You've found a wonderful American made rifle: many think it the best bolt rifle ever produced in this country. Many on here love them: collect them, shoot them and hunt them. However,there is a challenge in doing what you're doing and that is the challenge and expense of finding what you need in terms of parts replacement. I'm in the midst of doing that right now putting together a working rifle and looking for a particular stock that would be simple to find if it were a current model but not with a pre-64. It might become a bit frustrating at times. IF you compare it to the other common bolt rifles, and even the post-64 model 70s, original and/or replacement parts are much tougher to find and often times very expensive. E-bay always has parts, but often they are unreasonably (in my opinion) expensive, even for the small components. There are situations in which it might even be cheaper to purchase a parts rifle where you get most of what you need. This is not meant to discourage you, but just to make you aware of the challenge. There is also probably a bit of hording that occurs, making it even more challenging. One of things I've noticed is the apparent huge variations in cost of the rifles, and parts, from different parts of the country. You'll often see guys on here quote prices of parts and whole guns that to some of us, seem unreasonably low in comparison to what others see. I would say be patient, don't hesitate to get more input from the guys on here, no dumb questions, and have fun.
