Montana Rifle Company closed!

[Desert Dog]

Sorry if this is a duplicate post, I haven't seen a similar post yet.

I went to help order a rifle for a friend (a stainless 375 H&H), and noticed the website is down. Upon further search, I found this;

https://montanarifleco.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/MRC-Closure-Letter.pdf

So, Ruger stops making safari rifle in everything but their own proprietary Ruger cartridges, Then CZ stops making the 550, and now Montana Rifle Company is closed.

Seems like affordable controlled-round feed safari rifles are disappearing fast. Looks like the Model 70 is the lone affordable hold-out that still chambers in standard safari cartridges.

 

[Albert GRANT]

If you look beyond what is written it seems like they are looking for a new location and workforce to me

 

[crs]

Is it possible the market is saturated?
Or possibly a glut of once used safari rifles at low prices?

 

[Albert GRANT]

Is it possible the market is saturated?
Or possibly a glut of once used safari rifles at low prices?

They said their sales doubled in 2019 but could not increase production.....
Don't know any other reason a company would shutdown under those circumstances

 

[fourfive8]

https://www.africahunting.com/threads/can-it-be-true-mrc-is-gob-and-cz-is-stopping-the-550.55106/

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Similar story to MRC, maybe a little less known, is Legendary Arms Works. Some investors bought the rights to the Ed Brown bolt action design and partnered with well known gunsmith, Mark Bansner, to make high end, semi-custom hunting rifles. They were active for 3-4 years and quietly went away. I saw Mark Bansner at DSC and asked him what happened and he basically said it was a tough business to scale up production and still maintain quality.

 

[crs]

There is also the competition from European rifle makers, some of which are multi caliber. Some members of this forum have bought those and sing their praises as better than sliced bread.

 

[curtism1234]

Who are these new owners - venture capitalists? To me, there is more to this story and the company is tippy-toeing around words to make up for their post-acquisition shitshow. They want you to believe their company was doing so well that they only thing they can do is close the plant?

This sounds more like a Marlin / Remington deal. The new owners are going to find a new plant in a different state so they cut wages, then they are going to cheapen the quality of the rifles, sell them for the same price, and pretend everything is the same.

They are taking a big risk. With smaller Semi-custom rifle makers increasing, people are going to forget about Montana fast. Winchester was able to pull it off only because of the brand they had for 100 years.

Imo, these new rifles are likely going to be overpriced junk

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

That is truely a shame for left handed hunters , with Winchester being the only one still in production there is nolonger a left handed option.

 

[mark-hunter]

Mauser style rifles, in production, affordable, remain zastava and winchester, both m70.

 

[Albert GRANT]

That is truely a shame for left handed hunters , with Winchester being the only one still in production there is nolonger a left handed option.

If you want affordable CRF in LH there is still Zastava if you want to give that a whirl. Otherwise gotta go with a decent push feed like E.R. Shaw who gives you about 50 caliber options, with many being classic metric/ African calibers- I went that route as the only likely dangerous game I'll ever hunt is buff, possibly croc and dry land hippo

 

[wesheltonj]

You still have SAKO. Left hand hunter, and maybe the custom shop too.

And let me story the pot. Push feed is just fine. After all, just look at all the military rifles used by folks that can shoot back.

 

[Albert GRANT]

You still have SAKO. Left hand hunter, and maybe the custom shop too.

And let me story the pot. Push feed is just fine. After all, just look at all the military rifles used by folks that can shoot back.

Sako is great, but not really CRF. Kind of a modified CRF, not that it matters, really. Works just fine

 

[crs]

In the past, Weatherby made left handed rifles and the one my daughter owns is beauty and a tack driver if the barrel is cleaned very 12 shots. It is a 7mm Weatherby magnum and HOT.

 

[colorado]

I hate to see MRC close down. I hope they start back up. They seemed like really nice reasonably priced CRF rifles and they are in Montana which has a special place in my heart.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

In the past, Weatherby made left handed rifles and the one my daughter owns is beauty and a tack driver if the barrel is cleaned very 12 shots. It is a 7mm Weatherby magnum and HOT.

I've was lucky enough to purchase a weatherby lh lazermark in .340 not the most polite rifle I've ever fired but I fear no evil while carrying it.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

That is truely a shame for left handed hunters , with Winchester being the only one still in production there is nolonger a left handed option.

Ruger is Mauser type extractor, CRF and makes a lot of left hand bolt action rifles at reasonable prices.

 

[chashardy]

Sorry if this is a duplicate post, I haven't seen a similar post yet.

I went to help order a rifle for a friend (a stainless 375 H&H), and noticed the website is down. Upon further search, I found this;

https://montanarifleco.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/MRC-Closure-Letter.pdf

So, Ruger stops making safari rifle in everything but their own proprietary Ruger cartridges, Then CZ stops making the 550, and now Montana Rifle Company is closed.

Seems like affordable controlled-round feed safari rifles are disappearing fast. Looks like the Model 70 is the lone affordable hold-out that still chambers in standard safari cartridges.

Desert Dog: Are you the same Desert Dog that posts great, informative videos on Youtube? I always enjoy your videos.

 

[Albert GRANT]

Ruger is Mauser type extractor, CRF and makes a lot of left hand bolt action rifles at reasonable prices.

I keep forgetting that, probably because it's mostly their own cartridges and no classics in LH, but it is also worth noting that it is only the M77 type actions that are CRF

 

[fourfive8]

The earlier Ruger M77s were push feed- simply a claw extractor on a push feed bolt. The later Ruger M77s in the MkII and Hawkey versions are CRF.