Has anyone used the 1999 montana action for a custom rifle? What did you think? I am curious as to the quality of the action and any potential problems that people are having.

Thanks

I used one for a 338-06 and it's fine. I think it depends on what you're looking for in your custom rifle as the word has a broad range of interpretation. I'm not sure I'd use one for a best quality rifle with bells and whistles as the action would seem out of it's class IMO but fine for hunting rifles with a little class added via a nice stock etc.

They are as good or in some cases better than the available mass-produced actions as a platform. Now that Winchester doesn't offer the original M-70 trigger, I like them more. But truth be told, you can buy a good used M-70 rifle (or action) or Rem-700 (or action) for less than the cost of a new custom action; even the MCR. Where they shine is in the hard-to-get versions like left-hand or the comming PH that is substantially lower in price than other large magnum actions of it's type.

I bought one off of ARBay and it appears to be a very nice action for a working rifle. I cycled a few .458 Lott dummy rounds thru it and it seems very smooth and is well put toghether.

But it's off to the barrel plumber for a .416 Remington Mag tube (I bought it with the intent of building a .404 but then talked myself into the .416) so I can't tell you how well it feeds or how accurate it is. Waiting is a pain

I have one that is a 30-06 Ackley Improved.

I like it very much.

Unfortunately, the custom stock for it has been under construction for almost 5 years so I haven't been able to hunt with it (not exactly the stockmakers fault as I keep substituting other rifles in the que for completion first).

The only thing that I found that it needed was having the receiver surface polished and cleaned up a bit if you want it to look nice.

If I were putting it in a synthetic stock I wouldn't even do that.

I hear some people complain about the bolt release/stop, but I like it better than the one on Winchester's model 70.

It's a good starting point for a custom.

Garrett

I have two, one 270 Win in an Edge synthetic and a 375 H&H in a laminated stock. The 270 is smooth and well finished. It performed without problems for 60-80 rounds, then began to misfire. At the gunsmith's now, probably just getting a new firing pin spring. The 375 is stainless, and a little rough. It hasn't been fired much, and might improve with use.

I have come to prefer Mausers and Pre-64 or Classic M70's over the Montana 1999 as the basis for custom rifles, particularly if they are to get a good walnut stock.

We have three in our family and used to have 4 before I sold my first Lott (big mistake). All are stainless.
First is a lefty 458 Lott, then a lefty 35 Whelen, and finally my wifes .308.

Only problems we had with any of them was the Lott I sold came with the wrong bolt stop and that was quickly replaced. All four shot, feed, and functioned just fine.

However in my opinion they are not a good choice for building a lightweight rifle.

I have a stainless M1999 that I purchased for a .375 H&H. The rifle is in a Brockman's stock with a 20" #3 (I think) barrel. With a Zeiss 1.8-5.5 scope, unloaded, the rifle comes in around 9.5# on the bathroom scale. I figure it will be 10# with 4+1 loaded.

I love the overall size, shape, and feel of the rifle but it is a pretty heavy action. On the other hand even 300gr. loads are pretty manageable off the bench. I put 24 rounds downrange last weekend off the bench with no ill-effects.

On the downside, the action on mine is pretty stiff and a bit gritty and definitely needs some working in. It's certainly not as smooth as a Ruger RSM for instance.

I should point out, I have a "working rifle". Brockman's laminated stock (bedded), stainless 20" bbl., "short range" scope. It certainly fits my desires for a short and handy rifle.

Accuracy while getting used to the gun has been abut 1.25" at 100 yards with the 300gr. IL's. We'll see how it does as I get used to it more and work up loads.

My only complaint - it's a gritty action...and I wish I knew that I couldn't get a stainless front sight for a .650 diameter bbl. Gonna have to two-tone the sights now...

I built one into a .375 H&H. Functions well but took a lot of polishing to get it to feel as smooth as I like. I think that is because it is stainless. It shoots slightly less than a MOA. I used an Accurate Innovations stock in baston walnut. The barrel is from Lilja. It looks as good as it shoots.

I made two SS SA's in o .308's no complaints except weight. I still have a CrMOly SA that I have yet to decide what to do with. Since the SA's are actually intermediate length actions and are heavy to boot I am still tempted to make it into a .376 Steyr, I think the biggest round that will fit into an SA. The extra weight will help with recoil reduction.

Thanks for all the great input. That helps a lot.

Mine is a stainless lefty from the charter run. It's a long action chambered in 300WSM. I shoot it single-shot as a target gun. Best group ever is a .154" for three pops at 100 yards. It will consistently shoot just under one-half MOA from its 29-inch Krieger barrel if I hold well enough. It weighs a recoil-busting 18 pounds with scope...