30-06 pawn shop find.

[35 Whelen]

Try working up to 52grs of 4064 underneath a 165 BT and see if your not right at 2900fps. That load has worked wonders for us since the late 1970s when the BT wasnt a plastic tiped projectile, and was simply called the " solid base".

 

[DrMike]

It is a solid looking rifle, rather handsome, actually.

 

[ksubuck]

I have never used 4064. Might be time to. Was planning on H4350.

The rifle is a tank. I think rust will be it's only enemy. I was surprised that being an injection molded stock it has almost no flex in the forend after opening the barrel channel up. I may not have to restock it.

Won't get out to shoot it for another month or so.

 

[35 Whelen]

Good luck with it! You got it looking sharp!

 

[cloverleaf]

Some guys get all the luck... Very nice, gotta ask, how did you do the paint work? Looks nice. CL

 

[arky]

I have one from the mid nineties. The trigger was horrible so about 10 years later I put a rifle basics trigger in it. It shoots really well and deserves a good stock but I just can't bring myself to buy a stock that costs more than the gun. I have not shot it in a while anyway. BTW I already have my Whelan built on the old rem 721 action.

 

[ksubuck]

Painting the stock is simple. I degrease the stock with acetone, sand down the seams from the injection molding process, sand all of the smooth surfaces with 600 grit paper to rough it up, and degrease again.

Then I use Krylon Fusion paint for the base color. This one was their Olive Drab camo paint. 3 light coats on this one covered it well. Then I used black Krylon webbing paint. Finally, I applied 2 coats of matte clearcoat to seal it.

Whole paint process takes about 3 hours. Then let it set for a day before handling it at all. Paint cures in a week.

This process is surprisingly durable. And if you screw up or it gets overly worn, it is easy to strip off and redo.

As to the trigger, a come-a-long would be useful when pulling the trigger. So far I have lightened it to about 4 pounds. May stone it or switch springs out to see if it helps. Otherwise, almost no creep and very crisp with slight overtravel. I have seen much worse

 

[BretN]

Nice job on the stock. It looks just like my Bell and Carlson stock. Let us know how it shoots. The trigger on mine is the old style Model 70 trigger and is adjustable, though I had to order a lighter spring. Hopefully yours is too. Mine is better now with the lighter spring, but I can probably adjust it lighter too. 4-5# is about what I had prior to swapping springs. I got mine from www.erniethegunsmith.com. Reasonable prices and good instructions.

 

[PJGunner]

I find that interesting. The stock on my .270 XTR is solid and looks exactly like a McMillan shown in their catalog. I also have an M70 in .300 Win. Mag. that appears to have a McMillan stock. Butt pad on that one was as hard as a rock so I replaced it with a Decelerator. Butt pads on both rifles were marked Winchester. :?: :?: :?: :?: My other XTR's have wood stocks and are .257 Roberts and 7x57 Mauser.
Paul B.

 

[ksubuck]

And sometimes luck just keeps flowing. I should buy a lottery ticket. Found a 2.5-8x VX-3i on sale locally, 100 bucks off.



And got the Talleys aligned and lapped. Scope mounted and leveled. Boresighted on the neighbors garage window a quarter mile away.



Final weight 8.01 pounds. May have to take a drive to the range on Sunday, but I doubt I will have time. Will probably have to wait until April.

 

[DrMike]

You're set with some fine looking gear. That is an excellent scope, to be sure. Mine was $600 CDN, and I thought that was a good price!

 

[Guy Miner]

Nice scope! Had one for a while, it went, right along with the .300 Win mag I had it mounted on.

Miss the scope, not the rifle.

Guy

 

[cloverleaf]

To me.....that's looks like about as perfect a hunting set up as a guy can build. CL

 

[ksubuck]

Don't shoot the donor, don't shoot the donor, don't shoot the donor... remind me next time.

She shoots pretty good. Didn't have live batteries for the Magneto today so no speeds.

165gn BTips, H4350, Federal 210M, Winchester brass.







There is a node in there. Ran up to 57.5gn H4350 and lost MOA accuracy. With no pressure signs, I will load up a grain more to see if another node pops up.

 

[SJB358]

It's a hunter for sure! Can't beat that.

 

[DrMike]

I'll join in the refrain--"Don't shoot the donor! Don't shoot the donor!" Yeah, that is showing some real promise.

 

[cloverleaf]

Don't shoot the donor, DONT shoot the Donor.... you see what happens. 90Gr Winchester "Deer season XP" cheap silver box. Three shots sub 1/2 inch.... How can I throw that barrel away? :grin: Sweet Winchester you got there sir. Tell folks its got a custom stock and a $400.oo barrel. CL

 

[ksubuck]

I shot the donor for my 7-300 and it turned in 0.4, 0.7, and 0.5 inch groups. Thankfully I already had a 7 Rem mag that shot as well. I will hold on to that factory barrel just in case I need it someday. I would never get anything out of it if I sold it.

I will dial in this load and maybe try some 180gn Accubonds. If it keeps shooting well it will stay a factory 30-06.

Maybe we should have a sticky thread at the top of the list entitled "Don't shoot the donor"

 

[SJB358]

I shot the donor for my 7-300 and it turned in 0.4, 0.7, and 0.5 inch groups. Thankfully I already had a 7 Rem mag that shot as well. I will hold on to that factory barrel just in case I need it someday. I would never get anything out of it if I sold it.

I will dial in this load and maybe try some 180gn Accubonds. If it keeps shooting well it will stay a factory 30-06.

Maybe we should have a sticky thread at the top of the list entitled "Don't shoot the donor"

that's pretty danged cool. Seems like the 180 Accubonds are a pretty danged good Bullet. 30-06 is about as boring as cement but it is certainly useful.