My T-REX Project - A 577 Tyrannosaur is born - aka The Dinosaur Killer
Hello All,
It was back in July of 2015 that I purchased 2 rifles from xausa (Bill), a fellow forum member here on AR. These rifles were built in the late 1970's by Bill and his partner, a then well know Custom Gunsmith named H.W.Creighton. All of the Creighton installed barrels are marked "CR" which stands for "Creighton Proof". Both rifles were chambered in a wildcat caliber developed and named by Bill as the 577 VSRE.
That stood for a .577 bullet used in a Very Short Range Express rifle.
Bill's 577 VSRE cartridge is based on a 577 Nitro Express case that is shortened to 2.500" with its rim rebated to .583" diameter, the same size diameter as a 460 Weatherby Magnum rim. Some 15 years later, upon the development of the 585 Nyati by Ross Seyfried, a variation of that same case, with a 2.787" case length and a .579" diameter rim, could be shortened by approximately 3/10 inches and used for the 577 VSRE cartridge without the laborious reworking of the head of a 577 Nitro Express case. Perhaps you could now call Bill's 577 VSRE, the 585 NYATI SHORT.
The whole purpose of Bill's 577 VSRE cartridge was to obtain the same ballistic performance of the 577 Nitro Express Double Rifle, except in a bolt action repeating rifle. That being 2050 fps with a 750g bullet.
The reason Bill built 2 rifles in the same 577 VSRE caliber was that the first rifle was a development rifle to work-up stock / barrel configuration. It was built on a P-14 Enfield action as a single shot. The brown stripe in the Laminated stock is a walnut spacer that was from various experimental dimensional changes that Bill tried during the rifles testing. The second rifle, the one actually intended for hunting, was built on a "G" series Winchester Model 70 push-feed action, as a repeating rifle. I've had a lot of fun with both of these rifles.
The 577 VSRE P-14 Enfield Single Shot. Modified Laminated stock - 12-1/2 pounds.
The 577 VSRE Winchester Mod 70 repeater. Mc Millan Stock - 12-1/4 pounds.
The Winchester is topped with a 4x24 Noske Scope #528 LER w/ Post in Weaver Rings & Bases.
What started this project was by an accidental discovery of a set of RCBS 577 T-REX dies on Ebay. The .577 Tyrannosaur or .577 T-Rex is a very large and extremely powerful rifle cartridge developed by A-Square in 1993 on request for professional guides in Zimbabwe who escort clients hunting dangerous game. The cartridge is designed for use in "stopping rifles" intended to stop the charge of dangerous game. The 577 contains a .585-inch diameter 750-grain Monolithic Solid Projectile which when fired moves at 2,460 ft/s producing 10,180 foot-pounds of force. This is perhaps the most powerful bolt action cartridge of all times.
While I was searching for a set of 500 Jeffery dies, I found the 577 T-REX dies. They were quickly purchased for less than 1/4th the current retail price.
My thinking was that that perhaps someday I'd find one of the original A-Square rifles in 577 T-REX caliber, and I'd already have the reloading dies. Well, with the dies now in hand, I set about searching for some 577 T-REX brass, and found that AHR was offering the brass at a very reasonable price. By week's end I had the brass also.
After a month-long search for an original A-Square rifle in 577 T-Rex caliber, it occurred to me that I didn't need 2 rifles in 577 VSRE caliber. The P-14 single shot would be a good candidate for a make-over. Since the bore was the same, all that needed to be done was to re-chamber the rifle to the new cartridge, and modify the bolt face and extractor to fit. I decided to do it.
The first step in the project was to remove the barrel from the action. Fortunately, I have a Master Machinist / Gunsmith for a friend that had made a special barrel vise, and had a vast assortment of barrel and action bushings to go with it. He invited me to come over and use his tools.
The barrel was clamped in the vise with the appropriate barrel bushings.
Hello All,
It was back in July of 2015 that I purchased 2 rifles from xausa (Bill), a fellow forum member here on AR. These rifles were built in the late 1970's by Bill and his partner, a then well know Custom Gunsmith named H.W.Creighton. All of the Creighton installed barrels are marked "CR" which stands for "Creighton Proof". Both rifles were chambered in a wildcat caliber developed and named by Bill as the 577 VSRE.
That stood for a .577 bullet used in a Very Short Range Express rifle.
Bill's 577 VSRE cartridge is based on a 577 Nitro Express case that is shortened to 2.500" with its rim rebated to .583" diameter, the same size diameter as a 460 Weatherby Magnum rim. Some 15 years later, upon the development of the 585 Nyati by Ross Seyfried, a variation of that same case, with a 2.787" case length and a .579" diameter rim, could be shortened by approximately 3/10 inches and used for the 577 VSRE cartridge without the laborious reworking of the head of a 577 Nitro Express case. Perhaps you could now call Bill's 577 VSRE, the 585 NYATI SHORT.
The whole purpose of Bill's 577 VSRE cartridge was to obtain the same ballistic performance of the 577 Nitro Express Double Rifle, except in a bolt action repeating rifle. That being 2050 fps with a 750g bullet.
The reason Bill built 2 rifles in the same 577 VSRE caliber was that the first rifle was a development rifle to work-up stock / barrel configuration. It was built on a P-14 Enfield action as a single shot. The brown stripe in the Laminated stock is a walnut spacer that was from various experimental dimensional changes that Bill tried during the rifles testing. The second rifle, the one actually intended for hunting, was built on a "G" series Winchester Model 70 push-feed action, as a repeating rifle. I've had a lot of fun with both of these rifles.
The 577 VSRE P-14 Enfield Single Shot. Modified Laminated stock - 12-1/2 pounds.
The 577 VSRE Winchester Mod 70 repeater. Mc Millan Stock - 12-1/4 pounds.
The Winchester is topped with a 4x24 Noske Scope #528 LER w/ Post in Weaver Rings & Bases.
What started this project was by an accidental discovery of a set of RCBS 577 T-REX dies on Ebay. The .577 Tyrannosaur or .577 T-Rex is a very large and extremely powerful rifle cartridge developed by A-Square in 1993 on request for professional guides in Zimbabwe who escort clients hunting dangerous game. The cartridge is designed for use in "stopping rifles" intended to stop the charge of dangerous game. The 577 contains a .585-inch diameter 750-grain Monolithic Solid Projectile which when fired moves at 2,460 ft/s producing 10,180 foot-pounds of force. This is perhaps the most powerful bolt action cartridge of all times.
While I was searching for a set of 500 Jeffery dies, I found the 577 T-REX dies. They were quickly purchased for less than 1/4th the current retail price.
My thinking was that that perhaps someday I'd find one of the original A-Square rifles in 577 T-REX caliber, and I'd already have the reloading dies. Well, with the dies now in hand, I set about searching for some 577 T-REX brass, and found that AHR was offering the brass at a very reasonable price. By week's end I had the brass also.
After a month-long search for an original A-Square rifle in 577 T-Rex caliber, it occurred to me that I didn't need 2 rifles in 577 VSRE caliber. The P-14 single shot would be a good candidate for a make-over. Since the bore was the same, all that needed to be done was to re-chamber the rifle to the new cartridge, and modify the bolt face and extractor to fit. I decided to do it.
The first step in the project was to remove the barrel from the action. Fortunately, I have a Master Machinist / Gunsmith for a friend that had made a special barrel vise, and had a vast assortment of barrel and action bushings to go with it. He invited me to come over and use his tools.
The barrel was clamped in the vise with the appropriate barrel bushings.