I want a custom rifle built.

[shooter_john]

There are plenty of Savage smith's and tinkerers over at savageshooters.com. One that comes to mind is Sharp Shooter's Supply. You could likely order the barrel as a drop in as well, which would save you a little bit of trouble.

 

[taylorce1]

Those are awesome. Mine is sporterized, but not that prettily. Any idea who might build something like that?

I'm pretty sure the guys that did those Mosin’s were hobbyist that did the work themselves. It is going to be hard to find a gunsmith that will take on a Mosin as the profit margin in them will be extremely low. There just require a lot more work to build than a standard commercial action.

As far as the Savage it would probably work, the magnum bolt face is has a rim diameter of .535" and you would have to open it up to .567" for the 54R. You would probably have to have some extractor work done as well but I'm unsure of that one. The Savage would have to run as a single shot unless you are able to modify one of the centerfeed magazines to work.

Another option might be to find a P14 action and rebarrel, as it would be already set up to run a rimmed cartridge, but there might be some bolt face work needed as well since the .303 has a slightly smaller rim diameter. Search the for sale adds in this forum a guy had a P-14 sporter .303-30 Brit for sale. I'd PM him and see if he still has it, you can replace the barrel with a Pac-Nor or Shilen .311 bore that is about as close as you'll get to a .312 bore.

 

[PawPaw]

my guess is that something based off an existing H&R single shot would be the most cost effective route, perhaps a .30-06 with a different chamber reamed into it. I'm operating under the assumption that the barrel length and twist that H&R uses for the .30-06 is also good for 54R, as I know they are balistically super-similar.

There's a forum at Graybeard's Outdoors that deals almost exclusively with the Handi Rifle and that might be a place to look for gunsmiths to do your job. LINKY here. I'm not sure if anyone has done that job before, and I don't know what kind of luck you'll have with milsurp ammo in that rifle. It's my understanding that most surplus ammo in that caliber uses .311 bullets and I'm not sure it would be a good idea to drive them down a .308 bore.

But, if anyone can answer your questions, it's the guys that hang out on the Handi forum. Good luck in your quest.

 

[nate45]

You should just get a Mosin in the best shape you can find. Put it in an after market stock, do a trigger job, put on a scope and see how it shoots.

Mosin-Nagant Stock

I'm not sure where you get that scope base, but S&K makes one that most anyone can install.

Just google Mosin-Nagant trigger job and you'll see all kinds of ways to improve the military one, or aftermarket options.

As far as the front sight goes, you could just cut the barrel off somewhere behind it and recrown it.

If you have a $1000 budget you could easily buy a Mosin, scope, scope mount, stock and have a gunsmith bend the bolt, shorten and recrown the barrel and install your aftermarket trigger.

 

[LSnSC]

Looks like you can get the stock, scope mount, and pre bent bolt handle from ATI.

 

[shooter_john]

Maybe it's just me, but I wouldn't want any of the ATI stuff on my "custom" gun. It all just looks and feels a little too cheap to me. I wouldn't completely rule out a Nagant, but I would want the receiver drilled and tapped and would want a nice stock too. For my money, theres no doubt in my mind that a Savage/ Stevens build would be the most efficient way to get to a custom 54R.

 

[sc928porsche]

Keep in mind that the military ammo uses .310 diameter bullets, not 308. Most Mosins "slug out" at .313-.315. It makes things a little tough when you shove a .310 bullet through a .308 bore. Using the 308 bullet in reloaded cases will work, but you accuracy suffers. I reload for the Mosin with .311 bullets and they seem to work a lot better than the military stuff.

 

[govmule84]

Just for a couple of you guys:

1) I have a sporterized Mosin. It's quite accurate. ATI stock, chopped the barrel, re-crowned, scout scope - it's done very well, and looks really nice. Several people have offered to buy it after they saw and shot it. I want something a little nicer. The fit and finish leaves a little to be desired on the Mosins.

2) I reload. I don't give a hoot about mil-surp ammo, because I don't use it. I have no use for rattly bullets and corrosive priming.

Love some of the suggestions, though. Have to see about this handi-rifle business over at greybeard....

-L.

 

[Powderman]

Hey, govmule....

Here's a suggestion, especially if you want something neat in your chamber. Of course, this probably would NOT be cheap, but---

1. Consider that if you're going to mount a custom barrel, you can spec out a .308 bore, and have a custom chamber cut.

2. This leads me to the next evolution--a 7.62x54R Improved.

Think about it--that long case just BEGS to have the taper reduced or removed, with a 45 degree shoulder on it. Case capacity would definitely go up, and terminal ballistics might increase very well. Might have to use lighter bullets to keep the pressures down, or maybe even a little bit of freebore.

I actually don't think that you'll have too much problem getting a barrel for the Handi-Rifle--just get a thick blank, have it turned down to a certain point and mill the locking brackets into the barrel steel itself. After the whole thing is stress relieved, you'll have a mount you won't have to worry about coming loose.

The only setback I see is that it will be kinda expensive. Or--mount the locking brackets onto a sleeve, and thread it onto the outside of the barrel...maybe? (I think the biggest concern will be securing it to the rifle itself.)

What do you think?

 

[warbirdlover]

If you find a gunsmith willing to "weld up" and then recut the chamber on a high pressure rifle cartridge would you please post their information so I can stay as far from them as possible............

Being a retired metallurgist, this was exactly what I was thinking!

 

[govmule84]

So, for those of you following this saga...

Randy Selby, of Randy's Custom Rifles, has taken on this project.

I placed an order today for a Handi-Rifle, chambered in .308. He is going to re-chamber it for 54R and modify the extractor, put some plastic furniture on it, and top the whole thing with a Bushnell Elite 3200 scope (3-9x 40mm) on Maxima rings.


The whole thing did ring in at just under a grand.

We'll see how it turns out. I'm pretty excited to have the pick of .308 bullets - Lord knows that opens up some options!

I'll keep you all abreast of how it turns out in a few months!

-L.

 

[HKFan9]

sounds like fun... don't know if I would sink that kinda cash into it myself.. but I wanna see pics and videos when done please!

 

[govmule84]

Pics, yes. Video - uh, well, I'm a bit lacking in equipment.

It wasn't cheap, for sure... but it's not often I buy something really nice to shoot, and when I do, it never seems to be cheap,

 

[govmule84]

An update...

Well, I got the rifle. Here's what came of it.

It wouldn't chamber brass. Not Winchester (which I believe is Prvi), not S&B, not Lapua, and not Norma. As far as I know, those are the only four companies in the world who make brass for this gun. Surplus was also a no-go.

Additionally, the scope had been mounted on a set of rings that was too low. The hammer could touch the knurling on the objective ring of the scope when cocking/coming back down, depending on how the ring was rotated. Someone noticed this, as the bluing was a little chewed off some spots on the rings.

When I brought this up to the folks at Randy's Custom Rifles (very politely!), they assured me the rifle 'fed and fired' fine. Now, I'm not one to call someone a liar, but I had two questions. First, how does a single-shot rifle 'feed'? Secondly, if none of my brass chambered, how did they test-fire the gun? They assured me the scope was an item I had damaged, the rings were the correct height, and that I had custom, strange-to-fit brass. I did ask them to simply let me ship the gun back to them, but they demurred for a few days - despite the fact that I offered to pay for more work if I somehow was at fault.

I received no replies when I stated these doubts. I indicated to these folks that I was unhappy with their service - as I can put together a dinged-up, non-firing rifle in my garage for considerably less money - and they offered not a lick of customer service. Literally nothing. I do have emails, for those of you who may want to see them - I will forward them, as they are text-heavy, and I don't want to fill the thread up.

So, at this point, I can safely say I would never, ever give another penny of my money to Randy's Custom Rifles, of Wapiti, WY. I didn't chisel a penny off their price, and I got very little in return.

I then brought the gun to Lock's Gun Shop, in Philadelphia, PA. The 'smith there saw what was wrong, chatted me up in fine style, and assured me he'd fix it right up. He confirmed all the things I thought were wrong, and sent me on my way.

Three weeks later, I got it back. New scope, new rings, new chamber. The scope is a Bushnell Elite 3200 3-9x. It appears purty clear to my very untrained eye - my other two scopes - for comparison - are an AIM scout scope, which is surprisingly good for what it is, and a BSA Sweet .22. The rifle does have a nice synthetic stock. (I do also have the wood to go with it.) The whole thing is lovely. I've got a starting load worked up for it - Lapua brass, with 3.1cc (about 42 grains) of Varget, topped off with Nosler ballistic-tip 180's. Haven't shot it yet - I'll post when I get there. The .308 idea really is awesome, my bullet selections are SO MUCH larger than the .311 my Mosin eats. I would spend my money happily at Lock's again.

Enjoy some terribly-taken pictures, and thanks to everyone who pointed me in the right direction. I appreciate EVERYONE's opinion - even the dissenting ones - because you folks are some very, very, smart cookies!

 

[dmazur]

Very nice.

I think I can understand the desire to have what you want.

A few years ago I had a couple of Ruger #1's built, and the cost was more than just getting a Tikka T3 in each caliber. But I wound up with accurate #1's, stainless GunKoted black, in laminated stocks.

Nothing wrong with custom work as long as it meets your needs.