Ballistic Ambitions
As a precision rifle junkie, I have a hard time knowing when to say when with my rifle collection. Today’s topic descends from my desire to have a perfect rifle for every situation. And as a hunter of these Rocky Mountains, I wanted a custom rifle that would be perfect for just about any hunt that may occur here. Follow along as I take you through another custom rifle build, this one is a Bergara Premier action carbon fiber 7mm PRC.
Bergara Premier Action
At the heart of every rifle is the action itself, the mechanical part of the rifle that feeds and fires cartridges. The Bergara Premier Action is one of many clones of the famous Remington 700 action, popularized by its easy adaptability and performance.
The Premier Action builds on the best qualities of the 700, and adds a great deal of function and improvements of its own. All while maintaining the conformity to the 700’s footprint and accessories that make up the majority of the aftermarket.
The Premier Action is a rotating bolt, with a 90-degree throw, to engage its dual bolt-lugs. The conical bolt face incorporates dual ejector plungers, and a sliding ejector housed in one side of the face. The Nitride firing pin assembly is of the bayonet design, allowing removal with no jigs or tools, by just twisting the bolt-shroud a 1/4 turn and pulling to the rear. At the front of the action you will find a pinned recoil lug for perfect alignment, and on top it uses oversized 8-40 mounting screws to secure the scope mounts.
Specifications
| Bergara Premier Action Specs | |
| Material | 416 Stainless steel |
| Action Lengths | Short and Long Action |
| Bolt Handle | Removable Knurled stainless steel |
| Ejector | Dual Spring-Plungers |
| Extractor | Sliding Plate Design |
| Bolt Design | Spiral Fluted |
| Recoil Lug | Drilled and Pinned |
| Bolt Face Options | Standard .470” and Magnum .540” |
| Finish | Raw Stainless Steel |
| Bolt Release | External |
| Trigger Compatibility | Remington 700 Triggers |
| Weight | 2.06 Pounds |
Bergara began selling the Premier Actions recently, and also sell them as barreled actions if you wish to buy them complete. Requiring only a few additional accessories to have a complete rifle. My experience with previous Bergara Premier rifles made me want to try one of these actions on this next build.
A Barrel to Match
A good action needs a good barrel to match, for that I selected an Osprey Barrel Works carbon wrapped barrel. Osprey barrels feature a six groove bore, the additional grooves make an overall smaller cut into the bullet. Like other modern rifling techniques , this is a superior design. And also is better for shooting monolithic copper solid bullets. The 416R stainless barrel is wrapped in carbon fiber and double stress relieved before being lapped and gauged.
The 7mm PRC chamber was cut, and the barrel finished at twenty-inches. That may seem a bit short for some folks, but I like short gun performance. And the 7mm PRC cartridge has plenty of performance to use.
Inside the barrel is a one-in-eight twist rate, this is a slightly aggressive twist rate optimal for some of the more modern 7mm bullet designs. My plan was to shoot some of my favorite .284 bullets like the Hornady 162 ELDM, and the Sierra 183 Match King. As well as the solid copper Cayuga 167 hunting bullet.
At the muzzle end, the barrel was cut and threaded 5/8-24 for attaching muzzle devices like brakes or more likely a suppressor. All machine work was done at Patriot Valley Arms in Pottstown Pa.
A Chassis Following the Theme
Since I was focusing on lighter weight, and maximum portability. I selected a carbon fiber stock/chassis from Pure Precision, which is designed for the Remington 700 footprint. Which of course the Bergara fits nicely. The aluminum block molded inside the carbon made a perfect match to the action.
A detachable 3-round magazine system from Hawkins Precision fits perfectly in the chassis. And to round everything off, I installed a Trigger Tech 2-stage trigger for a crisp and adjustable break.
With all those parts assembled, I installed the Warne Vapor 20-MOA scope rail to the receiver. This lightweight rail comes with both sizes of screws for 700 style actions, allowing a solid base for mounting a scope.
I selected my US Optics LXR 4-24 riflescope for this project, the broad spectrum of magnification are optimal for hunting. Whether I am sneaking through the tight Tamarak pines of Montana forests at 4-power, or zoomed in to 24-power to get the best view of a distant Pronghorn on Utah’s dry western desert. The bright clear image matched with excellent tracking make this scope an easy choice.
Custom Rifles and Custom Loads
Custom rifles, like most rifles, can benefit greatly from handloaded ammunition. The whole purpose of this rifle was to be accurate, compact and light, yet still bring enough power for animals like Rocky Mountain Elk. That would require some custom handloading, which luckily I’ve been addicted to for some time.
Per my usual approach to loading a cartridge, I started out with a couple bullets I know work well. For this project I selected the Sierra Bullets 183 Match king, the Hornady 162 ELDM, and the PVA Cayuga 167. The latter being a copper solid, resulting in very high ballistic coefficient for its weight. I have used them in various calibers with excellent results.
I acquired a set of Redding Premium 7 PRC dies, which allowed exact precision with a micrometer seating die. Making customizing my ammunition both quick and easy.
Finding a great shooting load for each of them was a trial and error, but I ended up with an accurate load and good velocity. I have noticed that with these Cayuga bullets, it doesn’t take much to get a good rifle shooting half MOA or better groups.
Field Shooting
Taking this rifle into the high Rocky Mountains where it was meant to be was a priority. So with ammo loaded, I headed into the spring mountains. As you can see, winter hasn’t exactly let go of us up here in the high country. For both comfort and anonymity, I installed my Banish Backcountry suppressor. It did a fine job of keeping the 7 PRC quiet enough for my tatses.
The wide open spaces combined with the natural antagonist’s of wind, angles, and cold all made for excellent practice. And I was excited to see what this beauty was capable of. Since it was zeroed, and I had good velocity numbers in hand. I punched it all into my ballistic solver to come up with a few firing solutions.
A long-range Test
I’d setup my shooting position overlooking a long mountain valley. It was littered with snow patches, melting runoff, and a few conspicuous piles of dirt from wintering rodents. After measuring the distance to a few, I came up with one target at 565 yards and another at 980 yards. Both of them measured around 14-inches tall. This gave me roughly a similar sized target to the vitals of the Rocky Mountain Elk I intended to hunt with this rifle.
My calculator indicated just over two MRAD for the nearer target, so I dialed the LXR to 2.1 and settled behind the scope. I watched the mirage downrange, and counter-judged the wind I felt against the back of my neck. After holding a correction for the wind, I took up the slack in the trigger, and began my press while holding steady. The shot burst from the rifle, and I watched as the scope resettled on the target to wait for the impact. Half a second later, the little dirt hill exploded sending fresh soil scattering across the snow behind it.
For a change, after taking a few more shots, I shifted to the further target. I adjusted both the power and parallax setting on my scope before I settled the reticle on the further dirt mound. After extrapolating a wind hold from my first shots, I held into the wind after dialing 5.6 MRAD for the distance. I was happily surprised as the next three shots went solidly through my target. The flying dirt giving witness after each shot.
Hunting
As it happens, I jumped on the opportunity for a last minute spring bear hunt in Western Montana. Hunting Black Bears in the spring there can be very challenging and rewarding. The moist climate never stays stable for more than a few hours, and in a single afternoon you can experience heavy sweating, rain, and snow.
After putting in hundreds of miles through the forests there, and carrying this rifle on my shoulder for an average 5-6 miles a day I was quite happy with it. My efforts to keep the gun short and light were very helpful as the miles stacked up. And at random points throughout the hunt I was able to take a shot here and there to confirm accurate shot placement. And despite coming up empty-handed for a spring bear, I was able to bag a few Marmots that tempted my dry spell.
Pros and Cons
With custom rifles its almost more of a do’s and don’ts than a pros and cons. With nearly unlimited options its more about selecting which attributes you want in a rifle and whether or not you want to pay for them.
Having said that, I can certainly say that most of my selections were on point. The Premier action is an outstanding platform to build on. Its smooth operation is matched by positive extraction and robust build. I don’t regret for a second spending the money on a good trigger, that makes a huge difference for me. The carbon fiber Osprey barrel shoots great and pushes my preferred bullets at an acceptable velocity for the purposes of this rifle. The Pure Precision stock is very comfortable and lightweight. I do wish I had splurged a touch more for the adjustable comb though. Even so, adding a Triad Tactical stock pack kills that bird and another by giving me additional ammo storage and comfort.
I may have been a touch aggressive on the shortness of the rifle, I think if I did it again I would have gone for a 22-23-inch barrel, just for the velocity.
Final Thoughts on this Project
While I am quite happy with how this custom rifle turned out. But the true test will be after I finish out my hunting season this fall. I have plans for both deer and elk hunting, and perhaps a pronghorn antelope thrown into the mix. Once those hunts have concluded, I will likely have a much better hindsight on how this project came together. But so far I am quite please with the performance, and I look forward to those hunts with intense excitement.
