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DWalt

My advice. Don't

DWalt

Those I use are 165 grain with gas checks. I cannot say what mold design, but they are spitzer, with much the same nose profile as the military M2 or M80 bullets. I ran into a fellow at a gun show with a box containing over a thousand of them a few years ago, which I bought for the princely sum of $...

DWalt

If you have not fired it yet, you are about to discover it will rattle your fillings and that tang sight will bite into your hand. For conventional shooting, I load .300 Savage with lead bullets and just enough propellant to operate the action.

DWalt

Keep in mind that some FFL dealers may not ship directly to a C&R licensee, and you cannot force them to do so. As near as I can tell, it is legal for anyone to ship directly to a C&R licensee, but getting them to do it may be difficult. I also had a run in once with FedEx over that. They sw...

DWalt

This tale goes back nearly 40 years, but an acquaintance had a non-working 520, and asked me if I could fix it. I don't remember exactly what the problem was, and I did manage to fix it, but I do remember it was a fairly difficult job to get it apart and back together again. That was my first and on...

DWalt

Regarding ejection problems, that happened to me on my first M81 in .300. I installed a new ejector plunger and spring. Not a terribly difficult job, but it will be a little challenging the first time. You do have to cut the spring a little bit at a time to get the length right, as the new spring wi...

DWalt

I have found over the years that sockets have many uses beyond removing nuts and bolts, especially if you have a large number of sizes and lengths. A very nice resurrection. Regarding the stock damage, I believe it is best to avoid trying to make them look factory new by extensive sanding and scratc...

DWalt

I guess it would be good to get some practice. In some parts of the world, cutaways are very popular because they are the only guns any lowly civilian peon can legally own. Having made up a number of cutaways of the Beretta M9 pistol for training use, I know it is not easy to make them look good, an...

DWalt

I got the M8 back together today. Everything seems to work OK, but I won't be able to shoot it for a few more weeks. I did pop a primer in a primed case to be sure the firing pin connected. Not too bad for 91 years old. By the way, 4 of the 5 ammo boxes dated 1976, 1978, and 1981 from the lot number...

DWalt

I wish I had put all of my retirement funds into purchasing a truckload of .22 Long Rifle ammunition 6 months ago. It has far, far outperformed gold. There is a lot of logic in buying hard but somewhat liquid or useful but nonperishable assets (like canned food) at present to get rid of dollars. I d...

DWalt

Typical from the 1960s. If you can provide the complete Winchester lot number, I may be able to date yours more precisely. As .30 Rem is out of print, and ammunition prices have gone crazy, $45/box is not an outrageous price if the boxes themselves are in good condition and are Silvertips. You might...

DWalt

Well, the project is coming along. I just put on the fourth coat of thinned Tung Oil finish on the wood, and it is starting to take a nice muted shine in spots, but there are still some dull areas. Maybe three or four more coats will be enough. I decided to strip off the original finish with Acetone...

DWalt

Last night, I took my calipers, made some measurements, and calculated the radius of the bottom curve. It's difficult to make really precise measurements, but I did come to the conclusion that the radius of curvature at the magazine bottom is large, in the range of 9" to 12". Therefore, at...

DWalt

I'll have to do some experimentation to see if any of my router bits are close. I also have a variety of hole saws of different diameters. I would imagine so long as the "Punch" has a rounded bottom with a radius that is fairly close, it would be OK.

DWalt

That's one way I thought of, but I don't know how to get the proper radii on both parts. But I was thinking metal instead of wood. It would be easier to use wood.

DWalt

Yeah - the 3 chargers were stuffed into one of the boxes of ammunition. I did not even know they were there until I got home and opened up all of the boxes to see just what I had, and was I ever surprised and delighted to see them. Those things bring, what - $40-$50 each? I did not mention it earlie...

DWalt

A couple of mine have dents on the bottom of the magazines. It doesn't really affect magazine operation, but it looks unsightly. Any suggestions for the best way to attempt pounding these out? I have some ideas, but I thought I'd take a poll before doing anything.

DWalt

At the local gun show today, I ran across a very nice Model 8 in .30 Rem. I already have four Model 81s, but this is my first Model 8. From the SN (47xxx) it seems to be from 1922. Wood is in pretty good shape, with only a few small dings, but original finish seems to be worn through in several area...

DWalt

Just something to think about - Will Police rifles become "Assault Rifles" if Obama gets his way?

DWalt

Lotsa luck. Primers are harder to find than .22 LR, and about as expensive. For some strange reason at the latest local gun show, there were several people with quite a few cartons of Wolf Large Pistol Magnum primers (and no other sizes) - at $80 per thousand. Not to say that they can't be found, bu...

DWalt

Weren't the .25-35 Remington and the .25 Remington the same cartridge (as opposed to the .25-35 Winchester, which was rimmed)? I sort of remember something about an earlier caliber chambering used for the Model 8 never being used in production, and the few rifles made on that caliber being converted...

DWalt

I know there were also Remington Model 14-1/2 rifles of the same design as the Model 14, but I think in .38-40 and .44-40 instead of the larger rifle calibers. I don't remember if those also used the cartridge head brass filler, as it has been a great many years since I have seen one.

DWalt

Several year ago, there was an episode on the PBS series "History Detectives" in which someone had a cut-off barrel Stevens 520 (actually a Wards Western Field) in 12 gauge which was reputed to have been used as one of the guns in Al Capone's Chicago St. Valentine's Day Massacre of 1929. T...

DWalt

I can't say I am clear on your plans, but about the only sure way to get complete fired case interchangeability among different guns is to do a full resize each time. That's fine, but it does work the brass more. I personally neck size only for most of my bolt actions. I have three rifles in .30-'06...

DWalt

Headspace is not likely to be a problem for you. Having headspace gauges won't help you in any way, as you can't do much to cure excess headspace without spending (wasting) lots of money. The, by far, easiest and cheapest (actually free) way to handle any headspace concerns (which probably do not ex...

DWalt

The white box .30 Rem FMJ ammunition that I have seen is (relatively) late production. It will have R-P headstamps, and the lot codes indicate early-mid 1960s production. I think it was made principally for law enforcement and prison guard use. Back in those pre-Vietnam days, the Remington semi-auto...

DWalt

Mauser-type clips will work for .35 and .300 Savage. But I feel the use of a clip with an 8/81 is not particularly advantageous. Just how rapidly does one need to reload? But clipped ammunition is neater to carry around in your pocket.

DWalt

At the gun show Saturday (a fairly large one), most .22 LR was over $70/brick. That tells you something about the direction of ammunition prices. Those who are not reloaders should consider becoming one quickly. But at the same gun show, NO ONE had primers of any kind for sale.

DWalt

A forward sling swivel should never be screwed into the wooden forestock. A barbaric practice. There is a threaded hole in the barrel jacket ahead of the forestock, and that is what it is there for. Someone here sells swivels that work, but you can make your own. It's easy to modify a swivel with a ...

DWalt

I have read that both Remington and Winchester outsourced the custom installation of ribs and/or choke devicess on their barrels which would have made a certain amount of sense back in the pre-WWII days when most shotgun barrels came from the factories with neither. I had an elderly Remington Model ...

DWalt

Do have a first year produced Model 70 so am close. I have one that is close to yours - from mid 1938, in .270. It is my best estate sale gun find ever, paid $300 about 20years ago. But someone had drilled and tapped scope base holes in the rear bridge. Nonetheless, it's in prime condition and shoo...

DWalt

Don't pass up a good deal on a M8 or M81 in .30 Rem or an M81 in .300 Savage. I personally can't get very excited about the .35 Remington when the .300 Savage is arguably superior for most hunting applications, assuming that is your intent. Both the .35 and .300 can be somewhat punishing to shoot. T...

DWalt

Just as a little addition to this. About two weeks ago, I have a good friend who went on a water buffalo hunt at a game ranch near Corpus Christi. I think a water buffalo was about $1000. Anyway when he got there and found out the hunting conditions he passed on the buffalo. What they had picked out...

DWalt

I tried the 7.62 NATO stripper clips in my 81, and as you found they are a little too wide to fit. But Springfield and Mauser clips fit fine, and I have lots of those also. I have never used any of them for loading in my 81s.

If you want to determine your magazine capacity, just remove the barrel.

DWalt

Re-forming .308 brass works fine, except for the little effort required to trim the neck (you need do that but one time), and I have re-formed all brands (including GI). I have used Federal .308 brass, but it required turning the neck wall a little thinner, and I have the tool to do that. Most reloa...

DWalt

The .300 Savage is probably the best chambering available in the M81 for the deer (or larger game) hunter, as it can be loaded to the same ballistics as the .308 Winchester, and very close to the .30-'06. I've given a little history about the cartridge before, but it is interesting to note that it w...

DWalt

I was going to say the same thing. If you are not a paid-up IAA member, you probably won't be able to access that information, but the key dimensions are shown below (there are 2 different known examples of the cartridge, one of which is unheadstamped, one UMC). Bullet weights are given as 100 grain...

DWalt

I'll second the Silverhill recommendation, and Rob is easy to work with. He made me a very nice forestock for my 81B from a beautifully grained chunk of walnut for less than $75 including shipping. It was pretty well shaped and sanded as received, but I did have to drill out the recess for the taked...

DWalt

3/16-36 is indeed an odd size. Victory Machinery, where I get my odd taps and dies, don't show anything closer than 3/16-32 in stock. But if you need it badly enough, they will make up taps and dies in any size you want for a substantial price.

DWalt

Pressures don't run that much higher, at least the SAAMI chamber pressure specifications don't. SAAMI average maximum piezo chamber pressures for the 6.8 SPC and .300 Savage are 55,000 psi and 47,000 psi respectively. But with the newer SAAMI alternative 6.8 SPC chambering, which has slightly more f...

DWalt

No idea why so many earlier guns used screws of a proprietary nature rather than standardizing threads. I guess that would have been too simple, but I imagine Winchester didn't want anyone buying screws from Remington to fit their guns. Even a slight difference in thread pitch mismatch will cause pr...

DWalt

The 6.8 SPC is not a "Wildcat" and never has been, as it was a Remington development. There is a factory loading from several manufacturers, and it even has SAAMI specifications established for it. Guns factory-chambered for it abound, mainly of the AR variety, but other types too. A wildc...

DWalt

I did some of the very first evaluations of the 6.8mm SPC for the USAF back in the 2003-04 period, and still have a few boxes of the original lot of Remington white box developmental ammunition in my collection. I think I have posted my feelings about it here previously. It would make an excellent r...

DWalt

As mentioned, the bolt face recess diameter would be critical, Definitely, .25, .30, and .32 bolts would not work with a .300 Savage barrel as its diameter would be too small to accept the .300 Savage cartridge head. I don't know if the same bolt face recess diameter is used for .35 and .300. In any...

DWalt

I saw a county-by-county map of the whole USA showing which went red and blue in this morning's newspaper. It's very interesting. The vast majority of the counties were red, with heavy blue concentrations mainly in larger cities in the key states - but that was enough. I think the country has now pa...

DWalt

Browning Arms Co. put out a booklet of about the same number of pages about JMB titled "Browning Arms - Since 1831" back in the 1950s, and I have a copy of it. Reading the Amazon teaser, the one listed seems to read very much like the Browning Arms booklet. I'll have to download the freebi...

DWalt

That is definitely the image, thanks for the information. I guess it was too much to hope that it was an original, but I did suspect it was a likely to be a reproduction mainly because it looked old, but not 100 years old. I think I'll let it age in the shop for awhile longer.

DWalt

I ran across what seems to be an authentic advertising poster for the Remington Model 8 at a local antique shop today. It is the one picturing a hunter with a Model 8 in his hands standing behind a campfire and surrounded by six snarling wolves. At the bottom is a drawing of a Model 8 and some wordi...

DWalt

Appears your charger clips are military 7.62mm. But they should work.

DWalt

There is disagreement on that point. I do not crimp bullets in my .300 Savage loads, and I have never measured any bullet movement occurring under recoil. I tried that, just to see. Also, many .30 bullets have no crimping cannelures anyway. My feeling is that crimping is optional - it won't hurt but...

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