Rifle Magazine – September-October 2018

Browning BLR White Gold Medallion .308 Winchester

Montana Rifle Company

Shooting .300 and .338 Norma Magnums

Barrel Bedding

Newest

Winchester 1873

Saddle Ring Carbine

Takedown Rifles September 2018 No. 300

Display until 10/15/18

Printed in USA

Browning BLR White Gol

d Medallion .308 Winche

ster

FEATURES

Mo nt an a Rif

Sho otin g .30 0 le Co mp an y .33 8 Nor ma Magandnum s

32

Barrel Bedding

Newest

Winchester

Saddle Ring

Page 6 . . .

COLUMNS

6

Determining Pressure Spotting Scope Dave Scovill

12

Takedown Rifles

On the cover . . .

Montana Rifle Company MTR .300 Norma Magnum with a Leupold VH-6 3-18x 50mm scope.

Photo by Terry Wieland.

Lock, Stock & Barrel

Rifle Barrel Bedding

Mostly Long Guns Brian Pearce

22

38

Winchester Model 1873

Shooting the Latest Saddle Ring Carbine Mike Venturino

44

Browning’s Lever Rifle Praise for a Modern Classic

Takedown Rif les

Brian Pearce

Down Range

Mike Venturino

26

An Early Look at Montana Rifle’s Long-Range Rigs Terry Wieland

Carbine

.280 Remington Lee J. Hoots

16

1873

Love at First Shot

Page 52 . . .

Smoothing Bolt-Action Operation

Light Gunsmithing

Page 12 . . .

Gil Sengel

28

Long-Range Optics, Tools and Technology

A Rifleman’s Optics John Haviland

66

H-S Precision Tom Houghton Tribute Rifle

52

A 23-Year Field Study

Custom Corner

John Barsness

Stan Trzoniec

70

Sauer 404 Walnut Hill

Terry Wieland

Nontoxic Hunting Bullets

60

Shaw Rifles’ ERS-10

Range Testing a New .308 Winchester

John Haviland

Page 28 . . .

Page 38 . . .

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Rifle 300

Determining Pressure SPOTTING SCOPE by Dave Scovill

P

ressure is defined as the unit of force applied perpendicular to the surface of an area of an object per unit of area. In a rifle, pressure is measured on the surface area of a transducer (psi), copper pellet (CUP) or in shotguns, lead pellet (LUP), which are mounted over (in) the chamber wall. More recently some ballistics labs use a strain gauge that is epoxied to the barrel over the chamber (kpsi).

The basic difference among the measurement techniques is that CUP and LUP measure and record maximum pressure only, while the transducer and strain gauge measure pressure over time, from ignition until bullet exit. In any case, SAAMI test loads are provided to standardize test equipment.

In general terms, as the bullet is seated out, case capacity increases and barrel length decreases. Conversely, as the bullet is seated deeper, case capacity decreases while barrel length increases.

Seating depth, as measured in terms of distance from the bullet to the lands in the barrel, also has an effect on pressure, or if you prefer, the overall loaded length. Most A digital micrometer measures to three decimal places but allows interpolation for a fourth.

This reading indicates roughly .5305 inch and is validated on the micrometer reading.

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SAAMI standards for chamber dimensions are consistent from one manufacturer to the next, but chamber design for the 7x57mm was changed back in the 1980s, reducing the military .5-inch throat length to approximately .25 inch.

Another exception to SAAMI standards often occurs with Weatherby cartridges, where industry standard chamber design includes a freebore that allows up to .5 inch of bullet travel before it engages the lands. Custom chambers, however, often eliminate the freebore, so bullets must be seated deeper and powder charges reduced accordingly.

Of course, bullet designs, including cup-and-core, monolithic solids, plastic tips and boat-tails, all have an effect on bullet length.

Where some bullets are longer than others in the same caliber and weight, seating depth varies, mostly in the interest of maintaining recommended overall loaded length, which in turn has an effect on case capacity under the bullet.

Additionally, all other factors being equal, a bullet that is seated close to or on the lands generally produces an increase in chamber pressure when compared to the same bullet that is seated off the lands.

We also know case capacity can vary from one brand of brass to the next, and different primer brands can be expected to have an effect on pressure, along with different lots of the same powder.

None of the above is to ignore the effect different barrels from the same or different manufacturers may have on pressure.

For the novice handloader, the sum total of all the above may appear as a complicated maze. The obvious remedy, of course, is to

Sporting Firearms Journal ISSN 0162-3593

Volume 50 Issue No. 300

Number 5 September 2018

Publisher/President – Don Polacek Publishing Consultant – Mark Harris Editor in Chief – Lee J. Hoots Copy Editor – Andrew Buskey Art Director – Chris Downs Production Director – Becky Pinkley Graphic Designer – Kimberly Hernandez

Contributing Editors John Barsness

Dave Scovill

John Haviland

Stan Trzoniec

Brian Pearce Gil Sengel

Mike Venturino Terry Wieland

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Rifle 300

A dial caliper allows reading to three decimals and enough interpretation between the lines. This reading is approximately .5292 inch.

consult a loading manual for reference loads and follow the basic rule of working up from a reduced load, approximately 10 percent below listed maximum, and increasing the powder charge in one- or two-grain increments until exterior pressure signs suggest a halt to the proceedings, or until the suggested maximum is reached.

The catch is that folks may be using a different bullet than is listed in the manual or a different brand of case or primer – the sum of which calls for additional caution. In addition, most loading manuals show a custom barrel was used to develop loads listed in the tables, which sort of throws all

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Cases include (left to right): a belted magnum case, a .375 Ruger and a typical rimless case. Note the interior web in the head in the magnum case does not extend to the forward edge of the belt.

the data listed into a cocked hat when using an off-the-shelf rifle that is one of hundreds, or thousands, produced by the manufacturer.

The solution for many years appears to have been vested in the art of reading pressure signs.

That is, assessing exterior primer and case condition and noting the amount of effort required to turn the bolt or open the action on a fired cartridge. The latter required working up loads and watching for external signs, such as flattened primers or case condition until extraction became a bit “sticky,” then backing off one or two grains. All of which may have been fired in

the same or different cases, which was left to anyone’s best guess, assuming folks were aware that it makes a difference.

At that point, assuming the primer is not excessively flattened, the load is treated as a “working” maximum. Chances are, in “old school” fashion, without the aid of a chronograph that we have enjoyed since the late 1970s or so, velocity and pressure were determined by the “SWAG” method, which may have been at least suggested by Uncle Harvey over the campfire in 1956, who got it from a guy in a beer joint near Boise, Idaho, before the war.

At any rate, all or most of the above represent the mind-boggling maze that novice handloaders walk into. I got around it in the mid-1950s by staying away from maximum loads, which was reinforced by the fact that pushing for an additional 50 or even 100 fps was a little silly considering deer didn’t seem to care if the velocity of a 117-grain slug was 2,400 or 2,600 fps. When the bullet was placed properly, they fell over, or if they ran at all it was a short distance. Of course, in later years it was obvious that there was little need for a so-called “magnum” if it wasn’t utilized to its fullest capacity. Even then, if a load shot well with a 150-grain bullet loafing along at 2,950 fps, there was little need to reach for 3,000 fps.

Rifle 300

Ballistic tables proved that by showing less than one-inch flatter trajectory for the faster load at 300 yards or so.

To stay out of trouble when working up toward maximum loads, it makes sense to measure case head expansion – as measured at the front edge of the extractor groove with a rimless case or on the belt of belted rimless cases – and compare those numbers to expansion measured on factory loads. This helps prevent excessive case stretching, sticky extraction, flattened primers and to avoid loose primer pockets if cases are used repeatedly. When working with wildcats or standard cartridges with new or untried bullets, such as the Barnes TSX, where there was no published data when they were first introduced, measuring case heads before and after firing was necessary, since there were no guidelines to follow, save for data for a bullet of similar weight and, hopefully, design.

The procedure as outlined by

September-October 2018

The interior web in the head of this Winchester .300 Winchester Magnum case extends up to support the forward edge of the exterior belt.

Ken Waters and Bob Hagel in Rifle and Handloader magazines required a blade dial micrometer, measuring an unfired case before and after firing, being careful to not force the caliper beyond initial contact with the surface of the case, and being consistent. Measure twice, 90 degrees around the circumference. For a belted case, accepted expansion is .0005 inch.

For a rimless case, hold the line at no more than .0006 inch. Work

with the .30-375 Ruger wildcat indicates a maximum of .0005 inch case head expansion appears close enough, validating pressures and velocities that place it between the .300 Winchester and Weatherby Magnums.

Using a digital micrometer with a larger measuring surface, the case rim may be the same diameter as the head just ahead of the extractor groove, and usually is.

In an effort to keep the measuring surface off the web of the case, this may cause the .25-inch diameter measuring surface to read off the rim, giving a false reading.

The solution is to file the rim down slightly, twice, 180 degrees from each other, to make sure the rim is smaller in diameter on the flats than the case head, being careful to keep the file off the case head.

Using a digital blade caliper with a liquid quartz (LQ) readout that reads to four places, that last digit is rounded off to the nearest .0005 inch. As such, if the item measures .5308, it will round off to

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A blade micrometer is recommended for head measurement on rimless cases.

Digital Liquid Quartz (LQ) micrometers rend to three decimals with the fourth rounded off to the nearest .0005 inch.

the nearest whole number, .5310. If the item measures .5304, the readout will round off to .5305. As a result, it is best to validate LQ calipers with a dial caliber, where the needle may measure just over the .530 position, thus validating the .5305 reading on the LQ readout, and shows expansion is roughly .0001 inch less than the maximum allowable of .5305 inch from the original, unfired reading.

Using a digital micrometer, the fourth number can show a reading between two whole numbers, e.g., between 4 and 5, that if rounded off to the nearest whole number should match and/or help validate the LQ reading. That may be a bit too close to call and should be validated with another test round using the same load. This also explains why it is a good idea to have at least three

On

ly

.95 9 $3

test loads for each powder charge, to ensure any one particular measurement wasn’t a fluke.

Working with rimmed cases intended for use in lever actions, for example, or revolver cartridges, Ken Waters suggested measuring web expansion on factory loads, which shows on a fired case about .3 to .4 inch ahead of the extractor groove as a standard for handloads. Most of the older Winchester lever-action cartridges use a tapered case that tends to back up against the breech face when fired and may show somewhat flattened primers. As such, web expansion offers a good backup for estimating relative pressure signs in relation to factory loads.

Some time back, a mechanical engineer wrote to challenge the accuracy of micrometer measure-

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ments taken under anything other than controlled conditions. He was correct, of course, but field work while working for civil engineers surveying and designing roads for the U.S. Forest Service and studying similar subjects in college suggested to me at least that there was a bit of a difference between exacting lab work and the real world out in the field where environmental conditions are what they are.

Even then, if there was an error, it was in addition, subtraction or misreading the instruments, which in the 1960s were archaic when compared to laser-guided instruments in use today. Hitting a four-inch oak stake at the end of a 10-mile survey over rugged mountain terrain, or shooting a line 7,000 feet down an asphalt runway and hitting a nail head at either end in humid heat, freezing rain and blazing hot sun was every bit as accurate as reading a micrometer to four places.

I was also reminded occasionally when reviewing early survey notes on file at the county courthouse, even a chain and staff compass survey, primitive by any standard, was better than knowing nothing. This is not to ignore early surveys that misplaced the Oregon/California border by roughly a quarter mile, or the beer run that ran the Arizona/Mexico border straight from Nogales to the only bar on the Colorado River near present-day San Luis. Precision, it would appear, is largely determined by the motivation of the R equipment operator.

Rifle 300

.280 remington LOCK, STOCK & BARREL by Lee J. Hoots

A

s a boy, there were more shotguns than rifles in our house, and even those 20 and 12 gauges were neglected until late summer. Over time a selfloading Ruger 10/22 .22 Long Rifle was added, along with used Remington .222 and Ruger M77 .243 bolt rifles, though nothing of larger caliber. It is therefore difficult to pinpoint just when an interest in the .280 Remington came about, but it was probably due to something written in a firearms periodical; the cartridge sparked an interest some time prior to having ever shot one.

When an opportunity to use one came up years later while hunting feral hogs near Bradley, California, with a Browning A-Bolt while still in my early 20s, the cartridge seemed a very reasonable option for hunting big game. Still, some of the “anti-.280” rhetoric floating around was befuddling. Rifle enthusiasts loved or hated it, no doubt due to the .280 being sandwiched between the old fabled .270 Winchester and the newer 7mm Remington Magnum.

Any long-time reader of Rifle or Handloader will likely recognize the name Bob Hagel. If so, it may also be known that he was a well-rounded hunter/shooter/ handloader who spent much of his adult life field testing firearms and cartridges. His published articles reflected no small amount of common sense, and often a preference for cavernous cartridges that held heavy powder charges and heavy-for-caliber bullets. He had a great deal of experience with the .285 OKH (O’Neal, Keith, Hopkins, 1936-37), a slightly hopped-up 7mm06 wildcat that attained a bit of notoriety due partially to Hagel and more to its designers.

It was often compared to (and sometimes preferred over) up-and-coming similar 7mm cartridges. The .280 Remington and .285 OKH were both based on the .30-06 case but with the OKH containing bullets

This 21-year-old Remington Model 700 Classic .280 features excellent stock dimension.

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The .280 Remington cartridge was renamed the 7mm-06 and then the 7mm Express Remington. In 1979 the Speer Reloading Manual Number Ten listed the cartridge as “7mm Express Remington (.280 Remington).”

seated flush with the bottom of the case neck for a slight increase in powder capacity.

When recently reading an old piece by Hagel at the tail end of a whirlwind of deadlines, the following excerpt from “.280 Remington . . . too little and too late” in Handloader No. 38 (July/August 1972) did not come as a surprise: “Then came the 7mm Remington Magnum that just about nailed the lid on the .280’s coffin . . . There are, of course, the disadvantages of considerably more recoil, somewhat shorter barrel life, and increased cost per round.”

Hagel had no real sour words for the .280: “When you compare the .280 with the extremely popular .270,

CDL stainless fluted limited edition rifles included the .280 Remington in 2010. This rifle is currently bedded to a carbon fiber stock and has recently accounted for a Wyoming whitetail and a trophy New Mexico bull.

Rifle 300

and if you are not biased and want to be objective about it, you know that there are certain advantages that lie with the .280. In fact, the only advantage in favor of the .270 . . . is that ammunition has always been easier to come by . . . True, there isn’t much difference in the cartridges, but whatever there is favors the .280.” Who could argue that point? Who shoots a 160-grain bullet (or heavier) in a .270?

While there have been cartridges recently introduced that clearly split “ballistic hairs” yet have become mainstream seemingly overnight, such was not the .280 Remington’s fate. While it is still widely used, its inaugural 1957 introduction as a factory cartridge in the Remington Model 740 autoloader lagged some 30 years behind the .270 Winchester’s introduction in that company’s Model 54. This must have been a calculated attempt to help drive the sale of the semiautomatic – nearly to the detriment of the cartridge. In my estimation, few wildcat-turned-commercial cartridges gain long-running notoriety when first introduced in a heavy autoloading rifle.

The .280 was later offered in the Remington Models 760 slide and 721 bolt actions, and of course, the Model 700. Nonetheless, it appears that for some time the .280 Remington barely hung on by the .049-inch thickness of its rim, and its precarious position was growing worse.

About 22 years following its introduction, whether or not it was gaining a fan base at the time, the manufacturer nearly robbed the .280 of any hope it had for commercial longevity by renaming it the 7mm-06, the basic, nondescript designation of several wildcats of varying notoriety. Then, quickly following outcries from a confused shooting public, the .280 was rebranded again as the 7mm Remington Express in the Model Four (1981-83) and supposedly other rifles. For example, from 1979 through 1982 a Model 700 ADL Deluxe was sold as a 7mm Express.

This resulted in enough additional consumer confusion that eventuSeptember-October 2018

ally the cartridge returned as the .280 Remington, the good old cartridge that we know today.

As an aside, my 1979 copy of the Speer Reloading Manual Number Ten lists the cartridge as the “7mm Express Remington (.280 Remington),” and a 1982 copy of Metallic Cartridge Reloading published

by DBI Book lists the cartridge as 7mm Express Remington.

Despite all the twists and turns and marketing blunders and confusion, somehow the .280 hung on

and is still in use for serious target work, recreational shooting and big-game hunting. Just shy of 20 years ago I was invited to hunt in the Southeast in a large tract of woodlands that, it was promised, held some very good whitetail bucks that could only be shot from a tree stand because “they were too smart.” The entire trip was a bit of a disappointment. The woods turned out to be a “strip of trees” where, in spite of the odd dog that ran through it now and

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then, I shot one doe on the first morning from a climbing stand that was nosebleed high, and never saw a branch-antlered buck during four days of what seemed like hanging on for dear life. However, in order to continue broadening my cartridge background, a nearly pristine 1997 Remington Model 700 Classic .280 Remington was loaned by a coworker.

The trim stock design fit quite well, felt good in my hands, and the rifle shot small three-shot clusters at 100 yards with Remington Core-Lokt factory loads.

After the trip a reasonable effort was made to purchase the rifle from my buddy, a very serious bowhunter who, upon hearing my pitch, looked at the rifle and its Leupold variable low-power scope and laughed.

Following a move to northwest Arizona some time later and quickly realizing that former coworker lived about five miles away, an offer was again made for the rifle – a better offer this time. The result was more smiles and laughter. Nonetheless, he handed it over for a short time for photography use, and it was then that a search for a suitable .280 commenced.

Assuming it had run its course, the limited edition Classic Deluxe line was brought to a halt in 2005, with the last offering being a .308 Winchester. However, in the following year a stainless-fluted (CDL SF) limited edition series was brought on line. In 2010 a .280 Remington rifle was offered. One of those rifles was used to take a double-drop tine Coues’ deer in Mexico, and I continue to use it now and then to hunt big game, including elk.

If I had one reason to continue to pine over the old CDL series rifles as compared to the stainless versions, it would be their fit and feel. The Classic rifles had highly polished, blued barreled actions fitted to attractive dark-colored walnut stocks with forend and wrist dimensions that fit my hands perfectly. The newer stainless versions shoot just as well, but the forend is narrower (which is fine) 14

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The .280 Remington cartridge has maintained its standing as an accurate hunting cartridge.

and the butt end is dimensionally larger than preferred, including the wrist of the stock. They also feature an overly thick and bulky recoil pad. This is just opinion, but they feel a little out of proportion for a fine field rifle when compared to the original Classic series, the reason my stainless .280 Remington is now fitted to a Manners carbon fiber stock with a slimmer wrist and slightly taller comb. It’s not overly attractive but it fits well and is tough as nails.

I’ve had a couple different scopes on it over the years, and it weighs roughly 7.5 pounds with the Talley Lightweight rings and Swarovski Z3 3-10x 42mm scope on it now.

Combined, it fits the archetypical weight and balance preferred for traipsing across the rugged landscape of the West.

Obviously, many other riflemakers have at times offered traditional .280 Remington rifles, and new ones pop up now and then.

Friend Art Bradshaw has more than one .280, and his first was an old Ruger Model 77 with a tang safety. We met up in New Mexico a few years back, and he was shooting a newer Ruger Hawkeye 7mm Remington Magnum that he won as a prize – but in the bottom of his travel case was a trusted old Ruger M77 .280 “just in case.” R Rifle 300

rifle Barrel BeDDing MOSTLY LONG GUNS by Brian Pearce

B

arrel bedding is an often hotly debated subject, with strong opinions for the virtues of free floating and equally good cases made for partial and full-length bedding. Based on the ongoing controversy, it is with certain reservations that I share a few thoughts and experiences. I am not prejudiced toward any one method, as I use different approaches depending on application and stock material. While there are autoloading, single-shot and even lever-action rifles that feature (or can be customized with) free-floating and full-length bedded barrels, my comments here are directed primarily at bolt-action sporting rifles.

During the early days of sporting bolt rifles with “standard” weight barrels, practically all were fulllength bedded with the barrel touching the stock wood. During this era, it would have been considered poor workmanship if the wood-to-metal fit was not respectably tight. Many of these vintage rifles actually shot very well. However, some small rifle producers, custom gunsmiths and target shooters began to recognize the virtues of free-floating barrels.

As World War II passed, inflation, labor and manu-

Some custom rifle builders glass bed half of the barrel channel from the recoil lug forward. The remainder of the channel is free floating.

Standard weight Winchester pre-’64 Model 70 rifles (top) feature three guard screws. A fourth screw firmly secured the forearm to the barrel. Featherweight versions (bottom) were void of the barrel screw.

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Many modern rifles, such as this Nosler Custom Model 48 Patriot .33 Nosler, feature a fully floating barrel.

facturing costs rose sharply, which resulted in many major U.S. manufacturers fitting wood stock barrel channels with greater tolerances to help keep costs in check. In other words, the barrel was mostly free floating. Manufacturers retained a small pressure point inside the forearm tip. Its purpose was to help control and reduce barrel vibration.

The above method was widely common and appeared with many of the Remington Model 721, 722 and 725 rifles as well as the Model 700 when it first appeared in 1962. Most early Weatherby rifles – typically built on Mauser ’98, 1903 Springfield and Model 70 actions – were essentially custom rifles with full-length bedded barrels. When the Mark V rifle appeared in 1959, however, it soon shared a similar stock/barrel relationship as the Remingtons. Winchester Model 70 standard weight rifles produced from 1936 through 1963 were full-length bedded but also featured a forearm screw that firmly secured the forearm and barrel together to reduce barrel vibration.

When Winchester redesigned the Model 70 in 1963, the forearm screw was dropped and the full-length bedded barrel disappeared in favor of a huge gap in the barrel channel and a small pressure point at the tip. Winchester, as a result, received considerable criticism and soon improved barrel/stock fit and appearance but still retained the small pressure point.

(Incidentally, beginning in 2008 sporter-weight Model 70s were offered with free-floating barrels.) In 1968 Ruger introduced the M77 with full-length bedding, but today’s M77 Hawkeye is fitted with a pressure point at the forearm tip, with the rest of the barrel channel being hit and miss in regard to contact with the barrel.

One difficulty that most rifle manufacturers have struggled with is to make barrel channels uniform. In Rifle 300

many instances, the stocks touch one side of the barrel or the other, or the small pressure point at the forearm tip pushes against the barrel slightly cockeyed. When the rifle is fired, the barrel vibrations associated with high-pressure, high-intensity cartridges can cause groups to open up. Likewise, when the barrel heats up or there are changes in temperatures and humidity, accuracy can become poor with unpredictable fliers.

There are several options that will address such problems. The two most common solutions are to completely free float the barrel or apply full-length glass bedding.

There is not a right or a wrong answer; however, the results can be distinctly different. Stock material and how the rifle will be used may influence how this problem is addressed.

Free floating effectively eliminates barrel interference from the stock. The problem is that nothing supports the barrel at (or through) its midway point, which again

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Many classic and modern wood stock rifles feature full-length barrel bedding.

Examples include a (left to right): Winchester pre-’64 Model 70 .375 H&H Magnum, Browning FN High Power Olympian Grade .338 Winchester Magnum, Kimber of Oregon BGR 89 .300 Winchester Magnum and a Ruger M77 Hawkeye .375 Ruger.

serves to reduce vibration. As a result, accuracy is usually (but not always) poorer when compared with a professionally bedded barrel. (Please note that I did not say the rifle was inaccurate, but rather it is “usually less” accurate than a carefully bedded counterpart.)

The advantage is that changes in temperature, humidity and elevation that may cause the stock (including wood, laminates and even synthetic materials) to warp and change pressure on the barrel, and therefore point of impact, can no longer affect the barrel. So the rifle will almost always shoot to the same point of aim day in and day out, assuming the ammunition is up to par, the barrel steel is stress

relieved and atmospheric conditions are not changing cartridge and ballistics to any important degree, which are completely different subjects. For these reasons, many hunters prefer free-floating barrels as they effectively eliminate barrel pressure variables that often occur in the field.

It should be noted that many current manufacturers are producing sporting rifles with lightweight, free-floating barrels that are accurate and easily produce sub-MOA groups right out of the box. A few examples include the Kimber 84/84L, Nosler Custom 48, Winchester Model 70, Mossberg MVP, Savage 10/110 and others.

Handloaders can usually achieve good accuracy from sporter-weight rifles with free-floating barrels by experimenting with different bullet weights, designs, seating depths, powder charges and velocities to find the “sweet spot” for a given rifle. This methodology is similar to the principles of the Browning Ballistic Optimizing Shooting System (BOSS) and is always good motivation to develop handloads Rifle 300

(or to begin handloading and subscribing to Handloader magazine). If I can’t get a rifle to shoot with a respectable degree of accuracy using tailored handloads, I then begin experimenting with bedding options.

Bedded barrels are still offered on select Remington Model 700s, Ruger M77 Hawkeyes, Weatherby Vanguards and Mark V models, and by other companies. They can be very accurate due to their ability to significantly reduce vibration. The drawback is that they can warp or swell from moisture, which causes point of impact changes. This is true with wood, laminates and even cheap synthetic stocks (which are usually weak and can warp severely from temperature changes, and even sunlight warming one side of the stock). Wood and laminate stocks can be sealed up with various products to minimize the effects of moisture.

As indicated, the small contact point inside the forearm tip in many factory stocks varies significantly in upward pressure or may be pushing the barrel to the side, either of which can degrade accuracy. A common practice is to completely remove the contact point to free float the barrel. Then begin placing temporary shims (cut from business card stock, etc.) under the forearm and test for accuracy. Shims can be added or removed until a combination is found that produces top accuracy.

Once an ideal amount of pressure is found, then either permanent shims or a small glass bedding strip can be installed that duplicates the pressure obtained with the temporary shims. There is not a magic “pressure” figure (actually measured in weight), but it is generally only a few pounds at most.

A highly popular option is to remove all bedding to free float the barrel, then full-length glass bed the barrel channel – again with no more than just a few pounds of upward pressure. This procedure usually makes high-grade custom stock makers cringe, as they are craftsmen who fit the barrel to September-October 2018

the stock channel with perfection, which in turn serves as full-length bedding. When altering mass-produced factory stocks, however, this procedure is completely acceptable, and if done correctly does not diminish the rifle’s appearance. Furthermore, if a generous amount of bedding compound is used, it will strengthen and stabilize the forearm and help it resist shrinkage, swelling and warping in the field.

Several years ago my son obtained a left-hand Ruger M77 Hawk-

eye .30-06 with a 22-inch barrel and walnut stock. We developed a number of good handloads, which on the rifle’s best days would group around one inch, but most days groups were around 1.5 inches. This level of accuracy is certainly good enough for most big-game hunting applications, but we wanted further improvement.

After carefully cleaning out the stock’s barrel channel, it was full-length glass bedded using Brownells’ ACRAGLAS Gel (brown

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Many sporterweight rifles feature a small pressure point just behind the forend tip, such as this Weatherby Varmint Master (top) and Winchester Model 70 Featherweight Classic.

ells.com) with just under three pounds of upward pressure at the forearm tip. Without changing loads, four-shot groups instantly shrank to a consistent .35 to not over .50 inch. It has maintained this level of accuracy through many in- and out-of-state hunting trips on horseback at high and low elevations, and the Ruger has digested around 2,000 rounds.

He recently developed an offseason “practice” load containing Sierra 155-grain MatchKing HPBT bullets with an appropri-

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ate charge of Hodgdon H-4350 powder. That load shoots to the same point of impact as his hunting loads containing Hornady 150-grain GMX bullets. However, this load has produced three-shot groups that measure as small as .130 inch, and it will stay inside .250 inch on demand. This extremely impressive performance is unusual for any sporter-weight rifle and barrel at any cost, but it illustrates the potential.

Another option popular in recent years is to partially glass bed the barrel channel from the receiver halfway up toward the forearm tip.

This method reduces vibration but still allows the barrel to free float in the forearm channel.

Heavyweight varmint (sometimes referred to as “target”) barrels are notably stiffer than comparatively lightweight sporter barrels, and as a result they vibrate considerably less when free floated, which is pretty much the standard stock and barrel relationship on all current varmint rifles.

However, I do have a vintage Ruger M77V Varmint .220 Swift that is full-length factory bedded and will shoot inside .25 inch with select handloads. Nonetheless, free floating is the preferred method on varmint rifles.

The general trend from large rifle manufacturers has been to free float sporter-weight barrels as preferred by most consumers, but such rifles are also easier to produce and achieve consistent, guaranteed out-of-the-box accuracy. However, full-length and partial bedding has its place, and when done properly can produce R top-notch accuracy.

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takeDown rifles DOWN RANGE by Mike Venturino

W

hen first considering takedown rifles, my thought was, Why? To me, the concept just seemed a way to introduce a possible lack of precision into a rifle.

As is usually the case, when something is viewed without experience, initial attitudes are wrong.

My first two experiences with takedowns proved that.

On my single trip to Africa long ago, a takedown Winchester Model 1886 .33 Winchester was part of my rifle battery. It was in two pieces when I brought it out in the hunting camp. The guides, trackers, skinners and perhaps even the cook watched closely as I showed them the two pieces. Then it was assembled, and I demonstrated how it was loaded and functioned.

This resulted in chattering in at least four different languages. The Winchester had been perfectly zeroed at home, and after assembly in South Africa, test firing showed it still was.

The .33 was only used on a gray duiker, and there was no surprise that it was flattened at about 50 yards. The surprise was that in both camps in which I hunted, the owners offered to trade me some of my costs for that Winchester levergun.

My next hunting experience using a takedown rifle came years

The Japanese developed takedown versions of their Arisaka Type 99 7.7mm. It used a rectangular pin to attach the barrel to the action.

later with a completely different type. At a gun writer hunt for nilgai antelope in South Texas, a custom rifle company was a partial sponsor and rifle supplier. For sighting in before our hunt, all rifles were laid out on a table.

Hanging back, I watched while others chose, and then I took the last one. It was a takedown built on a World War II Japanese Type 99 action. Such rifles were intended for the country’s paratroopers. It had been rechambered to .35 Whelen, and it carried a Leica scope. As I remember things, the sighting-in target was at 75 yards, and the Arisaka/Whelen put three shots

This Burgess takedown rifle features U-shaped threads to attach barrels to the receiver.

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in a nice .75-inch triangle a couple of inches high. The next day, after 10 hours bouncing around in one of those elevated hunting rigs they use in that part of the world, a small group of nilgai cows stood up about 200 yards away and ran dead away from us. My first shot with the .35 broke the last one down. It raised its head, and the second shot broke its neck. Both shots went exactly where aimed.

If one studies rifles and their usage in the late nineteenth century, the purpose for takedowns becomes apparent. Anyone traveling more than a minor distance from their abode in those days went by

This Browning BLR features a lug system to lock the barrel into the receiver.

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train. By the last few decades of the 1800s, affluent sportsmen were making trips to western states for larger game than the whitetail deer available throughout most of the East. Takedown rifles were developed for ease of traveling by those hunters.

There seem to be no documented details as to exactly who first developed takedown rifles. Custom gunsmiths were likely making them prior to the advent of factory-made rifles. As America’s premier rifle manufacturer of that era, Winchester Repeating Arms likely introduced the first offthe-shelf takedowns. Winchester’s first takedown offering was the Model 1886, and the manufacturer followed with the Models 1892, 1894 and 1895.

The method developed by the company to quickly remove and replace a rifle barrel was the use of interrupted threads. Barrels are threaded as normal but with two wide, smooth spaces. Here is how the system worked: With tubular magazine leverguns, there is a folding lever at the end near the muzzle. When folded out it becomes a handle. With the action open it is turned in a counterclockwise direction to unscrew the magazine tube. Then pivoting the barrel to the left aligns the smooth thread portions, allowing the barrel to slip forward. With the Model 1895’s internal box magazine, there is a sliding button at the joint of the barrel to the frame.

Pushing it forward allows the barrel to be turned so the smooth thread portions align.

Detractors of takedowns say that dismounting and remounting the barrel often is bound to cause looseness, and thus poor accuracy. Winchester considered this eventuality and put screws in the metal plate where the two rifle halves mate for tightening if the joint becomes loose. The company warns in its catalogs not to mess with them unless there is discernible barrel looseness.

Another plus came from the takedown idea – caliber options.

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Rifle 300

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This Chiappa Model 1892 .44 Magnum takedown features the old Winchester system of interrupted threads.

of cartridges were the same, extra barrels could be added. For instance, in the Model 1886 Extra-Light takedown, .45-70 was the sole chambering initially. Later, after the .33 Winchester appeared, dual barrel sets were sold. Likewise with Model 1892 takedowns; one frame could handle both .38 and .44 WCFs (.38-40 and .44-40).

Over the years I have encountered two other methods used for quick-detachable barrels. The Japanese Type 99 barrel and frame used no threads at all. The two halves were joined by a rectangular shaped plug inserted from the right side. It was then turned clockwise, locking it in place. The idea was for paratroopers to jump with the rifle disjointed in a case and then quickly assemble it upon landing.

Another method of disassembly is on a Burgess rifle owned by a friend. It came with two .44-40 barrels. They have U-shaped male portions that slide into U-shaped female portions on the receiver and snap in place. A thumb tab is the release.

Takedowns still seem to have a place with modern riflemen. Browning offered its large-size Browning Lever Rifle .30-06 with an interrupted lug system. Andy Larsson of Skinner Sights has also assembled “Bush Pilot” kits, the heart of which is a Chiappa Model 1892 .44 Magnum with a 16-inch barrel. The rifle I bought functions perfectly. R September-October 2018

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smoothing Bolt-action oPeration LIGHT GUNSMITHING by Gil Sengel

F

ew shooters today seem concerned with the smooth operation of their bolt-action rifles – until one day a chance to fire a U.S. M1892 Krag or pre-World War II Winchester M70 comes along.

The concept of a smoothly operating bolt gun is then made wonderfully clear!

Krags get their easy functioning from the case hardening applied to both receiver and breech bolt. This heat treatment yields a glass-hard surface that is nearly free of friction. Model 70s are not case hardened but are made from alloy steel that through-hardens to 45-50 on the Rockwell C hardness scale. The surface is not as hard as case hardening, but the strength of this steel is far greater than that of the Krag. Pre-WWII handwork gives the early M70s their smooth operation.

Such attention is not given to today’s factory actions, yet any interested gun tinkerer can achieve very near pre-WWII results by the use of J-B Bore Cleaning Compound. First, it’s necessary to remove the rifle’s stock, then the striker assembly from the bolt, and finally all parts from the receiver. This prevents getting abrasive into places it does not belong.

Now coat the bolt body lightly with J-B, a very fine abrasive. Insert the bolt in the receiver and work it through about 200 cycles.

Remove the bolt, wipe off all the J-B possible on both the bolt and inside the action, lightly recoat When polishing the inside of the bolt with 600-grit abrasive cloth, remember to push the abrasive past the bolt sleeve threads before turning on the power.

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with J-B and repeat. Doing this 15 to 20 times will noticeably smoothout the back-and-forth movement of the bolt with no danger of altering headspace as could happen if a coarser abrasive was used. Wash all parts with mineral spirits to remove every trace of the J-B paste.

Making the bolt slide smoothly in the receiver does not, however, make the action function easier.

It does nothing to make the bolt cock easier or properly eject fired cases. Both are vitally important when attempting to make follow-up shots with the rifle shouldered as it should be.

To chamber a second round more easily after firing the initial shot, it is first necessary to raise the bolt handle. As the handle comes up, the nose of the cocking piece rides up the angled cocking surface at the rear of the bolt body under full mainspring pressure.

These two surfaces must be hard and should be lubricated. Obviously, if the bolt is of a design that lifts less than the normal 90 degrees to reset the firing pin assembly, it will require more force to do so. The same is true if the handle is a bit shorter than normal, as on some ultralightweight actions.

There is little that can be done to modern actions as all are made of modern steels that allow “spot hardening” at this wear point. Not quite as hard as case hardening, the best that can be done is to lightly oil these surfaces, hold the trigger back, then raise and lower the

A compressed mainspring on a striker assembly shows the “bulges” that can drag on the inside of the bolt body when the rifle is cocked and when fired.

The shiny spot shows where this mainspring is rubbing hard on the inside of the bolt body. Mainspring rubbing can be easily felt when the striker assembly is pushed into the bolt.

bolt handle a few hundred times to wear-in the surface. Or a small dab of J-B can be used – make certain to get it all off when finished.

Older case hardened actions are not necessarily perfect either if the bolt handle has been altered for scope use. If not done properly, the heat of forging or welding migrates to the cocking surface and anneals it. The bolt lift will then become more difficult as the soft metal deforms. Rehardening can be done using a surface-hardening compound, but it is never as good as the original and may begin to wear through after several hundred cycles. If my experience is any indication, this is the cause of heavier-than-normal bolt lift on sporting rifles built on old military actions. Any bolt handle alteration should be done only by someone (Continued on page 65)

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long-range oPtics, tools anD technology A RIFLEMAN’S OPTICS by John Haviland

M

ost rifle shooters fire a few shots at a target before hunting season opens, and a few more during deer season. During the remainder of the year, the rifles sit in the back corner of a closet. Formal and casual long-range target shooting, though, provide the opportunity to shoot all year in different conditions to increase skill, learn The Kahles K318i 3.5-18x 50mm scope about ballistics and the mysteries is available with two different reticles, of bullets in flight. including the SKMR3 John used.

This past spring I watched a gathering of expert long-range competitors shoot at the FTW Ranch in Texas. Its 14 shooting ranges are mainly located along ridgetops, where the wind We were shooting H-S Precision Heavy Tactical constantly blows and gains speed all day under the Texas sun. Steel plate targets range from 100 or Long Range Hunter 6.5 Creedmoor rifles. Each to 1,300 yards, and some are so distant a spotting rifle was topped with a Kahles K525i 5-25x 56mm scope is required to see them. or K318i 3.5-18x 50mm scope.

We started shooting at paper targets to make sure the rifles were sighted in to hit on aim at 100 yards. Wind and other surrounding conditions may alter the actual sight in if rifles are zeroed at longer ranges of 200 or 300 yards. The Heavy Tactical rifle I shot was paired with a Kahles K318i scope and Prime Ammunition loaded with Norma 130-grain hollowpoint boat-tail bullets. My first two shots hit dead center of the target, and the third bullet hit .5 inch higher while shooting prone with the front of the rifle supported on a Harris bipod. After those close shots, we started shooting targets at 300, 450 and then 800 yards.

In preparation for those shots, all manner of bullet, rifle and scope data was entered into Kestrel 5700 Elite weather meters with the Applied Ballistics program to create a range card showing bullet wind drift and drop at distances out to 2,000 yards or more. Muzzle velocity, drag model and ballistic coefficient, bullet weight and diameter of the Norma bullets were entered into the Kestrel. Rifle data entered included zero range, scope height above the bore, rifling twist and milliradian (MIL) units of measurement in the scope’s elevation and windage turrets.

Target information included target range and direction of fire, measured in degrees from north.

The direction of fire can be manually entered or captured automatically by pointing the back of the Kestrel at a target and pressing the select button.

A Kestrel 5700 Elite weather meter with the Applied Ballistics Wind direction and velocity is captured by holding program is handy to have on hand to provide bullet trajectory the Kestrel high while pointing it toward the wind and wind drift while shooting targets at long range.

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Rifle 300

Josh Cluff refers to his range card before taking a long shot.

and taking several readings for a minute to verify true velocity.

The Kestrel Elite meter feeds temperature, pressure and humidity directly into the Applied Ballistics program. The Kestrel Weather mode takes readings directly from the Kestrel’s sensors,

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Most long-range shooters dial their scope’s elevation turret to compensate for bullet drop and hold for wind drift with the scope’s reticle hash marks.

and in the Update mode it continually registers new environmental data and appropriately updates the ballistic solution.

Jeremy Kisner is a serious competitor in Precision Rifle Series and Practical Rimfire Challenge events. Kisner said he updates the settings in his Kestrel before each competition. “It’s my constant companion during a shoot,” he said.

“By the way,” he added, “your Kestrel is sitting in the direct sunlight and will give you all sorts of weird readings.” Kestrel instructions state that environmental conditions should be captured, and then updates turned off if the Kestrel is not exposed to ambient airflow.

Every time target direction changes, the direction should be updated so the Kestrel provides a windage hold relative to wind direction; I never saw anyone do that. Instead, they took an initial bullet drop compensation and windage hold for a target with their Kestrel, then a final mental correction for wind speed and direction moments before firing a shot. Most everyone dialed up their Kahles scopes to compensate for bullet drop at targets 300 yards and farther. They held off to counteract for wind using the .5 and 1 MIL spacing hash

marks along the horizontal wire in the scope’s SKMR3 reticle.

I hit targets at 1,000 yards, but a few shots, and sometimes more, were required to do it. The Kahles scope’s elevation turret precisely dialed up and down and there was no problem there.

But the ever-changing wind proved difficult. The FTW folks were watching through spotting scopes and calling the shots.

Over the blasts of gunfire, they yelled out windage corrections, which helped to connect with the

Long-range shooting requires the use of a spotting scope.

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next shot. The SKMR3 reticle is in the scope’s first focal plane, so hash mark spacing remains constant at all magnifications.

Reticle size does shrink as magnification decreases, to the point where the spacing becomes indistinct. That was never a problem as I kept the scope at its highest magnification, even for shots at 250 yards. I turned down magnification only to find targets hidden in the trees or among the rocks, then twisted it back up to aim and shoot.

The FTW staff staged an informal contest, shooting prone among paired shooters that consisted of the first shooter firing at targets starting at 250 and going out to 350, 450 and 600 yards.

After all the targets were hit, his partner shot at the targets in reverse order.

Jeremy Kisner and I teamed up. Kisner ran his targets near to far without a hitch. I hit the two farthest targets. The contest

September-October 2018

was called to a finish while I was searching for the 350-yard target hidden in brush across a canyon.

We moved to shooting from improvised rests of tree branches, logs and rocks. Just days before, Philip Velayo had retired from the Marine Corps as a Scout Sniper and Scout Sniper instructor. When he walked up to a shooting position, he took a moment to survey the distant targets and the possibilities for supporting his rifle and himself. Once he had everything figured out, he consulted the range card strapped to his wrist for the scope’s elevation adjustment and windage hold for a target’s distance and fluidly took a position, firing a moment later. For some shots he wedged the forearm of his rifle between the branches of a tree. Other times he padded his rifle’s forearm with a small shooting bag on a rock or stump. He always positioned himself as close to the ground as possible, or against a rock or tree trunk. One series of

shots was on a steep hillside with targets on a far slope across a canyon. Velayo went from one shooting station to the next ringing each steel plate like it was a bell.

Velayo was an excellent instructor and surely showed more patience with me than Marines under his command. He emphasized determining the target range and wind, consulting the range card and adjusting the scope to compensate. “Don’t forget to adjust your scope’s parallax for the range, too,” he added. In the kneeling position, with the rifle on a rest, he suggested kneeling on both knees and squatting back as far as possible on your feet, or wedging a pack between your backside and legs.

Standing, he suggested locking the knees so the legs are straight and supported by your bones.

Velayo showed that everyone has to start at the beginning when shooting long range, and every step forward results in ringing the R plate of success.

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e v o L AT FIRST SHOT

AN EARLY LOOK AT MONTANA RIFLE’S LONG-RANGE RIGS 32

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T

Terry Wieland

oday it seems everyone is in love with pinpoint accuracy – especially rifles that are accurate out to 500, 1,000 and even 2,000 yards. Riflemakers large and small are turning out shooting machines that are extraordinarily accurate, placing their bullets in tight clusters at distances measured in furlongs.

Unfortunately, too many of these rifles are about as ergonomic as a Vickers gun and aesthetic as a car jack. There seems to be a general feeling that, to shoot really well, a rifle has to look like a stripped-down, all-business assembly of mechanical parts. Most of

Long-range rifle enthusiast Burt Reynolds is shooting a Montana Tactical Rifle (MTR) .300 Norma Magnum. The rifle combines the precision of a tactical rifle with the silky feel of a finely tuned pre-’64 Model 70. The scope is a Leupold VH-6 HD 3-18x 50mm.

September-October 2018

these are bolt actions, at least the really long-range versions for seriously big cartridges, but they are angular creations with hard corners and sharp edges with bolts that scrape, clank and grind. Or at least, they seem so to me.

It need not be that way and if you want proof, look no further than Montana Rifle Company of Kalispell, Montana. Not only is it making match and long-range rifles that are astonishingly accurate, the company is doing it with the most revered bolt action in American history: the pre-’64 Winchester Model 70.

To be exactly precise, the Montana is a Model 70 clone with a few changes (such as the bolt release) that incorporate some features from the Mauser ’98.

But overall, in looks and operation, it’s a pre-’64.

Although the Model 70 is admired by rifle enthusiasts, Winchester collectors, custom-rifle aficionados and gunmakers alike for its good looks and smooth operation, the Model 70 also has a long and successful history as a target rifle. From 1936, when it replaced the Model 54 in the Winchester lineup until

the 1960s, Model 70 National Match rifles and “bull guns” were serious competitors in matches out to 1,000 yards. They were also used as sniper rifles by various branches of the military.

Some readers may immediately insist that accuracy standards in those days were different than now, and to an extent this is true. But in 1996 Kenny Jarrett built a custom rifle for me on a Model 70 action (the post-1993 return to the pre-’64 design). It was/is a .257 Weatherby Magnum that meets Kenny’s standards of accuracy, which is consistent .5-inch, threeshot groups at 100 yards.

Given the Model 70’s history and the level of respect it commands, it’s surprising that more riflemakers have not produced Model 70 clones. Aside from the Montana, the only major one I know of is the Dakota 76, which is a combination of Model 70 and Mauser ’98 features and was aimed at the high end of the custom-rifle market.

Montana Rifles went the other way. Beginning in 1999, as prices peaked for pre-’64 actions to be used as the basis for high-dollar custom rifles and factory-original pre-’64 rifles attracted increasing collector interest, Montana began producing rifles that were comparable in price to what Winchester charged in its www.riflemagazine.com

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Love AT FIRST SHOT heyday. In other words, rifles for the masses – the low-dollar you and me.

The Montana Rifle Company’s major product is not finished rifles but barrels – button-rifled, carefully lapped and sold by the thousands to other riflemakers. The company recently changed hands, purchased by a small group of investors, but no immediate changes are planned either to its products or its operation. If anything, we will probably see an increasing range of models. The details and specifications of the current models are available on the company’s website (montanarifleco.com).

The two rifles reviewed here are the Seven Continents Rifle in stainless steel (SCR-SS) and the Montana Tactical Rifle (MTR).

Montana has improved on the original Model 70 by producing different sizes to accommodate longer or shorter cartridges, just as the old Mauser-Werke did with its sporting rifles. They are also available with tailored magazine boxes, depending on the cartridge, and in left-hand models.

The SCR and MTR are both built on the Professional Hunter action (comparable to the original Magnum Mauser), complete with double-square bridge and action ring, and long enough to accommodate anything up to the .505 Gibbs. My test rifles were chambered for Norma’s two new entries in the long-range tactical field, the .300 Norma Magnum (MTR) and .338 Norma Magnum (SCR-SS). There are some essential differences.

The SCR is intended as a hunting rifle and is fitted with the original Model 70 trigger. The stock

The .300 Norma Magnum cartridge is designed specifically for long-range shooting and is based on the .416 Rigby case.

is a hunting-style composite. The action and barrel are matte stainless, and the barrel is 28.5 inches long, including its seamless, removable muzzle brake. Unloaded, without a scope or sling, it weighs 9 pounds, 14 ounces.

The MTR is a tactical rifle with a heavy(!) 28.5-inch barrel and a removable brake. Unloaded but fitted with a Leupold target scope, it weighs exactly 17 pounds. Unlike the SCR, it has a Timney trigger.

Its massive tactical stock has an adjustable comb and length of pull.

The triggers on both rifles were a little heavy for my taste when they arrived, but both were readily adjusted to a crisp 3.0 pounds, give or take an ounce. The Model 70 trigger retained an angel-hair of creep while the Timney has none.

The other really noticeable difference is in the bolt handles. The MTR has a long tactical-pattern handle with an oversized bolt knob while the SCR, instead of the graceful swept-back handle of the Model 70, has a straight handle like the Magnum Mauser. On such a large action it looks entirely appropriate.

Both rifles came from the factory fitted with Picatinny rails on their square action surfaces (bridge and ring), but unlike the

old Mauser, these surfaces have integral dovetails as well as being drilled and tapped for conventional scope mounts; the user has no shortage of options.

Unlike the pre-’64, the Montana action has no integral guide on the bolt, leaving the left action rail solid and rigid. The bolt release is reminiscent of the long-ago Sako action and is distinctly more ele-

The .300 Winchester Magnum (left) is dwarfed by the .300 (center) and .338 (right) Norma Magnums.

The Montana Tactical Rifle (MTR) with a Leupold VH-6 HD 3-18x 50mm scope weighed 17 pounds. The barrel is 28.5 inches long with a removable muzzle brake.

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Love AT FIRST SHOT

gant than the original Winchester.

At this point, each rifle needs to be treated separately.

When the rifles arrived, I took them out to my friend Burt Reynolds, who manages the Top Gun Sportsman’s Club in Lonedell, Missouri. Burt is more of a tactical rifle enthusiast than I am, and I wanted his opinion. He immediately installed a bipod on the front sling swivel of the MTR, fitted it with a Leupold VH-6 HD 3-18x 50mm scope and set it up on the counter for all to see. For the next week, everyone who walked in immediately asked what it was, how it shot and how much it cost.

The MTR .300 Norma Magnum was tested at 100 yards with Norma Match ammunition loaded with Norma 230-grain Hybrid Target hollowpoint bullets rated at a muzzle velocity of 2,985 fps. On my chronograph, it averaged 2,872 fps.

With that bullet and velocity, the weight of the rifle was a welcome recoil dampener – along with the muzzle brake.

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The Montana Seven Continents Rifle (SCR) .338 Norma Magnum had a 28.5-inch barrel with a muzzle brake.

about a rifle’s accuracy can be learned at 100 yards; beyond that, too many other factors, such as wind, come into play. The rifle was more or less sighted in when we started shooting, but we wanted to refine it to be dead on at 100 yards, after which adjustments for range could be done with the scope; that was Burt’s department. Three of us took turns shooting the rifle, with the other two calling the shots. It was uncanny to watch how each scope adjustment was reflected exactly in the position of the next shot. We came to expect such precision that it almost seemed rude to shoot an actual group with it, as if we doubted its abilities.

After the final adjustment, Burt fired one shot that neatly clipped the crossed lines in the center of the target’s white 2-inch bull, so for the next shot I asked him to put it in the same hole, but slightly to the left so we would know it actually hit the paper. His next shot was, indeed, slightly to the left, but about .125 inch more than I intended. Obviously I did not express myself very well.

The SCR .338 Norma Magnum was a different proposition. We used Norma Professional Hunter ammunition loaded with 300-grain HPBT bullets at 2,650 fps. Again, the chronograph registered a slightly slower velocity of 2,549 fps. Since my collimator would not fit with the muzzle brake, we bore-

sighted it at the range the old way – on sandbags, looking through the bore, then moving the reticle.

The first shot was 2 inches down from center and we adjusted from there – fire a shot, adjust the reticle, fire another shot. Like the .300, the .338 was so predictable in its reaction to reticle adjustments we just assumed, in spite of a gusting 20-mph wind, that the bullet was going to go where it was supposed to, and it always did.

The third member of our testing team, Wayne, is about my The .300 Norma Magnum is intended as a long-range tactical cartridge and lives up to its billing. This 10-shot group at 100 yards measured 1.19 inches, center to center, with seven shots going into one big hole.

Rifle 300

age and loves fine rifles. We each did some shooting and spotting, and one thing we all noticed and commented on was just how slick and smooth both actions were. We could keep our cheeks down on the stock, look through the scope and work the bolt with just our fingertips, effortlessly opening, ejecting, feeding and closing. Throughout the shooting session, the rifle hardly budged.

Those Montana actions are as silky as a finely tuned pre-’64.

The afternoon was not without hitches. The .300 and .338 Normas are based on the .416 Rigby case but are short and fat in the style of new super-accuracy cartridges. They tended to rock back and forth in a conventional box magazine, and the bolt can ride over them if the base is angled down slightly. This usually happened if they were loaded one at a time. When the magazine was fully charged and the bolt was worked smartly, it occurred rarely.

This has now been changed in the design, and the MTR is fitted with a detachable magazine that aligns the top cartridge with the chamber – problem solved.

Two other difficulties were experienced. In early testing, Burt had four misfires out of 20 cartridges with one box of Norma Match, and even double-struck one of those four without effect. The same thing happened to me later with one round of the .338. I suspect it is a combination of primers seated a little more deeply with a striker tuned to minimum impact for minimum disturbance. When I start reloading for these cartridges, I will keep that in mind.

In my experience, such glitches are not unusual with target rifles and ammunition, where everything is so finely adjusted that reliability can suffer. As well, both rifles and ammunition were prototypes put together on special order. In fact, the .300 Norma Magnum Match ammunition was not even listed on the company’s website until this review was almost finished, and the cartridge was not yet listed as a production item for the MTR. September-October 2018

Everything else – from the threeposition safeties to the floorplate releases, from feeding to extraction and ejection – worked to perfection. Again, they reminded me of what a pre-’64 Model 70 action feels like after it has emerged, polished and purring, from a good custom shop. And, to a dyed-inthe-wool rifle lover, they are a breath of fresh air in an endless stream of undoubtedly accurate, but soulless, mechanical R creations.

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37

WinchEster Shooting the Latest Saddle Ring Carbine

The operation of the new Winchester saddle ring carbine Model 1873 .38 Special/.357 Magnum was smooth.

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Rifle 300

Model 1873 Mike Venturino

Photos by Yvonne Venturino

A

Wolfe Publishing Company reprint of a Winchester catalog from 1899 shows saddle ring carbines (SRCs) priced lower than any of the company’s other standard model leverguns. Model 1873 prices were $17.50 compared to $18 for a round-barreled rifle, or $19.50 for one with an octagonal barrel. These days, on the collectors’ market standard SRCs bring substantially higher prices than standard rifles with either type of barrel, when in comparable condition. Some say the price difference results from fewer carbines having been made. One-third of the nearly 750,000 Model 1873s were SRCs. Others think it was a century of movie usage. That’s not a strong point. Older westerns often featured Model 1892 SRCs in a timeframe when Model 1873s were proper. My take is the fact that, on the whole, SRCs of all models saw much harsher treatment than rifles. This factor seems to be especially prominent with ’73 SRCs.

What exactly constitutes a saddle ring carbine? My desk dictionary defines carbine as “a short, light rifle.”

Winchester Repeating Arms put its own definitions on rifles and carbines. Rifles had deeply curved, crescent buttplates. SRC buttplates had much shallower curves and were wider to boot. Rifles had steel forend caps. SRCs had steel barrel bands to secure forearms.

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39

WinchEster Model 1873

The new Winchester Model 1873 SRC (front) is shown with an original from the 1890s.

This vintage photo shows a young man with his special order Winchester Model 1873 saddle ring carbine with a barrel measuring less than 20 inches.

Rifles had buckhorn-type rear sights adjustable for elevation in 50-yard increments using notched sliders. SRCs had ladder-type rear sights on which sight bars could slide up for increased elevation.

Front sights on rifles were blade types dovetailed to barrels. For SRCs, studs were brazed to barrels into which blades were set.

Windage could be zeroed on rifles

The saddle ring was put on carbines so they could be attached to the saddle horn by a leather strap.

1

2

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by drifting the front sight or rear sight, or both, laterally in their dovetails. Only the rear sight on SRCs could be drifted.

Barrels for rifles could be round (standard) or octagonal or half and half. The last two options cost extra. Rifle barrels could be as short as 12 inches and as long as 36 inches, but the standard length was 24 inches. SRC barrels were also round but much lighter in weight. Standard length was 20 inches. Barrels down to 12 inches were available, but if longer ones were offered I have never heard of it. Rifles were sold with steel parts blued, or with actions, buttplates and forend caps color casehardened at an extra cost. Saddle ring carbines were blued. Again, if color casehardened actions on SRCs were offered, I’ve never seen one.

Rifles were chambered for .44 WCF (.44-40), .38 WCF (.38-40), .32 WCF (.32-20) and both .22 Short and Long rimfires. SRCs were not made as .22s. Both rifle and carbine steel buttplates had trapdoors for storing jointed cleaning rods, but only in .38 and

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Three cartridges chambered for the original Model 1873 SRCs between 1873 and 1923 include the (1) .32 WCF, (2) .38 WCF and (3) .44 WCF. Three cartridges for the new ’73s include the (4) .357 Magnum, (5) .44 WCF (.44-40) and the (6) .45 Colt.

Rifle 300

The rear sight on the Winchester SRC is a flip-up type with a notched slider for elevation.

.44 caliber. Winchester rated a standard round-barrel rifle at 8.75 pounds, an octagonal-barreled rifle at 9 pounds and a standard SRC at 7.25 pounds.

I happen to have samples of all three of these original Winchester Model 1873s in my racks, so they were weighed. The SRC was right on at 7.25 pounds, but the fulllength rifles were actually lighter than normal. Both weighed 8.25 pounds.

Now, if Winchester’s determination of whether one of its leverguns was a rifle or carbine was not confusing enough, consider that the company would sell longer or shorter-than-normal barrel lengths. One of the most common deviations from standard was a rifle with all the features, but it had a 20-inch barrel – the same as carbines. However, the barrel was not a lightweight as used on SRCs. They were the same diameter as barrels sold on rifles. Winchester called these Short Rifles.

Now fast-forward 90 years from when Winchester officially dropped the Model 1873. That summer I attended a firearms industry get-together, and one of the guns being fired was a Browning-Japanese (Miroku) manufactured Model 1873 .38 Special/.357 Magnum. It was in Short Rifle configuration with a 20-inch, round barrel. I was only able to fire 10 rounds through it and thought it was a nicely made replica, as all the Miroku leverguns have been.

As with vintage Winchester ’73s the brass cartridge lifter is stamped with its chambering.

Furthermore, this one lacked any sort of lawyer-dictated external safety. These have been the chief criticism thrown at Miroku/ Browning/Winchester leverguns over the years.

I admit freely that ’73 Winchesters are my favorite among Old West leverguns. A chief historical interest is the fight between Indians and the 7th U.S. Cavalry in Montana in June 1876. Archaeological work at the Little Big Horn

WinchEster Model 1873 Battlefield has determined that no fewer than eight ’73 Winchester .44 WCFs were fired in that fracas. Of course, many more Henry and Model 1866 .44 rimfires were used by the Sioux and Cheyenne warriors, but .44 WCF is a modern handloader’s dream compared to .44 rimfire, hence my favoritism.

Four busy years passed until my interests returned to these new Model 1873s that are actually stamped “Winchester.” I was pleased to see that .44-40 had been added as a cartridge option.

Besides Short Rifles with 20-inch, round barrels, there were now ocThis 100-yard group was about average for the new Winchester ’73 .38 Special/ .357 Magnum with good loads.

The buttplate on original Winchester ’73s in .38 and .44 caliber (right) had a trapdoor for a jointed cleaning rod.

The new Winchester ’73 does not have this feature.

The new Winchester Model 1873 SRC has a spit stud on the barrel into which a brass blade fits.

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Between 1873 and 1923 Winchester sold nearly 750,000 Model 1873s. As standard catalog items, about one-third were saddle ring carbines (top), only five percent were muskets (bottom) and the rest were rifles (middle).

tagonal barrels, others with pistol-grip stocks, and some options included very fine color casehardening of the action, buttplate and forend cap. Checkering was also offered on some versions, and .45 Colt was an option in all versions. I asked Browning to loan me a Model 1873 .44 as quickly as possible in any form available; it turned out to be a Short Rifle. It was covered in Rifle No. 295 (November 2017).

Maybe I’m just slow to catch on, but the ink on that article had hardly dried when word reached me that Browning now had SRC ’73s. A loaner was requested, but this time I wanted it to be .38 Special/.357 Magnum. This particular levergun may be the one that breaks tradition’s grasp on my soul. I have always eschewed owning a replica of the ’73 Winchester by any maker if it was chambered for a cartridge not from its original period. That limited me to .4440, .38-40 and .32-20. That’s not the same as saying I had never owned or used replica leverguns in more modern calibers, but I reserved the ’73 for tradition’s sake.

What pleased me so much about this new Winchester SRC .38/.357 is that it is a straight-shooting, smoothly functioning “light rifle” that is very easy to hit with. Except for one cartridge, where the extractor slipped over an empty .38’s rim, leaving it chambered, it functioned just as well with .38 Special rounds as .357 Magnums.

The .38 Long Colt can safely be fired in .38 Special and .357 Magnum revolvers, and it’s actually

safe to fire in this new ’73, but forget about the .38 Long Colt functioning. Cartridge case heads are pushed from the magazine tube into a brass cartridge lifter, tying up matters until the cartridge is fished out of the loading gate.

Here are some particulars of the new Winchester SRC ’73: Overall length is 38.5 inches with a 20inch, round barrel, and weight is 7.25 pounds. Those dimensions are identical with my original SRC .44. Its barrel diameter at the muzzle is .635 inch, and the original’s is .650 inch. Length of pull is 12.75 inches on both carbines.

Wood-to-metal fit is good but not outstanding. Conversely, the metal fit, polish and deep blue finish are outstanding. As befits an SRC, the stock wood is straight grain, oiled, American walnut. The buttplate on this new SRC is noticeably narrower than my original’s. It is 1.25 inches wide compared to 1.45 inches for the 120-year-old sample.

One place where the new gun outperforms the old one is smoothness. Right out of the box, it feels like it has been slicked up by a professional gunsmith. (My original ’73 .44 SRC dates to the 1890s and is considerably rougher internally – perhaps from being out in the weather.) Trigger pull averaged 4.75 pounds and was perfectly crisp.

Magazine capacity is 10 rounds of .357 Magnum or .38 Special. I was able to cram 11 .38s into the magazine, but that jammed up the tube with a cartridge head sitting too far back.

Firing this new .38/.357 SRC provided an opportunity to comRifle 300

Select .38 Special and .357 Magnum Handloads bullet (grains)

powder

charge (grains)

158 .38 Special SWC

Bullseye Trail Boss 2400

3.2 4.0 13.5 14.5 14.5 14.5 14.5

158 .357 Magnum RNFP 158 .357 Magnum SWC 158 .357 Magnum RNFP 158 .357 Magnum SWC Factory loads 140 .38 Special Hornady RNFP 158 .38 Special Black Hills JSP 158 .38 Special CCI/Blazer RNFP 158 .38 Special Black Hills lead conical 125 .357 Magnum Ultra-Max RNFP 145 .357 Magnum Winchester ST-HP* 158 .357 Magnum Black Hills lead conical

2400 IMR-4227 IMR-4227

Colt SAA (4.75-inch barrel) extreme velocity spread (fps) (fps)

Winchester M1873 (20-inch barrel) extreme velocity spread (fps) (fps)

727 697 1,155 1,308 1,248 1,155 976

16 30 50 27 22 50 56

949 872 1,614 1,732 1,718 1,371 1,371

22 41 41 15 45 41 41

792 938 607 762 771 1,182 722

45 13 26 50 28 30 46

1,013 1,172 850 915 1,030 1,841 915

19 39 33 35 54 29 42

* Silvertip Hollowpoint Notes: A Winchester Model 1873 carbine with a 20-inch barrel and a Colt SAA with a 4.75-inch barrel were used to test all loads. Wolfe Small Pistol primers and Starline brass were used throughout. All loads were chronographed at 6 feet. All semiwadcutter (SWC) bullets were cast by Mike in Lyman mould No. 358477. Alloy was 1:20 (tin to lead), sized .358 inch and lubed with SPG. All roundnose flatpoint (RNFP) bullets were coated types from Missouri Bullet Company.

For more data on these cartridges please visit LoadData.com.

Be Alert – Publisher cannot accept responsibility for errors in published load data. Listed loads are only valid in the test firearms used. Reduce initial powder charge by 10 percent and work up while watching for pressure signs.

pare velocities from it and a revolver. The revolver was a Colt SAA .357 Magnum made about 1969 with a 4.75-inch barrel length.

Both handloads and factory loads of each cartridge were fired, and the results are in the accompanying table. The carbine’s velocities topped the revolver’s by about 200 to 250 fps with most loads.

Quite often, SWC bullets are warned against use in leverguns because their sharp shoulders hang up on chamber edges as they are lifted from the magazine. Not so with this ’73 replica. Brass cartridge lifters on ’73s raise a cartridge in line with the chamber, and then the bolt shoves it straight in as the lever is closed. I shot SWC, RN, RNFP and JHP bullets from the sample SRC ’73 without a bobble.

As to shooting groups, I freely admit that these days I have some difficulty with open sights. That said, I still shot some pretty decent groups with both .38 Special and .357 Magnum factory loads and handloads. Decent is defined here as about 3.5 to 4 inches at 100 yards. There were also a few larger groups. Some lead-alloy bullet loads shot well and others did not. For instance, Hornady’s .38 Special 140-grain Cowboy load shot well.

September-October 2018

CCI’s Trailblazer 158-grain .38 Special Cowboy load did not. Black Hill’s 158-grain .357 Magnum Cowboy load shot nicely, but handloaded 158-grain SWCs over 14.5 grains of 2400 grouped at about a foot.

Here’s a bit of opinion that so far has not been backed up by shooting results: If this saddle ring carbine belonged to me, I would buy a large quantity of .357 Magnum brass and only use it in this carbine. Some years back, when Yvonne and I were active in cowboy action shoots, I gave her the previously mentioned Colt SAA .357 Magnum to use solely with .38 Special cartridges. After several hundred rounds without diligent

cleaning, that .357 Magnum was needed for some chronographing. The longer rounds would not chamber fully, and they still would not chamber after cleaning. I had to put a brass brush in a drill to clean the chambers. Getting such a brass brush into an SRC’s chamber would be a difficult chore.

Browning will likely sell plenty of these carbines to cowboy action shooters, and I do not doubt it will also sell them to historically minded folks for use in hunting deer or varmint control. If a .357 Magnum revolver is adequate for deer hunting, certainly a .357 Magnum SRC would be fine out to 100 R yards or so.

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Due to their flat profiles, Browning’s BLR rifles are excellent choices for horsemen.

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Rifle 300

Brian Pearce

T

he Browning Lever Rifle (BLR) series has been in production for almost 50 years during which the rifles have evolved with a number of changes and improvements. Additionally, they have been offered in variations that include limited editions, Takedown, Tactical and Lightweight versions. Both short and long actions are available, and the BLR has been chambered in a large number of popular cartridges that range from the .222 Remington to .450 Marlin. Popular modern magnums such as the .300 WSM and .300 Winchester Magnum have also been available. According to company representatives, the BLR series is currently enjoying a surge in sales, which is understandable as it is reliable, handsome and accurate.

’ Browning s

Lever rifle

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FOR A

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Browning ’ s Lever rifle A Leupold VX-Freedom 1.5-4x 20mm variable scope in QRW rings was used to test the new rifle.

Other than the barrel stud that secures the forearm, the forearm is free floating.

Lever-action rifles have traditionally been chambered for cartridges containing bullets with a flatpoint that serve to prevent possible cartridge ignition in tubular magazines. However, by 1895 Winchester offered the Model 1895 lever action designed specifically to house modern cartridges containing spitzer-profile bullets, and Savage introduced its Model 1895 (actually built by Marlin) that soon evolved into the Model 1899 (Model 99) that was produced for almost 100 years. Beginning in 1955 Winchester offered its Model 88 lever-action rifle, and Sako introduced its Finnwolf in 1962. While both were intended for the .308 Winchester and similar short-action cartridges with spitzer-profile bullets, they each had a relatively short lifespan and were discontinued.

The story of the BLR actually began in 1966 when preproduction rifles were manufactured in the U.S.

by TRW in Cleveland, Ohio, for Browning Arms Company. The exact number of rifles is unknown but was The front sight features a base with a dovetail slot for interchangeability.

The rear sight is fully adjustable for windage and elevation.

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probably between 50 and 250 units, and they are generally considered collectible prototypes. Regardless, that business arrangement was ended by 1968.

After significant design changes, the BLR was announced in 1969. Full-scale production appears to have begun in 1970 at the Belgium-based Fabrique Nationale plant and continued through 1973. It is unclear exactly when manufacturing was moved to the Miroku plant in Japan, but full-scale production was underway by 1974. With this move there were only minor technical design changes between Belgian and Japanese rifles. (A tip to improve feeding with original BLRs is to always use FN magazines in Belgian rifles and Miroku magazines in Japanese rifles.)

The BLR was a totally new design (Karl R. Lewis was the primary engineer) and not a copy of any previous firearm. It was designed specifically to handle modern, high-pressure, spitzer-profile cartridges with ease, such as the .243 and .308 Winchesters, the first two cartridges offered. Its unusual strength (at least for a levergun) came from a unique rotating (upon opening and closing) bolt head that featured eight locking lugs, or rather two sets of four lugs that opposed each other on the bolt head and locked directly to the inside of the solid steel receiver. The bolt face was countersunk and featured a plunger ejector and a Sako-style extractor. The bolt body was controlled When the hammer is in the half-cock position it can be pushed forward, or “folded,� which results in the hammer resting on the bolt rather than the firing pin.

Rifle 300

Browning ’ s Lever rifle Browning BLR .308 Winchester Handloads charge (grains)

overall loaded length (inches)

4-shot 100-yard velocity group (fps) (inches)

45.5 45.0 45.5

2.770 2.805 2.810

2,777 2,683 2,687

1.25 1.05 1.20

150 Federal Nosler Partition (2,840*) 155 Black Hills Gold Match Hornady A-MAX (2,750*) 155 Hornady Match A-MAX (2,860*) 165 Nosler Ballistic Tip (2,800*) 168 Nosler Defense Bonded (2,750*) 168 Winchester Match Nosler HPBT (2,680*)

2,784 2,719 2,788 2,731 2,713 2,645

1.40 1.15 1.10 1.20 1.65 1.45

bullet (grains)

150 Hornady GMX 165 Nosler Ballistic Tip 180 Sierra spitzer

powder

Varget Varget A-2520

Factory loads

* stated velocity Notes: A Browning BLR White Gold Medallion .308 Winchester with a 20-inch barrel and Leupold VX-Freedom 1.5-4x 20mm was used to test all loads. Nosler cases and CCI BR-2 primers were used throughout.

For more data on this cartridge please visit LoadData.com.

Be Alert – Publisher cannot accept responsibility for errors in published load data. Listed loads are only valid in the test firearms used. Reduce initial powder charge by 10 percent and work up while watching for pressure signs.

by a unique rack-and-pinion gear system that was “driven” when the lever was operated. The action featured a relatively short “throw,” making it easy to operate while holding the rifle to the shoulder.

The receiver featured side ejection and a solid top for in-line scope mounting. Incidentally, the trigger was uniquely housed inside the finger lever, which stays within the lever assembly while the action is worked. This was supposed to prevent possible pinching of the finger; among experienced levergun shooters this selling point was moot. The box magazine The bolt body is fluted to correspond with the six forward locking lugs associated with the rotating bolt head.

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was detachable and had a capacity of four rounds plus one in the chamber.

BLR hammer function remained the same as traditional leverguns; a full-cock position that is ready to fire, half-cock that serves as a safety and fully forward that is generally referred to as the “fired” or “down” position.

The two-piece American walnut stock was checkered. Belgian-manufactured versions featured an oil finish while Japanese guns were finished with a highgloss polyurethane. Other than the alloy barrel band and trigger, all metal was steel, polished to a bright blue finish.

The barrel quality was high, and as a result the BLR earned a reputation for accuracy, especially when compared to more conventional leverguns. Since the 1970s I have owned and fired more than a dozen BLR, BLR 81 and BLR Lightweight rifles in many calibers and have always found them accurate, often grouping under one inch with premium factory loads or carefully tailored handloads.

The original BLR was a good rifle; however, it had design shortfalls that were corrected in 1981 with the redesigned BLR 81. The receiver was changed from a concave shape to flat-sided, and the magazine was reshaped to fit almost flush with the bottom of the receiver. While this improved the rifle’s looks, the new magazine design locked more securely in place, was easier to remove and reinstall and fed cartridges more positively.

Beginning in 1991 a BLR 81 Long Action became available and housed the .270 Winchester, .30-06 and 7mm Remington Magnum cartridges. The next design change was major and occurred in 1995/1996 with the introduction of the New Model BLR Lightning that featured a curved-lever pistol grip and aluminum receiver. A New Model BLR Lightweight with a straight-grip lever appeared in 2003. (These guns are also known as BLR Lightweight 81, etc.)

Initially it was designed for short-action (.308 Winchester) length or shorter cartridges; however, it soon Curved pistol grips have always been popular on leverguns such as the Winchester Model 71 (top) and Browning BLR White Gold Medallion (bottom).

Rifle 300

Browning BLR White Gold Medallion .308 Winchester Specifications Action: Lever, rack-and-pinion gear driven, rotating bolt head, side ejection Receiver: Aircraft grade aluminum, machine engraved, drilled and tapped Hammer: Four-position with fold-down safety feature Lever: Steel, curved pistol grip Overall length: 40 inches Barrel: Button rifled, heat treated chrome-moly steel Barrel length: 20 inches Sights: Gold bead front, fully adjustable rear Stock: Checkered two-piece, grade IV/V American walnut with grip cap and recoil pad Magazine: Detachable box Capacity: 4 rounds, plus 1 Weight: 6 pounds, 8 ounces Trigger: Alloy, gold plated Trigger pull: 6 pounds MSRP: $1,469.99

became available in a long action for standard and magnum cartridges and short magnum cartridges. The receiver width was increased from about 1.180 inches to around 1.340 inches. Due to the aluminum receiver, the locking lugs necessarily had to lock into the steel barrel breech to retain sufficient strength and durability, rather than the receiver as found on previous models. The bolt head was changed from eight lugs to six forward lugs, and the bolt body was fluted to correspond with their “travel” inside the receiver when the action is worked.

While there are many additional and technical action design changes, most significant to shooters is the fold-down hammer, which is unlike any previous design. It has four positions that include fullcock, half-cock, folded and fired (or down) position. The full-cock is ready to fire. The half-cock is a “safe” position; however, in this position the hammer spur can be pushed forward with the thumb, as it actually pivots to achieve the “folded” position. In this position the hammer actually rests on the bolt body below the firing pin, makSeptember-October 2018

ing no contact. In either the halfcock or folded positions the rifle cannot fire; however, to fire the rifle the hammer is easily pulled back to the full-cock position.

Another notable change on select models includes the elimination of the barrel band. Rather, the forearm is mounted with a screw that attaches to a barrel-mounted assembly. Otherwise the forearm is free floating.

Working the action of BLR Lightning and Lightweight rifles results in a distinctly different “feel” than the former BLR/BLR 81 models.

While the new design retains the rotating bolt head, rack-and-pinion-driven action, trigger travel within the finger lever, etc., the lever features a pivot that can easily be felt when the action is cycled.

In the years since the various alloyed receiver BLRs were introduced, there seems to have been nearly countless variations including stainless and blued with stock options of walnut, laminated hardwood and camouflage with both straight and curved pistol grips, and even a Monte Carlo version. Barrel lengths have been offered from 16 to 22 inches, with sights being standard; however, there has been at least one variant without sights. Other models have been offered with Picatinny rails and flash hiders.

One especially interesting version includes the Takedown, which has been produced in short and long actions, stainless and blue finishes and with several stock options. It can be broken

The Browning BLR (right) shares some of the same qualities as the world’s most popular saddle rifle, the Winchester Model 1894 carbine (left).

down in just seconds by pulling a small lever down with a finger to disconnect the locking bar, releasing the barrel assembly. The barrel and forearm can then be

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49

Browning ’ s Lever rifle pulled forward from the receiver.

Unlike many takedown designs, it locks positively, is extremely easy to operate and holds zero when reinstalled. I have suggested to Browning to offer multi-caliber barrel combinations for enhanced versatility.

Browning has kept the BLR series interesting for shooters, hunters and collectors by offering special “limited production” versions. For 2018 the top-of-the-line BLR White Gold Medallion rifle has received considerable attention. It features a nickel-finished receiver with machine engraving,

The Browning BLR White Gold Medallion is a limited edition for 2018.

a 20- or 22-inch stainless steel barrel (depending on caliber), a curved finger lever and pistol-grip stock.

The grade IV/V American walnut stock is beautifully figured with cut checkering on the Schnabel forearm and pistol grip. The forend and pistol grip are further enhanced with a rosewood cap, and both are fitted with a white spacer.

The front sight consists of a ramped base with dovetailed gold bead (easily changed to suit indi-

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vidual eyes or shooting applications) while the rear sight is robust and fully adjustable for windage and elevation.

The trigger broke at six pounds, and although it was fairly crisp for a mechanism that “disconnects,” I am certain that Browning could specify a lighter pull from Miroku.

The White Gold Medallion is chambered for the .243 Winchester, .270 WSM, 7mm-08 Remington, .308 Winchester and .300 WSM, with the test rifle used here chambered in .308 Winchester.

As previously indicated, BLR rifles have historically been fitted with top-quality, hammer-forged barrels, but the details and changes in manufacturing during the past half century are too entailed to discuss here. Current barrels are precision button rifled, heat-treated, chrome-moly steel and air gauged for extreme uniformity. They are also checked multiple times to assure perfection in their mirror-like internal finish, and for straightness.

When installing optics on my personal BLRs, I usually choose a low-power variable such as a 1-4x 20mm or 1.5-5x 20mm; they are compact, lightweight, fit easily into a rifle scabbard and do not interfere with the leverguns’ balance. To test the BLR White Gold Medallion, a new Leupold VX-Freedom 1.5-4x 20mm scope was installed as it has replaced all VX-1 and VX-II scopes for 2018.

VX-Freedom scopes are still built in the company’s Oregon plant, with all models retailing for less Rifle 300

than $400. New manufacturing processes have allowed Leupold to increase overall quality and offer more positive .25-MOA click turrets while retaining their recoil-resistant design – all at a lower price. Also included is Leupold’s Twilight Management System that is engineered to match the human eye and is appreciated by hunters that deal with a variety of colors in low light conditions. The Freedom scope also features a new distinguished appearance that is attractive on sporting and tactical rifles alike. The scope performed flawlessly throughout various shooting sessions. Weaver two-piece bases were installed along with Leupold QRW rings that permit instant detachment and reinstallation while maintaining zero.

From a sandbag rest, with my left hand resting directly on the sandbag and holding the forearm firmly, the BLR was evaluated for accuracy with factory ammunition and handloads. After initial sight in, which took about 20 rounds, the

September-October 2018

bore was cleaned using Bore Tech Copper Remover. A couple of fouling shots were fired, then a fourshot group was fired using Hornady 155-grain A-MAX factory loads.

The chronograph recorded an average velocity of 2,788 fps while the group measured 1.210 inches center to center. The barrel was allowed to cool before another group was fired, which clustered into .988 inch. Next up was Black Hills .308 Winchester Match loads containing the same 155-grain A-MAX bullet; accuracy was virtually identical to the Hornady load. Moving up to the Nosler Custom 165-grain Ballistic Tip, the BLR again produced several groups that consistently hovered around one inch.

A few handloads were also tried. All loads were assembled in Nosler once-fired cases primed with CCI BR-2 primers. To assure easy, reliable chambering, they were full-length sized using an RCBS small base sizer die. Starting with the Hornady 150-grain GMX bullet, 45.5 grains of Hodg-

don Varget powder reached 2,777 fps and produced groups that were between one to 1.5 inches.

The Nosler 165-grain Ballistic Tip bullet was loaded over 45.0 grains of Varget for 2,683 fps and near-MOA accuracy. Last, the Sierra 180-grain spitzer bullet was loaded with 45.5 grains of Accurate 2520 powder for 2,687 fps, and the three-group average was 1.22 inches.

With the rack-and-pinion action, rotating bolt head, disconnecting trigger, push-down hammer, etc., the BLR is not a simple action and should never be disassembled by amateurs, as it can even challenge experienced gunsmiths.

Nonetheless, the BLR is handsome, functions smoothly and is accurate. It is suitable for both right- and left-handed shooters, is lightweight and chambered for many popular hunting cartridges.

It is rapidly approaching a half century of continuous production, R making it a modern classic.

www.riflemagazine.com

51

NONTOXIC HUNTING BULLETS

W

John Barsness

hile the term “nontoxic” sounds somewhat weird when applied to hunting bullets, some people believe eating game killed with leadcore bullets can be harmful to their health. However, a large-scale study in Germany and Switzerland found hunters had about the same lead levels in their blood as nonhunters.

Another, less general “study” took place in our own household when my wife, Eileen, had her blood tested annually for a medical condition. Despite the fact that the meat we eat comes almost entirely from big game, her lead levels were far lower than average for adult Americans, and at the time we primarily used lead-core bullets. I shot my first big-game animal with a nontoxic bullet in 1995, and during the next decade – the period when Eileen got tested – we put a total of 55 big-game animals into our freezers; only 23.6 percent of them were shot with nontoxic bullets.

Still, nontoxic bullet requirements keep increasing for other reasons. In 2019, for instance, only lead-free bullets will be legal for hunting in California, mostly to protect the state’s endangered condors. As a result,

John and his wife have shot most of their big game over the past few years using monolithic bullets such as the Hornady GMX, Barnes TTSX and Nosler E-Tip.

A 23-YEAR FIELD STUDY 52

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Rifle 300

many companies now produce lead-free bullets, along with centerfire and rimfire ammunition.

This abundance of new bullets is one reason we have used far more nontoxic projectiles in our recent hunting: I have to field-test rifle bullets, and Eileen avidly assists in the research. As a result, of the 21 big-game animals we have put into our freezers over the past five years, 15 (71.4 percent) were taken with lead-free bullets.

The second reason we use more lead-free, big-game bullets is they are all “monolithics,” made of copper or copper alloys, so they do not fragment as much as conventional expanding bullets, ruining less meat in smaller animals like pronghorn and deer, and penetrating deeply in larger animals like elk. The nontoxics used during the past five years included Barnes TTSXs, Cutting Edge Raptors, Hornady GMXs and Nosler E-Tips, and they normally tear up noticeably less meat than lead-core bullets.

Velocity and shot placement also affect meat loss, and one rare exception was a mule deer buck Eileen took in 2014 with a Barnes 100-grain TTSX started at 3,150 fps from a New Ultra Light Arms .257 Roberts. Despite aiming behind the shoulder as the buck stood broadside at 100 yards, the bullet still ruined a lot of shoulder meat. On the other hand, some of our moderate-velocity, lead-bullet loads result in very little meat damage, especially the Speer .35-caliber 180-grain Hot-Cors handloaded to 1,900 fps for an old German 9x72R combination gun, and any of the leadcore 286-grain bullets I use at around 2,400 to 2,500 fps in various 9.3mm cartridges.

However, because monolithic bullets destroy less tissue, on average they do not kill as quickly as leadcore bullets. In an analysis of my big-game notes since 1995, rib-shot animals taken with monolithics have traveled an average of slightly beyond 50 yards after the shot before falling, while the fastest average kills come from lead-core bullets that fragment considerably – and the more they fragment, the sooner animals tend to drop. As an example, Berger hunting bullets often fragment violently. The average travel distance for big-game animals shot through the ribs with Bergers has only been 18 yards; the percentage of instant drops from rib shots is also considerably higher.

That difference may be shrinking as more monolithic big-game bullets are designed to fragment more.

This is a recent development, because many hunters believe the major reason monolithic expanding bullets penetrate so deeply is their tendency to retain all their weight, or close to it. It is common, for instance, to recover expanded Barnes TSXs weighing exactly what they did before being fired, but X-Bullets did not always perform that way.

About 15 years ago Randy Brooks told me he originally designed X-Bullets so their petals would break off, resulting in more internal damage. Many bigSeptember-October 2018

Most monolithic bullets shoot very accurately because they are very well balanced, but they perform better when deep seated, unlike lead-core bullets. This New Ultra Light Arms .257 Weatherby Magnum likes Nosler 100-grain E-Tip bullets.

game hunters considered higher weight retention a real plus, so, like any good businessman, Randy decided to please his customers and reengineered the X. Recently, however, I’ve learned that some (but not all) Barnes Xs are now made so the petals are likely to break off, not necessarily to do more damage but to ensure expansion at longer ranges due to the increasing popularity of long-range hunting.

On the other hand, Cutting Edge Raptors are designed to do more internal damage, with thinner petals that break off easily. Eileen and I have taken a few big-game animals with Raptors and have been impressed with the results, but so far have not taken enough game with pure rib shots to say with any degree of certainty the broken-off petals resulted in quicker kills. The first animal was a pronghorn shot at around 150 yards with a Raptor from a .22-250 Remington. The big doe collapsed where it stood, but during field dressing we discovered a chunk blown out of the lower edge of the spine as the bullet passed through the lungs.

Some hunters claim petals from Barnes Xs, Hornady GMXs and Nosler E-Tips break off most often when hitting heavy bone, usually a shoulder, so the fragmented petals do not result in any internal damage. That’s often the case, but there are exceptions.

The most recent was a big cow elk Eileen shot in 2017 with a 130-grain Tipped TSX from her Kilimanjaro Rifles .308 Winchester. The cow stood quartering toward us at about 250 yards, and the logical shot placement was through the near shoulder. www.riflemagazine.com

53

NONTOXIC HUNTING BULLETS

Table I

Rimfire Ammunition Performance load (grains)

actual muzzle velocity (fps)

5-shot 100-yard group (inches)

.17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire, CZ 452, 22-inch barrel, 1:19 twist 15.5 Hornady NTX 2,608 .75 15.5 Winchester NTX 2,522 1.12 .22 Long Rifle, Anschutz Model 54, 22.5-inch barrel, 1:16 twist 21 CCI Copper-22 1,822 .99*

Lead-free bullets are longer than lead-core bullets of the same diameter and weight.

In the .22 Hornet’s relatively slow rifling twists, 30-grain bullets (left) shoot best as a result. Forty-grain bullets (right) did not shoot as well.

The bullet landed just above the shoulder joint, breaking the thick end of the scapula, and ended up under the hide in the middle of the far ribs with all its petals broken off – including one found only an inch from the bullet. I have even found petals at the edge of exit – not entrance – holes.

Shoulder shots also tend to blow fragments of bone through the vitals, so it’s often hard to tell whether internal damage came from petals or bone. All we know for sure is the cow fell quickly, staggering only 20 or 25 yards before falling. On the other hand, a

John started hunting with lead-free bullets in the 1990s. This Colorado pronghorn was shot at almost 400 yards with a Barnes 120-grain X-Bullet handloaded to 2,950 fps in a 6.5x55.

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big axis deer I shot in Texas with a similar shoulder shot, using an original Barnes 120-grain X-Bullet from a 6.5x55, went about 40 yards before falling, despite the bullet losing all its petals – farther than a heart-shot whitetail buck I killed in Montana four months later with the same rifle and load.

Hollowpoint monolithics Occasionally fail to expand, or expand completely. We have seen this happen a few times, and so have

CCI Copper-22 .22 Long Rifle ammunition worked well on ground squirrels when shot from an Anschutz Model 54, expanding well and penetrating more than sufficiently, even on angling shots.

.22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, Ruger American, 22-inch barrel, 1:14 twist 30 CCI TNT Green 2,047 .55* * 50 yards

good friends, but so far all such failures have occurred with bullets from 6mm to .30 caliber – not with .22-caliber monolithics, or any bullets over .30. Our theory is the recoil of 6mm to .30-caliber cartridges is enough to batter the small hollowpoints at least partially closed on the front wall of the typical bolt-action magazine box, but the recoil of typical .224 centerfires is too mild to result in tip damage. The hollowpoints on medium-bore bullets tend to be much larger, and hence more difficult to batter closed.

This is admittedly only a theory, but monolithic bullets with pointy plastic tips almost never fail to expand. In fact, I’ve only heard of one instance, from a Montana friend on an elk he had to shoot twice.

The first bullet was recovered with the plastic tip bent at an angle but otherwise intact, while the few unexpanded hollowpoints recovered did have the holes battered at least partly closed. Whether this was due to magazine boxes or ribs is another question.

One other potential problem with monolithics is ballistic coefficient. Because they are made of relatively light copper metal, they are longer for their weight than lead-core bullets, and contrary to what many hunters believe, bullet length is the major factor in bullet Rifle 300

NONTOXIC HUNTING BULLETS

Cutting Edge bullets are nontoxic, and like most monolithic bullets they penetrate deeper than lead-core bullets of the same caliber and weight. These .22-250 handloads with 40-grain Raptors at over 4,300 fps worked equally well on jackrabbits and antelope.

stabilization, not weight. As a result, it is more difficult to stabilize long monolithics with really high ballistic coefficients.

However, that is changing as rifling twists in factory rifles continue to tighten, and at “conventional” hunting ranges a lighter, faster monolithic results in a flatter trajectory still desired by most hunters. Over the past decade or so, adding plastic tips to monolithic bullets helped increase ballistic coefficient along with expansion.

Obtaining sufficient expansion with nontoxic rimfire and varmint

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Hornady 15.5-grain NTX bullets work just as well as the company’s lead-core V-MAXs in .17 HMR and .17 Hornet ammunition.

bullets is not as difficult. Monolithics do not expand as easily as lead-core bullets, so most manufacturers make bullets for smaller game out of some sort of copper mix surrounded by a thin jacket.

CCI offers both .22 Long Rifle and .22 Magnum Rimfire ammunition with nontoxic, hollowpoint bullets made of a combination of copper powder and polymer, and both have been tried on ground squirrels during the past two summers.

The .22 Long Rifle Copper-22 load features a 21-grain bullet at an advertised 1,850 fps, and from Eileen’s Anschutz Model 54 it ex-

panded very similarly to lead hollowpoint ammunition. I used the TNT Green .22 Magnum load in my Ruger American rifle; a 30-grain hollowpoint at 2,050 fps. It was plenty accurate and in the Ruger shot to exactly the same place as lead-core ammunition, but on ground squirrels the bullets did not expand much. In fact, the first several “gophers” shot made it back into their holes. Finally one dropped in the open, showing a wound channel only slightly larger than .22 caliber. However, the bullets expanded well on rabbits so are probably designed more for larger game, which makes sense in the .22 Winchester Magnum.

I also field tested a bunch of Hornady NTX .17 HMR ammunition on both ground squirrels and prairie dogs. Hornady’s website states the NTX bullets feature a “frangible copper alloy” core, and the company is not kidding. Point of impact, accuracy and violent expansion were indistinguishable from Hornady’s excellent 17-grain V-MAX ammunition.

The advertised muzzle velocity is 2,525 fps, but they chronographed around 100 fps faster from my CZ 452.

Hornady also offers a 15.5-grain NTX Superformance load for the .17 Hornet at an advertised muzzle velocity of 3,870 fps. In my CZ 527 the velocity was spot-on, with occasional rounds breaking 3,900! As Rifle 300

Select Nontoxic Centerfire Handloads

Table II

bullet (grains)

powder

charge (grains)

primer

case

.17 Hornet, CZ 527, 22-inch barrel, 1:9 twist 15.5 Hornady NTX Superformance* 18 Lehigh Controlled Chaos CFE BLK 12.8 Rem. 7½ Hornady .204 Ruger, Remington 700, 1:12 twist 24 Hornady NTX TAC 31.0 CCI 450 Remington 26 Barnes Varmint Grenade X-Terminator 29.0 CCI 450 Remington 32 Nosler Lead-Free Ballistic Tip TAC 29.0 CCI 450 Remington .22 Hornet, Ruger No. 1B, 26-inch barrel, 1:14 twist 30 Barnes Varmint Grenade H-110 13.0 CCI BR-4 Winchester .223 Remington, Remington 788, 24-inch E.R. Shaw barrel, 1:9 twist 50 Barnes Varmint Grenade Benchmark 26.0 CCI BR-4 Nosler 50 Nosler Lead-Free Ballistic Tip TAC 26.0 CCI BR-4 Nosler .223 Remington/5.56 NATO, Nosler Varmageddon AR, 18-inch barrel, 1:8 twist 50 Nosler Lead-Free Ballistic Tip TAC 26.0 CCI BR-4 Nosler 50 Speer TNT Green CFE 223 28.5 CCI BR-4 Nosler .22-250 Remington, Savage Axis, 22-inch barrel, 1:12 twist 40 Cutting Edge Raptor CFE 223 43.0 Rem. 9½ Winchester 53 Barnes TSX CFE 223 39.0 Rem. 9½ Winchester .22-250 Remington, Ruger American rifle, 22-inch barrel, 1:8 twist 70 Hornady GMX SUPERFORMANCE 40.0 CCI 200 Winchester 6mm Remington, T/C Encore, 24-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 85 Barnes TSX RL-19 49.0 WLR Remington 90 Nosler E-Tip Hunter 47.0 WLR Remington .240 Weatherby Magnum, Weatherby Mark V ULW, 24-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 85 Barnes TSX H-4831sc 54.0 F210M Weatherby 90 Nosler E-Tip Magnum 58.0 F215 Weatherby .257 Roberts, New Ultra Light Arms, 24-inch Douglas barrel, 1:10 twist 100 Barnes TTSX Hunter 47.0 CCI 200 Winchester .25-06 Remington, Ruger No. 1AH, 24-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 100 Barnes TTSX H-4350 52.0 CCI 200 Remington .25-06 Remington, Custom Mauser 98, 26-inch Ackley barrel, 1:10 twist 100 Barnes TTSX H-4350 52.0 CCI 200 Remington .257 Weatherby Magnum, New Ultra Light Arms, 24-inch Douglas barrel, 1:10 twist 100 Nosler E-Tip H-1000 76.0 CCI 250 Weatherby 6.5 Creedmoor, Ruger American Predator, 22-inch barrel, 1:8 twist 127 Barnes LRX VOR-TX* 6.5x55, Custom FN Mauser, 21-inch Lilja barrel, 1:8 twist 120 Barnes TSX RL-19 47.0 WLR Lapua 120 Cutting Edge MTH N-204 45.0 WLR Lapua .270 Winchester, Ultra Light Arms, 22-inch Douglas barrel, 1:10 twist 140 Barnes TSX Hunter 56.0 F215M Winchester .270 Winchester, Ruger No. 1B, 26-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 95 Barnes TTSX Hunter 59.0 WLR Winchester .270 Weatherby Magnum, Weatherby Mark V, 26-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 130 Nosler E-Tip Magnum 80.0 F215 Weatherby .280 Remington, Sako A-7, 24.4-inch barrel, 1:9.5 twist 120 Barnes TTSX SUPERFORMANCE 60.0 WLR Remington .280 Remington Ackley Improved, Hill Country Genesis, 24-inch barrel, 1:9 twist 140 Barnes TSX Hunter 61.0 WLR Nosler 150 NoslerCustom E-Tip* .308 Winchester, Kilimanjaro Artemis, 21-inch Lilja barrel, 1:10 twist 130 Barnes TTSX IMR-4895 51.0 CCI 200 Winchester 150 Nosler E-Tip Varget 46.0 CCI 200 Winchester .30-06 Springfield, Ultra Light Arms, 24-inch Douglas barrel, 1:10 twist 130 Barnes TSX Varget 56.5 CCI 200 Winchester 150 Cutting Edge Raptor Big Game 56.0 WLR Winchester 165 Cutting Edge MTH H-4350 58.0 WLR Winchester 180 Nosler E-Tip Hunter 57.0 F215 Winchester .300 Winchester Magnum, Sisk Custom Ruger 77, 25-inch Hart barrel, 1:10 twist 168 Barnes TSX RL-19 72.0 F215 Winchester .300 Weatherby Magnum, Vanguard MOA, 24-inch barrel, 1:10 twist 168 Barnes TTSX Magnum 91.0 F215 Weatherby 180 Nosler E-Tip Magnum 87.0 F215 Weatherby .338 Winchester Magnum, Custom FN Mauser, 22-inch Sako barrel, 1:10 twist 210 Barnes TTSX Hunter 73.0 F215 Winchester

overall loaded length (inches)

velocity (fps)

3-shot 100-yard group (inches)

n/a 1.754

3,853 3,719

.61 .85

2.244 2.246 2.249

4,409 4,210 3,971

.49 .51 .59

1.810

3,324

.57

2.252 2.232

3,439 3,364

.86 .54

2.232 2.235

3,220 3,266

.52 1.10

2.457 2.454

4,337 3,801

.75 .69

2.416

3,410

.78

n/a n/a

3,342 3,226

.92 1.31

n/a n/a

3,428 3,376

1.31 .80

2.957

3,153

.67

n/a

3,312

.98

n/a

3,389

.72

3.327

3,565

.67

2.759

2,710

.62

3.011 3.024

2,950 2,943

.85 1.15

3.244

3,010

.48

3.142

3,467

.87

n/a

3,421

.83

n/a

3,393

.69

3.238 n/a

3,195 2,859

.78 1.03

2.800 2.817

3,118 2,825

.68 .54

n/a 3.331 n/a 3.326

3,303 2,949 2,903 2,799

.92 .58 .53 .45

3.320

3,036

.61

n/a n/a

3,269 3,154

.70 .98

3.316

2,895

.90

* factory load For more data on these cartridges please visit LoadData.com.

Be Alert – Publisher cannot accept responsibility for errors in published load data. Listed loads are only valid in the test firearms used. Reduce initial powder charge by 10 percent and work up while watching for pressure signs.

BLUES BROTHERS Firearms Metal Finishing Specialists • • • •

Blueing: Matte, Satin and Polished Carbon & Stainless Steel Hot Bath Cerakote Coating Complete Custom Gunsmithing

NONTOXIC HUNTING BULLETS In any caliber from .20 up, several companies make nontoxic varmint bullets that expand well due to coppermix cores.

Call for information.

Jess: 928-308-7732 Dave: 541-220-1632

JON TRAMMEL’S GUNSMITHING 34 Years Experience

Old World Craftsmanship 21st Century Technology

Action Blueprinting ± .0003 • Factory Rifle Accurizing Fluid Flushed Precision Chambering • Pillar BeddingTrigger Jobs • Muzzle Brakes • Carbon Fiber Barrels Custom Rifles Built • Tactical • Bench Rest • Hunting Suppressor Sales & Installation 6.5x47 Lapua • 6.5x55 GWI • 7RSAUM 28 Nosler • 6mm & 6.5 Creedmoor • 284 Shehane 22 Creedmoor • 280 Ackley 30 BR • 6mm Dasher Jon Trammel • 120 W. Walker • Breckenridge, TX 76424 Tel: (254) 559-3455 • E-Mail: trammel@texasisp.com

The least expensive nontoxic .17-caliber component bullet John could locate was the Lehigh 18-grain Controlled Chaos monolithic hollowpoint. It expands on ground squirrels but should work very well on larger varmints, including coyotes.

with the .17 HMR load, I did not find any noticeable target or field difference between the NTX ammunition and 17-grain V-MAX factory loads.

Unfortunately, Hornady only

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58

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offers the 15.5-grain NTX bullet in factory ammunition and not as a handloading component. I asked if that might change and was told, “maybe” – but Hornady is busy with a bunch of products and projects, and it sounded like a light “maybe.”

While a few nontoxic .17-caliber component bullets are available, I tested only the least expensive, the Lehigh Defense 18-grain Controlled Chaos, because many varmint shooters like to keep ammunition costs down as much as possible. The Controlled Chaos is a monolithic hollowpoint designed so the nose section breaks up.

Lehigh’s website states it was due to “an animal control agency’s request for a no-lead .243 bullet . . .

Basically, the idea was to burst the bullet into numerous particles at a predetermined depth. The agency had tried copper-matrix frangible rounds and found the penetration depth and particle size were less than what was required.”

The 18-grain Lehigh bullets were handloaded for my .17 Hornet with the same charge of HodgRifle 300

don CFE BLK used with Hornady 20-grain V-MAX and Nosler Varmageddon Tipped bullets. Muzzle velocity was similar, over 3,700 fps, and accuracy was good. The Lehigh bullet expanded on ground squirrels, though not as violently as plastic-tip bullets, and they should work very well on larger varmints from jackrabbits to coyotes.

In calibers from .204 and larger, several companies offer nontoxic varmint bullets and all work very well – except, once again, they are lighter than the heaviest leadcore bullets so their ballistic coefficients remain somewhat lower.

On the other hand, the lighter bullets can be driven to far higher velocities, so they shoot very flat out beyond 300 yards.

Several varmint shooters I know have had accuracy problems with Barnes’ 36-grain Varmint Grenade .224 bullets in rifles with slower rifling twists, especially .22 Hornets, because the 36-grain bullet does not always fully stabilize. The solution is either the 30-grain Varmint Grenade or Speer 30-grain TNT Green. Both can be zipped right along in the Hornet, but their relatively blunt profiles result in noticeably more wind drift than heavier plastic-tip lead-core designs.

In general, lead-free bullets cost more than lead-core bullets because lead is one of the cheapest, most easily formed metals available, but the difference varies.

CCI Copper-22 long rifle ammunition costs about twice as much as the popular CCI Mini-Mag hollowpoints, but CCI TNT Green .22 Magnum costs only a little more than standard .22 Magnum ammunition. Monolithic bullets cost about the same as most “premium” lead-core bullets and occasionally less, but most hunters do not shoot enough big game for the price to be a burden. Luckily, most lead-free varmint bullets are not much more expensive than conventional bullets.

If you must use – or prefer to choose – lead-free bullets for hunting, there is a practical alternative R for just about any purpose.

September-October 2018

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59

Shaw Rifles' Range Testing a New .308 Winchester John Haviland

E

.R. Shaw has been making rifle barrels for a century. Over the years the company expanded into supplying barrels for many firearm manufacturing companies, and in recent years, building boltaction and autoloading rifles. The company recently shortened its name to Shaw to consolidate its Shaw Barrels, Shaw Rifles and Shaw O. E. M. under one name.

Shaw started manufacturing its AR-type ERS-15 rifles about two years ago. The rifle was well received by shooters, which encouraged Shaw in the last year to start making its ERS-10 rifle to handle the larger 6.5 Creedmoor and .308 Winchester cartridges.

The ERS-10 has a base price of $995. Few other

The Shaw ERS-10 is a heavy rifle weighing more than 11 pounds with a Trijicon 1-8x 28mm AccuPower scope.

brands of AR-10 rifles sell for that low price. “No other rifle beats the performance of our rifle for the price,� said Carl Behling Jr., president of Shaw. Behling attributes that performance to the button-rifled barrels on the rifles. A look with the aid of a Lyman Digital Borescope into the bore of the ERS-10 .308 Winchester I have been shooting showed the rifling lands 60

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Rifle 300

ERS 10 -

The ERS-10 features a Magpul ACS-L buttstock. The lever for releasing the stock from the extension tube is shielded in the center of the stock.

were fairly well covered with copper fouling after shooting about 150 rounds. But I looked past that and saw a symmetrical cut of the leade from the chamber to the rifling lands. The metal grain flowed parallel with the bore with precise edges of the lands to the grooves. An overnight soak with Gunslick Foaming Bore Cleaner dissolved the fouling.

Shaw rifle customers who like the Mk. X and Mk. VII bolt actions and ERS-15s can select accessories for their rifles through the Gun Builders page on Shaw’s website (shawcustombarrels.com). For now, options are more limited for the ERS-10 rifle. Over the phone, customers can select a 16.5- to 24-inch barrel made of 416R stainless steel with no flutes, straight flutes or Shaw’s patented Helical flutes. Several colors of CERAKOTE ceramic metal coating are also available.

The rifle is currently chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor and .308 Winchester. Behling said the Creedmoor is very popular and the most requested cartridge at Shaw’s custom shop. “The 6.5 is a good cartridge,” he said, “but I’m kind of tired of hearing about it.” Shaw has several other cartridges planned for the ERS-10.

The ERS-10 is a heavy rifle, just like all AR-10-type rifles. The rifle weighed nine pounds, 12 ounces.

Weight increased to 11 pounds, 11 ounces with a Trijicon 1-8x 28mm AccuPower scope mounted in Trijicon aluminum rings.

The rifle’s upper and lower are machined from 7075-T6 aluminum forgings coated with a matte black anodized finish resistant to corrosion and wear. One feature I immediately noticed was that the case deflector houses the forward bolt assist button. The mouth of the magazine well is flared to help line up and insert a supplied Magpul PMAG 25 magazine. A safety switch extends out both sides of the lower.

September-October 2018

The rifle’s bolt and bolt carrier are machined from 9310 alloy steel and are nickel-boron coated. Fouling easily wipes off the coated metal.

A free-floating handguard attaches to the upper by a barrel nut and clamps in place by tightening two screws.

Shaw Rifles is based in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania, where the company is now branching out.

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61

Shaw

scoPing the shaw ers-10

The test rifle shot well with Federal Premium Sierra 168-grain MatchKing .308 Winchester loads.

The ERS-10 shot this tight group with Federal Premium ammunition containing 175-grain Edge TLR bullets.

A Picatinny rail on top of the upper has 18 T-marked slots for a wide range of positions to clamp on a scope or other sights. The rail extends forward to the end of the handguard. The aluminum handguard has a hard-anodized finish, and its length of 155⁄8 inches covers the gas tube and low profile block of the rifle-length gas system. The handguard is slotted nearly its en-

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tire length on the sides and bottom. The two supplied accessory rails can be positioned anywhere along the slots and locked down.

The free-floating handguard attaches to the upper by a barrel nut and clamps in place with two screws. The handguard has sharp edges, especially on the inside, and they scratched the barrel when I removed the handguard.

The bolt and bolt carrier are machined from 9310 alloy steel and are nickel-boron coated. The coating is smooth and slippery to resist wear. Most of the powder fouling on the bolt carrier wiped off with a dry rag. The carrier key is a separate piece and locks into place on the bolt carrier with two screws.

The stainless steel barrel has a No. 3, or light varmint, contour.

The muzzle brake is an accessory. Matt Challis, Shaw’s factory manager, designed the brake with some input from Behling. The brake has a solid bottom to keep muzzle blast from creating dirt clouds, and four vent holes on the top reduce muzzle flip. Two vented slots on each side have a forward slant. The brake can be unscrewed and the barrel left plain, or a suppressor can be threaded on in the brake’s place.

The buttstock is a Magpul Adaptable Carbine Stock-Light (ACS-L).

It has a storage compartment with a locking lid at the left rear for batteries and small items. The wide comb has a slight forward pitch to slide the comb away from the cheek during recoil. The lever for releasing the stock from the extension tube is shielded in the center of the stock. A forceful push

A Trijicon 1-8x 28mm AccuPower (trijicon.com) was a perfect choice for the ERS-10. The AccuPower weighed a solid 25 ounces and fit neatly on the rifle with a length of 10.8 inches. With the scope’s magnification turned all the way down I could place my eye at nearly the back of the rifle’s buttstock and still see a full field of view. With the power turned all the way up, eye relief was about 4 inches, and I could move my eye back and forth from there about 1.5 inches and still see a full field of view.

The AccuPower has a batterypowered reticle that illuminates a segmented circle and bold center crosshair aiming point covering about an inch at 100 yards. The adjustment dial has 11 brightness settings with an “off” position between each setting.

Hash marks on the horizontal and vertical wires are divided into milliradian segments. Wider bars are spaced one MIL apart, with smaller ticks between them representing .5 MIL. Every fifth MIL is marked with a wider bar with the lower vertical wire numbered from 5 to 25. That makes it easy to quickly count the number of MILs for appropriate holdover.

The reticle is in the scope’s first focal plane, so spacing remains constant at all powers.

Elevation and windage turrets have 29.6 MILs of total adjustment. Once the scope is sighted in, the turret caps can be unscrewed, the dial housing lifted off and repositioned to align zero with the witness mark on the scope, and you are shooting.

A Trijicon 1-8x 28mm AccuPower scope was a perfect fit for the ERS-10.

Rifle 300

Shaw ERS-10 Accuracy Results stated velocity (fps)

load (grains)

A safety switch is located on both sides of the lower.

is required to unlock and lock the lever. The lever locks in six positions along the tube to adjust length of pull from 11.6 to 14.9 inches. A thin, hard rubber pad caps the butt.

The rifle’s trigger pull was off the scale of my trigger pull gauge.

I guess it was about six pounds, and with some creep. That’s about standard for an AR.

September-October 2018

actual velocity (fps)

3-shot 100-yard group (inches)

130 Federal American Eagle Varmint & Predator JHP

3,050

3,085

1.02

150 Federal Fusion

2,820

2,689

1.90

150 SIG SAUER Elite Performance HT

2,900

2,810

.75

168 Federal Premium Sierra MatchKing BTHP

2,650

2,603

.53

170 Norma Professional Hunter Tipstrike

2,625

2,533

1.54

175 Federal Premium Edge TLR

2,600

2,599

.79

175 Nosler Match Grade RDF

2,650

2,470

1.20

185 Federal Premium Berger Juggernaut OTM

2,600

2,539

1.79

Notes: A Shaw ERS-10 .308 Winchester with a 20-inch barrel and a Trijicon 1-8x 28mm AccuPower scope was used to test all loads. Velocities were recorded 10 feet in front of the muzzle. Groups are the average of two, 3-shot groups. Temperatures varied between 40 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

For more data on this cartridge please visit LoadData.com.

The 25-round magazine extends about 5 inches below the bottom of the magazine well. The rifle had to be positioned high on a rest for the magazine to clear the bench.

The wide comb of the Magpul ACS-L stock provided a tight fit of my cheek to the rifle and dampened the wobbles of the rifle on its high perch.

The rifle provided several tight

groups at 100 yards. For instance, Federal Premium .308 Winchester cartridges loaded with Sierra 168-grain MatchKing bullets averaged .53 inch for two, threeshot groups. SIG SAUER Elite Performance 150-grain HT loads averaged .75 inch, and Federal Premium 175-grain Edge TLR loads grouped .79 inch.

Behling said the rifle does not

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carry an accuracy guarantee.

“There are just too many variables,” he said. “Often it’s the person behind the gun.”

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with 40.5 grains of Accurate 2015 powder at targets at 200 yards.

Several groups averaged about 3.5 inches at that distance.

The practice loads fired Berger bullets only about 2,650 fps.

To compensate for bullet drop, I aimed 1.5 milliradians (MIL) above the center of steel plates at 300 yards with the Trijicon scope’s reticle. Recoil was so light, I had the scope back on target when the bullets hit the plates and saw the bullets splatter against them.

Strangely, the rifle ejected fired cases from some loads to the side and forward, and ejected cases from others loads straight to the side and some to the side and back.

The report from the rifle’s 20inch barrel was comparatively pleasant. The rifle was plenty loud with its muzzle brake, even when wearing earplugs and muffs, but nothing compared to an AR .308 with a 16-inch barrel that produced muzzle blast like a pile driver pounding in a steel girder.

The 20-inch barrel also produced quite a bit more velocity than a .308 with a 16-inch barrel. For example, Federal American Eagle Varmint & Predator 130-grain JHP loads gained 160 fps when shot through the 20-inch barrel compared to the same load fired through an AR-10 with a 16-inch barrel. Federal Premium Sierra 168-grain MatchKing ammunition gained 111 fps, and Federal Premium Berger 185-grain Juggernaut OTM loads gained 139 fps. The 20-inch barrel also fired bullets close to advertised velocities. For instance, Sierra 168-grain MatchKing bullets registered only 47 fps short of Federal’s stated velocity, and Federal Premium 175-grain Edge TLR ammunition chronographed 1 fps slower than Federal’s stated velocities.

On the balance, the ERS-10 receives high grades, especially for a retail price of $995 for a basic rifle.

Additionally, the ERS-10 carries the same limited lifetime warranty that covers all Shaw rifles. All together I fired about 200 rounds through the test sample. It cycled each cartridge without a hitch. R Rifle 300

Coating the bolt body with J-B Cleaning Compound before inserting it into a stripped receiver will help smooth the bolt raceway.

Light Gunsmithing (Continued from page 26)

who knows what he is doing, which will prevent annealing in the first place.

There is yet another possible problem before the bolt handle is fully raised, and it seems to occur more often in newly made sporting actions than military actions. This is dragging of the mainspring on the inside of the bolt body because a coil spring will not compress in a straight line without support.

Such support usually comes from a spring “strut,” a solid piece of steel very near the inside diameter of the spring. When pressure is put on the spring, the strut moves through a hole somewhere, allowing the spring to continue to compress. In a bolt-action rifle the firing pin acts as a mainspring strut.

Of course, the firing pin will not be exactly the diameter of the inside of the coil spring, and mainsprings are rather heavily compressed, even in the “fired” position. A bulging of the spring away from the firing pin will occur at uniform points along its length.

If the hole in the bolt body is not large enough to accommodate these bulges, they will rub against the bolt. If the hole is not mirror smooth, harder than necessary bolt lift will occur and the firing pin will be restricted when released.

Why wasn’t the hole simply made a few thousandths of an inch wider and the whole thing prevented? Good question. There is nothing we can do here, but if the sides of the hole are rough we September-October 2018

The scratches on this .270 Winchester case were caused by sharp edges when the case was forcefully pulled rearward. Using small files to remove sharp edges is helpful, but it will not eliminate the condition.

Shown is the galled cocking surface of an old military bolt annealed during alteration for low scope mounting.

can fix that. It’s not possible to see the roughness without a borescope, but it can be felt by pushing in the firing pin assembly and feeling the resistance. A length of 600grit abrasive cloth wrapped around a wood dowel until it is tight in the bolt hole (be sure to begin polishing forward of the threads for the bolt sleeve) and turned by a variable speed electric drill will quickly smooth things up. Remove polishing residue, then lube lightly.

With the bolt handle fully raised it would appear that all possible work has been done, but there is still one major fault to deal with. It involves bolt actions with plunger ejectors. Yes, I know they sometimes stick in their little holes and fail to come out. This is not good, yet the concern here is when they are working perfectly – or at least as they are designed to work.

Powered by an extremely strong spring, the plunger ejector drives a loaded round (and then the fired case) against the right-hand side of the chamber. As the extractor pulls the case out of the chamber, it is driven against the right re-

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ceiver wall and into the right bolt lug raceway because the case is being ejected low to avoid striking the scope. Any burrs or sharp edges left from machining the bolt lug recess or end of the lug raceway will now scrape against the case as it moves rearward. It seems that if the case is similar in length and forward diameter to the .270 Winchester, it can experience great resistance to rearward movement and even wedge in the lug raceway, stopping bolt travel completely.

While it is tempting to say this condition is rare, a little time spent on a public rifle range watching shooters ejecting fired rounds from rifles with a plunger ejector will show that is hardly the case!

How can anyone expect to get more than one shot at a game animal if it’s necessary to remove the rifle from the shoulder and fight to get the fired case out? It is necessary to use small files to get into the lug raceway, slowly removing the sharp edges then chambering and ejecting fired cases to check R progress.

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65

h-s Precision tom houghton triBute rifle CUSTOM CORNER by Stan Trzoniec

W

hen I heard H-S Precision was making a special rifle dedicated to a friend, the late Tom Houghton, I immediately got in touch with his son Tim to get more details on this custom rifle. When the rifle arrived I was impressed.

Speaking to Tim on the phone and later at the Shot Show, he explained how his dad was an inspiration to him, so he wanted to memorialize Tom in some very special way. The result is a limited edition rifle run of 50. Additionally, it can be ordered in any commercial cartridge rather than only one, as many special edition rifles were offered in the past.

Tom was a true patriot, so the stock is an H-S Precision Pro-Series decked out in a red, white and blue color scheme. Made with fiberglass reinforced with Kevlar and carbon fiber, it features a full-length, aluminum bedding block. Made in the same design included on Tom Houghton’s original rifle, it has an Rifle 300

elevated checkpiece and is available in a right-hand action only, complete with a detachable box magazine. The stock includes a pistol grip designed on a sharper angle for benchrest or prone shooting; the beavertail forend is equipped with dual sling swivel studs. A soft recoil pad is installed.

With an upgraded design introduced in 2017, the highly polished, barreled action consists of a new Pro-Series receiver with a wide tactical bolt handle for more control and a minimal ejection port for flawless operation. The 24-inch barrel is fluted and profiled in the company’s African contour with a muzzle diameter of .750 inch and is 10x cut-rifled.

Symbolizing this special rifle, “Limited Edition 1 of 50” is engraved on the barrel with the special serial number of TOMSR engraved on the left side of the receiver. For more information, contact H-S Precision R at hsprecision.com.

September-October 2018

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Walnut Hill (Continued from page 70)

In the 1960s it manufactured the Weatherby Mark V for that California company, and those were the smoothest Mark Vs anyone ever saw. Recent Sauer models have been of the company’s own design, progressing through some similar number designations. The Model 202 was a switch-barrel takedown while the 101, which came out later, was an attempt to crack the “entry level plus” market with a quality bolt action. The Sauer 303 is not part of that evolutionary string; it’s a semiautomatic aimed primarily at the European running-boar crowd.

The conglomerate of which Sauer is now a part is managed in a very interesting manner, much like three individual athletes on a school team who compete with other schools as a unit, but also with one another in individual events. Sauer has its own factory at Isny, as do Mauser and Blaser.

They share some facilities for

8

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things such as barrel making but otherwise follow their own distinct paths. Blaser specializes in straight-pull rifles (the superb R8), Mauser makes the legendary Model 98, among others, and Sauer pursues modern-design turnbolts.

From the beginning, a continuing area of concern for bolt actions has been how to have a round in the chamber with the striker cocked, held back by a safety that blocks the striker yet still allows the bolt to be worked to eject a loaded round. Mauser and Winchester solved the problem with three-position safeties; others used two-position safeties, and there have been various permutations thereof.

A few decades ago it occurred to someone in Europe that the answer was to keep the striker uncocked, and then instead of moving a safety catch to allow it to fire, a lever is pushed that cocks it when needed. This lever, or slide, is positioned on the tang where a safety catch would normally be found. I first encountered the system in 1996 on the then-new Krieghoff double rifle. Something very similar is employed on the Blaser R8. Since then it has become quite a common feature.

The Sauer 202, which is no longer manufactured, featured a conventional “cocked-striker, manual-safety” mechanism. Although beautifully made and undoubtedly ingenious, the 202 was heavy and somewhat awkward to handle, so Sauer set about designing a replacement.

The 404, according to Sauer, is the finest rifle the company has ever produced. I do not feel qualified to make such a judgment, but I’m not about to argue. I certainly agree the 404 is an extraordinary rifle.

The .270 Winchester I have for testing, fitted with a Schmidt & Bender 2.5-10x 40mm scope, weighs eight pounds exactly, unloaded and without a sling. Its hammer-forged, 22-inch barrel is almost boringly accurate, consistently keeping 10 shots of almost any good load inside 1.5 inches.

Rifle 300

The turn-bolt mechanism works in the conventional way for feeding, extraction and ejection, and has all the legendary Sauer smoothness. The cocking lever is on the tang where a shotgun safety would normally be found.

When you want to shoot the rifle, push it forward to cock it. When you fire and work the bolt, it’s already cocked for the second shot.

To uncock the striker, press down a small button in the lever and it pops down. When the striker is uncocked, the bolt is locked shut. To cycle the bolt without cocking the striker, push the cocking lever forward about halfway to unlock it.

The detachable box magazine is made of sheet steel and holds three rounds. The cartridges are held in line for quiet, dependable feeding.

In appearance, the 404 is rather other-worldly. Mine has an ultramodern thumbhole stock of reptilian black carbon fiber. I used a 404 just like it when hunting in Germany a year ago and found the stock to be not only slick, but it acted like a heat sink in the cold, sucking the warmth out of my hands. This is something to keep in mind if you’re a cold-weather hunter, but there are other options in stocks that I would choose if a 404 was to be my all-weather hunting rifle. Still, with that carbon fiber stock, the Sauer 404 is the most photogenic rifle I’ve ever seen.

Sauer has gone to great lengths to design a stock that is ergonomically sound regardless of shooting position, and it shoots equally well off a bench or from sitting, prone or offhand. The comb is adjustable for height to accommodate the use of any scope.

There are a dozen different models of the 404 (the sample on hand is a Synchro XTC), offering a wide variety of cartridges and features. All have readily adjustable triggers – even the position of the trigger blade is adjustable to suit the shooter. A takedown tool is integrated into the front sling swivel, so in a pinch you are never searching for the right gadget.

The entire 404 line has too September-October 2018

many features and accessories available to even begin to list them here, and that’s not my purpose anyway. When I was told about the 404, and Sauer’s insistence that it was the best rifle they had ever made, I was anxious to see one.

It’s safe to say that, based on historical background if nothing else, no company in the world knows

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more about rifles than J.P. Sauer & Sohn. The cumulative experience of 267 years counts for a great deal, and it appears to me they’ve put all of that to work – along with the advantages of modern materials and CNC equipment – to fashion a rifle that will be extremely hard to beat, even if they stay in business for another 267 years. R

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sauer 404 WALNUT HILL by Terry Wieland

T

he year 1751 was a long time ago; two hundred and sixty-seven years, as this is written – longer than the U.S. has been in existence. In 1751, Frederick the Great ruled Prussia and Voltaire was the cutting voice of European society.

In modern industrial terms, 1751 was prehistory. James Watt, who later invented the steam engine, was only a teenager, and the Industrial Revolution would not even begin for another 30 years. Manufacturing of all items was cottage industry, carried on by craftsmen who learned their trades through apprenticeship.

Different trades were concentrated in towns of like-minded artisans whose activities were governed by guilds. The objects they produced were made one at a time, at a bench, with hand tools, by one or two skilled men.

In 1751, Lorenz Sauer set up shop in the German gunmaking town of Suhl, in the province of Thüringia, founding what later evolved into J.P. Sauer & Sohn.

Still in business today, it is, after Beretta, the second-oldest gunmaker in the world. Needless to say, through 267 years, countless wars, insurrections, invasions,

This J.P. Sauer & Sohn’s Model 404 Synchro XTC .270 Winchester is fitted with a Schmidt & Bender 2.5-10x 40mm Summit scope in a proprietary detachable scope mount.

partitions, unifications, occupations, economic depressions and political systems ranging from absolute monarchy to communism and back again, surviving in business – particularly the firearms business – required considerable agility.

If one word could describe the way in which J.P. Sauer & Sohn accomplished this, it would be “adaptability,” and not merely to political change. Sauer, more than any other gunmaker except Beretta, continually embraced not

only new firearms technology, but also the technology for manufacturing them. And, all the time, it managed to maintain a high reputation: The name Sauer was, and is, a synonym for high quality.

Today J.P. Sauer is part of a conglomerate that includes Blaser and Mauser, as well as a burgeoning list of other product manufacturers. While the original J.P. Sauer was famous for its shotguns and was also involved in pistol making, its line today is almost exclusively rifles of its own design manufactured in its own facility separate from Mauser and Blaser.

The term “cutting edge” is vastly overused when writing about technological developments, but in the case of J.P. Sauer and especially its newest rifle, I think it is justified.

The Sauer 404, unveiled within the last year or so, may well be, in some ways, the ultimate big-game hunting rifle.

While Sauer has built every kind of rifle and shotgun, in recent years it has concentrated more and more on turn-bolt rifles.

This is not a new field for Sauer.

(Continued on page 68)

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Rifle 300