Please bear with me, this rifle has a story.

My father was with the 1st Infantry Division on VE Day in Czechoslovakia. While there, he acquired a sporterized K98 which was in 8X57J, with dove tails in the receiver rings for an ancient scope in claw mounts and a barrel turned turned down to pencil thin. The stock was very light, with a schnabel forend. A real Austro/German style stalking rifle. I grew up with this rifle on a rack in the den. We never went to the range with it and I don't know if he ever hunted with it. When he was around 80 years old he gave it to me, but it sat in a safe at my brother's house in California, since importing a military caliber to France is a PITA.

My brother got tired of being my storage agent. Back in the days when Duane Wiebe was based near Lake Tahoe I asked him to rebarrel it to 9.3 X 62mm and install a three position safety. The idea was to bring it back to France and this is what I did. I don't think I even knew about Accurate Reloading at that point, it was a riflesmith in Walnut Creek who told me to send it to Duane. In fact, I didn't know that Duane was from the Walnut Creek area (but that just might be my imagination).

So the rifle sat in my safe with the old stock on it and the zero-eye-relief 1930s Hensoldt scope, which wouldn't zero after the rebarrel anyway.

In the meantime I ordered the 404 Jeffery from Duane, and as some of you know I bought a blank big enough for two stocks from Luxus at a DSC, forrestb presiding.

I now had to have it restocked and after the resolution of some internet claims that the other half of the blank would be better in other hands, Duane shipped it to me. With some assistance from forrestb (in fact all this custom rifle stuff is his fault) I got Duane's bottom metal too.

I now had all the ingredients with me in France, but no knowledge of who to give the parts to finish this project. Another AR member, Bobby van der Putten, suggested I go to Patrick Brunet, ex-Holland & Holland in Paris. So, I gathered up the parts and went to see Patrick, taking the 404 Jeffery with me to serve as the model. Since Patrick is an accomplished H&H riflesmith, I decided for this one to have him make it a take-down with the H&H system. He sent the blank to Leon Grifnee in Belgium, Patrick would do the rest.

I picked up the rifle yesterday. Since I had the Wiebe built 404 Jeffery rifle out for some photos, it is in the background in most of these shots.



This photo of the bottom metal shows the oversized front screw of the Holland & Holland take-down process. The rifle can be taken down with the right size coin (no tools needed), but Patrick made a special rounded end screwdriver for me. The second photo shows the cut in the receiver.





The wood is from the same blank as the 404 Jeffery, but didn't have the straight grain which was preferred for the bigger bore, but it does have a little more figure and some dark color areas.

 





Single crossbolt:



The dovetails had to be redone to more common dimensions and a Leupy was put in claw mounts, very low.



Here is the handy dandy take-down tool Patrick made for the front action screw, also from the same blank as the stock:




I said that this rifle is "almost" ready. I think I'll have the thumb cut in the stock done and one of the sling swivel screws forgot to get engraved (for those that looked closely at the photos). But overall I'm very happy to have a 9.3 X 62mm in an action with some family history to it.

This rifle doesn't have all the custom touches the 404 has: no extended grip tangs, no little storage space in the grip cap, but hey, all I wanted to do was to get it stocked and scoped so I could shoot the thing. I haven't yet shot it, but Patrick says it shoots very well with the Norma factory ammo I provided for the scope mounting and zeroing. It weighs 3.8 kg, probably around 8 pounds and 6 ounces.

Very nicely done Wink. Do you have any photos of the rifle in the original configuration as your Dad got it?

I do have a few old photos of the original rifle:



It had the thinnest barrel I have ever seen on a medium caliber.





It had a military style blind magazine.

Came out super nice !

Very nice pair. I like the Holland & Holland take down system. You were very fortunate to have an Ex H&H empolyee in your area. Again...well done. Ron (Canada)

Is that a Wiebe bottom metal?

quote:

Originally posted by ColoradoMatt:
Is that a Wiebe bottom metal?

Yes.

Nice...

Enjoy them both!

There is quite a lot of drool on my keyboard. Nice rifles!

Oh my! Sigh ...

Congratulations indeed.

Congratulations, Wink! What a beautiful rifle!

I would be pleased to be the owner of that rifle and I have two 9.3x62 rifles already.

very well done!

Exquisite!

Absolute class!

On a side note, I see the front rings at the very end of the scope. Do you have any issues with squeezing the lens?

The reason I ask is that I mounted 2 Leupold scopes one after the other like that on a CZ 416 Rigby and the lens started to show spots. Careful examination showed slight chips and bubbles along the edges.

I sent both scopes back for warranty and got the lens replace. They recommended not to mount the ring around the lens

Beautiful pair of rifles and I have a feeling, while both heirlooms, you father's provenance on the 9.3 will make it extra-special.

Never understood why some stockmakers don't sculpt around the thumb cut... shortcuts I guess, or perhaps some just don't like the look. But it will be a true functional show piece when finished!

quote:

Originally posted by bwanamrm:
Never understood why some stockmakers don't sculpt around the thumb cut... shortcuts I guess, or perhaps some just don't like the look. But it will be a true functional show piece when finished!

I've wonder about that too. Used correctly the thumb cut is a useful feature and if the action already has it I would want the ability to utilize it.

Either way some very nice work on those rifles!

By the way, the thumb cut has since been "fixed".

gorgeous ---

feedback -- it appears to me that the scope is setup WRONG and may damage the front lens - generally, on leupolds, the gold bands is also where the front lens is -- and this is a bad idea, as it could case the tube to warp under recoil, and could crack the lens, release the inert air inside, allow air+water vapor into the scope

Yeah, I've been told this. In fact, if you look at Duane Wiebe's scope set-up on the 404J in the background it's the same. To be precise, the lens is behind the mounting ring, not under it, so perhaps it's not so wrong. The 404 has been on a couple of African safaris, taken a couple of buffalo and a variety of plains game, shot a lot just for the hell of it, no ill effects so far. I'll let everyone know if anything goes wrong.

But conclusions from appearances aren't always a good thing. On the 404J the scope set-up was done by Duane Wiebe, on the 9.3X62 it was done by the former workshop director of Holland & Holland, Patrick Brunet. Is it at all possible that these two men know what they are doing?

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
gorgeous ---

feedback -- it appears to me that the scope is setup WRONG and may damage the front lens - generally, on leupolds, the gold bands is also where the front lens is -- and this is a bad idea, as it could case the tube to warp under recoil, and could crack the lens, release the inert air inside, allow air+water vapor into the scope

Jeff: FEEDBACK TO YOU. . The ring is NOT over the lense! The lens is about 3/4 to the rear of the end of the scope. Bet I've had to point this out...maybe half dozen times .

Also...the rear ring does it's share of handling recoil as I does in any properly set up scope mount

Thanks for the feedback, Duane -- i don't have a scope handy to measure - though, with several others commenting, it's a good myth to dispel, i guess

quick question -- and i am NOT nitpicking here, you state 3/34 for the measurement -- is that 3/32 or 3/64?, as I am now hesitant to assume on this

Very nice.

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:
Thanks for the feedback, Duane -- i don't have a scope handy to measure - though, with several others commenting, it's a good myth to dispel, i guess

quick question -- and i am NOT nitpicking here, you state 3/34 for the measurement -- is that 3/32 or 3/64?, as I am now hesitant to assume on this

TYPO..meant 3/4...just measured a couple, it's actually a bit over 7/8" set back. Catalog might show what looks like the lens out at the end of he scope..some sort of photo foolishness, I guess. Forrest B also pointed this out a couple years ago.

Straight tube Swarovski's, S&B, also sets the lens back a good ways

Congratulations Wink on a very fine pair of rifles.

TT

Lovely rifles/

Duane & Wink

Thanks for the explanation. Now I know what to do!

Here is what I did in my 416 Rigby & 2 scopes were sent back with tiny bubbles and chips in the front lens

thank you Wink for bringing that link again.

wonderful artworks.

Merci.

I have never understood the reasoning for the short scope syndrome that's come about over the last century..I suppose that's the reason I like a 3X or 4X Leupold fixed or even the wonderful little 2x Leupold Alaskan, at least on DG rifles, but mostly on all my rifles..IMO many hunting scopes today such as the 1x4, 1.5x5 Leupolds are a tad too short, and they look out of balance on a good hunting rifle, even the 2x7s or short in the middle, and its often necessary to use extension bases or rings or both, and Im not fond of that, but just speaking for myself. If they added an inch to thses scopes it surly wouldn't make any difference and problems would be much less..

Is the sling swivel stud found anywhere as an after market item...looking for one like it? Thanks!

quote:

Originally posted by srtrax:
Is the sling swivel stud found anywhere as an after market item...looking for one like it? Thanks!

German made RECHNAGEL brand

quote:

Originally posted by ozhunter:

quote:

Originally posted by srtrax:
Is the sling swivel stud found anywhere as an after market item...looking for one like it? Thanks!

German made RECHNAGEL brand

Get them through new England custom gun. I like them as they are flat.

Thank You!

Very nice, Enjoy!