Summersw
Member
Long range shooting and Tactical rifles are my passion...
However, carrying around a 17-20lb rifle gets old very very quick and I am young and in good shape. Some of the rifles we shoot are basically re-shaped boat anchors in my opinion. They already weigh too much before you add ammo, sling, bi-pods, and of course a scope. Now you really have something able to hold you down if your head is full of hot air.
That being said, I wanted to create a "Light Tactical" style rifle still able to hold 1 MOA @ 1000 and be practical. For those of you that are skeptical here is how my gunsmith and dear friend Steve and I built this amazing rifle. I designed/dreamed and he put the parts together. Here is how we achieved it...(Pictures will be attachments to assure detail)
1.) [Pic 1]We started with a regular Rem700 short action. First a good cleaning then a full slab sided cut almost all the way down the left hand side. Then a corresponding slab cut on the back right side of the action. Never the front because we wanted to ensure structural stability. Action was drilled and tapped for oversized 8X40 screws on scope mounts.
2.) [Pic 2] Next we approached the bolt. I wanted it to have some Swagger and to be perfect. So after a complete squaring, blue print, and firing pin centering it was time for computer designed right-hand twist spiral fluting. This was followed by 3 different sized holes drilled into the handle itself and a custom bolt shroud bringing up the rear.
3.) [Pic 3] One of my requirements was that the rifle have a bull barrel. No pencil or mountain barrels on this bad boy! So how to cut weight? First we took a benchrest quality barrel that was 28 inches long and cut it to 20 inches. (I do not remember the make either benchmark, lija, etc.) With new powders velocity was not an issue to get way out there. Barrel was then put on the lathe to bring it down just a few thousandths and ensure smoothness, followed by threading 1/2X28 and target crowned. Now it needed to be fluted. I had a choice of round or V shaped fluting. The shapes cut into and perpendicular to the barrel looked like this "U" or this "V". After some simple math it was determined that the U took up more space so I chose that, less weight of course. Computer design ensured it was a deep as possible and all the way around. Lastly it was match reamed, headspace set to 0, and long throated in case it wanted to eat some heavies.
4.) [Pic 4] Now the barrel and action were assembled with a standard recoil lug and some 3+ coats of mat-black duracoat were applied for protection. Time to choose a stock. I wanted light weight, strength, full length aluminum block, 3 swivels, and most important: Swagger & Comfort. I settled on the carbon fiber Manners M40 style with Spider-Web black and tan paint job.
5.) [Pic 5] Time to add accessories. First a Harris BRM Bi-pod for stability. Next, a set of oversized bases and rings. Then a scope. I would love for this rifle to wear a Nightforce F1, however to be practical and better fit the mid range optics weight it wears a Bushnell 10X Mil-Mil scope. More than enough for now.
6.) After a break in period and lapping bullets everything was ready to go. Wolf 55 and 62 grain ammo will touch out too 150yards and they will fit into a soda can bottom at 400 and 500 yards. With custom loads I have not found the top end yet. Everything is at or under 1 MOA. Just took out about a 200lb doe at almost 300 with a 75gr AMAX. Boom Flop.
So now for the total weight!
Fully decked out this rifle weighs 9.8 pounds. That means that you add your ammo and your still fall UNDER 10 lbs. A true Tactical Rifle that is a pleasure to shoot and carry. The rifle never leaves my side and has earned my trust like none before it. It always draws attention when people lay eyes on it and everyone wants to take a few shots. If you have any questions or such just message me. I will be happy to answer them. Merry Christmas
"Aim Small, Miss Small"
Thanks Everyone,
Weston H. Summers
However, carrying around a 17-20lb rifle gets old very very quick and I am young and in good shape. Some of the rifles we shoot are basically re-shaped boat anchors in my opinion. They already weigh too much before you add ammo, sling, bi-pods, and of course a scope. Now you really have something able to hold you down if your head is full of hot air.
That being said, I wanted to create a "Light Tactical" style rifle still able to hold 1 MOA @ 1000 and be practical. For those of you that are skeptical here is how my gunsmith and dear friend Steve and I built this amazing rifle. I designed/dreamed and he put the parts together. Here is how we achieved it...(Pictures will be attachments to assure detail)
1.) [Pic 1]We started with a regular Rem700 short action. First a good cleaning then a full slab sided cut almost all the way down the left hand side. Then a corresponding slab cut on the back right side of the action. Never the front because we wanted to ensure structural stability. Action was drilled and tapped for oversized 8X40 screws on scope mounts.
2.) [Pic 2] Next we approached the bolt. I wanted it to have some Swagger and to be perfect. So after a complete squaring, blue print, and firing pin centering it was time for computer designed right-hand twist spiral fluting. This was followed by 3 different sized holes drilled into the handle itself and a custom bolt shroud bringing up the rear.
3.) [Pic 3] One of my requirements was that the rifle have a bull barrel. No pencil or mountain barrels on this bad boy! So how to cut weight? First we took a benchrest quality barrel that was 28 inches long and cut it to 20 inches. (I do not remember the make either benchmark, lija, etc.) With new powders velocity was not an issue to get way out there. Barrel was then put on the lathe to bring it down just a few thousandths and ensure smoothness, followed by threading 1/2X28 and target crowned. Now it needed to be fluted. I had a choice of round or V shaped fluting. The shapes cut into and perpendicular to the barrel looked like this "U" or this "V". After some simple math it was determined that the U took up more space so I chose that, less weight of course. Computer design ensured it was a deep as possible and all the way around. Lastly it was match reamed, headspace set to 0, and long throated in case it wanted to eat some heavies.
4.) [Pic 4] Now the barrel and action were assembled with a standard recoil lug and some 3+ coats of mat-black duracoat were applied for protection. Time to choose a stock. I wanted light weight, strength, full length aluminum block, 3 swivels, and most important: Swagger & Comfort. I settled on the carbon fiber Manners M40 style with Spider-Web black and tan paint job.
5.) [Pic 5] Time to add accessories. First a Harris BRM Bi-pod for stability. Next, a set of oversized bases and rings. Then a scope. I would love for this rifle to wear a Nightforce F1, however to be practical and better fit the mid range optics weight it wears a Bushnell 10X Mil-Mil scope. More than enough for now.
6.) After a break in period and lapping bullets everything was ready to go. Wolf 55 and 62 grain ammo will touch out too 150yards and they will fit into a soda can bottom at 400 and 500 yards. With custom loads I have not found the top end yet. Everything is at or under 1 MOA. Just took out about a 200lb doe at almost 300 with a 75gr AMAX. Boom Flop.
So now for the total weight!
Fully decked out this rifle weighs 9.8 pounds. That means that you add your ammo and your still fall UNDER 10 lbs. A true Tactical Rifle that is a pleasure to shoot and carry. The rifle never leaves my side and has earned my trust like none before it. It always draws attention when people lay eyes on it and everyone wants to take a few shots. If you have any questions or such just message me. I will be happy to answer them. Merry Christmas"Aim Small, Miss Small"
Thanks Everyone,
Weston H. Summers
