Hey, y'all whom may be interested:

I just recently dug up a beautiful 03a3 springfield at a pawn shop in lightly sporterized but otherwise 85% condition. This is, by far, my all time favorite
rifle action. I'd like to put it in a laminate or walnut thumbhole stock with medium comb, and a medium weight full or half-octagon barrel, length 18.5", chambered for .35 Whelen or .35 Whelen (thank'y, colonel) Ackley improved, and top it with a Weaver k3 w/ post crosshair. Anyone know where I may find a stock and Barrel manufacturer? The Stock is secondary, What I really need is a barrel manufacturer who can do this cost effectively. Any one know someone?

Well custom barrels are not cheap, nor would I want a cheap one. If I'm putting on a custon barrel I expect that it should shoot like its a custom gun, and nothing else besides the operator and gravity controlls the bullets flight more than the barrel.

Myself, I'm picking thru components to make a custom long range deer rifle either on my 03a3 or my win 70 action. Caliber is going to be a 6.5x55 sweede or a 6.5x06. Barrels I'm still feeling out but its looking like a hart or douglass is going in, stock will be a mcmillan. Finished I want a 12 - 14 lb. 26 - 28" barreled tack driver. I want something that will hold its own at the 600 meter line.

Pac-Nor is excellent, Shaw is reasonably priced. Both do excellent work.

It is my considered opinion that the AI version of the .35 Whelen gains you nothing whatever except the necessity of much more expensive dies.

Krieger or Lilja. there are others that make barrels as good or almost as good, but the backlog is huge. six months to a year or more.

You can buy the most expensive custom barrel in the world and it won't do anything more than a good barrel well installed with the rig you are building. Let's see a .35 whelen with a 3X on top of it. Sounds like one heck of a good hunting rig to me. Sounds like a really poor benchrest rifle.

With a hunting rig, almost everyone's barrels are going to be good enough. Just make sure that have someone who knows what they are doing install it.

Spend the difference in the cost of the barrels on practice ammo. You will be a better shot for it and you will get familar with exactly what your rifle does.

JWK

Since it cost the same to thread and chamber any barrel why not use a top of the line barrel. Such as Krieger, Lillja, Rock Creek, Brouhton, Etc. the difference in money is not that great....

check out the montana rifleman, they offer octagon barrels. all their barrels are also hand lapped.