What is your dream rifle? Do you own it or just dream? My dream rifle is built on a small ring short action Mauser. It will have a 26-27" medium sporter barrel and a British/European style stock of the 1920-30s. It will be in either 6.5x55 or 7x57. I think the 6.5x55 is better for my purposes, but I've read Bell's books. I'll use it to hunt Texas whitetails and pigs. I'll probably never own it though because for what it'll cost to build I can buy three "rack" Mausers or Remingtons. capt david

Mauser 98 in 450 caliber, but any classical big bore would make me happy.

Sevens

I don't dream as big as others but I sent off a M70 classic action to Mark Penrod on Monday. This will be the dream gun. Probably the only custom rifle I will get to have built just for me.



As stated a M70 Classic. Here are the details of Mark's work on it.

1 Krieger 30 cal 1-10" twist chrome moly barrel w/ Penrod contour .635" Muzzel Dia. @ 26"Action squared and barrel installed in 300 Weatherby Magnum

2 Modifiy tang shape

3 Build up bolt release tab and checker tab

4 Narrow and restyle trigger face

5 Hex head guard screws

6 New 3 panel bolt knob installed, Less sweep back than factory, maintaining factory low profile

7 Chrome moly extractor

8 Drill & Tap receiver for 8 x 40 screws, drill & counterbore bases, fit bases to receiver

9 Supply Talley low rings and bases, torx screws, no levers

10 Blackburn #4 bottom metal w/ box and #4 follower

11 Machine receiver for wider box

12 Polish bottom metal

13 Repin trigger and bolt stop

14 Trigger job, sears surface ground. Pull set to 2 1/4 lbs, safety timed.



After getting it back from Mark come mid-autum the new barreled action will go to Serengeti for a Merllin pattern stock and thier "Falcon Coat" finish. Still working the details with Larry but it will include a ebony foreend tip, Tally sling swivel studs and a few more modest embellishments.



After stocking the bolt & follower go back to Mark for jeweling



Primary scope is a Leupold VX-III in 3.5-10. A spare straight 6X in it's own rings for backup.



Should do me right by me for anything in NA except brown bears and most everything in Africa except Buff, rhino, Hippo, and elephant should I ever be so lucky as to go there. The only one of the four listed I would be interested in hunting would be buff anyway

Mine is sitting in the gun case next to me as I type this. A mid-seventies push bolt M70 in 375h&h. It will hunt anything anywhere, and never give me a moments trouble. At least, it has so far.

DGK

I can't even begin to reply to this properly, it wo uld take way too much thought and I could never decide on just one. Not to complicate it, but it begs the question, is this dream gun to add to our current collection, or if you could have just one? Since it doesn't say just one I will go with the first and come up with one thought:

-338 Win. Mag.
-1917 Remington Action-Full Ultimate Enfield job by Burgess (but retain the original safety)
-Half Moon barrel at 24"
-1/4 ramp with Wisner safari sight (replica of win. pre 64 458 site)
-Burgess front site with folding blade
-Barrel mounted sling attachment (not banded) in Mauser Model A style
-Turkish or English walnut stock with gorgeous caking, slightly orange tint with chocolate colored marbling.
-Checkering by Gary Goudy, similar to the Mystic Maze pattern from Linden's book
-Two piece skeletonized grip cap by Dressel (just saw a pic of this in an old article online)
-Hemp canvas and leather sling with period proper (mauser model a) hook attachments
-Fitted case my Huey in leather with blue baize interior
-matching redhead gun bearer, 5'5", 34C, green eyes, thin, between 20-25

Red

Daga Red, do you have the number for Half Moon handy? I'm away from my "Black Book" and would like to give Jim a call yesterday.

Thanks,

Chuck

I actually built mine:
M70 / .280REm. in a very light wt. walnut stock based on the Win. ft.wt., Neidner butt plate, skeleton grip cap. recessed swivels, 7 1/4# ready to hunt w/ Leup. 3-9comp. My friends tell me it's too pretty to hunt, but I do anyway, that's why I had it made.
My other dream gun is a double rifle in .458, probably .450#2. It may happen some day.

A left handed version of a Ruger m77RS (express) in .300 Win Mag, and a left handed version of the Ruger m77mk2RSM in .458 Lott I know this is two rifles, but i just love them.

A semi automatic 20 gage shotgun that NEVER misses, ANYTHING!
Ron

I have a lot of dreams, but right now, I suppose its a Winchester 88 in .284.

I have an Echols-built custom Model 70 in .300 Win. Mag. with a 3.5-10X Leica scope on top that is certainly my current favorite hunting gun, and likely fits the "dream rifle" definition for me as well as anything I've owned. I ordered it four years ago to replace my old custom .300 Win., and I received it early in 2001. So far, it's been hunted with in a half-dozen states plus Africa for some thirty big game animals, including some of my all-time best trophies

Favorite rifles become favorites for any number of reasons, and this particular rifle is my favorite simply because it absolutely works no matter what, never changes zero no matter how many airplane flights it logs, and always shoots little tiny groups to exactly the same place every time I take it out, and it does so if the barrel is cold and clean or fouled. Feeding is flawless and effortless, and this rifle balances beautifully and seems to point itself. What I need out of a rifle is exactly what this one gives me every time, and I trust it implicitly. It has a long career ahead of it.

This .300 isn't a pretty rifle in the traditional sense with it's black painted fiberglass stock, but I'm not easily bamboozled by cosmetics, and found out long ago that pretty is as pretty does. In that regard, this .300 Win. of mine is pretty indeed.........

AD

One of my favorite things to contemplate. I think an original Oberndorf Mauser in 9.3X62 would make me feel pretty giddy. Seen one around for sale latley?

Sorry, don't have his number at all. I sent him an e-mail requesting a 416 barrel about a week or two ago, haven't hear back yet though.

Red

No Worries, I found it.

Thanks,

Chuck

1) Pre-garcia Sako action.

2) Full stock of lightweight, high-grade english, preferably with some fiddelback.

3) 22" CM pac-nor in a contour exactly between the 700 mountain rifle contour and the standard 700 contour.

4) 1-8" twist barrel

5) 6.5x58 Portugese Mauser

6) Matte blue on all metal surfaces, except the bolt body.

7) top it with a 2-7x Nikon (matte) in conetrol rings and bases.

Yes, that would do nicely.

left hand 700 short .358 winchester. macmillian swirly stock. lilja #3 barrel. presently being built by mike bryant.Can not wait to shoot.

My dream rifle is a "Legend" in .338WM, made by D'Arcy Echols.

But my reality rifle (the one I have) is a Ruger M77 MK-II, stainless, in .338WM.

I have had my dream rifles for a while now. I like .358 Winchesters. They are not better than your gun but they work well for me. From left to right is the 99F that does the work, a dream pre 64, a back up 99F and a 77-1 in my possesion for a tune up for it's owner.

I got lucky.

I own one, a pre-64 M70, NIB, .338. My uncle gave me his (same model) years ago before I knew what they were; then I had to have one just to look at.

My other dream gun is a BAR. Still looking.

Now, there is a man after my own heart! I own four of these in very nice condition and they do it for me. I now own most of the guns I dreamt of as a boy growing up in materially poor circumstances and I have a few others planned for which I have the relatively rare actions I want to use.

So, for an actual hunting/working rifle, I would be utterly ecstatic with the Darcy Echols Legend in .375 H&H that Allen Day owns; this is about as close to a perfect "one world" rifle as can be had, IMO.

For a fun gun, I want a "capegun" in 9.3x74R-12 ga., made in the '30s by Wm. Foerster, Robt. Hubner or J.J. & P Reeb of Germany; this on a "double-Greener" action with claw mts., express sights and that fabulous, tiny scoll engraving that Hubner did.

Of course, I have several other dream guns, but, I am not too badly off in terms of fine, classic guns and enjoy what I am fortunate enough to have.

Way out there but the MINI-Gun from Predator might be fun.

Ted has a great point there, that mini-gun would be something else, wouldn't want to shoot my deer with it, but I know this stand of old growth that has so much deadfall you can't move without making a racket and there is this great big buck in there that we just can't get. That mini-gun would make match sticks out of that hill in short order.

:-)

The two guns I wish to and will own are a pair of rifles built by D'Arcy Echols chambered for the 300 WM and 375 H&H (I made the mistake of handeling and shooting Allen's 375 that Kutenay spoke about and would love a LH copy). So they'll both be synthetic stocked "Legends" I presume. My 7mm Rem Mag (Model 70) built by Bill Leeper isn't going anywhere eigther.



Chuck

I would have to say the one I have now:


1903-A3 Springfield in .338 Win Mag, 3-9x Burris, Wenig stock and 23in Douglass barrel

Although, if someone wants to give me a H & H double in .470 Nitro I wouldn't refuse it

My dream gun a pre-64 model 70 in 9.3X62.,
triple A claro stock carved in a classic straight stock, fleur de lis checkering pattern of 22-27 lines/inch, skeleton grip cap, ring around the barrel.
Adjustable peep sight on the bolt shroud, white lined blade or sourdough front sight, perfection in feeding cycle.
Smoothened action. This would go a long way specially if it had an identical twin in 6.5x55 or .284 Win.

Kutenaymntnboy,
Actually one of those 9.3x74R SxS from Merkel would be quite satisfactory for me. They can be had for about 3000.-Euros.m I handled one 2 years ago and have been thinking of it ever since.Sigh!

Tikka Dlx. M65 270win w/oiled stock

The exact rifle I sold while going through college

Springfield Armory, M-14 M1A

My partner say's I'm nuts but I want and dream about a
true
LEFT HAND MAUSER in 9.3x70

I would like to add these to my CZ 550 action:

25" Quarter ribbed barrel, probably a Lilja or something, not stainless steel..

Timney Trigger

adjustable express sights & front site hood

barrel band swivel

Wisner magazine bottom for 1 more round

NP3 finish on all metal parts

Black McMillan stock (and maybe a nice fancy wood stock later)

My biggest hurdle is that damn quarter ribbed barrel!

Fine, here is another one:

My beautiful 09 Argentine action (been saving it)
Octagon Barrel by Mark Stratton
Open sights only, not sure which ones
Stocked by Chic Worthing in beautifully figured English Walnut, svelte shape and light weight
Steel buttplate with Roger Kehr's engraving (a wolf?)
Steel gripcap with more engraving (a new family crest)
Action slow rust blued with 50% coverage by Roger, caliber 275 Rigby marked in gold inlay on the top of the quarter rib

My 458 Lott will also fit the bill for dream rifle, why don't I list all that:

It is a 1917 Winchester with 22" Apex barrel, when it comes back it will have:

-reshaped tang to allow better angle of wrist and grip in the stock
-straightened and prettied bottom metal
-Guide rib added to bolt with slot cut for it in the bridge
-barrel band sling swivel
-custom front sight that will accept NECG blades
-Original pre-64 458 safari sight with new Wisner base
-Hot blued, matte

I will attempt to stock it meself.

Red