Rebarrel a Ruger no. 1 to 338 FED or 8x57?

hifiwasabi

hifiwasabi

Regular
Rating - 100%
122   0   1
Location
I live in a giant bucket.
So lets say a I know a guy with a Ruger no. 1 in a less common x57 case that is a great shooter but not good at hurling anything heavier then 100 grains. He'd really like to sling some high end medium bore lead from roughly 200 grains upwards for putting a big smack down on deer and moose when a little more hunting experience is gained. I've done a lot of research on the 338, and despite some who claim it doesn't need to exist, I have a bit of a chub for it. I mean my friend....he also has utmost respect for the 8x57. What are the merits of each? I'm not a reloader, so I'm at the mercy of factory ammo for maximum velocity.
 
I assume the No. 1 is in 6mm Rem? I vote to keep it as is and buy another rifle, but that's not the question is it.

Obviously the Ruger No. 1 has no action length or feeding limitations with a rebarrel. With that in mind you have several options that have factory ammo avaliable. My vote would be a 35 Whelan or 9.3x62 over the Fed or 8x57. Any of the choices would fulfill your requirements just fine though.
 
If that No.1 is a Roberts, sell it and buy what you want. The Fed is close to great... add 0.020" and it becomes great.
 
I'd preserve a Roberts too personally. This said, rebarreling a No.1 is a simple affair, slightly more difficult than a conventional bolt action to install due to the strut (minor inconvenience but a pain to clamp the barrel) and ejector. After the blank, reamer and gauges, budget the full cost of the No.1 over again, you'll easily cruise past $1,000 on the project, more if you need to reblue. It's usually more cost effective to find a rifle in a chambering closer to your ideals, customizing is for when you feel like really burning money for incremental improvements. A lot of folks like 6 Rems and 'Bobs, myself included. Especially so in a No.1.

If continuing on the path Rocky Mountain Rifles barrelled my last No.1 project for me. Good work, not cheap. Personally I'd suggest you look for a .303 No.1, same ballistics you're talking and seeking, super classy, a rimmed chambering for the falling block, and you could crab walk into one at zero cost rather than dropping $1,000-1,500 more.
 
hifiwasabi said:
I've never seen a no. 1 in either of the aforementioned calibers, that's the only reason I posed the question. Doesn't seem like anyone has any love for either the 8x57 or the 338.
Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with either cartridge... I have owned and loaded for both... as far as the Fed goes, it is actually a very well balanced medium range cartridge... but for me, with a plethora of .308's, the .358 Win just makes more sense... i like .35 cals having shot Rem's and Win's and Whelen's and Rem Mag's for many years in many platforms.
 
Before you spend money building a .338 Fed, find ammo, brass and dies first. Even though you're not reloading now. Marketing types think nothing of discontinuing cartridges that don't meet projections with zero regard for existing customers. The .338 Fed isn't exactly common in most places to start with either. Limited availability as only Federal loads it too.
8 x 57 hunting ammo isn't easy to find. Moreso in small places. Be a custom barrel for a No. 1. So would a .338 Fed.
The 'less common x57" a 7 x 57? Or does the 'x' mean something else? If it's having issues with heavier than 100 grain bullets out of a 7 x 57, something is terribly wrong.
200 grain bullets are far heavier than required for either Bullwinkle or Bambi.
 
Between your two choices of 338 Fed and 8x57, i would take 8x57. The Fed is likely to become the next 350 rem Mag, in that one cannot find ammo, brass, or dies. The 8x57 is popular in surplus, likely will remain so for years, but either are realistically reloader only options.

Personally i would choose option C. Some others have said it, keep or sell the existing #1 and buy a different rifle in a more common caliber. If you keep it and put something like $1K into it, what have you gained, especially if all that leaves you is another hard to source reloading only caliber? Either you have a cash neutral option of selling the #1 and buying another, or you keep it and spend the same money you would on a caliber conversion on another rifle and at least have two rifles to show for your trouble. If your rifle is either a 257 Bob or a 6mm Rem, there would be a collectable premium on the rifle which you destroy by rebarreling.
 
hifiwasabi said:
I've never seen a no. 1 in either of the aforementioned calibers, that's the only reason I posed the question. Doesn't seem like anyone has any love for either the 8x57 or the 338.
Click to expand...

They're fine, but Google the ballistics of the .303 British; it's the exact same thing. All cartridges do is spit accelerated lumps of metal of certain weight at certain speed, no critter can tell the .038" difference in bullet diameter between a 200gr .30 cal and a 200gr .338 or 8mm. The .303 will do exactly the weight and speed you're talking, and is factory chambered in No.1s. Put differently, you could keep your current 6mm or .257 No.1 and buy a .303 No.1 too, for the same price as rebarreling your current one. If you don't handload, avoid the niche stuff like the .338 Fed.
 
Of the two cartridges you've mentioned, I would prefer the 8x57. Partly sentimental reasons, I just like old stuff, and the 8x57 is, I believe the 2nd or 3rd smokeless cartridge ever. The other reason is that I've never seen the point of fitting short case rounds into a No. 1. The whole point of the .308 family to begin with was to fit into a certain length of repeating action. The No. 1 has no restraints on cartridge length, so why not go with the longer case?
 
BigUglyMan said:
It's hard to not lust after a 303 in a #1. They just belong together.
Click to expand...

Very accurate little rifle, I got in on the special order ones from Prophet River a few years ago.
My problem is that it had way too long a length of pull to comfortably shoot and I would not chop the stock.
For you, big laddie that you are it likely would have fit very well.
About the same time Bill Leeper built one in 303 for a customer with a tad shorter LOP, fit me just right ( sadly ).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom