The point I guess is this:
The Hancock does not use mass produced button rifled or hammer forged barrels, they use custom cut rifle barrels from rock creek.
When you consider the fairly limited number of guns being produced, calling them "production rifles" is a bit of a stretch.
If I were to order a Nucleus action, rock creek barrel, timney trigger and have LRI put it together and install it in a KRG bravo chassis, can I call that a production rifle as well? They build guns all day, every day, so they can be considered a production facility.
If not,why not? That is the exact same component list as the JH, assembled with similar level of expertise.
If I can have a gunsmith installed Rock Creek barrel on my JH, why can't I have one on my Remington?
I have no skin in the game, these are just questions.
They have found a loophole and are exploiting it. I don't have a problem with that.
Most games that have a production class, require a minimum number of units produced to qualify for the class.
You're missing a fundamental part about ITAR registration, Excise Tax and being the Manufacturer of Record.
I will lay it out in a more concise form since these are the same questions that were hashed out ad nauseum on the PRS Facebook page and they responded with the same things:
The rules have 2 ruling precedents against using a custom barreled Rem 700 or any other "factory" action that's not branded by the company producing the rifle. If a company is not the Manufacturer of Record for the receiver then it's not eligible in Production. End of Conversation.
Remington "makes" the 700... not every 700 that has been marked as such has been made in their doors. That's why there is a "marking variance" and that's how the Hancock actions are being produced. This is hardly anything new in the firearms industry. This is also why MPA was not allowed to make the PCR with a 700 receiver or a Savage receiver and have a PC legal rifle for the PRS.
PVA is the MoR for the JHR receiver. THat is the first hurdle.
Next is the price point and having a product that is worth paying for. I don't think anyone is arguing the value proposition of the JHR at this point.
The "minimum quantity" numbers are there for a stop gap measure that very large places are held to making enough guns that any normal customer can get them. This isn't new to firearms either, automotive and boats have this too in competition circles. However where it's never argued about is the size of the business. Everyone knows that Glock (for sake of argument) could make 500 guns and just give them away at "production class price" to a tiny portion of only their sponsored guys.
On the other hand, a company like mine would be able to afford to do that for about 5 people total. Since there are a lot more than 5 people with JHR's on order that argument is pretty moot. We aren't artificially limiting production in any way, the more people want them the more I'll grow in capacity to fill orders. It is that simple.
You can't have a gunsmith install a Rock Creek on your JHR, it must be a production barrel. Doing so is outside the rules per Production Class. Considering the price tag I'm listing the replacement barrels for I hardly think we're doing anything unreasonable by being the sole offering of replacement barrels for this particular model. Remington is the sole replacement entity for 700's in Production as is Savage, MPA, Ruger, etc. THat's why it is an OEM product.
In the end, we are the first ones to really push the class forward at this level. We're not going to be the only ones and I suspect that in 12-18 months the class and the sport as a whole will see a large influx of new shooters that get involved. That's why I'm doing this, we want to see the sport grow. I can't intentionally bankrupt myself doing it but we are trying very hard to make the sport more affordable for folks, new or experienced alike.
I really don't understand why there is such animosity and controversy for a product that provides an excellent value to the customer and is designed to encourage more customers to enter the market.