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My .404 Jeffery: Don't Look Ray!
My .404 Jeffery: Don't Look Ray!
The African Sheep Rifle
:
Winchester M70 Classic Stainless.
McGowen stainless No. 5 sporter 24" long, 1:10" twist.
Brown Precision stock. It weighed 1.5 lbs before I started adding Steel Bed and JB Weld with my own pillars and crossbolts through and throughout.
Trigger is 3.5 lbs.
Rusty McGee did the metal work/gunsmithing.
I did the stock work.
8.0 lbs exactly, with QRW scope bases, no ammo, no sling.
Scope and rings:
Leupold 1.5-5X in QRW QD-lever rings: add 16 ounces
Leupold 2.5XM8 in QRW QD-lever rings: add 12 ounces
1-1/4" Nylon carry strap and Uncle Mike's Super-swivels: add 4.5 ounces
4 rounds of .404 Jeffery ammo: add 6.5 ounces
Field ready, it balances right on the front action screw.
I think I might need to see Rusty again to add the NECG banded ramp front sight with big gold sourdough/patridge. Then the NECG receiver sight to fit the QRW base.
However, I will be over 8 pounds bare if I do that! What's a fellow to do!
Edit: 1 Kg = 2.2 lbs.(pounds)
Edit: 1 pound = 16 oz.(ounces)
16 July 2004, 07:38
MinkmanThats a nice looking piece and looks like lots of fun!
Enjoy
Minkman,
Thank you! Did you notice the map of Africa on the buttstock? The Rift Valley and Kilimanjaro are sculpted in the JB Weld bas relief of this map.
That is Antarctica encircling the swivel base on the butt.
A fun gun for sure! Thanks again.
RIP,
Being a bit mentally challenged when it comes to pounds and ounces, could you tell me how much it weighs (scope, strap and all) in kilos/grams?
Looks like a rifle you'll have a lot of fun with! The africa map is a cool touch.
Erik D.
If this is your sheep rifle, I would lie to see your elephant rifle
You don't need an open sight on a scoped rifle. If you cannot hit them with a scope, you sure are not going to hit them with an open sight
Jokes aside, your rifle looks like it is ready for action.
How does it shoot?
Well, you made my day! I whipped some RIP butt, as my Mod. 70 .416 Rem. elephant rifle only weighs 7.7 lbs.
Great looking rifle.
P.S.
According to the forum, one day an "8 lb." 400 is the greatest thing ever developed and the next a sin. Go figure.
16 July 2004, 10:43
lawndartDude,
You need a Gratefull Dead dancing bear decal on the other side of the buttstock, and then it will be perfect!
JCN
Erik D,
Gun, mounts, scope, sling, and 4 rounds of .404 Jeffery ammo all add up to 9 lbs.-11 oz. with the heavier scope and 9 lbs.-7 oz. with the lighter scope. It is a well balanced loaded and ready for action weight. Balance shifts muzzleward by about a millimeter after each shot is fired and ejected.
Quote:
9 lbs.-11 oz. with the heavier scope and 9 lbs.-7 oz. with the lighter scope.
Does anyone have a conversion table so that a dumb Norwegian can see how many kilos this is? How many ounces are there to a pound? 
Erik D. (Who must seem like a complete dunce for not knowing how many ounces are in a pound... )
Saeed OUR FRIEND,
It will do for elephants too, eh, just like your .375/404?
In fact your habits have made me realize that all the Olde-Express-Rifle paraphernalia is crap on the barrel of a rifle, or just adds dead weight to counter balance a butt-heavy wood stocked rifle with too light a barrel.
The secondary recoil lug can interfere with accuracy, though sometimes not.
The barrel band sling can definitely change the POI with a tight sling in shooting position.
The low power scope is definitely faster and more accurate in any shooting situation except a moonless night, and you can still point-shoot a scoped rifle like a shotgun at spitting distance. Finn Aagaard proved long ago, that the low power scope is better than anything in a combat situation. And the higher power scope is supreme at long range. What does that spell? Answer: V-A-R-I-A-B-L-E P-O-W-E-R S-C-O-P-E
Ghost Ring peep is second best, and open express sights (V and bead) third.
A good Leupold scope (test driven for a couple hundred rounds fired) is probably about as rugged as any useful iron sights, and a whole lot easier to fix in the field by going to a backup scope.
The GOOD synthetic stock, properly bedded, will hold zero and take punishment better than any other stock material, and it is lighter to boot.
A Saeed-Style KISS Principle hunting rifle is the ultimately reliable shooting tool. And I mean that, not just kissing up!
The accuracy of this gun? Well, some of the Woodleigh 400 grain RNSP 3-shot groups were sub-MOA, some about 1.5 MOA. That was in the Winchester milk-jug stock, now it is in a skin-tight-action-free-floated-barrel-Brown-Precision mode, ready for North Forks! I have not tried the 380 grain North Fork softs and solids yet. I have just come into a supply of them
and should be reporting back with better accuracy results I reckon! The 450 grain .458 North Forks were easily sub MOA in my preliminary .45 Lapua shooting.
Come to think of it, maybe this rifle will not get iron sights. I will save those for a walnut stocked CZ 550 .404 Jeffery, to serve as counter balance.
BTW, did you ever add your .404 Jeffery data to the reloading pages? That is a great resource, appreciated by the masses, I am sure I can say. Thanks!
Will,
Your rifle is obviously muzzle-light and butt heavy if you have it in a standard McMillan stock!
I do have a 6 lbs. and 12 oz. Pre-64 M-70 .375 H&H that is in a Brown Pounder stock, with 24" barrel, 0.625" muzzle diameter. Beat that!
Charlie,
If I can find a Grateful Dead dancing bear decal that will fit the cheekpiece, I will do it. I'll be looking for one.
DesertRam,
Thanks for the correct math for ErikD. 16 ounces to the pound here.
Quote:
Does anyone have a conversion table so that a dumb Norwegian can see how many kilos this is? How many ounces are there to a pound?
There are 16 onces in a pound. A kilogram = 2.2 pounds. One pound = 453 grams.
Thanks for enlightening me guys! I must admit though that the metric system seems a lot easier and more logical since everything is split into 10s, 100s, 1000s, and so on. Just like US$ and cents. So it shouldn't be hard to get used to. Eventually you might have no choice!
As far as I know from a friend who's a neurosurgeon in the US, the metric system is already in use over there in the medical profession!
Erik D.
16 July 2004, 13:14
OldsargeA long time ago, the U.S. Congress passed a law mandating that the country would be totally converted to the metric system by the year . . . 1976! The answer from the country was, "Up yours!" and shortly before the "deadline" the law was rescinded. Who knows why we don't convert! Perhaps it is a basic disinclination to have anything to do with something developed by a bunch of French intellectuals. Certainly the system isn't related to anything ergonomic. I mean, what is so damned logical about dividing the Northern Hemisphere into a million and making that the basic unit of measure? What we all should do is take the old nordic fathom as the basic unit and divide
that into 10's, hundred's, etc. It ain't gonna happen, but at least we would have a measurement system that was both logical and human-centered. After all, it's humanity that doing the measuring.
16 July 2004, 13:19
Jeff AlexanderGreat looking rifle!
Jeff
16 July 2004, 13:20
BlacktailerRIP,
That is beautiful! Looks better than the avatar from RonsGuns!
ErikD,
I know, we are probably the only country in the world on the archaic English system- even the Brits abandoned it!
A beauty she ain't, just has a decorative touch on the buttstock, like the tattoo on the butt of a trollop. But functional she is trying to be, and sexy without trying too hard.
16 July 2004, 14:19
AtkinsonThat is an inferior piece of wood, my friend..You must have raided the same woodpile that my friend Saeed uses!!
Ray,
I told you not to look! I knew your sensibilities would be offended.
Nevertheless, you should not speak so unkindly to your bastard sons.
Ain't that right Charlie?
16 July 2004, 15:18
lawndartThis is a common problem in families, bastard or otherwise. One generation reveres fine wood, rust blued CM steel, steel grip caps, turn screws, you get the idea. The kids of course go for the black petrochemical and gray hard chromed look.
I just hope the Sheriff's deputies don't put the cuffs on so tight at the next family reunion as they did at the last.
JCN
16 July 2004, 16:41
D HunterRay, I am not sure why you ever adopted a laminate plywood thing instead of a real piece of wood. I like plywood but I understand a man of principle, deciding that fine wood is something he will have, come hell or high water. A man that decides to sell his Sweet Thang and then goes to plywood. I guess the whole world is going to hell. I am getting old and I guess I just better get me some more scotch and not worry but it seems all the kids are going to hell in a handbasket. Now before we get into the upstart shiny and plastic what more can I say. If it shoots nice I guess I can't argue with it. "D"
16 July 2004, 17:30
fredj338Ah RIP, I luv you man, you can't be all bad because it is a .404, but you're going to give poor Ray a premature heart attack! I like the rifle though, I think a 1/4 rib & nice fixed sights would be out of place though, save them for your CZ. Just to calm Ray down:
16 July 2004, 17:39
Mickey1RIP
That is a nice looking, functional rifle. I am happy to see you come over from the Dark Side, even if your sense of aesthitics hasn't made the trip yet.
Since you seem so happy shooting a stock made from old Michelins and used pop bottles I'm happy too.
Looking forward to the CZ also.
16 July 2004, 18:24
lawndartThe old man doesn't usually do things without a good reason. The fine walnut stock will be whittled and fitted in due course, but the laminate was ready in time for this hunting trip.
Believe it or not, RIP is more the Romantic one, and Ray is the more pragmatic one.
JCN
16 July 2004, 18:35
NitroXHey that stock would look great on a 416 Rem mag!
Thank you all.
Back from the Darkside ... good it is to be.
Saeed, Mickey, Ray, Fred ... well have taught me.
May The Farce be with y'all.
16 July 2004, 19:58
SevensA very tactical working rifle, but I'm with Ray, a big bore should have a wood stock. The Africa map is a nice touch. I always thought branding a rifle with the shape of an encircled cape buffalo would look nice. A cowboy touch to an African rifle. Knock 'em dead.
Sevens
17 July 2004, 02:30
baboonbreederErik D - 16 ounces in a pound
Erik D
check these out mate...
Recoil money weightBakes,
Thanks for the links! I now have the joy of seeing that RIPs rifle weighs 364.4 Shekel, or 7.288 Mina with the help of the weight converter!!!
Erik D.
17 July 2004, 04:20
OldsargeActually, m'PH in Mozambique has such a rifle. 's built on a M98 action opened up at the rear with a black synthetic stock 'n' express sights. Since his huntin' is mostly done in the Zambezi Delta for muggy months at a time, it makes a jolly lot of good sense, wot? But then, it's a craftsman's tool, we're discussin' here, not a "proper" safari rifle . . . like I use!
17 July 2004, 04:45
MacD37That thar thang looks like it cum in a big green card board box, from Wally world! Shoar is a nis won! If you really wont to top it off, put a Harley Davidson decal on one side of the butt stock, and a confederate flag on the other!
The thing looks perfect for the heavy rains, and snows of Africa, and if a tracker drops it from the back of the Bakki, and rips the scope off it, you can surely hit a 200 yd zebra, for your lion bait, shotgun style!
All kidding asside, It is a nicely done rifle, and the only thing I would do is add the iron front sight, and a ghost ring to fit on the back scope base, for emergencies in the field, where, without the irons, you would have to leave the "sight of the fight", to get another scope, or rifle, to finish what you started!
I have several synthetic stocked big bores, but they all have irons on them! One even has decals on the butstock!
MacD37 said
Quote:
That thar thang looks like it cum in a big green card board box, from Wally world! ...
(Rip: Nope. Never bought a gun from Wally, but if you are familiar with the practice, let me know if they ever offer any 10" twist .404's for cheap.)
... Shoar is a nis won! If you really wont to top it off, put a Harley Davidson decal on one side of the butt stock, and a confederate flag on the other! ...
( Rip: Nah, I like the Grateful Dead dancing bear decal idea better.)
... The thing looks perfect for the heavy rains, and snows of Africa, ...
(Rip: Yep, or anywhere in the world.)
... and if a tracker drops it from the back of the Bakki, and rips the scope off it, ...
(Rip: Nope, it will have to be me trying to do the damage, since it is so light and well balanced, I can hop around any which way with it, without having to rely on a tracker to ease me down.)
... you can surely hit a 200 yd zebra, for your lion bait, shotgun style! ...
(Rip: I would rather use the scope, but dang, if it got ripped off, I could pass until it got replaced with the backup scope. And you know those dang trackers have a way of ripping off iron sights about like they do scope sights, if you let 'em.)
... All kidding asside, ...
(Rip: Ass you were saying?)
... It is a nicely done rifle, and the only thing I would do is add the iron front sight, and a ghost ring to fit on the back scope base, for emergencies in the field, where, without the irons, you would have to leave the "sight of the fight", to get another scope, or rifle, to finish what you started! ...
(Rip: Actually, I had thought of hollowing out the butt, QD recoil pad, and sliding a 2.5X Leupold in QD rings in there for backup. But a Talley QD peep might fit in a grip cap better. And if it were really a fight, shotgun style would work fine until I commenced to swinging it like a club. A bayonet lug maybe?)
... I have several synthetic stocked big bores, but they all have irons on them! One even has decals on the butstock!
Mac, you are one open minded guy, and I thought you were a fuddy-duddy! Well, EXCUSE ME!!!
But, the QRW bases do allow the use of a 4X-16X Schmidt&Bender with 34mm tube in Badger rings to be used for accuracy testing with North Forks. That should be a severe enough test of 8X40 screws ... lessee, rifle weighs 8 pounds, scope and rings weigh 2.5 pounds ... too bad Talley doesn't make 34mm rings ... What size bigger screw is next after 8X40's are sheared off?
17 July 2004, 08:48
lawndart1/4" common coarse lag bolt. You'll have to relieve some metal in the base to get the hex head flush. Use the #8 grade. The #5's shear pretty easily.
JCN
JCN,
In that case, I better stick to the lighter Leupolds.
Saeed has such good luck with the 2.5X-8X, I shall try one of my old tested Leupies on it at 8X. Then I will have 3 scopes in case the natives are restless, as Mac says.
Alas, this rifle has got to stay as it is. It is of mixed heritage, a mongrelization of the ideas of Saeed and Ray Atkinson. However, since I cannot conceive of either of them being its Ma, and it can't have two Pa's, it must be a chimera, a little fire breathing monster. The African Sheep Rifle. Atkinson's pet cartridge in a Saeed style shooter, plus decals. I'll save the walnut, blue and iron sights for the CZ .404 Jeffery.
The little monster can be the poster child for Accuratereloading.com Anonymous. "Look how you may become warped if you persist in these wicked ways."
That could be the caption under the photo of Rip caressing his African Sheep Rifle, on the poster. Bold caption at top:
STOP THAT OR YOU WILL GO BLIND! Adios for a week or so. Accuracy report to follow. The epoxy ought to be cured enough to take it by now.
