Re: Your perfect action - and why
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: hewlett260</div><div class="ubbcode-body">It's funny going through here and seeing everyone post the same thing: three lug short throw bolt, integral rails and recoil lugs, use AW magazines, 3-position safety, blah blah blah. Not trying to piss anyone off here but what action has all those features and is known to be the best?
The AW action. And yet nobody really mentioned a few key features; massively overbuilt, enclosed receiver for strength and function, permanently bonded so bedding not an issue, four action bolts instead of two, rock solid, and since this does carry some weight with it, military proven world wide. Also to go with that last part is the fact that AI is not really what anyone could call the 'Lowest Bidder' and their AWM in 338 Lapua holds the record for the longest sniper kill in history.
To the gentlemen who mentioned the Badger, to put this in comparison; If the AI was the Mauser 98, the Badger is the '03 Springfield, a copy and although very good, not as good as the original.
That's just my $0.02 and in case you haven't guessed buy now my pick for the perfect action is still the AW. I just wish they would offer them in short magnums and work out how it could be a controlled round feed action. </div></div>
Lookign at the AW I wouldn't say it's a truly enclosed receiver... the port is pretty open for an action with an integral rail. It seems from the pics there's more space and access than my BigHorn. I'm assuming it's for some of the reasons listed by earlier posters.
Why is massively overbuilt important? Given that the tolerances for PSI are well known in advance would anything more than that actually add any appreciable value to performance? How many times has the action's lack of strength actually played a part in failure or poor accuracy? I'm talking from a design perspective, not faulty or poor metallurgy.