Received my barreled action back from the gunsmith this morning. I'm pretty happy!

Winchester P-17 action, re-contoured for scope bases, bolt face opened, barrel blank turned (26" straight taper to 1" at muzzle), threaded, chambered for .500 A-Square, larger magazine box installed, etc.

Now I need a stock and I'll be almost ready for deer season...

Sam,
That is an excellent looking beginning you have!! I cannot see the extra lug under the barrel, will you put one on? Give us the details, barrel mfg, 'smith, sights, wood...
Can't wait.

Sam B

I too would like to hear all the details, the approximate cost of the project broken down would be interestsing too.

Did the gunsmith already have the chamber reamer? What about brand and cost of dies?

What bullets do you intend to test? What kind of stock do you plan to use?

Not to be critical, but I am wondering if you are going to change the bolt handle. A gunsmith who made a .510 wells on a P17 told me that he had to change the bolt handle because otherwise it slapped his knuckle so hard he almost dropped his gun.

SamB,
You have made some excellent choices in the 510 caliber sporting rifle. What is your sport, deer hunting at 1000 yards?

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Good huntin', shootin', and spear chuckin',
RAB

Just got back from some business travel, I think I missed tinkering with my new toy more than I missed my own bed...

To answer a few questions:

There is no secondary recoil lug...yet. I had asked the smith to leave a full diameter "boss" about 4" out from the receiver that could be dovetailed for a sight on top and recoil lug on bottom, but it appears to have slipped his mind. I'm thinking about silver soldering a sleeve instead to do the same thing.

The gunsmith already had the reamer and had built a few other rifles in this caliber. I doubt they were built as much more than a novelty. This smith is a local guy who caters mostly to the local whitetail hunter crowd.

The first stock I'm going to try is a Bell&Carlson synthetic. I like the shape, it's readily available, inexpensive, and I think that if I bed this with SteelBed it'll hold up fine. I also intend to install two mercury reducers in the butt.

I'm ordering dies from Huntingdons later today. They say they have RCBS dies in stock at around $220.

I do intend to modify the bolt handle, mostly for cosmetic reasons as I'm not fond of the dogleg shape. I'm not crazy about the aesthics of the Enfield action in particular but it was an easy entry into the big bore field.

I had intended to use a 50BMG barrel from ER Shaw, but after a second disappointing experience I bought a couple blanks from Les Bauska instead.

Cost breakdown so far is: Action $125, Barrel blank $50, Thread and chamber $150, Cut extractor slot $25, Contour barrel $40, Open bolt face $50, Countour action $70, Steel bases $22.

I'll post more pics as the project progresses. I hope to be shooting before the snow flies!

SamB - WAIT!!!

Call CH4D for the dies. Their quality is superior to RCBS and they are $140 for the .500A2 dies (a savings of $80). I have a .500 A-Square 'in process' too and have done some research. Here is what I've found:
Dies- CH4D - http://www.ch4d.com/ch4d/Catalog/Page21b.htm
Brass- Norma is strongest - http://www.huntingtons.com/CasesNormaWeatherby.html

The other info you've already taken care of so there is no need to post it. Looks good...

I am no expert, but maybe with a synethetic stock and steel bed on the recoil lug, the barrel shank, and around the magazine box you can get away without a 2nd recoil lug. My guy charges $65 for a 2nd lug, so I see no reason not to do it. I suspect that without a 2nd lug, that rifle would split walnut stocks better than a sharp axe.