Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Model 70 Classic tune-up

I just bought my first Winchester at a steal of a price from a fellow board member - NIB Model 70 Classic Featherweight blue/wood in .30-06. She sure is pretty, but smooth as melted butter she ain't. Working the bolt is a little gritty, closing the bolt is a little tough, the safety is a little mushy, and the trigger sucks. It came with 1 piece alloy bottom metal and a Williams extractor factory installed.

Down the road, a McMillan Edge, Cerakote, and possibly a Williams steel 1 piece bottom metal are in the picture, but for now I just want to get it up and running. My goal is a 100% reliable hunting rifle that feeds slicker than snot, has a good trigger, and always works no matter what.

With that in mind, where to start? I'm thinking trigger job and re-time the safety. Also, a feeding tune up - polish the rails and feed ramp and possilby lap the lugs. Am I missing anything else that should be done?

Any gunsmith recomendations on a normal (not Echols and Miller, etc.) type budget? Whats a Model 70 tune-up usually run?

Thanks.

HCR has done me good.

http://www.hillcountryrifles.com/accurizeit.asp

Best to ya .. BP...

I've looked at their website a few times. Other than the accurizing service, it's hard to tell what they do. What specifically did you have them do for you?

Thanks.

I feel certain that you are looking for Mark Penrod........or, Bill Leeper is another that comes to mind.

Have it bedded in Devcon Steel under the recoil lug and around the motise back to the magazine well and leave the barrel completely free floating. Also bed the tang screw area. Lighten the trigger and glue the bases to the bridge and then finally lapp the scope rings and you will be set.

For a test load, try 62 grains of 760 behind the 150 grain Sierra Flat Base or Speer BT. If those loads don't shoot way way inder an inch, change the shooter, change the scope or junk the barrel in that order as I never saw a model 70 set up this way that did not shoot the heads of sparrows consistently.

AGW.

Thanks guys.

I'd love to have Mark Penrod tune it up, but I just kind of assumed with his reputation, he'd be way out of my league price wise. Maybe not? Does he take small jobs like a tune up and trigger job?

Aussie,

Do you have any good recipes for 180gr loads?

Mark Penrod is not out of anyone's league!!!!!!!!!! I can honestly state that the money I have spent with Mr Penrod is TRULY money well spent!!

I'll give Mr. Penrod a call next week and go from there.

Thanks.

Still,
Even though the loading manuals and other writings usually recomend a max of around 57 grains of H4350 with the 180 grainers, I never saw a rifle that would not shoot MOA or under with 60 grains with a velocity of around 2800fps in a 22 inch barrel.

I have also seen several take 61 grains but that is genuinely getting a bit up there.

I think the reason for this is that I have been using this powder since it was created. When it fist appeared as AR 2209 which it is called downunder, it was made with a burining rate slightly faster than IMR/Dupont 4350.

When Hodgdon contracted Mulwex (the Aussie Manufacturer) to supply a replacement for H 4350 (Later to be called or included in the Extreme range of powders) the burning rate was tweaked back to be a little slower than IMR 4350 thereby making all loads ever published safe with the newer powder version, or a little milder if you have some of the older stuff laying around.

This is my theory for the discrepancy.

If you loaded my 60 grain load with the older versions of this powder, it "may" be a warm or hot load. It it much easier in a litigious world to play safe and conservative as most hunters do not chronograph their loads anyway.

How do you know what you have?? Well with a chronograph, it is easy to start with 57 grains and work up. if you don't I have another answer for you.

The powders were visually different. Even though both were extruded powders, the older versions of this powder had shorter grains and had a definite yellowish light grey coloring to them. The newer versions are extruded longer and are darker grey in color without any of the yellowing color.

But, don't take my word for it, work up the fool proof old fashioned way. Load up with varying weights from 57 to 60 grains and see how you go.

AGW

JDS,

you said

I'm no winchester expert, but I would check out the stock and triggerguard screws. sometimes they are replaced incorrectly, or are the wrong length. You can actually screw one of the screws INTO the area that the bolt lugs occupy when closing the bolt. Which makes it hard to close the bolt!

Sycamore

The one I have broke in just fine with use. Put a little gun grease on the bearing sufaces and work it plenty. If you need more, try PM'ing JJHack. He's got some good tricks for slicking up the action.
I wouldn't go with the steel bottom metal. They tend to add alot of weight. Just make sure the middle action screw is only finger tight. I wouldn't do any rail/feeding work to it unless you have a problem. Once you open the rails you can't go back. Don't do it unless you must.
I'd just mount a good scope on it and use/shoot it alot. Get somebody that can properly stone the trigger surfaces with a template to rework the trigger. They have one of the most reliable trigger/safety combinations ever made by anyone. Mine is unbelievably consistant right at 2.25 lbs. No creep at all. Many need no stoning at all. Try adjusting it first.
Going to a good synthetic and Cerakote sounds great to me. Would make for a very hard to beat rifle. E

I sat on the couch and cycled the action 200 times on Saturday and things did seem to smooth up a bit. Another session or two like that and maybe it'll be good to go.

Contact on the lugs concerns me a little. After cycling the bolt 200 times it looks like 1 lug has near 100% contact and the other has near 0%.

The trigger and saftey definately need work. The trigger is horrendous. I doubt a simple adjusment will improve it, but we'll see. The biggest issue is the safety. Sometimes, though not everytime, when you flip the saftey to the forward position, the rifle won't fire. You have to hold the safety all the way forward with your thumb to get the trigger to release the firing pin.

The rifle in question...

JDS: I'm a penrod customer and he'll gladly tune it for you. he is extremely reasonable and a pleasure to work with. He's worked on a couple of 70s for me as well as my RSM 416 Rigby and they are fantastic. Yu'll not be dissapointed. jorge

phone number or e-mail for mark Penrod?

Mark Penrod
(260) 982-8385
Indiana

When I last spoke to him, an M70 trigger job was $70, plus another $85 to have the safety adjusted at the same time. This is the path I'd choose.

He has email, IIRC, but doesn't like to use it.

Jaywalker