For a number of years, I've written about a special project rifle of mine, a Remington-manufactured P14 that I picked up at a gun show for $40 in 1999. I call this rifle the "Eskimo Rifle" because one of its previous owners was an old Inuit trapper who used it for decades as his main rifle. He also put a huge amount of TLC into this rifle, having sporterized the stock, installed a recoil pad, and inlaid the thing with polished walrus ivory. As of tonight, I've figured out how to post photos on CGN, so I thought I'd share some pics of this unique firearm.
You should also note that I did some customization, as well. I had a gunsmith friend re-cut the chamber with a .300 Winchester Magnum reamer to yield a ".303 Winchester Magnum". I also installed a custom magnum-length follower (which cost about as much as the rifle did, LOL) and a longer magazine box, in addition to having the ears ground off and a scope mounted. I also installed a Numrich "speedlock" striker assembly, which converts the action to ####-on-opening. This too, cost me nearly as much as I paid for the rifle at the gun show. To keep this project on the ultra-cheap side, I used a scope that a buddy gave me years ago, an old Redfield. As for bedding, I used a bit of walnut sawdust mixed with epoxy in the action area and under the barrel at the forend.
Rifle:
I've never actually hunted with this rifle, and I thought I would change that situation. This year, my original plan was to take this with me after Mule deer as my backup rifle. You may not believe it, but this rifle has been a hell of a shooter in the past. Here is a 200-metre target from 2001 that was shot by myself and a buddy. The first shot low and to the left was the fouler from a cold, clean barrel:
Unfortunately, my supply of N160 dried up and I never bought any more. I have some N560, but I want to save it for my .30-06. Bearing in mind the "cheap" theme of this whole undertaking, I noted that I had a few stray cans of IMR 4831 kicking around in various stages of consumption and a large box of blemished Hornady 150 SPs. I bought the blemished bullets a few years ago in a blowout sale.
I took this rifle to the range yesterday. After re-setting the zero, I tried a few different loads, 71, 72, 73 and 74 grains of IMR 4831. I was surprised to see how similar all the loads were, in terms of accuracy. Here is a representative target (fired at 100 metres):
Clearly, it's not up to the standard of the old load, but I think it would be more than adequate for hunting. I think I'll stick with 73 grains of IMR 4831 and call it done. From my previous experiences over a chronograph with this bullet, this rifle and this powder, I am fairly confident that the velocity is about 3,050, or a bit more. If placed carefully, I'm sure that it will be more than enough for deer. For moose, however, I'll have to work up another load in the future. Fortunately, I've managed to acquire a box of 174-grain Woodleigh Weldcores for that task, but that will be another day and another project. For now, I'll stick with the 150s.
I purposefully do not want to crank the loads in this rifle. The barrel is actually fairly pitted and I don't want to burn it out any faster than I have to. I am also not a fan of the idea of pushing a Hornady spire point at too much more than 3,000 fps, especially a bullet designed for the .303 British.
After my experience with this rifle yesterday, I have half a mind to use this as my MAIN rifle on the deer hunting trip in November. I was especially enthused because yesterday I saw a number of fellows on the range zeroing in their hunting rifles. Most of them were quite new and fancy (including a guy with a brand-new Steyr), and they were using expensive premium factory ammunition. How many of them do you think shot as consistently as my Eskimo Rifle?
You should also note that I did some customization, as well. I had a gunsmith friend re-cut the chamber with a .300 Winchester Magnum reamer to yield a ".303 Winchester Magnum". I also installed a custom magnum-length follower (which cost about as much as the rifle did, LOL) and a longer magazine box, in addition to having the ears ground off and a scope mounted. I also installed a Numrich "speedlock" striker assembly, which converts the action to ####-on-opening. This too, cost me nearly as much as I paid for the rifle at the gun show. To keep this project on the ultra-cheap side, I used a scope that a buddy gave me years ago, an old Redfield. As for bedding, I used a bit of walnut sawdust mixed with epoxy in the action area and under the barrel at the forend.
Rifle:
I've never actually hunted with this rifle, and I thought I would change that situation. This year, my original plan was to take this with me after Mule deer as my backup rifle. You may not believe it, but this rifle has been a hell of a shooter in the past. Here is a 200-metre target from 2001 that was shot by myself and a buddy. The first shot low and to the left was the fouler from a cold, clean barrel:
Unfortunately, my supply of N160 dried up and I never bought any more. I have some N560, but I want to save it for my .30-06. Bearing in mind the "cheap" theme of this whole undertaking, I noted that I had a few stray cans of IMR 4831 kicking around in various stages of consumption and a large box of blemished Hornady 150 SPs. I bought the blemished bullets a few years ago in a blowout sale.
I took this rifle to the range yesterday. After re-setting the zero, I tried a few different loads, 71, 72, 73 and 74 grains of IMR 4831. I was surprised to see how similar all the loads were, in terms of accuracy. Here is a representative target (fired at 100 metres):
Clearly, it's not up to the standard of the old load, but I think it would be more than adequate for hunting. I think I'll stick with 73 grains of IMR 4831 and call it done. From my previous experiences over a chronograph with this bullet, this rifle and this powder, I am fairly confident that the velocity is about 3,050, or a bit more. If placed carefully, I'm sure that it will be more than enough for deer. For moose, however, I'll have to work up another load in the future. Fortunately, I've managed to acquire a box of 174-grain Woodleigh Weldcores for that task, but that will be another day and another project. For now, I'll stick with the 150s.
I purposefully do not want to crank the loads in this rifle. The barrel is actually fairly pitted and I don't want to burn it out any faster than I have to. I am also not a fan of the idea of pushing a Hornady spire point at too much more than 3,000 fps, especially a bullet designed for the .303 British.
After my experience with this rifle yesterday, I have half a mind to use this as my MAIN rifle on the deer hunting trip in November. I was especially enthused because yesterday I saw a number of fellows on the range zeroing in their hunting rifles. Most of them were quite new and fancy (including a guy with a brand-new Steyr), and they were using expensive premium factory ammunition. How many of them do you think shot as consistently as my Eskimo Rifle?
