Kelbly atlas tactical or Bighorn origin?

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laker415

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Starting to think about assembling a 2 lug action. Caliber is unknown at this point, likely 6 creed or 6BR, but will change between many I'm sure. I'm most interested in the bighorn origin and the kelbly atlas tactical. For honorable mention, I will mention the tenacity fits this price point as well. Just looking for first hand experience from owners of these actions. I've done plenty of searching, and there seems to be an abundance of information on the bighorn. However, there seems to be very little on the atlas tactical. I'm leaning towards the kelbly, but the abundance of shouldered prefits for the bighorn and swappable bolt heads has me leaning back to towards the bighorn.

I'm interested in the "feel" of these actions. I currently have 2 ARC Nucleus actions that I love. But I'm keen to try a quality 2 lug for the lighter bolt lift. I know I can't go wrong with any of them, so tell me why you love your action and help we spend my money. Thanks.
 
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My 2 cents.... go with a Defiance Action.
I have a single shot Defiance Action for F Class usage and I'm it does the job just as well the guys I compete with using Kelby (Pandas), BAT, Bighorn, etc.
Mine is a Elite series, and I liked how I could customize a lot of things when I ordered it... I'm not sure you have too many options with the Defiance Tenacity that you mentioned -but you might not be looking for customization.

Its hard to go wrong with most aftermarket actions... i'm sure that you'd be satisfied with any of the options you mentioned in your OP
 
Munkey1973 said:
My 2 cents.... go with a Defiance Action.
I have a single shot Defiance Action for F Class usage and I'm it does the job just as well the guys I compete with using Kelby (Pandas), BAT, Bighorn, etc.
Mine is a Elite series, and I liked how I could customize a lot of things when I ordered it... I'm not sure you have too many options with the Defiance Tenacity that you mentioned -but you might not be looking for customization.

Its hard to go wrong with most aftermarket actions... i'm sure that you'd be satisfied with any of the options you mentioned in your OP
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Thanks. I know defiance make nice actions, but the tenacity isn't really at the top of my list. As it sits right now, I think the kelbly will serve me best. I was just hoping a couple kelbly owners would stop in and tell me it's the best ever, LoL.
 
I don't have experience with Kelby -but I'm sure their Atlas is an A+ action. I looked at them too when I was mulling the idea of building a PRS rifle years ago...I decided that I want to swim F Class waters instead. If I ever wanted to try a Kelby build then it would definitely be an Atlas as they are made from Steel.

Friend of mine competes with a Kelby Panda ad he seems to be very paranoid of windy gusts going prone.
Likely due to the action being made from aluminum and can be potentially be gulled all to hell.
 
laker415 said:
No doubt Tom. I just don't know if I would utilize the features they offer since I already have 2 nucleus actions from you. The main appeal other than price is your constant stock of shouldered prefits for the origin.
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Kelbly Atlas Tactical has the ability for shouldered pre-fits as well. In fact, Kelbly was probably the first action with this ability, they've had this feature since the early 90's.

I believe Insite builds a lot of rifles with the Kelbly Atlas Tactical action, it may be worth reaching out to them and ask their opinion. They should also be able to make you pre-fits as you need them.
 
kthomas said:
Kelbly Atlas Tactical has the ability for shouldered pre-fits as well. In fact, Kelbly was probably the first action with this ability, they've had this feature since the early 90's.

I believe Insite builds a lot of rifles with the Kelbly Atlas Tactical action, it may be worth reaching out to them and ask their opinion. They should also be able to make you pre-fits as you need them.
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Thanks for the info. I know I can do shouldered for the atlas, I was just saying that Tom has Origin shouldered barrels in stock regularly. That was the appeal.

Truthfully you have the actions I would prefer to have, mausingfield and lone peak, but those are a bit more than I want to spend at the moment. Haven't even finished my long action nucleus build and I'm planning this atlas build. I have a problem
 
laker415 said:
Thanks for the info. I know I can do shouldered for the atlas, I was just saying that Tom has Origin shouldered barrels in stock regularly. That was the appeal.

Truthfully you have the actions I would prefer to have, mausingfield and lone peak, but those are a bit more than I want to spend at the moment. Haven't even finished my long action nucleus build and I'm planning this atlas build. I have a problem
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Gotcha.

Honestly, there's not a bad choice between the two actions from what I'm hearing. Both are good quality actions, with good features and made by top tier manufacturers.

I don't think you can go wrong either way.
 
Munkey1973 said:
My 2 cents.... go with a Defiance Action.
I have a single shot Defiance Action for F Class usage and I'm it does the job just as well the guys I compete with using Kelby (Pandas), BAT, Bighorn, etc.
Mine is a Elite series, and I liked how I could customize a lot of things when I ordered it... I'm not sure you have too many options with the Defiance Tenacity that you mentioned -but you might not be looking for customization.

Its hard to go wrong with most aftermarket actions... i'm sure that you'd be satisfied with any of the options you mentioned in your OP
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The devil is in the details...

I don't want to bash the Defiance but there is an issue with them that you wont find with the Big Horn.

The ejector spring is so strong on the Defiance that it dents my case mouths on ejection. That Effs up my neck concentricity on reloads.

The big horn has controlled feed and ejects as a result of the rearward pull of the bolt and ejects off the rim after the neck is clear. Now your necks are not dented and concentricity issues are minimized.

Its a simple enough solution on the Defiance to shorten the ejector spring, but its something guys should be aware of. Its not an issue one way or the other if you don't reload or if you don't care if your reloads are perfect.

Precision rifle shooters frequently cut the ejector spring or remove it completely if they are hard core bench gunners for this very reason, but also to alleviate any side load on brass when in the chamber. This is a problem that is not even on the radar with Big Horn.
 
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I have an atlas tactical action, bought it from a fellow CGN'er. They are b0mB proof as far as I am concerned.

Through some twisted sense of good/bad luck I had a catastrophic failure with mine. Best guess would suggest that the barrel was loose and during the course of firing it came out of spec. The barrel was blown clear out of the action, landing 4 feet in front of me. Had a face full of gasses as the barrel left the gun. No injuries to myself (good luck) despite not having any eye protection. Note, I believe the gasses were from the barrel leaving the action; no apparent failure of the action's side gas vent. It was a complete case head separation on a 6.5CM. Got in touch with the original owner and his smith. We had some calls and sent it in to be looked at, but no clear indication as to what or why it had happened. Action was checked and rechecked, all good. Called up the same smith and he was good enough to chamber and spin on a new 6BRA barrel for me at no cost for labor and we are off and running again. No issues with feed or function thus far, though I must admit I don't have a lot of rounds on it yet.

As to the action manipulation and feel, I love it. I got it second hand, original owner had a couple thousand rounds on it. It is my first custom action, though family has a couple barnards. It feels solid and cycles smoothly with no sense of binding or fouling due to grit. We live and shoot in a sandbox, and so far no issues. For me the ejection mechanism is really nice, as it allows you to control where the brass gets tossed. Nice clean and simple extraction.

Despite my case of bad/good luck, I still am a huge fan and will be looking to buy another one.
 
Maple57 said:
The devil is in the details...

I don't want to bash the Defiance but there is an issue with them that you wont find with the Big Horn.

The ejector spring is so strong on the Defiance that it dents my case mouths on ejection. That Effs up my neck concentricity on reloads.

The big horn has controlled feed and ejects as a result of the rearward pull of the bolt and ejects off the rim after the neck is clear. Now your necks are not dented and concentricity issues are minimized.

Its a simple enough solution on the Defiance to shorten the ejector spring, but its something guys should be aware of. Its not an issue one way or the other if you don't reload or if you don't care if your reloads are perfect.

Precision rifle shooters frequently cut the ejector spring or remove it completely if they are hard core bench gunners for this very reason, but also to alleviate any side load on brass when in the chamber. This is a problem that is not even on the radar with Big Horn.
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I might be inclined to agree with this ^^

I've previously had such problem problems with true Remington 700 actions.

That's just one of the reasons that I got their Elite Action when I built my F class rifle.
They have a mechanical blade ejector (Winchester M70 style).... it doesn't try to eject until the bolt comes right to the back.
There is a very small slit in the bolt face for the blade.... no ejector spring.

https://imgur.com/c5X7N5Y

https://imgur.com/0rawYs1
 
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laker415 said:
Thanks for the feedback. I'm pretty well set on the kelbly.

When you close the bolt slowly to chamber a round, is there a "hitch" in the movement due to #### on close?
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Don't have hands on it atm as I am out of the country, but I can't say as I recall that being much of issue during regular operation. Maybe someone else can offer up some knowledge?
 
The guys at Kelbly have been building actions for a long time. They have some of the most consistent ignition and best bolt timing in any action you can use. The firing control in the atlas is the exact same one they use in the Fclass/benchrest actions. For 2 lugs actions they have always been at the top of my list of great actions.

cheers,
Ryan
 
I run 3 kelby's atlas actions. Very solid smooth actions and a great action for the money. Just a heads up if you're going to run it in prs or run the bolt hard. Get the extreme duty bolt stop. Thats the only issue i have ever had with mine. The clock on close will depend how trigger times up with the action. With my trigger tech Dimonds and my flavio flare there has been pretty much no #### on close.
 
Munkey1973 said:
That's just one of the reasons that I got their Elite Action when I built my F class rifle.
They have a mechanical blade ejector (Winchester M70 style).... it doesn't try to eject until the bolt comes right to the back.
There is a very small slit in the bolt face for the blade.... no ejector spring.

https://imgur.com/c5X7N5Y

https://imgur.com/0rawYs1
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Agreed, I also really like the Defiance Elite, its smooth, controlled round feed, m70 extractor that will eject at the rear of the bolt and the throw will depend on how hard its pulled to the rear. It's super rigid, has an integrated rail and has an additional inch or so of action in front of the integrated lug. You can get them Nitrided too from the factory.
 
mudpro said:
I run 3 kelby's atlas actions. Very solid smooth actions and a great action for the money. Just a heads up if you're going to run it in prs or run the bolt hard. Get the extreme duty bolt stop. Thats the only issue i have ever had with mine. The clock on close will depend how trigger times up with the action. With my trigger tech Dimonds and my flavio flare there has been pretty much no #### on close.
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Awesome, thanks for the info. I'll be running a TT special and won't be running it hard. I may order the HD bolt stop with the action just to have on hand
 
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