Needing a New Barrel?

[mladucer]

So as this years deer season kicked off my dad told me to check if his rifle was still sighted in from last year. So i got the rest all set up, set up a target and some loads that i had made for him. First shot i took was about a foot and half low. So i adjusted the scope and shot again and i had no clue were i hit, i figured that maybe i over adusted. From that point i just i just moved up to 50 yards took a few more shots and still had a hard time keeping it on paper. So once i got on paper i didnt touch the scope to see if it would group. And go figure couldnt get them to group let alone stay on the target. I had assumed it was his scope and told him it was, he was pretty upset about it, being it was the opening day of season. Luckly he had bought a Browning pump earlier that week with a good scope.

So after that first day of hunting I took a look at his scope to see if it would track well using a bore sighter from leupold. It tracked just fine. I then look a look at the last couple inches of the barrel on his gun and could see a very slight bulge. So i grabbed a bullet by its self and dropped it in to the end of barrel. All but a the boat tail disappear.

Sorry for such a long story and Im wondering on what to do with the gun.
Its a Ruger M77 Stainless in 270 cal.
Sell it
Or
Rebarrel and restock it
Or
What do you think

 

[DrMike]

Are we to assume that your dad wants to primarily hunt deer? Does he have aspirations to hunt anything bigger? Is he generally happy with the 270?

Since he asked you to sight in essentially on opening day, can we assume that he does not shoot a great deal? If so, it is doubtful that he really wants to experiment with another cartridge. In that instance, he could simply rebarrel and have what he has always had. Likely, he would be quite happy in that instance. Obviously, there is nothing wrong with a 270 for deer and the occasional larger ungulates and/or black bear. You could even get another stock barrel and it would probably shoot acceptably to 200 yards and beyond. That would not break the bank. It is also permits possible to trim an inch or two off the barrel and recrown. You would lose some velocity, but he would have an old familiar friend.

If, on the other hand, your dad wants to experiment and try other cartridges, he could opt for another rifle. He won't get much for the rifle in its present condition, but that is immaterial if he is looking for another cartridge.

Whatever your decision, that particular rifle in that particular iteration is toast.

 

[Antelope_Sniper]

Well, you may have two choices. A good gunsmith might be able to cut the barrel off below the bulge, and re-crown it. The other option is to rebarrel. If your dad ever wanted a custom rifle, this might be the time.

 

[mladucer]

Well he basicly handed the gun down to me now that he has his Browning. So i guess i was just curious as to what i should do with the action. Such as, is it good a goo action to make a custom gun around. And this is a project of mine now. I was kinda looking at turning the gun into a all weather/ Mountain gun. Any suggestions on barrel brands and or stocks. And maybe even a caliber besides the Good ole .270.

I already have a .264 win mag, 25-06, 22-250 so i guess maybe something in the 30+ cal range.

 

[Antelope_Sniper]

How about a 338 Win mag?

 

[257 Ackley]

Perfect opportunity to rebarrel and get yourself a little bit of a thumper. I did a similar thing with a Sako and turned it into a .338-06. You won't have to worry about changing the bolt face like you would going to most magnum cartridges. You are seriously lacking on the larger bore cartridges :lol: and this would help fill that gap. You will need that for hunting moose around Valhalla some day!

There are decent barrels that won't break the bank out there for around $200 and another

 

[woods]

A 338 win mag has a case head of .532" and the 270 has a case head of .473" so none of the win mags are a good or even possible choice. It is always best to choose a caliber with the same case head dimension and length of action. The 270 is a long action so the action length will not be a consideration (you can put a short action caliber in a long action).

Choices would be the following (there may be others not listed)

257 Roberts
257 Improved
25-06
6.5-06
6.5-06 AI
270
270 AI
280 Rem
280 AI
30-06
30-06 AI
338-06
338-06 AI
35 Whelen

I have a 280 AI and love it and that is the reason I highlighted it.

Barrels? I have a Hart, Douglas and Brux. Also have a Pac-Nor 3 groove coming. Krieger and Bartlein have an excellent reputation but you will wait a long time for one. The Brux I have is a cut-rifled made on the same type of machine the Krieger is made on. The Hart, Shilen and Lilja are also top names in the button-rifled department but you will wait a long time on them also.

IMO a Pac-Nor or Douglas will shoot better than you can as long as you choose a great gunsmith. The whole thing will cost between $550.00 to $800.00 depending on who you choose and the choices you make.

Recommendation? Look up Pac-Nor on the web and get a 5 groove 1 in 9 twist #4 contour and either send it to them to rebarrel or directly to a gunsmith (don't choose local unless you have a nationally known one close, it only cost $25.00 to send anywhere in the US insured for $1,000.00). Have the gunsmith cut the barrel at 26" (you can always cut it down later but probably won't).

Enjoy!

 

[Antelope_Sniper]

Woods, the smith could open the bolt face, But you are correct, it's much easier if he doesn't need to.

 

[mladucer]

The 338 win mag would be a great choice but im a little unfarmiliar with opening up the bolt face on the action. I was looking at getting a shilen barrel, did some research last night on some of the barrels. And the 280 AI would be my second choice for a caliber, ive always wanted one. Now that nosler has brass factory made for them it saves me some time kinda.
This is probably gonna be a year long or better project for me so there really isnt a rush on things and cost isnt a factor i guess. I was thinking about taking it to Ackerman gunsmithing which is close to where i live.

Love the input guys keep it coming and i was kinda wondering about the M77 action strength and Rep

 

[cloverleaf]

I'd see if the smith could cut it back or rebarrel it to a ".25 Pronghorn" 27o WSM necked down to .25. But then I like the 25 cal. Nobody said it had to be practical. CL

 

[nodak7mm]

Mladucer,

The 77 is a great strong, proven action, gets some negative press due to its flat bottom design, angled action screw, past barrel qc issues & a rough trigger. So what, each Remsavchester has its gremlins.. And it is one of the strongest actions you can get. I currently own three of em, had several more. They can shoot with a little love that any mass produced rifle needs to begin with.

I wouldnt hesitate to rebarrel that puppy. I think Woods mentioned Pac-Nor and that would be a great route for the price. I think their current prices are 280$ for a super match SS barrel and 300$ for chambering, fitting and action truing. Great deal for the money and yes they do Rugers. I too have heard good things about Ackerman. A friend from Belfield has all his stuff done by him. Its a big plus that he is local for you and its best to support local when ya can.

Suggest ya go with the venerable 30-06! But the 280 Ack Rocks for sure. If ya always wanted one, get it.

Got further questions, dont hesitate to post em here or you can PM me. I am in your neighborhood.

Rod