Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats This old rifle... WWYD?

Some may remember my posts from about two years ago about getting my grandfathers old FN Mauser custom that he had built in 1952 b ut never used or took hunting. Was saving it for a big trip to Alaska that never materialized. Rifle came with Bausch and Lomb adjustable bases but no scope or rings, a too short stock with typically old and hard recoil pad BUT with nice wood and checkering as well as real Elephant Ivory white line spacers adjacent to real ebony grip cap and forend tip, Buhler up and down two position safety, and a barrel of unknown make in supposedly 30 Belted Newton. Found a nice cleen Balvar 2.5-8 scope with rings that fit the bases, had a model 70 style safety installed, Had a good recoil pad installed with a black spacer to make it fit me better, EVEN found some 30 Belted Newton dies and necked up some 7mm RemMag brass then started developing a load. This is where the frustration really began and continues. Turns out the barrel has a 1 in 12 twist and will not stabilize many of the bullets I would like to try but this is not the worst of it. When brass is fired there is a distinct bulge just forward of the belt on all fired cases and the brass stays that diameter out to the shoulder. On top of that, my last attempt to sight in the gun with the 130gr bullets it shoots sort of well show oblong holes in the paper at 100 yards. This barrel, of unknown make and clearly poor quality must go, but what to do next?

I want to keep the rifle as close to its original form as I can for sentimental reasons and because I already have some dinero invested in it (Gave my uncle a model 70 in 300WBY as a trade for the rifle to start with) but cannot think of what caliber to do up next. It will need to be something with the same case rim size as the H&H belted rounds, and likely will need to fit through a standard length action unless the cost to modify a 98 to H&H length cases is not as scary expensive as I am fearing. Already have these:

(Besides a large pile of 22CF varmint rifles)

257 WBY for deer and antelope sized animals - full on custom with a pre 64 model 70 as its base component

338/8mm RemMag wildcat that I call the 340 Tyrannosaur for Elk and bear type critters - also a full custom on a model 1917 Remmy action with all the upgrades

348AI on a model 71 Deluxe for my lever action affliction days

416 Rigby semi custom CZ model 550 for dangerous game, all possible upgrades, really.

Can't think of any true HOLES in the lineup, or anything I would build that I would use more than what I already have.

Could build another 257WBY for the day when my now toddler aged grandkids are of age to shoot big game, can easily make it act like a 250/3000 with AA5744 etc. and go up from there as needed

Most practical, filling a hole in the lineup sort of, is some kind of belted 30 and I could learn to love a 300 H&H if it was not TOO expensive to make this rifle work with the longish round and this would fit in with its era of build i.e. 1952 which is a good thing. Same - same with 375 H&H and I have seen lots of various 98 Mausers so chambered and in heavy use in Africa but again I am afraid of the metalwork cost to make a standard sized 98 work with the full length H&H rounds.

Thoughts and input hereby solicited.

MARK

270 Roy?

Jeff

Interesting idea, but kinda close to my 257WBY in niche and performance, methinks. Would be an easy build, though, in a not so common caliber.......

I dunno if it will do anything different than a .270 Wby, but I was thinking of a 7mm Wby., just so you could throw a little heavier bullets.

I would probably do something on a non belted case like the Dakota or semi short (medium length) Lazzeroni's if I did a 277 or a 284 bbl. BUT, the Roy rounds once again are a better fit for the era of the rifle so they would have an inside track for that reason.

KDK, that avatar of yours is one of my favorite albulms. Have it in 33rpm vinyl AND CD formats!

On another forum I read about a guy that was getting a 30-375R built. That would be pretty close to a real 30 Newton (no belt), only with reasonable and available brass and with a case head that would fit the bolt you have now. He was using a standard 375 Ruger FL die as a body die, and 338 RCM and 300 RCM FL dies as form dies. The goal was 200 gr bullets at 3000 fps. Very high Cool Factor, too. And it would fit in an unmodified Mauser action. Here is a linkee to the thread:

http://www.opticstalk.com/30-375-ruger_topic21989.html

If I didn't already have a 300 Win and a 300 Roy I think I'd build one. It sounds tailor made for your project. I really don't know why Ruger went with the 30 RCM.

Now THAT is a great idea! THANKS

308 Norma Mag? Would be pretty close to your dad's original intent, and would be easily manageable in the mauser action.

With an arsenal like that I don't anticipate you're going to come up with holes...

That 30-375 Ruger idea is great... very practical wildcat I'd say... in spite of the fact that so many believe that to be an oxymoron...

another vote for .308 Norma Mag. I think that cartridge fits perfect with what your trying to do

Well, I DO have dies already for that round......

7x61 S&H

IT&D has the reamer.

There is still another interesting choice! A good old classic round.

Mark,

I just saw this thread... Rarely do you and I agree on anything, thus I don't have any elaborate expectations... but here's what I'd do...

My 1st thought was the .358 Norma Mag... 2ndly; the .308 Norma. Then it occured to me that Newton brass can be formed from .375 Ruger. Yep! I believe that's what I'd do. Make a .30 Newton, this time with a proper 1~10 twist. As has been noted, that would refurbish the rifle back to the original builder's intent. One could do a lot worse!

GH

We might just agree on something after all.... Hate to admit, but your idea makes sense. Should be about 300WBY case capacity and performance, in a medium length action.

Mark there just Happens to be a set of Newton dies on ebay right now...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Used-RCBS-FL-Di..._DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a27d31c4

Even tho' I'm not particularly fond of the Magnum .30's, I believe that the .30 Newton is about the best of them.

Gh

Have a set of those already as well, (ought them when I thought this was the caliber the rifle was chambered for) but many thanks for the link and thought and idea.

You're welcome...

I have a .35 Newton. Wish I could find a set of dies. Now that I think of it, I just might build a .30 Newton, my own self.

GH

P.S: I have dies for the .30 Newton (and .33 Newton, and .375 Newton, as well...)

That wouldn't have been YOUR dies at auction now, would they? I did not know that mr Newton even had a 375 ever in the lineup.

Nope, NOT my dies... I seem to have a die fetish. I seem to collect dies in the event that I ever just happen to own one of those odd chamberings.

I'm hurt that you'd even THINK I'd be so devious...

Nor am I aware that Mr Newton ever had a .375 in the line-up. Only that I have a set of RCBS dies so marked.

At this late date, there would certainly be no logical reason to build a .375 Newton. Truth of the matter is, when I saw the dies for sale, my eyes deceived me. I THOUGHT the dies in question were for the .35 Newton. I was so excited, I failed to note the "7" in the middle of the ".3 5".

That said, IIRC, I purchased the dies prior to the introduction of the .375 Ruger... In today's world the performance of the two would seem identical.