be happier with mine. I also got an Edge stock for it from Rick Bin...

Brian Sipe (founder and CEO of MRC) had been a friend of mine for years (when I lived in western Montana) before I heard of his barrels. Then he got Ruger (IIRC) to make modern Mauser actions for his company.

When I started planning a special custom rifle, starting with Brian's action seemed to be a good idea. It was, and it wasn't.

� It was, because Brian's action seems to be as good as I'd thought that it'd be.

� It wasn't, because I couldn't get one direct from Brian (as promised) and never knew why.

With some difficulty, I got a couple of MRC actions through other sources, and the one that I had my .340 Howell built on is a super-nice action.

I'd assume � not having seen any � that his rifles are likely to be good ones.

I'd hope that doing business with MRC is better or getting better.

I know nothing of the current prices for MRC actions, barrels, or rifles.

I've had MRC build 2 rifles. Both of which were well made and accurate. Both did take longer than expected to deliver. I like the actions, they were well finished (above the stock line), very smooth, and feed great. Very nice (but heavy) bottom metal. The barrels were a heavier contour that I would have liked but both shot well.

I've heard some horror stories about working with them, but aside from the time line extensions I had a good experience.

This is my second one.



300WSM, Pac-Nor barrel, McMillan stock. Sadly I left it in Cody, Wyoming to be sold. I'm semi retired from hunting.

The stories of problems with MRC are about the most I've seen concerning any product here at the Fire.

Buyer beware!!


Steve

What you have to remember here, these people are dealing direct with the company, unlike the big names like Rem. Win. Ruger, Tikka, etc where your problems are brought back to the store where you bought it.
I'm sure if every one would post the problems they had with their store bought guns you'd see similar or even more problems with the big box gun makers.

There have been some quality control issues with the actions and barrels but I have seen quality control issues from virtually every manufacturer out there. They had some real difficulties with the receivers warping during heat treating and this was the source of many of the problems. One doesn't expect to have to start off working on his new action by straightening it with a lead hammer by I have had to do so with a couple of them.
In general, I like the action design except for a couple of features. I don't really like the bolt sleeve lock. It is just a little too petit and sensitive to alignment. If one wishes to see a good bolt sleeve lock he should look at a 98 Mauser. Any divergence from that design is a step backward.
The bolt stop could have been made a little more robust.
I like the inner seat for the barrel (c-ring) but I think it would have been much better to duplicate the Mauser system rather than to incorporate the inferior Springfield/Winchester coned breech.
Still, it is a rugged, functional action.
The polishing and contouring of the receiver is usually poorly done and I suspect this is simply because they don't know any better.
The barrels are well finished inside and properly stress relieved. I've fitted a couple dozen and all shot well but I have yet to see a straight one! They have a barrel straightening press but whoever was doing the straightening just doesn't have an eye for it. I once looked through some blanks which had been drilled and reamed but not rifled and which were visibly crooked. I inadvertently insulted them when I asked if the blanks were to be straightened before rifling and was told they already had been!
If you like the old Model 70 trigger system, you have to like this one since it is identical in design and function. In fact, I have fitted MRC triggers to post-64 Model 70 actions and the result was a better trigger.
From the beginning, I referred to the 1999 action as an "action kit" and I think this is a fairly accurate description. They need some work but offer the 'smith an opportunity to put his or her stamp on the finished product.
My dealings with the company have been more than satisfactory. They always treated me with respect and listened to what I had to say. They would have been better off to have taken my advice at times but I could say the same thing about my wife!
Quite often, I think companies like MRC try too hard to be all things to all people and have trouble finding their direction. I think they are doing better in this regard today than they were ten years ago. GD

Manufacturing is alive and well in Kalispell, MT and Montana Rifle Company is a very big part of the area's success. As others have mentioned, the initial offerings were ambitious in both scope and promises. The owner has invested in new CNC equipment, skilled personnel and management. In addition, a rigid quality control process is in place. I would not hesitate to purchase an action or a complete rifle from MRC.

I bought one of their M-1999 actions a few years back....it's now a .404 Jeffery.....it functions just fine.....no complaints here.

Some years ago a ordered a barreled action from MRC, then had Serengeti stock it with from a blank I supplied. The Serengeti folks were a joy to deal with, the MRC group was another story. The rifle, a 257R just refused to shoot any combo accurately. I switched scopes, re-crowned it, had the beading examined etc. Nothing helped. I finally contacted MRC and ran it down to them, but they wouldn't do anything for me. I had the rifle re-barreled and it shoots fine now, but only after putting another $700 or so into it. It a beautiful rifle and I'll have it for a long time. In fairness to MRC they never offered any short of accuracy guaranty, so I should not have assumed otherwise. I understand they have changed for the better lately and I hope that is true because it do like their action a lot.

They seem nice and stories go up and down but at those prices, I wonder what they'd offer over a Kimber.

MRC seems to have a consistent thread.

Either there are significant performance issues, or consistent integrity issues.

In my case, they had both.

Steve

When dealing directly with MRC fell through, I got an MRC action from another source. But it had a magnum bolt face, and I wanted one with an '06 bolt face.

Serengeti graciously offered a one-for-one swap � no boot! So I drove up there and traded with 'em. Very nice crowd, very professional operation.

Have ne'er a mumblin' negative word for Serengeti!

Ken,

I bought two rifles from Serengeti, and found them to be both experts in the rifle business, and also of the highest integrity.

Was very sorry to see them go out of business. I got to become pretty good friends with the two owners, and I'm still in contact with them. But even with them, they and I both had problems with MRC.

Steve

Sorry to hear that they're no longer in business. Didn't know that.

Cryin' shame!

They are still around, just under yet another name. Looks like a pretty good product if you have the $$$$$$$
http://kilimanjarorifles.com/history.html

The guys who owned Serengeti sold the business to Kilimanjoro Rifles. The new owner lives in Hawaii.

I've talked to the two former owners in the last year, both great guys, and they are doing well.

Steve

The whole story between MRC and Serengeti will never be told, however, like all of these situations, there is also the third side. The same can be said about Defiance (at the time was Phoenix actions) and Serngeti - there is one common denominator in this. The good news - MRC has been completely overhauled to address the market. I suggest anyone with questions call Jeff Sipe directly at MRC. As to comparing to other choices, it is just too subjective of a decision (IMO).

Mule Deer described my rifle too except it's in 350 Rem Mag: A Kilimanjaro Walk-about. I presume Kili- did some refining of the action and I obviously didn't deal with MRC directly so can't offer an anecdote there, but the finished product is very nice if a tad heavier than I'd like. But then it's not my back packing rifle either.

nice rifle and rings,bases and mounts, could tell me more about those?

From the Kilimanjaro Rifles home page:

"The M1999 action incorporated and blended the best attributes of the Mauser 98, Winchester pre-64, and Sako actions for the ultimate hunting action. It did so using investment casting rather than more costly machining in order to achieve a superior action at an affordable cost."

I personally am not a fan of investment cast rifle actions, so even though left-handed, I stick with the USRA Model 70s for my recent purchases.

As I grow older and look at retained values, since hopefully my guns will go to the next generation, I realize that ones from certain makers keep value best.

Bought a new summit in 375 H & H rifle through cabelas and it need some work. Rifle was dropped and safety needed to be replaced and stock needed to be touched up.

Sent it to them and they returned it the next day...

Trigger is the best...Smooth and crisp...

Looking at obtaining a new one now...

I can't speak for any of the people who've had negative experiences with MRC. However, I do know in August of 2006 there were several threads here and other various forums complaining about MRC's long delivery times, offering things that weren't available (like everything in their catalog), and a lot of unhappiness. I thought the alleged year-long (or more) lead times be damned, I'd buy a left-handed short action with a standard bolt face and I'd get it down the road when I was ready to have a rifle built. I learned upon calling MRC that they had any left-handed action available -- CONTARY to what "people" were posting on "the internets" -- so I placed an order 8-28-06 and my receiving FFL had the action on 9-5-06.

What I received:



The 7mm-08 it became:

The rings and bases are Talleys QR with a ghost ring sight fixed as part of the rear base; the front sight is an ivory bead on a hooded ramp. The stock is actually one of Kili's propietary laminated stocks albeit a very handsome one. This as MD stated above with his rifle is on a MRC "short" action which is actually more of a medium length one. In this case the magazine allows for a 350 RM cartridge OAL of 3.1".

As a lefty too, in the past I was always on the lookout for something unique. Picked this up from a site after the original owner used it on one hunt IIRC and at what I thought a bargain price.

Anjin, welcome.

I hope that Kilimanjaro is laminating stocks the way that my late friend Mel Smart patented. (IIRC, Serengeti bought the rights just before or just after Mel died. Mel was working from his wheel chair when I knew him.)

Instead of the usual many thin laminations, Mel slabbed a thin slice off each side of a raw blank, turned the thick center section over, and glued all three slabs back together. IIRC, the center slab was about as thick as the diameter of the receiver ring. The figure on the two sides of the stock matched, and Mel's process used a lot less glue, so his stocks weren't as heavy as other laminated stocks.

That's right on as I understand it Ken.

Please tell me more about that ghost ring fixed as part of the rear base. Thanks!

Perhaps I'll get a pic or two--they're worth a word or two . Give me a couple of days.

I bought my stock from Seregeti in 04, just when the new owners took over. You can see how they did it then. Sliced it up into 3 parts but then added two fillers. The stock is rock solid.

I think MRC dug a big hole they working to get out of. None of our local stores would even carry MRC the last 4-5 years. Just this last year I've seen a couple local stores with MRC in stock, so they must be trying to come back, but I don't know anyone who has bought one lately.

Another local Flathead area company I have heard good things about is http://defiancemachine.com/ .

I would like to put a defiance action behind a Mcgowen barrel.

Well, with no experience with MRC but plenty of others', if your customer service is bad or nonexistent, you, as a business, are doomed. It's too bad this lesson seems to have to be learned over and over. Don't they teach this in business school? I mean, it used to be CS (common sense).

My 300 H&H mag was 3 months behind but I'm a satisified customer. And would do business with Jeff again. Think they are beyond their growing pains.

Hope so.

I never knew Jeff, but Brian usually seemed to be a decent sort.

Brian it is, was talking to a friend jeff just before posting.

Actually, you are both correct. Brian founded the barrel company (started in his FIL's milking parlor with an ancient drill and reamer) and his son Jeff manages the rifle/action side of the business. They are extremely hard working folks that have built a successful business the right way (and with zero government support).

The dominant story line here, both good and bad is: 'original charter', 'several years ago', 'in 2006', etc.

In January 2012 I meet the folks from MRC at Shot. The 1st week of February I ordered a left hand 338 win mag. At that time I was told hopefully the end of April or 1st week of May. Well May rolled around and I called and at that time I was told things were backed up and they could not give me a completion date. They asked that I call back in a couple of weeks and they would have a better idea. They also said they would understand if I called my dealer and canceled the order.

A few weeks later I called back and they informed me it would be late August to early September - I chose to keep waiting. Well the 2nd week of September my dealer called and said the rifle was ready.

During the whole process I felt like the folks at MRC were being upfront and truthful, sure I wish it hadn't taken so long but I knew what was going on at all times and I could have chosen to go another direction.

As for the rifle - in appearance all is good, workmanship is nice, the trigger creep leaves something to be desired. I fired 10 rounds thru it yesterday for the 1st time. I was shooting factory 225NP's, it shot about 1 1/2" or so.

With some trigger tuning and load development I am optimistic.

So far, I find the MRC a nice option for a lefty.

Randy

Did it kick you off the bench?

Tip, it was a little thumpy, I thought about you there near the end. You would have enjoyed it.

Randy

this thread is years old. I am looking to get a MRC.
have they improved in QC since then?
thanks in advance

I have one of the rifles built last year in 260 Remington. It was part of a special run built for folks here at the Campfire. It is a really nice rifle. Finished well,runs and shoots great. No compliants from me. Mine was bought through Whitaker Guns and they seem to have a good working relationship with MRC. I'd consider dealing with them if I were you.

Some of us had good experiences in their first offering . my 260 Campfire special in 260 rocks. Some complain about it's weight but I have no issues with it.

Do the make one in 6.5 Creedmoor?

Certainly doable, but Why ?

The Montana 99 SA is actually built on an Intermediate Length Action with mag length = 3 1/8"

Your 6.5 CM is designed around the restrictions of a 2.8" mag

You could probably tuck a 6.5x55 ( Improved ) into that box
or maybe even 6.5x284 short ( 130s ) !

Definitely any .260 AI

Any semi-custom company will have initial teething problems, but recent testimony has indicated they have gotten things sorted out.
To the benefit of all.

Very sorry to see Forbes disappear so suddenly, with such a promising product line, there was a lot of hope for their prosperity.

Cheers

Not trying to contradict you but while one can put a 6.5x55 into a 1999's magazine, MRC chambers it with an old military length throat. So even though you can put long bullets into the magazine a lot of modern spitzers won't be able to reach the lands and still be seated inside the case, or at best they are very shallow seated.

However, I would heartily second the notion that it is ideal for nominal "short action" rounds which end up being cramped by a 2.8ish" magazine restriction. Were I to do it again I would not have bought mine in 6.5x55 but rather .260 where that long magazine would eliminate any OAL restrictions.

My 1999 in LA Mag looks ok, but haven't chambered it yet. I called about tenon specs 2 different times. Both times they said that it was proprietary. They would give me no info. This was before I had the receiver in hand. It will be a simple chamber job, but why do they not help you.

Jim , No contradiction at all.

Your Feet on the ground experience is exactly what's needed here.

As I typed that, I was thinking the .260 ( Improved ) would probably be about perfect in that action with it's intermediate length magazine.

Again, Thanks for your input

Left hand rifles

I've got 2 from their early days, one a long action and the other a short action magnum. The long action turned out to be a beauty, the short action needed a Williams extractor before it would feed & eject properly. Both needed a fair bit of gunsmithing time.They are a bit of a lottery quality wise. Tasco in Australia imported a bunch of their completed rifles and a lot ended up being returned for warranty repairs. Some still being sold by dealers brand new but at more than $1000 off. Don't think they are being imported anymore. If you can inspect before you take delivery should be OK.

regards
JohnT

I have one of the Campfire specials in 260 and one of the 243s with the 1:8 twist. Both are quite accurate and very nicely made. Have not had to tweak either one, which is a rare thing these days.

I think they have progressed past their early growing pains and would not hesitate to buy another.

I'm sure thinking about buying one,just for the hell of it.

I had one for a month or so before I gave it to my son in law. I copied my first impressions from a post I made about it when I got it:



Here is the Range report on same rifle.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth...ntana_Rifle_Company_XWR_Rang#Post9645294

John

have a Lh mrc x-2 in 308 shoots excellent, like the gun alot, very happy with it, it loves 168 ttsx.
not a light weight rifle with a 4.5x14x44 zeiss is near
9 pds all up.

Don't have rifle they built, but have a .257R on one of their actions by Whitetail Gun Shop in Rauchtown. Works very well.

Took my .300 RUM X2 model to the range for the first time today. Mounted a scope, tried a variety of loads. Two sighting shots. Next 3 190 LRAB over Retumbo went into 1.32". Next group went .48" with 180 AB's and 4350. Tried 175 Bergers with Rel 22 - .59". Tried the 190 LRAB/Retumbo load again and it opened back up to 1.40".

I wanted a big 30 that would outshoot my .300 Weatherby, and it's not close, the M1999 easily is the best big .30 I have. Very pleased with it. Very good groups, out of the box.

Bought one in 264 WM 2-3 years ago, it sowkrs perfectly, and shooots as good as I can with factory Nosler ammo.

Little heavy, but I'm not worried about that, I got plenty of light guns when I'm feeling weenie-ish