Just got this put together and finished initial load development.

Ultimatum Deadline
Bartlein HV 8" twist at 22"
Badger FTE
MDT ESS
TT Special at 1.5 lbs
XTR Sig Med
SS 10x
Secret Squirrel snowflake camo pattern
Weighs 15 lbs with bipod
6mm Creedmoor

Balances perfectly on the front action screw, and ain't picky about what I feed it! Played with IMR4451 and R26 in half grain increments for initial load workup, and the largest 4-shot group was 0.6 MOA. Should do!








Initial load workup:

J, can you tighten up those groups, please. 🤪 I’m trying to find something not to like...Impossible! Awesome LR rig you built. 👍🏻👍🏻😎

sweet....

That'll work...

How do you like the Deadline?

It looks like Deadline has barrel nut option.

That is a serious piece of machinery.....

It’s pretty awesome so far. Bolt throw is smooth. Lock up is solid. Half cock on open and half on close makes bolt lift feel quite light. The 60 degree bolt lift is quick and smooth to operate. Ejection is very positive. The double-pinned, 6 screw rail isn’t going anywhere. Pretty happy with it so far.

And Kingston is right, there’s a barrel nut option. The action has Savage small shank threads, so all the common aftermarket Savage prefits will fit just fine.

Nice rifle and even better shooting.

If I may ask - why the clamp on muzzle break vs something you can hand tighten and time (like the Hellfire 419)?

The FTE threads on, and is timed by clamping in place. I wanted to give it a try and see how it stacks up to my favourite brake- the Insite Arms Heathen.

Do you compete on a regular basis? Have you ever hunted with one of your PRS rifles? If so how heavy was it? I would assume one could be used fine as a stand rifle that you didn't have to carry too far.

RH...Good question...I think he said 15lbs...If I had that same build done but in a .30 cal and I put it in a Pelican case, bringing it out in MY hunting situations that would be enhanced by this setup...Not a soul on the mountain would "bat an eye" if they rolled up on the landing where I was perched getting ready to "touch off" on an animal...One of my former hunting pards, bought a Savage Hunter in 338 Lap with a Vortex Viper PST 6-24x50 FFP for a killing situation where stalk and access were not possible to close the gap...Jordans set up IMHO would be spectacular.

I shoot several matches during the PRS season around here, which runs from the Spring to the Fall. Matches wind down when hunting season starts to get into full swing

Yeah, I've hunted with my PRS rifles several times. They are always 14-15 lbs, and as you say, they come along when I know I'll be hunting an area where a long shot is a likelihood and I won't be carrying it more than a couple of miles.

I've got a DMRII that I'm contemplating putting on this rifle, but I kind of want to shoot this year's matches with the $300 SS 10x, just to prove a point that a guy can come out and have fun shooting PRS matches without dropping $5k on a scope after spending a couple thou on a rifle.

I've been contemplating buying a PRS style rifle as my next purchase. I have several nice hunting weight rifles. I own a Sako 75 in 270, a late 60"s era Sako L579 deluxe in 243, A Kimber Montana 7-08,which I consider a work in progress at the moment, a very accurate 1/2 MOA 5 shot accurate Forbes 270. It has one of Melvin's stocks and was likely assembled by him,according to what Mr. Forbes told me,and a few more loaner Winchester,Remington rifles.

Point being,I should have light and medium weight hunting rifles covered,but I still somehow don't like the idea of buying anything that I could not hunt with under different circumstances, like stand hunting.

Do you know that Hancock rifle?
http://patriotvalleyarms.com/john-hancock-bolt-action/

I haven't seen much about that rifle, but it looks pretty sweet! The only negative initial thoughts I have are that the bolt shroud looks like a crap collector, with the recessed FP assy, and if that is a windage adjustable base, I'm not big on that "feature". Durability is important when a rifle weighs 15 lbs. If it falls, it's got a lot of momentum to break stuff

Very nice looking rifle...
Really like that Ultimatum action..

Holy moly, that's some pretty impressive hardware. Good shooting too.

And I am soooo down with the Secret Squirrel snowflake.

I guess I don't know what you mean about the windage adjustable base. The rifle is a Nucleus action,Rock Creek barrel in a chassis is about all I know for sure.I thought it sounded like a good price with quality components. I don't really know a good smith ,or even a bad one,for that matter,so it looked like a possibility. I've also considered buying a Tikka Tac A1,or even a Tikka CTR and put it in a good stock.

I like the lighter weight of the Tikka option if I go CTR. Rifle would be under 8 lbs and I plan to mount a Bushnell LRHS 3-12. I guess I really want a hunting rifle that will shoot very well at long range,rather than a long range rifle that can possibly be used for hunting. The Seekins Havak is also a possibility,mainly because I can get it in 6.5 PRC or 300 win. It may wind up being available in the Nosler 6.5, I forget the name.

I have a friend who was recently looking for a rifle for exactly that application. I told him to buy a CTR in 6.5 Creed. He's just waiting on brass now. I think he's going to be tickled with it.

I'd have no hesitation in ordering a Havak, and the JH looks pretty great, as well.

I'm not sure if the Nucleus has a windage-adjustable base, but it looks like it to me.

Gracias, amigo. Originally the Snowflake Camo was meant as a joke, but it turned out looking pretty good

Sweet! A little heavy for what I do, but any rifle that shoots that well would be fun.

Patriot Valley is a well respected and well represented gunsmith within the prs game. Their rifles are typically very very competitive. The John Hancock is their new “budget” entry if you will. I along with Jordan question the use of a 20moa rail that is windage adjustable. If the machining tolerances are good there should be no need for a windage adjustable base as most any scope used in the prs game have enough windage adjustement available to handle 30+ mph winds well past 1000yds.

If you look at the JH action pictures you can see torx headed screws on both sides of the action at the rear rail. This to me would indicate it is windage adjustable so as to allow the scope to stay closer to center windage.

At the price they are asking it’s competetive with the Seekins Havak, just depends if a guy likes a stock or chassis better.

I have shot both and I prefer a tactical style stock but have owned a whiskey3 chassis and liked it fine.


The predominate calibers in prs as of late seem to be the 6CM and 6x47 lapua as they can take advantage of the high bec 105-108’s and do pretty much what the 140-147 class 6.5’s do with less recoil.

I am only a hobby prs shooter and use a Tooter Meredith built 6x47 lapua with 105’s at 3100 fps.

Windage adjustable rail?

That's the bolt release on the Nucleus.

Maybe. I don't know what these guys are talking about windage adjustable rails. I watched the whole vid on the Nucleus and didn't see anything about a windage adjustable rail which seems stupid to me too.


I just viewed the vid again and what ya'll are seeing that you think is windage adjustable base is just the huge lug of a bolt stop. Very well built action,or else I'm just easily impressed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wro5WuprNwE

Very nice rifle , cool that you're using a $300 scope to compete with too .

A heavy rifle is a pain to pack around but the first time you hammer an animal and know ' I probably couldn't have done that ' with a lightweight rifle makes it worth the effort .

Good luck come PRS season .

Thanks for posting the vid. Now that I can see more angles, it’s obvious that the rail is screwed in place with 5 screws, and as Higbean pointed out, that upper screw head is the bolt stop.

One thing I really like about the Deadline is that the rail is double pinned and fastened with 6 screws.

Jordan,

What do you think of the MDT?






As for the John Hancock rifle,

It does not have windage adjustable bases. It and the Mausingfield are the only 700 based footprint actions I would choose to use, and only with a Geissele trigger. While the Havok is a decent option, the JH rifle is far and away a better action.






RH,


What is the finished weight that you are wanting to achieve?




Mallard,

Tooter can certainly build a rifle.

Thanks, I appreciate the well wishes.

Yeah chunk rifles inspire confidence when the shooting starts, even if carrying them around ain’t much fun

Form,

I love the ESS. I’ve got a couple of them now, and it’s simply the most ergonomic, well-balanced chassis I’ve used, when paired with the ESS Skeleton stock. My only wish is that the MLOK holes on the handguard ran all the way back to the magwell, and that the forward grip was removable/attachable via MLOK. That’d give a bit more flexibility when using MLOK accessories like bipod adaptors or barricade stops.

The JH looks like a great rifle now that I’ve had a closer look. Why is it (and the MF) the only 700-footprint action you’d choose? I have to say that this Ultimatum is fairly impressive. It’s built like a tank.

Mallard, Very nice entry level PRS set up...Grin! Looks great for hunting LR, too! Thanks, for posting a pic....What do you like about your rig? Scope? and wish was different? Thanks, Beaver

That’s good to hear. MDT hasn’t had a chassis that has interested me until this one.





Warning: Personel experience/opinion follows-


As for the actions, Ive never used an Ultimatum, but I’ve seen and dealt with more issues in sand and dust, as well as sleeting rain/ice with 700 based actions and their triggers than all others combined.

Of course I’ve had plenty of 700 based guns work fine in those conduction as well. However given the choice it’s kind of like Leupold scopes- yes they can work.... and they also have more problems than others. It started to click that all guns aren’t equal when I had to wrap my M24 in a plastic bag, meanwhile our partners just left their AI’s uncovered outside during a sandstorm. Even then we had to have break cleaner/lighter fluid/oil to keep the guns working.

Back then I thought it was just a Remington 700 action thing. But I have seen and experienced the same issues, with Stiller/Surgeon/GAP/etc actions rifles. If anything they are worse due to tighter tolerances. Feeding, extraction, and ejection are all more prone to problems than with others.
Even with that the worst offender has been trigger problems. And I’m not just talking about the factory trigger ND’s.



Overall I’ve personally had with my rifle or partners rifles broken bolt handles, broken bolt stops, complete failures to fire due to triggers and failures to feed and eject due to dust/sand/ice, etc., etc. this is from R700’s and quite a few custom actions. If there are a multitude of rifles on the line, almost assuredly any problems will come from 700 based guns. It’s ridiculous that side by side you see less problems with factory Tikka CTR’s than with full up Surgeons.....

What the ARC actions due is give someone the footprint of the 700 but remove just about every issue except the trigger. The Geissele 700 mostly corrects that.




Again, just what I and others have repeatedly seen.

Form, what about the Bighorn actions?

And Triggertech triggers?

Thank you for the kind words. My rifle likely wouldn’t be considered entry level based on cost and quality but Meredith’s prices are super reasonable for what you get. I love the Stiller action for a hybrid hunting/prs uses, Krieger Barrels are known quality, Calvin elite triggers are nice and the badger dbm and manners CF stocks are known quantities.

That scope is a 3.5-18 Eotech Vudu I am playing with. I got a good deal on it and it’s pretty decent but has a Kahles k624i for PRS stuff.

All in all I don’t know that I would change anything if I did it again and I have no complaints.

Of course I am weird about my rifle preferences as I have a long range 6.5 WSM with a 27” barrel built on a GAP Tempest Action which is a 60 degree match action with a straight bolt handle with big ball shaped bolt handle, mcmillan htg adjustable, seeking dbm and a jewel trigger. Aside from a planned trigger swap to a Timney Calvin I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Which reminds me I should post that jewel for trade soon.

That's a beauty, Mallard! Lots of ways to build a truly excellent PRS rifle!

Yeah Jordan, that may get it done....just barely though. Hope you got some zero stop shims in that SS 10X

You bet I do!

Jordan, zero stop shims? You mean nylon gaskets? What, where, who, has em...I have my wife’s nail polish out, getting ready to go all sexy colors on my scope...Save me, bro...😳

I’m sure Jordan is using the kit from the old boy on snipers hide. The guy sells kits for under $25 with a bunch of uhmw plastic spacers marked in full time, half turn , 1/4 turn etc. you zero your scope then count turns to bottom out the turret. Turn it back to zero, remover the turret and install the proper shims to act as a stop.

They work slick and I have them in a few of my SS’s.

That would be my guess as well.

Mallard, Thx, for the info on the nylon spacer guy...I can find him...Ok, your LR Rig really sent me searching for a new Shoot’n Iron after I started droolin all over yours... Here’s what I bought yesterday...I will send pictures once I get my hands on it...😎

LIKE NEW! Custom Built 26 Nosler by MC Gunsmithing in Plains, Montana; Trued Remington 700 action; BDL Bottom metal; Lilja #6 stainless, fluted barrel finished at 26"....1:8 twist; KDF Sniper Muzzle Brake; Graphite Cerakote; Manners T2A Stock in Gap Camo (adjustable cheekpiece with KMW hardware); 3 Sling Swivel Studs(2 in front, 1 in back); MC Gunsmithing Custom Bolt Knob; Jewel Trigger; 20 MOA Nightforce picatinny base(glass bedded); Shoots Berger 140 HVLDs .25-.3" @ 3360 fps; Shoots Barnes 127 LRXs under .5" @ 3300-3400+fps depending on load; Including: 29 loaded rounds...140 HVLDs @ 3360 fps; Will include load data; This is a Very Accurate, Long Range Rifle!

Nylon 1” OD, 1/2” or more ID, 1/16” thick washers do the same with a bit of experimenting on where the stop gets set.

$10 for 50 on Amazon

More than enough for 5-10 scopes depending on how much inclination you have in your mounts.

My rings put 40 MOA into the system, and it doesn’t take much to zero stop.

There’s plenty of YouTube videos on the way to do this with a SWFA Super Sniper scope.

Thanks Dave...I did watch one YouTube vid on it...Jordan, suggested I get a SWFA scope to learn how to twist knobs...Which I did.

I bought a SWFA 10x42...Stuck it on an accurate shooting older Remington 700 VSF in 223 that had been sitting in the safe for several years... I flipped the stock from the B&C to a Grayboe Terrain with Mesa M5 DBM...IIRC you bought the same...That worked out quite well, even without bedding. Now, I’m just twisting away at close ranges,100- 350 yards but losing my 100 yard zero in the process... I will get spacers installed. That’ll help.😎

I’ve used the standard hose washers, which work good for a squishy, non-precise stop, and are very ecomonical

I prefer these shim kits, which give a firmer, more finely-tuned stop, but cost a bunch more:

http://forum.snipershide.com/threads/zero-stop-shim-sets-for-swfa-super-sniper-scopes.6282226/

Thanks for the link Jordan 😎

Yep. I bought a heavy barreled 243 here, sold off the stock, bottom metal, etc. and dropped it in a Grayboe Terrain with M5 and couldn’t be happier.

I have the shim kit that Jordan linked to on one of my SS scopes, but the other five are with the washers I mentioned, and it works just fine.

Really hard to beat a rifle and scope combo that’s under a Grand that shoots this well.

I’m waiting for 800-ish more 105 BTHP Hornady to arrive, and then I’m really going to ring it out.