Odyessy in "F" Open

[Grimstod]

Mine cost 250$

[Just1Spark]

Beautiful work! I cant wait to hear the results!
For bedding, look up Marine Tex. Works great.


200gr 3100fps out of a mosin (54r) case!? o.0 Thats gonna be rough aint it?

[ShootnMathews]

Beautiful work! I cant wait to hear the results!
For bedding, look up Marine Tex. Works great.


200gr 3100fps out of a mosin (54r) case!? o.0 Thats gonna be rough aint it?

That's 300 ultra mag speeds, isn't it? I'll check my book. .........yes, my book shows max 300 ultra mag speeds with a 200 grain bullet at 3119 fps with 106 grains of accurate 8700. I'm not saying it won't get there because different case shapes have different effects on pressure and speeds. I'm curious to see exactly how it does. Great work

[Grindl]

I think some posts got crossed somewhere along the line .

[Just1Spark]

A few words about the 26" barrel length : I spent over a year doing ballistics research regarding barrel lengths , and though it has become very popular to now use 24" barrels , there are several pieces of data that has to be considered . One ; is the speed that "F" shooters are sending the round down the pipe . Many of the top "F" shooters are sending a .308 , 195gr-200gr VLD Match bullet out at 2,700fps to 3,100+ fps. Near "Max" loads . Hard on the chamber / bolt / receiver , as well as the barrel . The other is "Barrel Life". By selecting a 26" length , I will be able to reduce the FPS of the round down the bore , thus extending barrel life by 1,500 to 3,500 rounds over the normal 5,000 round barrel life . Target barrels don't "wear" out . They are "Burned" up by excessive high velocity loads and VLD bullet lengths . Friction and excessive heat are the enemies of Target barrels , but "F" shooters look at replacing a barrel several times through-out a season of competition as a normal part of the sport .

The 26" length , with a 10 twist allows me to load at the threshold of 2,700 fps and preferably below it .Well below it ... And keep the round stabilized in the trans-sonic range as the bullet slows down to nearing speed of sound . ( 1116 fps at S/L ) Ironically ; this occurs between roughly 850 to 930 yards with the normally used M/N target loads. The further the round goes , the more critical it becomes to keep the round stable , in rotation , and "on-line". Longer barrel lengths allow for lower powder weight loads ; while maintaining higher velocities without having to load towards maximums , thus reducing Heat and friction . VooDoo science.

Sorry lol, Yup I misread the post.

[Grindl]

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Richards Micro-Fit Target Culbertson in Apache Gold laminate as it arrived . Note : Richards stocks require a large amount of finishing sanding to achieve a credible result .

[Grindl]

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Additional in-letting has begun for bedding the action , and to clearance for the Timney Trigger .

At this point ; I have already shaved and sanded the fore-arm to reduce the hand area by a 1/2" , both for appearance , and weight reduction to meet "F" class weight requirements . Both sides ended up being a bright yellow , and they were stained dark mahogany , that was a excellent match to the other wood grain of the stock

[Grindl]

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Rock Solid bedding pillars were set in the usual manner ; and J-B Weld was used for bedding of the pillars , and for full bedding of the action .

[Grindl]

I have to admit I didn't take as many photos of the building process as I probably should have , and much was undocumented but my focus was on the work , before the immortalization .

Actually ; the hardest , most time-consuming part of the whole build was enlarging the barrel channel from that of a stock M-N profile to accepting the Kreiger Target "T-8" profile barrel . The solution ; if you don't have a barrel channel tool , is to use Deep Well ( long ) sockets of the proper diameters , large to small , rear of stock , to front . And take your time . Cause it will take time if you don't have a stock tool . But it does finish out beautifully because it's a sanded to size channel .

I started sanding the barrel channel with 80 grit , wrapped around the chosen socket and when I had that to a half depth , top to bottom of barrel channel radius , I went to 120 and repeated the process . As the proper depth and width of the channel was met at the beginning of the barrel / receiver area , I started using the barreled action as a guide for "fitting" the taper of the barrel to the channel . Lots and lots of sanding , and sanding , and sanding , and sanding . But making that T-8 fit with proper air flow clearance on that barrel is worth it , when you get to the line .

[Grindl]

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The action came home and it was prepped and Dura-coated with Stainless Steel and hung up to cure . Three weeks later ; I assembled the Timney into the action and put it back on the shelf to continue work on the stock .