Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats Saturn rifle/300icl magnum

Picked up a somewhat unusual one again. FN Mauser built by Saturn guns in Nevada.Chambered for 300 ICL magnum. Read a little how to form brass from 300 H&H, any loads you know about appreciated. Was thinking using 300WBY data, working up from bottom and checking for pressure?

There is data in Ackley's Handbook for the ICL line.

Nice rifle

dang, that's nice,....'cept for that appurtenance on the muzzle end.....

Ackley's book shows two 300 ICL magnums.

The Saturn version is not described in detail but it looks like an Improved 300 H&H with a 45 degree shoulder.

Fire formed a few yesterday from 300 H&H.
L-R is standard 300 H&H, blown out 300 ICL ,and 300 Weatherby.
I'm not crazy about the brake either, it is also marked Saturn , and read that they work well.

Be careful with that stuff.

I second that statement, his loads are on the high side.

If you get tired of that Saturn, let me know, I would like to buy it!

Beautiful rifle, as many said.. Read of them when I was much younger.. Enjoy..

Junke brothers from AZ, right?

junke bros from Nevada I think. Maybe Reno?

Saturn Sports, Inc. Sparks, NV. According to my company literature.

AZ, NV...same same for a CAROLINA boy.

Nice rifle and a piece of history.

I can't tell for sure it could be just the photo but it looks like something is going on at the neck shoulder junction of the fire formed round. May go away with a full power load but it may be the start of the dreaded "doughnut". I would check with a caliper or at least a paper clip for any thickening in this area of the neck.

I wouldn't use any of the Ackley loads and would be careful with ICL loads as some of them had a crazy amount of free bore that varied from rifle to rifle. Weatherby data should be fine.

I traded this rifle to a friend of mine some time back, and he called me the other day and said he was going to sell it. He had hopes of having it rechambered to something else, but never got around to it.
What would be a fair price for this, minus scope.
Thanks,Ken

You have the dies to go with it? They aren't exactly found behind every tree.

A Lee collet die for a 300 Weatherby should work but the seater and FL sizer would be a custom proposition. Expensive unless you already had the reamers. With the venturi shoulder your on the "C+" list of special dies.

Probably less expensive to set the barrel back and go 300 Weatherby but then you've erased the history and nostalgia of the rifle.

Will have to ask him tonight about dies, but I think not. Seems like we priced them at the time, was about 150.00 I think from RCBS?
What about chamber to 300 ultra mag?

Funny thing about this rifle, is he has owned it twice. He originally purchased it from Cabela's in Reno, then traded to me, then traded back to him, yada yada! Its getting handled alot, but not shot!

I have the Ackley version of this. If you just buy a set of 300 weatherby dies. With your fireformed brass just use the weatherby sizing die, set to not touch the shoulder. It will give you usable bass. Or you can just use Weatherby brass. Here are a couple of the loads I have tried in mine. 165gr Ballistic tip, Rem9 1/2M, 82gr IMR7828, 3320fps OAL 3.590" 180gr Accubond, rem 9 1/2M, 85gr H1000, 3179fps, OAL 3.550" These are near max loads in my rifle, using the weatherby die to resize neck, with minimum body contact. My barrel has a standard throat. Not the long weatherby freebore type. Also my barrel is a 1-12" 6 groove.

Thanks for the info!!

Midway had 300ICL brass in the clearance a few days ago. might still be there.