A couple of Sundays ago, I was whiling away time browsing on the gun selling sites. Always dangerous...

On Gunbroker I ran into an MRC barreled action in .270 WSM, bedded into a McMillan stock by Hill Country Rifles and equipped with a Jewell trigger and Talley bases and rings. Supposedly the rifle would feed well, shoot sub-MOA and did not have a lot of rounds fired - although the seller was already the second owner.

Hmmm, I was not that keen on "second owner", and I was unsure about the MRC barrel. But even if a bit heavy, the action was OK, the stock 1'st class, trigger superb and Hill Country Rifles do have a good reputation... A few years back, I would not have chosen a .270 WSM, but these days, availability of brass, ammo and dies should not be a problem - and it is fast...



The gun was not exactly cheap ($1200 starting bid), but have you priced MRC actions, McMillan stocks and Jewell triggers of late? It was clear that I could not put the rifle together for that money (in particular since I don't do my own gunsmithing). And who knows, it might even be true that the gun shot well...

This week, the gun finally showed up at my friend's (US export to be arranged in the medium term future). He described it as a bit bland looking - a claim hard to refute... But he also stated that the gun fed well, and the trigger was excellent - set at 24 oz (YES!!). The seller had claimed Federal factory 140 grs Nosler Accubonds would shoot decently, so we had acquired a box of that ammo pending arrival of the Forster dies ordered. After boresighting and zeroing, only one group was fired, with the following result



YES!!!! (OK, I know this is only the first group, but with .410" center to center it sure looks promising!).

The velocity is quite high for the bullet in question, which we attribute to what appears to be a fairly tight bore (.277 cal jag and 1" patch are really tight in the barrel).

So it looks like I might have hit paydirt on this gamble. I have to conclude, that MRC barreled actions do have the potential to shoot very well, and that Hill Country Rifles seem to have a well earned reputation. New antelope rifle!!

- mike

Doesn't look "Bland" to me - looks like a Shooter!!!

I don't know how you can live with that group, they're all over the paper! I'll take it off your hands.

I have that same set up minus the Jewell trigger in .30-06. It shoots lights out and I am very happy with it. The trigger that MRC uses (or used since I've had it about 5 years now) could be better since it's a little creepy, but it hasn't affected my ability to shoot with it.

quote:

Originally posted by mho:
New antelope rifle!!

- mike

I didn't know there were antelope in Switzerland.

yeah, we call them moose here!

I don't think it's that bland. Sure no highly figured wood but very functional. Looks as if it's gonna shoot a lot better than a rifle I had that LOOKED similar to yours.
BTW, FYI, I'm getting 3225 fps with a 150 Sierra and a near max. charge of Retumbo in my Extreme Weather .270 WSM and my dies are Forster's too. Good luck.
Bear in Fairbanks

Thanks for sharing my excitement, guys!

quote:

Originally posted by onefunzr2:
I didn't know there were antelope in Switzerland.

You didn't? They are called "Antilocapra Helvetica" and pretty much look like regular pronghorn, except for the color: red with a white cross. Nifty critters...

- mike