Hey guys,
I am new to the group and am an amateur, aspiring, gun nut. I know little of nothing at this point but would very much like to learn some basic gunsmithing skills, re-barreling, re-chambering, wildcatting,etc. I do have access to a lathe. I know you guys probably get tired of answering all these new kid questions but here goes. I recently bought a K.Kale Turk Mauser for $40. Barrel is rusted to the point of being worthless so I want to try my hand at converting it to a new cartridge. My first question is "Are Turks as safe as large ring 98s?" How much pressure is a safe upper limit? I've seen them chambered in .308 and even higher pressure cartridges is this wise? I'm not looking to push any limits here and would like to avoid the cost of having the receiver carburized if possible.
Second question: I live in Indiana which has the most illogical gun laws for deer hunting that I know of. Basically, rifles can be used but catridge length cannot exceed 1.625 inches and caliber must be .357 or greater. So odd cartridges like .458 SOCOM, 358 Gremlin (7.62x39 necked to 35cal), 35/6mm BR, and 357 Herrett (trimmed) are all fair game. I am especially interested in the .458 SOCOM which is a .50 AE necked down to .458 cal with rim rebated to .470. Pressure runs less than 40,000 psi. Question is which cartridge to try? Is the fat SOCOM case an issue with the small ring barrel? Will the Turk feed a rimmed cartridge like the Herrett?
When I asked about my pressure and safety concerns, a gunsmith friend of mine told me "you couldn't fit enough powder in such a small case to blow up that action". Valid point? Please weigh in and thanks for all your opinions. Sorry for the long post but us new guys really appreciate having this resource.
Thanks
Mark