In Line Feed...Is it the only true Controlled Feed?

A couple of us were fiddling about here this evening with a 416 Wby and M70 375.

The Wby fed empty cases when the action was worked quickly but the M70 will not and the In Line Feed of the Wby is the reason.

Perhaps the ideal CRF is In Line Feed in conjuntion with the CRF type extractor.

That way the cases would come straight up into the bolt and not be at an angle to the bolt face and obvously in line is always simpler than stagger. The problem of calibers like 458 Lott where bullet diameter is almost chamber diameter and particularly with round nose bullets, would surely be less of a problem with in line feed.

Of course when all else is equal, magazine capacity will be less with in line feed.

What do you think?

Mike

Since I doubt that I would ever go after dangerous (or not) animals with empty cases in the magazine it probably doesn't make much difference to me.

Mike375,
I agree, and to take it one step further, I believe that without inline feeding, the basic premise for the reliability of the Mauser system, suffers to some degree.
Rails, feedramp angle, spring tension, follower configuration and extractor bevels all become so much more critical with the staggered system. I know I'll get clobbered real good for this but I have spent infinitely more time futzing with Mauser reliability issues than any push feed. Sure, once everything is in sync, all is well but it can be downright exasperating at times, as I'm sure you know.

[ 07-19-2002, 23:51: Message edited by: Nickudu ]

You may be right for a commercial rifle where the bean counters never let them get finished..but the m-70's failure to feed came from the improper angle of the extractor that did not guide to center of the chamber hole and thats an easy fix by a good gunsmith...Belk is real handy at that little number....

A cheap Military Mauser is almost impossible to make fail in its original form and caliber. I don't think I have ever seen a good military Mauser jam...failure comes with gunsmiths changing some things and not others to balance it all up and keep everything in perspective and that comes from not understanding the Mauser...

I doubt the stright line feeding has much to offer over a properly tuned staggerd magazine. At least that is what I THINK..

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Atkinson:

"I doubt the straight line feeding has much to offer over a properly tuned staggerd magazine. At least that is what I THINK.."

Agreed! But I still might use the inline system on my .500 Jeffrey rifle project.

Mike375,

Good point to consider, a sort of re-epiphany.

The in-line system cured the ails of the Mauser in dealing with the 425 Westley Richards rebated rim of 30-06 size. That straight stack magazine could be recharged by thumbing in five rounds from a stripper clip too! Great for speed loading a DGR.

Combine the straight stack with a non-rebated rim and it would surely be infallible.

Except for the slightly ugly and cumbersome magazine box projection below the stock, a straight stack of 5 rounds of 577 T.rex would be sweet!

But with this system, a reliable DGR could be easily mass produced, and the mystique of the high priced custom bolt actions would vanish.

Could this be the next Ruger trick via seance communication from The Happy Hunting Ground?

RAB,

Although it only holds 2 416s it will hold 3 375 H&Hs which is of course is the same as the staggered feed Mark Vs in 300 etc. Won't work with H&Hs but I think it might be fine as is with Ultra cases. A second bolt

A a fellow time waster with big bores this rifle may have something of interest to you.

The rifle was mine and it has now come back home and was purchased when the 416 "come back to life program" was first started. Back in about 1989 the rise again of the 416 was predicted to end not only the 375 H&H but everythiong down to 22/250 This is the Euromark and also obtained was one of the McMillan fiberglass stocks that look sort of like wood....at least from a distance.

I had about a 1/4" machined of each side of the recoil lug and a steel plate about 5" X 1" X .25" made with a slot machined at one end for the recoil lug to fit. The plate is full of holes and epoxied into the stock. No second recoil lug needed. It was done to allow switching between 416 Wby and the 338/378, when that caliber was a wildcat. The barrel lug was also machined of the 416 barrel so it would fit OK.

Maybe the ideal rifle is vertical stack and CRF Savage style. That way no extractor cut for the back of the barrel which then allows changing barrels between actions. Personally, I have never really seen any evidence of reliability with CRF but I do like it because of simple things like running cartridges through the magazine and not having to close the bolt down etc.

Mike

[ 07-20-2002, 09:43: Message edited by: Mike375 ]

Mike,
I am having these wierd thoughts about a 460 Weatherby Mark V being the perfect DGR, with one cartridge up the spout and two in-line stacked in the magazine! I must be ill! Maybe I will snap out of it soon.

Mike, though not a dangerous game rifle, my pre 64 model 70 featherweight 358 Win caliber, feeds empty cases just as slick as loaded ones. What a hoot to feed them as fast as I can work the bolt, and then feed them ultra slow, and marvel at the genius of Mauser..........

I have owned a couple of Mauser Mod.66's and they are an absolute marvel of invention and probably closer to 100% feed and extract than any rifle I have used out of the box...I even had one made by Gary Gowdy and it had the nicest wood I have ever seen. it was beatifully stocked

The problem is they look like a Mossberg shotgun with boil!! and a custom stock makes them look like a deluxe Mossberg shotgun with a boil......

/

Alf,
yes that is correct, and the action is considerably shorter over all than any other action for caliber that I can think of off hand..

Most of them have very blond wood, however it is very good European walnut, just some of the lesser choice...

It is indeed an interresting rifle, and I hunted with mine for a short time..I see it is for sale in the gunlist as we speak for $1650. the stock alone is worth the price. I saw it listed with James Wayne in the gunlist and he had it marked down form $2750. Page 44, item 10, Aug. 2 gunlist.
I know he is losing about a $1000. on it.