Schmidt Rubin 30-30 Conversion 1960s?
- Thread starter otis
- Start date
I've just acquired on in almost new like cond, it does have a very tight
Chamber, also yes it does have the sleeved chamber
Gent I got it from was shooting it, was said to shoot well
He was shooting regular 170 and 150 gr.loads
My plans were to load 125 gr sierra spitzers in it
And load intermediate loadings . Also would use some cast
Loads using a lee 150 gr round nose.bullet, I've seen quite a few of these kicking
About but never in this gd of cond, I own a globco #4 enfield and performs flawlessly
This rifle is certainly beefy enough to house 3030 pressures , looking at the savage
340 with one locking lug and comparing the massive 2 lug lock on this Schmidt
I cannot see any reason they are unsafeunsafe. The only thing is the magazine
Yes it can be finicky with flat pointed bullets, I've found round nose and spitzers
Using dummy rounds to test, cycled better , you also must remember the period the gun is from
As long as pressures are within the actions limit, I see no reason to re chamber if possible
to easier to attain ammo, I've spoke to several owners local who have or once had one of these
Not one complaint except the odd feed issue, mostly caused by rim lock or improper loading of the magazine
I've never heard of a catastrophic failure with one
Chamber, also yes it does have the sleeved chamber
Gent I got it from was shooting it, was said to shoot well
He was shooting regular 170 and 150 gr.loads
My plans were to load 125 gr sierra spitzers in it
And load intermediate loadings . Also would use some cast
Loads using a lee 150 gr round nose.bullet, I've seen quite a few of these kicking
About but never in this gd of cond, I own a globco #4 enfield and performs flawlessly
This rifle is certainly beefy enough to house 3030 pressures , looking at the savage
340 with one locking lug and comparing the massive 2 lug lock on this Schmidt
I cannot see any reason they are unsafeunsafe. The only thing is the magazine
Yes it can be finicky with flat pointed bullets, I've found round nose and spitzers
Using dummy rounds to test, cycled better , you also must remember the period the gun is from
As long as pressures are within the actions limit, I see no reason to re chamber if possible
to easier to attain ammo, I've spoke to several owners local who have or once had one of these
Not one complaint except the odd feed issue, mostly caused by rim lock or improper loading of the magazine
I've never heard of a catastrophic failure with one
I'm sure they must have tested these before issuing to public .
any rifle can be over pressured by either re chambering to a round
Which can develop pressures above and beyond the actions strength
Or even over loading a round the gun was intended to fire, to " hot rod"
It and use it for something not intended, I'm more than sure the
Schmidt Rubin was proofed when built at an over pressure ,
Before acceptance stamps were placed, also many references
Online to where these make great deer carbines due to the fast
Action and the ability to use spitzer style bullets , I will load
For mine, I'd be more than happy to share.load data and range results
Once I'm able to. Do.so,.
any rifle can be over pressured by either re chambering to a round
Which can develop pressures above and beyond the actions strength
Or even over loading a round the gun was intended to fire, to " hot rod"
It and use it for something not intended, I'm more than sure the
Schmidt Rubin was proofed when built at an over pressure ,
Before acceptance stamps were placed, also many references
Online to where these make great deer carbines due to the fast
Action and the ability to use spitzer style bullets , I will load
For mine, I'd be more than happy to share.load data and range results
Once I'm able to. Do.so,.
I have one of those lovely conversions. It has a sleeved chamber and is one of the most accurate 30-30 chambered rifles I have. It's every bit as accurate as the Savage Mod 340 and the Martini that I have with similar chambers. Yes, the chamber is tight on mine as well. Maybe that's why it's so accurate. Mine is the carbine model and a joy to carry. It digests max plus loads without a hiccup and likes bullet weights from 125 grain up to 175 grain flat nose and 180 grain spire points. Very versatile little rifle. I bought mine a long time ago from the old Marshal Wells chain. I think they were going for less than $10 on sale. I got mine even cheaper because the stock was a replacement and wasn't finished.
That rifle has shot a lot of deer and at least one moose. It has also taken several black bears. I would estimate at least 25 junior shooters learned to shoot a center fire on that rifle and many of them took their first deer with it. It is light and handy, especially for a young or smaller shooter that is looking for a light recoiling rifle. Something else to consider, the stocks are iron sight shooters dream stocks. They have the perfect comb drop to keep felt recoil comfortable and the sights almost line themselves up.
Lots of naysayers here but none of us converted those rifles and there is no way to bring them back to original configuration economically. They are plenty strong enough for the 30-30 cartridge and of course if it matters very cheap. That straight pull bolt can be tricky to play with. I just flush mine with diesel fuel by soaking it overnight and blowing it out with compressed air the next day. Just add a bit of light machine oil to it so that it functions smoothly and it has never given me any issues. It has had several thousand bullets down its bore and shows little if any visible wear other than right at the leade but accuracy hasn't diminished.
If you come across one, if you need a cheap accurate knockabout rifle these fill the bill nicely.
Here is something else to consider about milsurps that have been sold off to companies that alter them slightly or drastically. They would have gone to the smelter otherwise and of course, there was a market for them back in the day.
Last fall, I came across a fellow with a beautiful Remington 798 with a laminated stock. It was chambered in 30-06 and when we talked about it he had to be convinced to look at where it was manufactured. He was very surprised to learn it was made in Yugoslavia under contract to Remington. For some reason he felt cheated when I showed him the rifle I was carrying which was a mod 1935 Brazilian Mauser that had its barrel trimmed back to 24 in and the charger guides removed and D&Ted for scope mounts. It shoots like all mod 1935 in exc condition chambered in the venerable 7x57 extremely well.
The 798 owner felt he had been ripped off. He actually had to be convinced the his new rifle was recently produced and was made on one of the most foolproof and strong actions ever designed as well as manufactured out of recent metals which are stronger than those in my cut down surplus rifle.
Lots of people just don't like surplus rifles. Their reasons are mostly emotional rather than realistic.
That rifle has shot a lot of deer and at least one moose. It has also taken several black bears. I would estimate at least 25 junior shooters learned to shoot a center fire on that rifle and many of them took their first deer with it. It is light and handy, especially for a young or smaller shooter that is looking for a light recoiling rifle. Something else to consider, the stocks are iron sight shooters dream stocks. They have the perfect comb drop to keep felt recoil comfortable and the sights almost line themselves up.
Lots of naysayers here but none of us converted those rifles and there is no way to bring them back to original configuration economically. They are plenty strong enough for the 30-30 cartridge and of course if it matters very cheap. That straight pull bolt can be tricky to play with. I just flush mine with diesel fuel by soaking it overnight and blowing it out with compressed air the next day. Just add a bit of light machine oil to it so that it functions smoothly and it has never given me any issues. It has had several thousand bullets down its bore and shows little if any visible wear other than right at the leade but accuracy hasn't diminished.
If you come across one, if you need a cheap accurate knockabout rifle these fill the bill nicely.
Here is something else to consider about milsurps that have been sold off to companies that alter them slightly or drastically. They would have gone to the smelter otherwise and of course, there was a market for them back in the day.
Last fall, I came across a fellow with a beautiful Remington 798 with a laminated stock. It was chambered in 30-06 and when we talked about it he had to be convinced to look at where it was manufactured. He was very surprised to learn it was made in Yugoslavia under contract to Remington. For some reason he felt cheated when I showed him the rifle I was carrying which was a mod 1935 Brazilian Mauser that had its barrel trimmed back to 24 in and the charger guides removed and D&Ted for scope mounts. It shoots like all mod 1935 in exc condition chambered in the venerable 7x57 extremely well.
The 798 owner felt he had been ripped off. He actually had to be convinced the his new rifle was recently produced and was made on one of the most foolproof and strong actions ever designed as well as manufactured out of recent metals which are stronger than those in my cut down surplus rifle.
Lots of people just don't like surplus rifles. Their reasons are mostly emotional rather than realistic.
I'm looking forward to.shoot this one, it's in near new cond
Bluing is perfect, it to.is a carbine length , was drilled on top. For.2 bases
Bore is like.brand new, I find the bolt very nice, the trigger for surplus
Gun of its age is definitely an added bonus, I will be deer hunting
And cast bullet loads for range use, I've always liked the 3030
In a bolt action and single shot to fool around wit spizters
Bluing is perfect, it to.is a carbine length , was drilled on top. For.2 bases
Bore is like.brand new, I find the bolt very nice, the trigger for surplus
Gun of its age is definitely an added bonus, I will be deer hunting
And cast bullet loads for range use, I've always liked the 3030
In a bolt action and single shot to fool around wit spizters
Perhaps, but any known actual incidents of this actually happening?
I have never owned one, but would not hesitate to shoot it. Remember a few guys having them over the years, and they all used them hunting big game with factory ammo.
Have fun, knock down some steel, and put a few hundred pounds of venison in the freezer.
Ted
Well, things are starting to sound pretty good with all these latest comments. I'm getting convinced that I should have a look around for one of these Schmidt conversions. I already have brass, reloading dies, bullet moulds, etc. Maybe I'll give it a go.
I've been reading this thread with great interest. I'm old enough to remember buying milsurps for less than $10 ea at different outlets back when all you needed to buy a rifle was the money! I bought lots and shot the hell out of them, with all manner of ammunition. Most were in their original chamberings but a few were conversions. Never had one that didn't do what it was designed to do.......shoot! Back on point, I have one of these as well. Haven't shot it yet, but I surely will. I was in the loading room just now and made up some dummy rounds to verify some of the comments here.
Here's what I found out about my particular rifle. Chamber is sleeved, and the barrel is 19.25". So, carbine length. No marks to speak of on the wood and the metal is very nice as well. There was some minor pitting caused by poor storage but some transmission fluid and elbow grease got rid of almost all of that.
Now, for the interesting part. I had 4 different .30 cal. cast boolits sized at .3095" Here are the four dummy rounds.
Sorry about the lack of focus, the camera focused on the other stuff on the bench.
From left to right: #311334 sized at .3095" and measured .3000" just ahead of the driving bands.
Next is a 311041 sized at .3095" and measured .2905" just ahead of the bands. The smallest of the four.
Next is a 311413, sized at .3095" and measured .2995" ahead of the bands.
Lastly is number unknown, sized at .3095" and measured .3065" ahead of the bands, the largest of the four. I loaded them in the magazine and cycled the action and all four chambered with no issue other than the last round hit the top of the chamber before chambering. So, four different boolits all sized at .3095" and different groove diameters and all chambered with zero problems.
Your comments are invited.
Mike
Here's what I found out about my particular rifle. Chamber is sleeved, and the barrel is 19.25". So, carbine length. No marks to speak of on the wood and the metal is very nice as well. There was some minor pitting caused by poor storage but some transmission fluid and elbow grease got rid of almost all of that.
Now, for the interesting part. I had 4 different .30 cal. cast boolits sized at .3095" Here are the four dummy rounds.
Sorry about the lack of focus, the camera focused on the other stuff on the bench.
From left to right: #311334 sized at .3095" and measured .3000" just ahead of the driving bands.
Next is a 311041 sized at .3095" and measured .2905" just ahead of the bands. The smallest of the four.
Next is a 311413, sized at .3095" and measured .2995" ahead of the bands.
Lastly is number unknown, sized at .3095" and measured .3065" ahead of the bands, the largest of the four. I loaded them in the magazine and cycled the action and all four chambered with no issue other than the last round hit the top of the chamber before chambering. So, four different boolits all sized at .3095" and different groove diameters and all chambered with zero problems.
Your comments are invited.
Mike
Hey oldrodder, welcome to my little posting. Sounds like you are as old as me, or older. ( no insult intended ) I got interested in these Schmidts thanks to another old guy who remembered them. He also recalled that the 3 groove barrels ended up measuring .307 diameter, and shot well with slightly oversize cast bullets. Just wondering if that's what you measured, since you are sizing to .309. I don't have a gun yet, but do have a decent selection of 30 cal. bullets already cast. Pure linotype no less. Just happen to have a good supply on hand. Got some gas checks too. Just gotta take my time and find a good one.
Otis,
I'm certainly not insulted! Getting old is a privilege denied to too many! About the S-R, I haven't slugged the barrel yet. The boolits were some I had in stock for my other .30 cals. I'm looking forward to playing with this one. Might try paper patching if I can locate an appropriate mould.
Mike
I'm certainly not insulted! Getting old is a privilege denied to too many! About the S-R, I haven't slugged the barrel yet. The boolits were some I had in stock for my other .30 cals. I'm looking forward to playing with this one. Might try paper patching if I can locate an appropriate mould.
Mike
