Which Current rifle manufacturer has best manufacturing & quality control

R

rustybarrel

Member
Rating - 100%
5   0   0
Some of you handle/see/shoot many different types of rifles.I am curious which company(s) currently produce the best built rifles.I am not grouping into this question the elite custom shops, I am interested in the rifles you can actually purchase in a shop/online from a company that produces guns & rifles all the time.
I ask this seemingly silly question because there was a time when companies that made fire arms produced a rifle that was well made, everything on it worked well, it could shoot, and probably even looked good(bluing and wood).Remington, Winchester, Sako, Browning,Brno, etc. used to make quality rifles.
From what I see now, real quality rifles,that having everything working as it should,shoot well, are well finished, and show consistent QC are hard to find.As an example I throw out the issue with Sako ejection on $2000 rifles, finish peeling off rubberized stocks ( including on $3800 Carbonlights) from various companies.Sloppy fit and finish on many Remington’s, Brownings, Winchester’s I look at.Rough metal work and plastic everywhere.
Who still makes consistently great rifles??Anybody?
 
From my experience the Winchester 70 bolt guns, all their lever guns made by Miroku and the 1885 rifles have been nothing short of fantastic. I've got 4 Winchester/Miroku made lever guns and i've never even had to adjust the sights out of the box, been dead on. Model 70s have had flawless fit and finish. Can't speak for the cheaper Winchester plastic stocked rifles and shotguns though.
 
Tikka - owing to the precision, barrel/action true-ing, barrels, out of box accuracy, safety. Yes there's plastic but that is secondary to the working bits that give you accuracy. The action is also very versatile and permits lots of custom work around mods, and the actions are over-pressure tested. For the price, hard to beat.
 
Holland and holland
Dakota at least before they were bought out
Hill county rifle company
Ferlach of austria

All absolutely flawless in my experience of the ones ive held

Ive heard good things about the new john rigby stalking rifles though i have no experience with them
 
My overall fav is the Sako AV, 75, and 85 lines but they can be cost prohibitive for some. Right behind that would be the Coopers, but again, cost. So neither of these really fit the parameters of the initial post.

Staying within the parameters, the current production Winchester 70s. The former push-feeds are not included in my vote; they are like that ### uncle you only ever see at Christmas and funerals. But, the new 70s are well made, reliable, aesthetically pleasing, and tend to be accurate.

For the price, quality, accuracy, etc, I hate to say it but I would have to say Tikka gets my second vote. I don't like them because of the crappy stocks, plastic mags, and something about the receivers just always seemed wrong to me, but I am a Sako fan and the barrels come off the same line. Great shooters. I will never own a new Tikka, but give me an older model and I have no problems.
 
If you're willing to live with a "plastic gun" nothing beats a Tikka. The steel parts of the rifle are of the highest quality (ask any machinist about both quality of material and treatments).
 
CZ in 22 gets my vote! I have put about 8000 rounds through my 452 Varmint in the last 2 years with zero problems with the rifle apart from a very few ftfs due to ammo quality. While this is not a large calibre rifle the magazines, both polymer and steel, while showing some wear are holding up well. The wood stock is as good as the day it was bought and the rifle works well in -20 and +30 temperatures. Price is reasonable and it comes in a variety of models. Our club 22 CZ's have handled thousands of rounds and years of abuse and are still going well!

If the government were to take my semi auto 7.69 I would definitely consider the CZ bolt action rifle!
 
Nachoninja said:
From my experience the Winchester 70 bolt guns, all their lever guns made by Miroku and the 1885 rifles have been nothing short of fantastic. I've got 4 Winchester/Miroku made lever guns and i've never even had to adjust the sights out of the box, been dead on. Model 70s have had flawless fit and finish. Can't speak for the cheaper Winchester plastic stocked rifles and shotguns though.
Click to expand...

This fer us fans of 'em.^^^ I also go for Pedersoli classic models as well. Good stuff all around.;)
 
brybenn said:
Holland and holland
Dakota at least before they were bought out
Hill county rifle company
Ferlach of austria

All absolutely flawless in my experience of the ones ive held

Ive heard good things about the new john rigby stalking rifles though i have no experience with them
Click to expand...

ferlach is not a brand but a village where from the most fantastic to the worst can be seen ...
 
I think it is fair to compare manufactures by looking at their quality at the bottom of their lines. I have CZ Lux 452 that is beautiful to hold and shoot. Over 1200 rounds with a couple FTF. Also a Weatherby Vangaurd S2 that has been flawless and so smooth for over 100.
 
I have to vote 1 for Sako.
The quality of the metal work, the accuracy, the snappy smooth bolt action..
I've owned new Ruger, Tikka, Remington, Winchesters that were accurate... and each that were terrible in accuracy.
I think they all have nice models that each have pros and cons.. But the Sako A7 roughtech pro has to be one of the best quality rifles in the $1500 range a guy can get. Shoulder and work a finnlight and its hard to go back.

edit - This is coming from a die hard 700 fan...
 
Sako does have a fantastic production rifle. Tikka aswell although plastic parts a bit unappealing that sako action is so well done. CZ is also a very well build, well refined piece. I’d put the cooper in a semi custom build.
 
I hear you guys on the Tikka.. I am still a Tikka fan. But they have more lemons than I would give them credit for outstanding quality control and manufacturing... Which was the question. Not Remington lemon numbers.. but not considered great quality control imo
 
Trimmer 905 said:
Ruger,hands down. Price point,quality and accuracy can't be beat by anyone,anywhere.
Click to expand...

Bwahahaha. I pray this is sarcasm.

My vote goes for Tikka and Weatherby/Howa in the budget rifle category.

If $$$ is no concern, the list of quality manufacturers is lengthy, especially European manufacturers.
 
medvedqc said:
ferlach is not a brand but a village where from the most fantastic to the worst can be seen ...
Click to expand...

I should have worded it differently yes but of the dozen or so guns ive seen held and shot all were of great fit and finish and detail. All came from ferlach of austria region. Ive never heard any negative remarks or quality issues. Of course there may not be many in canada to sample from


Unfortunately we live in a world where damn near every company is in the race to the bottom. Remington is the reigning camp...for now
 
I was just sighting in my coyote rig, SPS M700 22-250 which I went over thoroughly before buying....for a cheaper race-to-the-bottom gun, this baby loves to print tiny groups with my hand loaded 3025 fps 50 grain Vmax booolits. I consider myself lucky. :cool:

My deer stand gun is a Winnie Model 70 Featherweight Compact in 308....it’s a fantastic shooter. I forgot to mention it’s an FN made or BACO American rig from SC. It’s as slick as any Mauser CRF style action and such a pleasure to operate.

I’ve been super impressed with the CRF rifles from FN or Winchester lately. And when I used to work at Barrie Cabelas Gun Counter I had a great chance to feel every rig in their inventory....that’s a pile of fun!

So regarding a balance of expenditure versus QC? Go out and feel a bunch. Shoulder all of them. Bring gloves and manipulate their magazine release on their feed systems. Find their balance points or perceived balance points. Point them, I would have the customers point the rifles at the dioramas in the store. They were always thankful for said displays elevated of course!!

Enjoy the journey! :wave:

Cheers, Barney
 
Vanguard [Howa] gets my vote. They are really outstanding for the price.
For some perverse reason, every Tikka T3 I have owned was a disappointment.
I have a newer, CRF M70 Winchester in 325 WSM that is a decent rifle.
700 Remingtons still dominate in my gunsafes, though. Most are selected by
me carefully, so have been great for my use. Not suggesting that a new 700 will
satisfy this criteria, though. Dave.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom