Big changes coming at American Hunting Rifles

wayne406

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I have it from a very close source that big changes will be coming at AHR. They are currently booked for new work for the entirety of 2021 and will not be accepting new work for custom rifles except on a very limited basis. Also, the upgrades to the CZ 550's will be discontinued. They will still sell the parts they make ( safeties, triggers, etc) so they can be installed by other gunsmiths. They will occasionally offer for sale new custom DGR's on their website. The times are a changin'.
 
On their website, AHR had a new section about upgrading Model 70’s.

Certainly glad I haven’t bought a 550 with the expectation of having it upgraded.
 
They sure are beautiful guns, and Wayne seems to be a wizard with the 550’s, but dang you sure see a lot of them come up for sale on here, and cheap too!

The way owners sing the praises of them, you would expect they’d stay in the safes longer.
 
I am not surprised, having in mind recent phasing out CZ 550 from production.

In my modest view, for AHR, and for hunters with limited budget, it would be worth considering to start with similar upgades with most economic mauser 98, presently in the world - zastava, on same business model.
This is example of safari upgraded zastava .458 wm:

But, as mentioned above, AHR already have an option for substitute for CZ 550.
 

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The new CRF M70 is an excellent platform for a custom rifle. AHR is making a smart move given the changes at CZ.
 
They have taken down the page upgrade your rifle .

I wonder how many rifles they have upgraded and built over the years. I hadn't heard of them much until I joined here. The more I read the more I wanted one.
 
Well I have gotten back 3 that Wayne did upgrades to this year and am very pleased with the results. He went above and beyond with the 458 Lott that was having issues with scoping and it now shoots great. Number 4 he did is in transit back to me and can’t wait to get it in my hands. CZ 500 Jeff with a number 2 makeover. Wayne had basically stopped taking in CZ for upgrades when I bought the 500 but agreed to do it since he was already working on some for me. I will be having him do a custom 416 Rigby in the near future I am afraid.
 
I believe this will raise the value of current CZ AHR rifles.
Both upgraded and customs based on the CZ550.
Just the fact that they are not doing them anymore.
The rules of supply and demand will certainly apply.

I know I was very happy with my #2 upgraded 375H&H.
The rifle is now faithfully serving another AH member.
No regrets selling it, just fond memories of hunting with it.

I wish AHR all the best in their future business endeavors.
 
Unfortunately a number of top end folks are retiring. It sounds like Wayne is slowing things down as opposed to pulling the plug.

On another note, I heard through the grapevine that things at Dakota are really bad with the new owners. Perhaps no intent to manufacture? Can anyone verify this?
 
While we must respect Wayne's decision re. the upgrade of CZ 550(s) I for one was disappointed by it. Now buying an upgraded CZ is going to require a lot more "looking" and a significantly higher price. Much like the Pre-64 Winchester Model 70(s.)
 
After being charged by a Cape Buffalo and seeing a 375 ricochet shot from the lead trackeroff his boss I ordered a 505 Gibbs from Ed Plummer. The rifle was in e queue for a while when Wayne took over. He built the gun on a CZ 550 action that Ed had brought from the Czech Rep.

it is a beautiful rifle and accurate. The feeding is flawles.

Wayne’s customer support is excellent, esp when you’re in Africa and the govt wants to seize a rifle. Thanks Wayne
Jack
 
Wayne mentioned this change to me several months ago after I bought a .375 H&H Model X Whitworth and asked him some advice on upgrading it.

Several years ago I bought a new .458 Lott CZ550 and had him fix the jamming issue and do his #2 upgrade as well. It’s a great rifle now and I trust it with my life while guiding brown bear hunts.

Earlier this year when @BeeMaa decided to sell his .375 H&H with Wayne’s #2 upgrade to help fund his transition to the Blaser R8 system, I quickly snatched up the rifle and am sure glad I did in light of this development at AHR.

While unfortunate for people wanting to upgrade rifles, I understand Wayne’s change from a business standpoint. He can make more money on custom rifles than on upgrades. Doing upgrades takes time away from more profitable custom builds. Kind of like asking a talented automatic transmission shop to do brakes and shocks on your vehicle. Sure, they could do the work but why would they?
 
I wonder if he could recommend another smith to iron out any CZ issues?
Certainly paves the way for a smith to add this service to their portfolio if their focus is customizing existing rifles and they want to build a reputation among hunters whom do spend good sums of money. I have to imagine AHR built some of its custom rifle customer base based on the plethora of reviews from the CZ upgrade posters on various forums.
 
I’ve tried to contact Triple River Gunsmithing. I know they used to be CZs custom shop, but I don’t know if they still are? No answer by phone and their website is jacked up.
 

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