My new Model 8 purchase today

[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 areas. It has the original steel crescent buttplate with matching SN. I'll put a coat of my usual Tung oil finish on the wood which should make it look somewhat better. Blued finish on the barrel tube looks about perfect, but the bluing on the receiver is not so good, with some abrasions and scratches on the left side, and thinning on the top. Right side looks very good. The bore looks used, but not corroded. I'm in the process of tearing it apart for a thorough cleaning, so I have not taken any pictures yet. I will get around to that.

How does $450, including 5 boxes of newer Remington ammo, sound? PLUS, as I later found, 3 original .25-.30-32 charger clips.

The forestock has the miniscule sling swivel on the mounting screw. Is that typical for these?

By the way, this was the ONLY good deal I saw today. Prices, even for junk, are far out of sight. .22 LR seems to still be marked $75 to $100/carton, and primers are at around $100 per thousand. When will the madness end?

[rem81auto]

Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. I would think the ammo is worth close to half of what you paid. The small swivel is in fact not a swivel it is just the takedown screw. Dennis

[81police]

I totally agree with Dennis, sounds like a great deal.

Many men of years past used the little loop as a sling swivel, but it should never be used as such. Like Dennis said, it's just a takedown screw that was made that shape for use w/out tools.

[imfuncity]

Indeed good job and great eagle-eye on the charger clips.

[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 earlier, but there were also 46 fired cases as part of the deal. I just put the first coat of oil on the wood tonight, so maybe I'll have it back together for pictures by mid-week.

[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 first, as so much of it was worn through. However, I made no attempt to sand or fill the base wood, as the existing dents and scratches are not too bad, and, I think, give the stock some character. I just finished loading the empties that came with the deal, using 168 grain gas-checked lead spitzer bullets over 19 grains of 2400. I tried that load some time ago in my .30 M81, and it functioned the action OK and grouping was not terrible. That same bullet over 23 grains of 2400 in .300 Savage shot very well in another M81, and was easy on the shoulder. I probably won't be able to fire the new M8 for at least another three weeks.

[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 numbers. But the newest one seemed to be from 1997. 1997 is the last year Remington cataloged the .30 Remington, so I guess my box is an example of the very last factory loading in this caliber.
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[81police]

she's a beauty Dwalt! A fine example of an unaltered Model 8.

[DWalt]

At long last I got this old Model 8 to the range Friday. Due to the extreme heat, (about 104) I couldn't stay long enough to give it a real test, but good enough for starters. Using both milder lead bullet loads and some 170 grain Remington factory loads, it seemed to function just fine, with all empties landing in a tight pile on the ground about 2' ahead of the muzzle. I fired about 20 rounds, only five of which were the Remington factory loads, those being fired from the bench for a single 5-shot group at 50 yards. I got an extreme spread of about 2-1/2". I actually didn't have to fiddle with the sights, as the group was only about 3" directly above point of aim. But that old-style buckhorn open rear sight notch is sure tough for me to see the front sight through.

[81police]

I've always thought those Model 8 sights aren't too easy to see either, probably why there's so many of the guns out there with aftermarket upgrades.

[DWalt]

Back in those days, I don't think many designers paid a lot of attention to what makes a good sight picture. For example, I have a World War I Colt Model 1911 with original sights. They are so small and thin that it's impossible to get a good sight picture. I suspect the doughboys using those in the trenches of France couldn't do much more than point in the general direction of the Hun and pull the trigger. Even the WWII sights on the M1911A1 are not a great deal better. I have several S&W revolvers from the teens and '20s, and their sights are equally poor.

By the way, speaking of sights, my Model 81B with the receiver-mounted peep sight was missing the original barrel tube open rear sight, and had only the screws. To make it look a little better, I made a duplicate of the original Lyman filler block design from a piece of scrap aluminum plate using only a Dremel tool with cutoff disc, a file, and a hand drill. I finished it with a black Teflon "spray and bake" finish, but black paint would be OK. It looks fine, much better than nothing. If anyone needs to do likewise, I can provide dimensions.

[malik123]

This post is so great and nice

By the way, speaking of sights, my Model 81B with the receiver-mounted peep sight was missing the original barrel tube open rear sight, and had only the screws. To make it look a little better,