Winchester Mdl 54 30-06

[Leeper]

At the time the drilling was probably done, it was common to have small diameter scopes mounted a bit high. Also common were scopes which mounted ahead of the bolt handle. The handle is very much like that of the 03 Springfield and requires the same cut-off and replace operation as a Springfield would if the scope is too be mounted low and over the bore. This used to be a very common gunsmithing task but has come to be regarded as something like voodoo today. The trigger is a two stage (which I don't mind) and does double duty as the bolt stop (which I do mind). I installed a Mauser stop on mine and filled in the notch on the bolt body. I welded on a new handle and installed a low-scope safety. I altered the receiver so I could use Model 70 bottom metal and drilled and tapped the bridge for the rear base (the receiver ring is already drilled and tapped). In the end, I have a rifle which is almost a Model 70 but not quite. I barrelled it in 256 Newton. With the old Leupold Pioneer scope in a Beuhler Micro-dial mount, it makes a great antelope rifle which would have been the envy of the camp in 1950. All in all, not a lot different than building a rifle on a 98 Mauser action. Now that I am just a hobby gunsmith, projects like this are just for fun. The rifle pictured would make a fine project rifle or, as mentioned, a good rough use rifle as-is.