One of the best parts of writing about guns is the exposure to new products. Some are great, some work well, and some need a little bit of improvement. A couple of years ago Ultimatum Precision sent me a U300 to review. Their sturdy action offered some novel options, however it suffered from a very heavy bolt lift. Ultimatum did redesign the bolt which helped, but they ultimately pulled the plug on the U300. They went back to redesign their action, keeping the good features and improving upon areas that needed it. The result is the Deadline, a 3-lug action that has a 60-degree bolt throw, thick rear tang, and interchangeable bolt head.
The Deadline is a slick looking action that stands apart from the masses of custom Remington 700 style clone actions. It fits into most Remington 700 style foot print stocks and chassis with little to no modification and most aftermarket Remington 700 style triggers work with it. The integral recoil lug is part of the action, so the Deadline doesn’t require a separate lug. The action is threaded 1 1/16″x20, the same as a Savage and allows the use of pre-threaded Savage barrels with a barrel nut (Ultimatum Precision makes a fancy barrel nut that you can use). The tang is thick, but not as thick as the tang found on the U300, so use with a conventional stock should allow the action to blend well.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of the Deadline is the bolt system. The 3-lug bolt allows for a 60 degree bolt throw speeding up your cycle time and keeping your hand away from the scope, but that isn’t all. It has a tool-less firing pin removal and a quick change bolt head that is available in a variety of options. This is a big benefit for shooters that re-barrel their rifles a lot, guys like me. I am constantly opening and closing bolt faces and swapping around spare bolts, something that can take both time and money. With the Deadline, a change from a 6 Creedmoor to 6.5 PRC is a simple barrel and bolt head swap, in fact, when I ordered this gun I was planning on building it into a 6 Creedmoor, but decided on the 6.5 PRC instead. No biggie, I swapped the bolt head and went onto building my rifle.
Unlike most rifles that guide the bolt through the action with a broached raceway, the Deadline uses a groove that is machined into the side of the bolt. This groove engages the external bolt release and guides the bolt as it cycles through the action. 
I received a Deadline with 3 bolt heads and an action wrench for review, I built it into a 6.5 PRC rifle that is equipped with a Triggertech Trigger (from Brownells), Shilen Select Match Remington Varmint Contour 1:8″ twist barrel (from Brownells) and MDT ESS chassis system. Topped off with a TRACT Optics TORIC 30mm scope in a Spuhr 30mm Mount (Brownells), this rifle means business.
The Deadline is a fast, nice shooting action. The first time I took it out to the range, I went with some Hornady Factory 147 ELD ammunition.
My first two five-shot groups at 100 yards were sub half-MOA with the factory ammo! Muzzle velocity was recorded at 2,912 feet/second with a SD of 16.0.
I’ve been shooting the Deadline for a few months now and I like the way it handles. The bolt lift issue from the U300 has been addressed and the action cycles quickly in the MDT ESS chassis (I’ve actually upgraded it to a carbon fiber fore end and folding stock, you”ll see pics of that soon).
In upcoming posts, I’ll be writing about how I built the rifle as well as 6.5 PRC load development info that I obtained with the gun.
To learn more about the Deadline, visit Ultimatum Precision online.
To learn more about the MDT ESS chassis system, take a look at the MDT’s ESS page here.
Also, if you live in the Long Island area, swing by our retail store, 782 Custom Gunworks LTD!
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