rebarreling or coverting stevens favorite to 22rf or centerfire

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buckbrushoutdoors

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Questions for all of you qualified smiths and hobbyists. I inherited a Stevens favorite in 32 long rim fire. With the cartridge no longer in production I was curious if I could make this old rifle shoot again. Maybe covert it to 22 rim fire or possible a small centerfire such as the 22 hornet or handgun rounds. I was thinking remove the old barrel and put a .22 blank and have it fitted or buy a cheap 22 and steal the barrel. Not sure where the firing pin would end up though so maybe a centirefire would line up better. Any ideas? Id hate to see my grandpas go out as a wall hanger.

Thanks
 
22LR is the safe limit for a favourite in my opinion. However opinions vary. I have heard about some converted to 32 s&w.

You could also visit the antique section on here and read about the "reloadable 32 rimfire rounds" they are making/using.
 
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What is the bore like? If it's in decent condition converting it to center fire is an option. Or get some of those reloadable casings that use the nail gun blanks as the power source to push a bullet or round ball down the bore. Otherwise I'd suggest re-barrel to .22 LR. These are not strong actions so anything more powerful than the original .32RF or a new .22LR is not a wise risk.

There's two ways to do that. Sleeve it and then modify the rising block to reposition the firing pin so it lines up with the new diameter rim. Or fit a whole new barrel that is cut such that it positions the chamber off center a little so the rim lines up with the stock firing pin location.

If you would require a smith to do this work then it's likely not going to prove to be cost effective. The cost of the work is almost certainly going to be more than the gun is worth in the end. But if you have a home shop then it's something you can do and enjoy.
 
I know of three of these guns converted to centerfire. Friend of mine has one and its beautiful. Easiest would be to 32 smith and wesson. The other I have seen was a 32-20 which I believe might be bit much for an old gun but the owner fired quite a few rounds without a problem. Check the almighty Internet and you will find ideas.
One of the 32 S&W conversion was discussed here on cgn. I will try to post a link if I find it.
 
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.22, and standard velocity ammo, and you are pretty much at about the limits of what a Favorite action will take safely for any length of time.

Really, I have no objections to you taking your own eyes out, I simply recommend against it, and would rather not be the guy standing by at the range when it happens.

The Model 44 action by Stevens is a bit bigger and far stronger, and most of the guys with more experience with those than I are of the opinion that they are best off as a Rimfire too. Watch, as I have seen several 44 actions being sold off as 44 1/2 Models, which is a whole 'nuther animal, in that they (the 44 1/2) are an actual falling block action and reasonably strong, as opposed to the Favorite and 44, which are a swinging block. A 44 1/2 is a pretty darn nice start to a CF gopher getter or similar!

Anything that has any real risk of getting actual full power ammo of any centerfire cal, should be built on a better action than those.

I have and have had several Favorites. I barely trusted them at .22 power levels, and frankly, would not wish to be around one in a Hornet, as the odds of it grenading are altogether realistic. Same with 32-20. There is factory ammo out there that will do damage to Antique guns that were chambered for that caliber, which was actually intended for use in better built rifles, and you have no way to stop someone else from buying that ammo and loading into the gun that you were pretty sure would only ever be fed 'your' weak loads. Best not.

The castings used for the actions were pretty skimpy stuff, and the whole force of firing, is held in check by two pins, the cross screw that the breech block pivots upon, and the one that the lever pivot on. The breech block pin is not fully supported on either side of the block, allowing a LOT of flex. The lever pin is a bit better supported. That is all that holds things together in a new condition one. Any wear, and you are worse off.

Cheers
Trev
 
I'm a sucker for the old boy's rifles and I've got a couple of Crackshots and a couple of Remington 6's. I love them but I realize that they are every bit as limited as Trev describes. So those are wise words to consider.

It would be an amazing gun done as a .22LR which you then limit to SV ammo. It's superb fun to plink away at one of those flip up Caldwell steel targets with a mitt full of reloads stuffed between the fingers of my support hand. But I'd stick to SV or even lower power ammo as the cartridge of choice with these older and "softer" guns.
 
I was in the same boat years ago with a .32rf Favourite. Took it to my gunsmith, who replaced the barrel with an old 26" cooey .22 barrel he had lying around, and then replaced the breechblock with one form a .25rf. I fixed it up into a mini-buffalo rifle for the boys with an aperture sight and everything. In total, the gunsmith charged me under $200 for the work (barrel fitting, chambering, and parts), but he already had the old parts, so other smiths might charge more. I did everything else, including grinding the barrel to octagonal shape, stock work and polishing. You have to decide if the old girl is worth it. Mine sure looks pretty now. All I have left is to blue most of it and colour case-harden the receiver and breechblock.
The existing breechblock won't position the firing pin tip correctly for .22lr, so it will need work to modify it or do as my gunsmith did and replace it with either a .22 or a .25 breechblock. I agree with others in that the Favourite isn't a strong action, and would be dangerous to convert to any centrefire.
 
I had my builder do this to a old favorite new Green Mountain Barrel in 22rf ,new wood, colour casehardened the action and then gave it to my son for his 12th birthday.


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Mountainmw said:
Here is a video from MidwayUSA detailing a conversion of a Remington rolling block from 32 rimfire to 32-20 Winchester centerfire

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KfFxjX4jMkU
Click to expand...

Which has precisely nothing at all to do with a Stevens Favorite.

The Remington No 1 action they are working with in that video is a full size rifle action, originally made by Remington to provide a relatively inexpensive way for Countries to convert older arms to cartridge use. Not in the same class, nor even, in the same school, as the cheaply made Boys Rifle that he favorite is.

Cheers
Trev
 
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