Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Shooting the donor(s) Kimber and J.C. Higgins

The tale of two rifles with significant price differences...

Picked up a used Kimber 84L that looks new from my FFL guy on Thursday. Mounted in some Talley lows an older Vari-x III 2.5-8. Loaded maybe 10 different bullet/powder/seating combinations. If you cross your eyes just right when looking at the tape measure one load might have been just over an inch. Most around an inch and half. Several closer to 2”. Haven’t done any additional bedding or really played with drastic combination changes yet to try and shrink groups.

Bought a J.C. Higgins Model 50 in .30-06 a couple weeks ago off gunbroker. Came with a Timney trigger and a Leupold M8-4x in a basic synthetic stock. Bought a stock from a Higgins 51 from a member here. After some drill/dremel/rasp work to allow for the Timney trigger it was ready to test fire. No bedding done yet. First group with some 160 Speers is .875. Second group with some 180 grain Partitions was 1.125 with a called flyer, third group going back to the 160s was right at .900”.

I bought the Kimber with full intention of rebarreling to 7x57, but going to put it through the paces to see what it can do. I have Kimbers in .257Roberts and .308 that several bullet combinations go under an inch.

The Higgins I bought on a whim, thought I’d put it in a knockout stock and rebarrel to something, thinking a 6.5x55. Likely just leave it as is for the foreseeable future though.

Cheesy, that looks like the Kimber I had on my watchlist at GunBroker.

I also had thoughts of buying it and rebarreling to 7x57.

Nice snag!

I’d been looking for one for a while now. That wood is significantly better than most of the blonde Selects you see for sale, so I couldn’t pass it up.

Don’t tell my wife. She doesn’t know if either of these or what a rebarrel costs. Or what a custom piece of wood costs. Just like I don’t know what it cost for her to go to the Kentucky Derby today 😂

Good look'n rifles. Nice shooting range.

AKA “Dad’s back yard”

Can do 100 yards in the yard. Then depending on crops, leaves, and where a cousins cows are across the creek, can stretch to 300 from the same bench.

I agree whole heartedly.
Dad has a lot to mow.
Pretty place.😎

They both look good.

I bought a model 50 recently !
I fired 3 165 grain sierra Boat tails into .54 today, i you want to know more about it, i have a thread on here soplace ! ...tj3006

That model 50 looks mighty nice with the walnut stock. I have a soft spot for FN-actioned JC Higgins rifles. I wouldn't change a thing on that one-especially with the Timney trigger.

It is perfect in my book, just the way it is.

If you decide to re-stock it, keep me in mind. I would be intetested in the current stock in the picture.

I bought a Higgins 50 for a donor in 30-06, thinking building a 7x57 on it using just the action. Due to some surgery I wanted something a little lighter in weight and recoil than my normal bear gun (rem 700 Ruger 375) to save weight I decided to skip the scope also. I have a number of 98's but all had stocks with comb height for a scope so I grabbed the model 50 and took it to the range, the comb height was correct for iron sights. The range is limited in the woods over bait, I will be in Manitoba in a few short weeks waiting to try it out on something other than paper.

I know better than shooting donor.

Long story short I doubt the Model 50 will be a donor I will keep it pretty much the way it is. I think I will have Kobe do a three-position safety on it, shorten the barrel some, reblue and strip and refinish the stock as it is a little rough. I will keep it iron sighted so when I want/need iron sights I can grab and go with it. I want the three position because I have a lot of muscle memory with my other 98's with 3-positions.

wade

The Higgins is getting bedded by dad (ole_270) this week. I’m ordering some low scope mounts of some flavor, not sure just what yet. Then I’ll start a stock strip and refinish. Should be good for about anything I care to hunt (along with the double handful of other medium bore rifles it’ll be sharing the safe with), but a bargains a bargain right?

That kimber will look good in your hunting pics!