Chuck:

Sounds like Bill Leeper has built you a fine, fine rifle. Good shooting.


Jordan

The stock is unpainted as of yet and the second picture shows what Barnes TSX's and RL 22 are capable of.















Repeat of previous post:



A little bit about my Bill Leeper built Model 70 I received today:



The rifle itself is based on a left hand Winchester Model 70 action that Bill has extensively reworked and modified (see the P.S. at the bottom for Bill�s version of his model 70 treatment posted here a while ago). Everything has been made square or �blueprinted�, the bottom of the receiver has been remachined for a perfect bedding surface and the lugs and their seats have also been machined for perfect contact. Bill chambered a cut rifled 7mm CM barrel built by Ron Smith to 7mm Rem Mag and cut and crowned it at 24�.



The bolt stop and trigger where repined with a Leeper built pin to remove any slop in either, and the bolt release has been built up and checkered by Bill. A Wisner extractor was installed and the rear of the ejection port was milled rearward to take advantage of this longer extractor. Custom bases for Talley mounts built by Michael Scherz were extensively modified by Bill to accommodate the modifications made to the bridge and to ensure a perfect fit with the receiver. Mount holes were opened up to 8X40 and the receiver was hand polished and machined to ensure square scope mounting (more on this later). The 3pc. steel bottom metal was recontoured and machined for a perfect fit and aesthetics. A McMillan Super Grade stock rounded out the deal and the barreled action was pillar bedded, with three pillars, to ensure a solid consistent surface for the action to sit in. Jim Baiar guard screws will be added when he see's fit to finish them.



We mounted a brand new Leupold 3.5-10X40 VX III in Talley rings to replace the 36X target scope that Bill has been using for test firing prior to bluing. With the reticle centered from the factory, not an inch and a half adjustment, in either direction, will be needed to zero the scope. The scope mount holes that were there to begin with were visibly out of alignment, so despite testimony to the contrary this can be done. It feeds like bovine snot and initial shooting indicates finding an acceptable load should be simple. This all despite the fact that it's a CM Model 70 chambered for, gasp, a belted magnum.



Finally, Bill Leeper is an absolute pleasure to work with, he is honest in every way, a superb craftsman and a fountain of knowledge that would take a lifetime to soak up. Thanks Bill!



Chuck



P.S. Bill�s action treatment:



�I guess I do as much with M70s as most and like them. In general they require much the same treatment as the 700s with some differences. I'll describe what I usually do for one of my "F" class rifles. The same things can be applied to a hunting rifle if desired.

I start by fitting a mandrel to the receiver. I make the mandrels undersized but with a spherical contact point front and rear if the front of the receiver is near bolt diameter. If, as often happens, the front of the receiver is well oversized, I use a full contact mandrel in the bridge. The front of the mandrel is, again, undersized (by about.010") to ensure clearance. The mandrel is used for alignment purposes only rather than as a fixture for work holding. I mount the receiver and mandrel in my holding fixture, which, as it turns out, is similar to that sold by Greg Tannel. I set the whole works up between centers to dial in the fixture at both ends. Once this is done, the mandrel is removed and the fixture is set up in the four jaw chuck and steady rest. Now the receiver is running with the bore in as good alignment as possible.

A word of caution; With fixtures of this type it is possible to distort the receiver if too much torque is put on the set screws so be a little careful.

With everything ready to go it is an easy matter to recut the threads and locking lug seats as well as the face of the receiver. I have come to believe it might be a good idea to go ahead and increase the thread diameter to 1 1/16 inch like the Remington. This way you end up with a complete thread without the gaps at 3 and 9 o'clock as the M70 has. Actually the threads will usually clean up adequately at 1.031".

Now I take the receiver to the mill and dial in the flat under the receiver ring preparatory to milling the rest of the bottom of the receiver to ensure everything is parallel. Probably makes little difference but I figure it can't hurt to have a level bedding surface or, I should say, two level surfaces since there is a step in it. I then call the receiver done.

The bolt is threaded onto a mandrel just as you would a Remington and set to run in the steady. The bolt face and the lugs are recut. They usually really need it!

One difference between the new actions and the pre-64s is the diameter of the firing pin. The new models are .081 in diameter and the hole is similarly large. There is a problem with blanking of primers with hot loads and especially with small rifle primers so I bush the bolt face and turn down the pin on any rifles I build for the 6BR. I don't do this on hunting rifles unless the hole is seriously off centre as sometimes happens. Usually the large rifle primers don't have the same problem with blanking. There are exceptions and you may recall the M70 that pierced a primer and spit junk in my face with every other shot down in Whitefish a few years back. That was a 30/06 but the loads were kind of hot and the Federal primers seemed a bit soft although they were certainly harder than my face!

The only other thing I like to do as far as the bolt body and receiver is concerned is to ensure that the locking lugs are in a vertical position when the bolt is in battery. I do the same on a Remington.

I like the M70 trigger just fine but like to make better fitting pins for the trigger and bolt stop.

When bedding the M70 I tape the sides and bottom of the recoil lug to provide clearance and ease stock removal and replacement. By glassing around the centre screw it can become a part of the bedding system rather than just a means of holding up the trigger guard. I tape the rear surface of the under portion of the tang for clearance here.

With the work that has been done it's necessary to check that the safety still cams the striker back sufficiently. Some find the slop in the bolt lock when the safety is full on to be objectionable. The cure is to weld up the notch in the rear of the bolt body and recut it to be a better fit on the plunger. Sometimes there is too much clearance between the bolt sleeve and the receiver and the bottom of the bolt sleeve can be welded up and recut to reduce this clearance.

I like to shorten the front of the extractor to reduce the depth of the extractor cut which must be made on the barrel. This extractor cut can sometimes be the source of a severe feeding malfunction when the bullet of a cartridge coming out of the left side of the magazine jams into the cut. On one rifle with this problem I reached the point where I was undecided as to whether I should continue to try and cure the problem or tie up a noose and hang myself. I decided to fix the rifle or I wouldn't be writing this!�

Nice, looks like a shooter too. What are your plans for the stock finish?

Terry

Chuck,

I can find only one thing wrong with it, the bolt is on the wrong side, if it wasnt for that I'd take if off your hands

All BS aside, damn fine rifle.

Very nice for a lefty.

ASS_CLOWN

Chuck,
Where is Bill Leeper located? I imagine it is 'bout near impossible to get any cross border gunsmithing done these days.
Thanks,
JCN
That is a "well done" rifle. I almost said "done right".

Bill ,also has touch with lines in metal,he worked on my P-17 sporter.The rear bridge was poorly done by the first gunsmith,Bill corrected it,where he found the metal I don't know.You only see the " corectness" of it,but I see the difference.To quote Bill,"it's less ugly"

The group you see in the picture was shot with the first load I threw together, consisting of Barnes 160gr TSX, RL 22, new Winchester cases and Federal 215 match primers. I'm extremely pleased.

When Allen Day posted photos of his 338 awhile back, I just had to match the colour. So, it will be dark brown, and I see using that colour as a nice way to show off Bill's metal work.

JCN, Bill is in British Columbia and I couldn't help you on the legality issues involved.

Chuck

I see one major problem with that rig, with a gun that obviously shoots so well if you EVER miss a shot on game you won't be able to blame the rifle. this is a big drawback and you should send it to me ASAP, I will send you something innacurate in return. I don't normally shoot lefty, but being ambidextrous I can train myself I guess.

Not only is it good work the explanation and reasoning are great too, I like this from a gunsmith (mine is same way, we explain all things and the whys and how nots).

Red

Chuck, Out of curiosity, what did Bill charge for all of that fine work?

Chuck, that's a nice rifle. Congrat's. "Two Thumb's Up" to Bill! Still waiting for a pic of Bill, his shop and Beagle

The pictures I took in Bill's shop came out terribly blurry (Leeper Magic I'm sure), and Bill seemed to run around the corner every time I snapped a picture. I also discovered that Beagle Bailey (sp) is the one that test fires the rifles.



Chuck

Very nice rifle Chuck, and a good choice on the Ron Smith barrel. I have a few of these, and every one is a tack driver. Bill Leeper does nice work, for sure. - Dan

Guys, how many hours from Calgary (exact location unknown, airport perhaps?) down to Bill Leeper's?? I take it the shortest (and fastest) route is via Crow's Nest Pass (name?)and Fernie. This would be on a Sunday morning in late August, so I guess I should not have too much traffic out of Calgary. (?)

Rifle sure looks like a shooter Chuck! Congrats!

- mike

From Calgary, south on Highway 2 (get on the Deerfoot Trail, just west of the airport, and turn south)about an hour and a half, turn right at Highway 3, thru Crowsnest Pass, follow it to Fernie, about two hours , total time about three and a half hours from Calgary, give or take. - Dan

Thanks Dan, helps planning my itinerary...

- mike

P.S. Dan you have a PM.

Chuck -

Nice looking rifle, but even more lucious (to me) is that nice looking rifle range...where is it?

(My wife is finally willing to talk about moving back to Alberta, so the info MIGHT be useful one of these days...)

Thanks,

Alberta Canuck

Just out of curiosity, is the test firer "Beagle Bailey" a fella named Ward Bailey?...the one who was winning all the Varmint-for-Score matches at Namaka in 1969 with his stock-as-a-stove M700 Remington?

I bought that rifle from Gunter Kautsky, and it is now in the hands of a High Master U.S. Camp Perry shooter named Ralph Klein...only factory original Remington Model 700 I've ever seen with a 12-groove .308 barrel...

AC

AC, the range is in Lethbridge and that is usually how busy it is so I don't have to worry about my junk taking up about six benches, and no the Beagle is really a Beagle, he/she (don't know) just likes to be in on the shooting action.



Chuck



PS The only Ralph Klein I know doesn't shoot that straight.

Chuck, I consider you very lucky to be within driving distance of Bill... I think he is definately one of the good guys !!
Pat B.

With you there Chuck, ol King Ralph couldn't spell straight, never mind shoot it. - Dan

Chuck, all can say is, "congratulations"! Your rifle looks fantastic, and it'll look just great with the brown paint job!



This project is a demonstration of that can be done if a client who truly understands fine rifles -- as you do -- takes his time, networks effectively, plans carefully, obtains the best available components, hires a truly top-notch riflemaker ("gunsmith" or even "riflesmith" is too light of a term in this case), and then patiently waits and gets out of the way until everything is complete. When rifles are put together in this manner, the results always speak for themselves, as is the case with this superb new 7mm Rem. Mag. of yours. And you end up with a rifle that you'll never need or want to replace with anything else. This is the "smart-money" way to commission a rifle.........



Model 70s just don't cut it, though, in terms of accuracy, do they?



AD

Some comments on some of the components used on Chuck's rifle.
First, I like the mounts by Mike Scherz. They fit the receiver well and are an attractive and solid mounting system. The fitting of them on this particular rifle was a bit problematic due to the mods made to the receiver and some contouring problems with the receiver from the factory but under normal circumstances these problems would not be encountered. Anyway, I give them a thumbs up!
Second, I first used one of Ron Smith's barrels in 1978. It was a 308 Hunter class BR rifle (10 lbs) and the first group out of it was a 5 shot .365" group. I have used quite a few of his barrels over the years and they have all been excellent and an example of barrelmaking as an art. Each barrel is built individually by one highly skilled man. Great barrels. I don't think one can go too wrong if he chooses one of these barrels for any type of rifle. Regards, Bill.

Chuck, damn fine rig you got there! Post up some more pics if you got the chance.