MOA Maximum handgun

[potatojudge]

My current extended range pistol is a 13 inch 7-30 Contender, but I wanted something with a little more authority at longer ranges. 

I'm not a huge fan of the Encore, and I was concerned that an XP100 would weigh enough that I'd just as soon carry a rifle. 

I decided to give the MOA a try. They're a simple falling block action with great triggers and floated Douglas barrels. Generally known for excellent accuracy. The weakness is the extractor, which necessitates pointing the barrel up and working the lever to eject the round. Ammo must be sized to easily drop in and drop out of the chamber, with only a little wiggle room for rounds that require finger pressure to seat. 

This gun is in 250 Savage AI. I have another coming in 6.5x47 Lapua, and a third with barrels in 44 mag, 454, 250 Savage, and 7mm/6.5 Rem Mag. The barrels are switched using a spanner wrench and there's an indexing screw on the forend hanger to align the barrel. This gun has the sporter forend, but the 6.5 Lapua has the bench rest forend which has a wide flat bottom and an aluminum insert that acts like a hangar bar or pillar. 

I've got loads worked up and when the weather improves I'll take an afternoon to see how it shoots. 

I'll wring the three guns out and then decide which to keep or modify. Obviously there's no need for a dedicated 250 AI gun when the other barrel is easily reamed. The action and stock weigh relatively little, so if I like the platform well enough to stick with it I'll have a slim profile barrel made to get the weight down further. Maybe I'll find the 6.5 Lapua is all I need. If I don't like the rig, I'll sell them off for an XP in 284, 6.5-284, 260 or similar class of cartridge. 

I'm not giving up on revolvers at all. I envision a revolver on my hip as my primary gun and the MOA slipped into a sheath in my hunting backpack, which doubles as a rest for prone shooting. 

[zeus]

MOA guns shoot really well. Triggers are nice too! I have one in 30 Herrett that is super cool, very small and lightweight and shoots crazy good. with the 110 TacTX bullets from Barnes, deer hate it! I have a 308 from Hampton but haven't shot it yet....it may get moved or rebarreled if I get bored this Spring

[cas]

I passed on one with two barrels and a scope many years ago and regretted it for years. Time has made it fuzzy but it was in either 6 or 6.5 PPC and in those pre-internet days I was worried about finding load data for it.

[jfs]

Sure is a "looker"....

[azhandloader]

Yes, I'm asking this nearly four years after this thread ended. Did anyone buy MOA Corp? How can they be contacted? They've vanished, just like Thompson Center. I guess the current crop of weekend commandos with their AR-15s aren't interested in single action/single shot anything.

[bradshaw]

Nov 12, 2023 11:32:00 GMT -5 azhandloader said:

Yes, I'm asking this nearly four years after this thread ended. Did anyone buy MOA Corp? How can they be contacted? They've vanished, just like Thompson Center. I guess the current crop of weekend commandos with their AR-15s aren't interested in single action/single shot anything.

*****

Richard Mertz is the daddy of the MOA (Minute of Angle) falling block pistol. The MOA built a top reputation in IHMSA silhouette. News on the MOA is welcome here.
David Bradshaw

[magman]

I have an MOA in 6.5tcu. Superbly accurate. Definitely a different design.

[potatojudge]

Nov 12, 2023 11:32:00 GMT -5 azhandloader said:

Yes, I'm asking this nearly four years after this thread ended. Did anyone buy MOA Corp? How can they be contacted? They've vanished, just like Thompson Center. I guess the current crop of weekend commandos with their AR-15s aren't interested in single action/single shot anything.

I've posted this elsewhere, but I spoke to Richard Mertz a couple of years ago on his home phone because the 6.5x47 is a neck turn chamber but not marked as such, so I wanted to confirm my findings before altering a bunch of brass. He was very kind to take a call from a random stranger at his home and help me. 

He said the new owner was just sitting on everything and might be up to sell the remnants of the company, but I don't know who that is or how to contact them. Otherwise as far as I know there's no new news. 

The 250 AI broke a firing pin and so I'll need to have one made, and the 7mm-350 Rem Mag barrel puts up some good numbers on the chronograph.

[nirvana91]

The guy who bought it is named gary and i dont remember his last name off the top of my head. I guess he had a company called gateway precision arms and i heard he bought the moa company cheap from the guy mertz sold it to in oregon because he got sick he also around the same time bought the rpm pistol from the family of jim rock who improved the original merrill design. Thats about it he bought both has never answered an email and is sitting on frames and parts for both. It makes no sense whatsoever why someone would do that and as far as the rpm goes i hope someone gets to bring it back because i wanted one bad

[45MAN]

GARY WRIGLEY, I HAVE OR HAD HIS CARD SOMEWHERE, WILL LOOK FOR IT AT MY OFFICE NEXT WEEK WHEN I GO THERE (NO OFFICE TIME FOR ME DURING THANKSGIVING WEEK).

[braino]

This information is from several years ago, so take it for what you might be able to get out of it. The last information that I had found on Gary Wrigley was telephone number 314-832-4360. And also an email address of [e-mail]
I also remember reading that he had not answered any requests for parts, information, etc.
It's a shame that he apparently bought the rights to 2 or 3 different quality handgun platforms, and then disappeared with everything.
My MOA Maximum gets used sparingly, and hopefully will not require any replacement parts.

[sixshot]

I had one in a 7mm rimmed of some sort, can't remember what it was but I do remember it had about as good a trigger as I've fired, it was terrific. I was hunting down in Utah several years ago with one of my sons, him with a rifle, and me with the MOA. I was moving real slow through some tall sagebrush when I spotted horns about 50 yds ahead of me & as I slowly put my glasses on it I could see it was a an OK buck & he looked like he was asleep laying in a small depression up against a large boulder in the shade.
I slipped back away from him & located my son & using hand signals motioned for him to come over to me. When he got there I told him what was going on & said I wanted him to shoot it with the 7mm MOA. We sneaked into place but we couldn't get a rest high enough for him to make the shot. Finally I laid over a small boulder sticking out of the ground about 10=12 inches & had him lay my backpack on top of me for a rest. While this was going on the buck started to notice something wasn't right but he was still holding his position.
When Travis placed the gun on top of my pack I started running out of air & was about to pass out before he broke the shot. The buck just simply rolled forward out of the depression & it was over, a perfect shot with the scoped MOA. The 120 gr bullet went through & smacked the rock on the back side, taking out both lungs & he was done without even moving, a great hunt with one of my sons in a very unusual position. Might have been a 7 Int Rimmed, not sure. I just remember it had a superb trigger.

[Ken O'Neill]

Gary Wrigley was Jim Rock's son-in-law. I haven't seen or had contact with him since 2004.

[magman]

Thanks Ken. I kept racking my pea brain to remember where the MOA stuff went. Thought it was Rock.

[azhandloader]

Well, this is all just sadly morbid. My hopes of another barrel for my 1989 Maximum just vaporized. Back then, I bought a Neil Jones Custom Products 7BR threaded neck sizer, an RCBS FL sizer, and RCBS Comp seating die to load for it. Remington was still making 7BR brass, but knowing Remington's history of stopping or discontinuing certain cases led me to buy a K&M expander to form new brass from 6BR, which Remington was still making at the time--long before it became the 6BR Norma. I still have that MOA with the polished blue barrel that was bought for IHMSA shooting. Hooded front sight, the works. After a lot of years it got scoped using an MOA base and rings. It still gets a trip to the range once in a while, but nothing like IHMSA competitions 34 years ago.