Hey guys, sorry for the delay in posting this review.
Rifle reviewed: Christensen Arms BA Tactical 338 Lapua Magnum
When you first pick up the rifle you notice immediately how light this rifle is and If you have any sense your next shot should be along the lines of
"This thing is going to beat the shit out of me when I shoot it.".... The next thing you will notice is that the rifle feels really balanced and very comfortable to grip. The stock is very comfortable and has a thick limbsaver rubber pad on the butt plate, which I was very happy to see.
The forend of the stock is very comfortable to grip and is made of carbon fiber. I was very impressed with he feel of the stock and modular locations for mounts and slings. From there I continued my inspection towards the business end of the muzzle. Which is when I noticed a very curious looking muzzle brake which for some reason contains 4 Allen screws in the 12 o'clock position... Strange, but very effective... read- VERY effective. I would place the recoil level right around a .308 or a hair heavier.
As I completed the visual inspection, I moved on to the bolt.... I cycled the action and I was not very impressed....
For the price of admission this bolt is only slightly better than your average Rem700. As you can imagine I was disappointed and I was hoping that after several rounds the action would get better(many guns do).
I then moved on to the function check and I was very pleased with the trigger. The trigger is very smooth and set to somewhere around 4.0lbs (no gauge to confirm). The safety functions just like most 700s out there so I don't have much to say about that.
Now for the range report, as I racked a round into the chamber and prepared for the ass whooping I was about to receive, I focused on my fundamentals and went through my mental checklist.
Once I was ready, I slowly pressed the trigger to the rear and within a few thousandths of a second my apprehension turned into pure elation!
I thought that maybe I just shot a squib load or something wasn't right.
I checked the bore...its clear... I checked the target...One 338 sized hole about 6" above my aim point.... I thought to myself, holy shit this gun is awesome!
20 rounds later I had my optic doped and I was out of ammo.
After several months of life delays, I was able to get some ammo loaded up and nearly a year later I have a sweet shooting rifle that shoots at least 1/2 " at 100YDS.
The rifle seems to prefer Hornady 285gr Eldms, Nosler 265gr ABLRs (shoot the worst), and Sierra 300gr HPBTs.
Now that I have had the rifle for awhile and have fired approximately 300 rounds through the rifle I am very pleased with how well the bolt has broken in. I believe most would still ding the rifle for the stiff action but its a whole lot better, and still smoother than a Desert Tech(owned one and I was not impressed)
To sum up my thoughts here is the pros/cons list:
PROs
Accurate shoots 1/2" or better(guaranteed by the manufacturer)
Light weight- great for hunting
Super light recoil
great trigger
Tuneable muzzle brake
Modular
Carbon fiber!
Cons
Action is tight
Some of the milling in the brake appear to not have completely deburred
Price-Price should be closer to $1800-$1900 for what you get.
