Big bore .308 Win Wildcats

[meles meles]

Some useful reading matter here, oomans... http://members.shaw.ca/cronhelm/762ProjectRifle.html

[DW58]

How about something based on the 8x57 case - already been done in 9.3mm but it's another possibility.

[Sandgroper]

How about something based on the 8x57 case - already been done in 9.3mm but it's another possibility.

It's gone as big as the 9.5x57 MS aka 375 Rimless NE.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9.5%C3%975 ... C3%B6nauer

[Chapuis]

If anyone has a couple of spare 9,3mm or 10,0mm jacketed and or cast bullets I would be happy to try and stuff them in the end of a .308 case to get an idea of proportion and the antics required to form the brass. Personally I have a feeling it might be easier to just go straight to fire forming using a pistol powder and then use a modified Forster bush die to neck size to the correct size.

pm me an address Ovenpaa and I will send you a couple of 9.3mm bullets (non expanding of course).

[ovenpaa]

Ah, that will be good thank you. I will get out to the Shed and machine some mandrels in anticipation tongueout

[Sandgroper]

Ah, that will be good thank you. I will get out to the Shed and machine some mandrels in anticipation tongueout

To give you an idea of the shoulder if you go above 9.5mm or .375 - the 400 Whelan.

[ovenpaa]

Right, a donor rifle action was needed for the 9mm-08 (The 9mm Rascal) so here it is part way through some minor fettling. The action is a 1968 ROI 2A1 with .308 bolt face and 12 round magazine. A bit of research shows that it ended up in the USofA at some point and was almost certainly modified to what was described as a No7 Jungle carbine by Gibbs/Navy Arms which would explain the shortened barrel. As the rifle came to me with an after market plastic stock and no sights I did not have a great deal to work with, or maybe I should look on it as a blank sheet of paper.

One of the things about the 2A1 is they do not benefit from a particularly good finish so this is the action part way through being cleaned and flatted back. I need to maintain the integrity of the receiver yet look good with my chosen surface finish which is probably going to be rust blued. So far all I have been doing is draw filling and flatting back with wet and dry, I have a lot more work yet if I am to get clearly defined edges.

The firing pin has been trued and polished, the cocking piece tidied and slightly lightened and I am part way through building a trigger assembly with adjustable bump and lighter spring, nothing serious though as I really want to stay around the 6lb pull mark however the new system will mean I can lighten the trigger pull to my own taste. A 2 stage trigger is still my preference.

As the rifle will be fitted with a shorter barrel the sight radius is going to be poor so I have added an Aperture sight made by Central of AUS, this is easily removed if necessary.

Furniture wise it will be standard 2A1 modified to suit the shorter barrel and my goal is to get the woodwork looking as crisp as the receiver will be.

Maybe not for the purists however our American cousins had already had a go at playing with it so restoring to original was never going to be an option. I do have a few further tweaks in mind just to make it obvious to the Lee Enfield aficionados that this not in anyway anything original.

performance wise the 9mm Rascal will be capable of approaching 3000fps with a 147 grain .355" jacketed bullet so good for 300 yards plus it can be downloaded to 1200fps with ease for 25/50 yard ranges.

[Alpha1]

Nice.

[DW58]

Interesting - I suspect said "Gat" resided in my part of the World for a recent portion of its life

Watching this with interest.

[ovenpaa]

Yes it did come down from the colder side of the border...

At present it is an evenings and weekends project as I do have a proper job to get on with however we plan on having a some time off next month and this is on my list of things not work related to get on with.