z1r

Nice work Don. What makes it really special is the parts you made yourself like the latch and hinged bottom metal.

Hi Brokengun,

I'd be glad to help out. You can either call or email the number and addy are in my link.

Thanks,

Mike

Be carefull loading .311-.312" diameter bullets into that chamber. The danger is that though the bore is over sized the chamber neck is designed to accomodate a cartridge neck with a .308" bullet. Often there is not enough clearance to safely allow use of the oversized bullet. You see this warning a lot when discussing Mosin Nagants.

Thanks, I'm going to go with a round rasp.

 

dcs

Be sure to post pics when done. We like pics.

Glad to hear you are happy. I try. My buddy liked them so much he had me do a yugo M48 for him and D&T it. Thanks for the kind words.

Ruger only made one single shot frame, the hawkeye. I reckon yer talkin about single action frames in which case though they made several different frames throughout the years they are for the most part essentailly the same. The newest Vaquero frames are smaller and not as strong as either the older vaquero or blackhawks. The older varquero is nearly as strong as the blackhawk. As for parts, they will all pretty much interchange. It is a very common conversion to take an older .357 and convert it to .44. If I'm not mistaken, the earliest .357s were built on a smaller frame which is why they are sought after. Later, Ruger switched to one frame size. The Blackhawk is common converted to such uber rounds as the .454 & the various 475's & .480's.

I need to notch my stock for a bent bolt. What are some tips and best tools for the job?

Get either inletting black or prussian blue. Slather it on the bolt handle and where it marks the wood remove the wood using a round rasp. I find the round rasp the fastest easiest way to remove material. A large one 8-10 inches long and a smaller diameter one will come in handy but, truthfully, you can do the job with just the large one. Sand it smooth when done. When done, no black or blue should be visible on the stock. The receiver should arrest the bolt not the stock.

It's the inletting that I wonder about. The idea of "press fit" sounds absolutely wonderful to me. I HATE inletting... If the compaint is that there are some gaps, well, I can live with it if it's not too bad. 'Cuz if I do the inletting, guess what... there are some gaps!

Thanks, I kind alike it too, so does my son. I modified the military rear sight so it has a two bladed sight that folds kinda like the M1 carbine peep.

Anyway, problem with oversized inletting is that even when you do a near perfect job, you're stuck with the gaps already there. If it's just a knock about rifle and you need it together fast then they will usually suffice. But, as I said, I had the luxury of cherry picking these. I've seen then off center, or inletted too deep so that the metal will be proud of the wood, very proud. That said, I believe they have a generous return policy, that's where the blems come from.

Ok, here is a typical 98 stock form Richards. Requisite white spacers, angled fore end tip, oversize inletting, closed grip, and excess of material.

And here is a '91 Mauser stock that for all intents and purposes was the same as that above. I cut off the tip, shortened the fore end, and glued the tip back on (at 90 degrees of course). Next, I removed the grip cap so as to eliminate the white spacer and thin it up some. While I was at it, I opened the grip up a lot and also slimmed it down considerably. Stock now weighs less that 2 lbs with the pad on it. Though you can't see it (pics later) I modified the cheek piece to a more old school german style.

Stock still needs finishing. I only just applied the sealer and need to wetsand it, then finish. More pics when done. Oh yeah, I just remembered, it had a monte carlo on it, now it doesn't. I has a nice drop in it and is perfect for iron sights.

Some days, it just doesn't pay to get out of bed. Same thing goes for shooting. Some days are just 180 out from the norm.

If you started with pistols and then went to rifles it might be that you just started getting tired. Concentration suffers. That, or you just need to ditch that swiss cheese rifle and get a real rifle, a mauser, lol.

We all have a bad day now and again, even some of my competetive shooter buddies.

That's interesting, it looks like the magazine well is a seperate piece kind of like the model 70. I didn't know they made any Mauser bottom metal like that.

No, not exactly seperate. It is sheet metal but pinned (or maybe spot welded) in. If you look carefully I think you cna see the pins along the side of the bottom metal. We've been trying to get some of the aftermarket vendors to offer two piece Mauser bottom metal. One bottom metal with floorplate and three different magazine sizes; small, standard 3.400" , and magnum width 3.400".

If you don't mind gaps, the Richards seconds are ok. I used to get alot of them, but, I lived down the road and could hand pick mine. That is the only way I would do it. They are useful for making pattern stocks out of though. What I dislike most is that most of the seconds have that damn white line spacing and diagonal forend tips. Very retro in a bad way. I've cut off the grip caps and forend tips, shortened the forearms, and either reinstalled the grip cap or replaced it with metal and glued the foreend tip back on. One up side is that in most instances they are over sized enough that you can actually open up teh grip and make them feel and look a lot better. But, that's a lot of work and hardly worth the paltry savings.

If you are just after a servicable stock they will suffice. But, IMHO, if you want a presentable rifle, look elsewhere.

I highly recommend Ed Shulin. His patterns are much better than Richards or Boyds and prices very good.

The '03a4's were the sniper rifles. Yes, altering a rifle from original will tend to diminish it's collector value.

there are certainly better ways to spot anneal.

Tentman,

I don't remember the exact measurements but the muzzle was around .550" - 560" . I remember because I didn't want to D&T it feeling it was too thin. The chamber diameter was 1.100" ish and only 1 inch long. This puts more weight out front so that they hang nicely. I mounted it to a fugly small ring 98 stock I had to test fire. It felt good. My .30-06 has a 25" Shilen #1 but it too has the weight out front and settles nicely for offhand shooting. It weighs 7.5 lbs scoped on a full sized 98 action.

I need to note things like the barrel profile, etc. Thanks for the reminder.

Very nice! What kind of bottom metal and trigger is that?

Thanks.

Bottom metal is the stock Husky bottom metal. Trigger I believe was a Timney? The actions are a Mauser derivative. No bolt stop as we know them, and the ejector is moved so that the top lug isn't split. Kinda neat and definitely light weight. The owner has a very nice stock blank picked out and will be getting it stocked soon. I'll post pics once it is complete. It should look pretty sweet!

Here's a small ring 98 type Husky I recently did.

I contoured, threaded & crowned the barrel, chambered it to .270 Win, installed a 3 position safety, welded on the bolt handle, trued the action, and installed open sights and a barrel band swivel. The barrel is just under 2 lbs. In a stock it weighs a scant 6.0 lbs.

Here's athe action prior to iron sights:

Here it is with bbl band & rear sight:

I never got one with the front sight.

Another of the action:

Super Job! Congrats!

I likre mine a lot. It's east German. Shoots great, and though ammo isn't as cheap as it used to be it is reasonable. I had thought that it would be a good carry gun especially since you end up having to leave them in the truck so often due to the prohibitions of carry into certain places. I figured better to loose the Mak than my colt if someone breaks into the truck.

Directions?

Mine just came in a little plastic baggie all by itself.

Mine too. I found it easier to just cut the stub off the handles I usually use and weld them where and how I wanted.

Nice work Weaver77.

I looking at the photos all together, I realize that its difficult to fully appreciate just how much wood I removed.

 

I really went at it. I shortened each end by approx 2 inches, and dramatically slimmed the grip area. The new butt end is just aft of the sling swivel and old hump. I also slimmed the metal tang down to help with the slenderizing of the grip. I wish I had taken better "before" photos, from the same angle and distance.

 

Something else I'm considering is cutting off the aft knurled portion of the cocking piece and a corresponding amount off the firing pin to reduce the amount sticking back into the grip area. Could also save weight and improve lock time. I haven't seen anybody post on this before. Anybody done this?

That rifle is really looking good. I have a couple of Commercial Husky 96's that have had the rectangular tab removed. I might have a spare here. If I can find it would you be interested in trading? You can also the mill the sear on the cocking piece a little to shorten lock time. You'll have to readjust your safety afterward though.

Have any of you used one of the Dakota replacement bolts from Brownells?

I got one a while ago and really like the shape, etc. but I'm not sure about how to go about welding it.

Kenny

Yeah, I had the same problem, so I threw it away and went back to using either Talley's or Halfmoon handles. You can weld either of them on to replicate the angle of attachment anyway.

.270 is too long for magazine. .308 would be fine but I'd pick the 7x57 or since it is a 98 and considering where you live a 9.3x57. You can load it hotter than the loads for the 96's dictate if need be for bears. Since you're looking at the .270 how about a 6.5x55?

Mine are all destined to become 7x57's and if I get an extra it'll be a 9.3x57. I've seen them in .376 Steyr, a real power house for the little action.

Congrats on getting the bolt. I just saw a pretty nice 1910 in 6mm Rem with a nice heavy barrel. They used the issue stock but otherwise it seemed pretty nice for the money.

one question i have though is, how do the rear sight replacing scope mounts compare to drilling and tapping?? i think that drilling and tapping would be more stronger, and less likely to have any play, but would be less costly in the long run.

Yup, D&T.

Do you have a VZ24? If so, it is common for them to be counterbored. Removing the counterbore will not affect velocity. If not a vz24, then you most likely have wear but it still could be counterbored. Cutting back and recrowning could help improve accuracy.

I wouldn't rechamber. Usually what I do when utilizing the issue barrel is adjust the shoulders so that I shorten the chamber to minimum specs. This does two things, first, it lessens headspace thus increasing brass life and decreases the likelyhood of getting setback. Second, it helps accuracy. If your barrel has lots of wear I'd still try a crown but wouldn't personally waste my time recutting a chamber.

-M

When I retire from teaching, I am gonna move to a place where I can shoot in my back yard.

 

karl

Amen. Wish I had that now.