A friend and I have just ordered two Montana Rifleman M-1999 RH/RP stainless short actionswith WSM boltfaces. It is our intent to build a couple of little short WSM wildcats...either 350 gr. .404 (423" bullets) or 350 gr. .416 (.416") bullets. Just sort of "woods loafer's" rifles for whatever gets up.

We are looking at about 1.500" to the base of the shoulder, 30-degree shoulder, and 2.000" to the end of the neck.

Any comments, caveats, or experience with similar endeavors?

I would sure rather have a standard 416 Rem. or 404 Jefferys, and load them down...these short rounds have some feeding difficulties for sure and it's a pain to make them feed. but fun and games may be your pursuit, so knock your lights out....Let us know.

Yeh, I figured would be a PITA to make feed, but have a vault full of other stuff, so these are "putzer" rifles. I already have a .404 Barnes Supreme, a .404 Jeffrey by Trevor Musgrave of RSA, and an Atkinson-barreled .458 Win for medium-bore bolt guns, so these are just sorta fun toys...

I can always yank the barrels and put on some easier to feed versions of the WSMs, like .338 WSM. These actions are already made for the WSM case, with correct mag boxes and followers, so we are hoping that only a little shade-tree smithing will be required to make the fatter case necks negotiate their way into the barrels.

Incidentally, the .416 Remington brass is basically identical to the stuff I put in my 35-year old .404 Barnes... Only difference I can see is the Barnes uses .411" diameter bullets.

[ 03-21-2003, 03:51: Message edited by: Alberta Canuck ]