Well, in the continued search for lightweight hunting rifles, I just returned from the post office and their great scales. Put a G33, complete with the heavy mauser mag box and floorplate and factory stepped barrel...4lbs 7 oz. Did the same with a pre '64 FEATHERWEIGHT with the aluminum parts...5 lbs 3 oz. Is there really that much difference??? I was greatly surprized, to say the least!!! Now, take off the 10 oz mag box and go blind???? What has been your take on such matters? Thanks for the thoughts, Arthur Olds

The win has a heavier bolt handle and larger recoil lug and no thumb cut. There is some of the weight right there.

The G.33/40 can be the basis for a true lightweight. VERY tough to do with the M70. Just too much mass in that receiver.

And you're surprised?!?!?............

WHY?!?!?

The Mod 70 is one receiver size from .22 Hornet to Magnum length. The only difference is the size of the ejection port.

quote:

Originally posted by ArthurOlds:
I just returned from the post office and their great scales. Put a G33, complete with the heavy mauser mag box and floorplate and factory stepped barrel...4lbs 7 oz. Did the same with a pre '64 FEATHERWEIGHT with the aluminum parts...5 lbs 3 oz. Is there really that much difference??? I was greatly surprized, to say the least!!!

I'm surprised you made it OUT of a Post Office after walking in with two rifles...

Nice thing about a southern town, even if we brag about three colleges....Post Office is open at night, but one does feel a little "shy" walking into a Fed Office Bldg with any gun...

I was not surprized to find that the G33 was lighter, just not THAT much lighter!

I am reminded of a conversation I had with Byrd Pearson and Ted Blackburn at Ted's house in Provo, UT..."can you make an 8lb rifle with a M70? Won't even try, but I might do it with a G33/40." And Byrd could make a nice stock! And do great woodwork as well, all the cabinets and floors in Oakley's house in Sacramento (and some fine rifles there, I might add).

Some great thoughts here, thanks so much and keep them coming...Arthur Olds

a pre-64 with the 30-06 internals, drilled bolt handle and alloy bottom metal weighs 43 ounces.

I've never had the opportunity to weigh a bare G33/40, but I would be very surprised if it was more than a couple ounces less than the Winchester.

quote:

Originally posted by ArthurOlds:
Nice thing about a southern town, even if we brag about three colleges....Post Office is open at night, but one does feel a little "shy" walking into a Fed Office Bldg with any gun...

-on that note: southern towns, and years past-

My uncle in North Carolina, probably around 1960, bought a fancy Winchester shotgun, a "Pigeon Grade", maybe? Anyway, he bragged on it to his pals interminably waiting for it to arrive at the local post office. His pals got to the gal behind the counter unbeknown to him before the gun arrived, and got her to tell them when it arrived. She did, and they went to the PO, opened the package, and swapped the Winchester out for a BB gun and a brick or two. My uncle got the notice that the gun had arrived, and went to the PO to get it, with his pals "just happening" to be in the vicinity when he opened the box.

Simpler times, a bang-up prank to pull on someone, and I wonder how many federal laws they actually broke...

You gotta love those stories tincan!

In all seriousness, there is a posting at the entrance to most post offices that it is illegla to carry a gun onto the premises. (I suppose that doesn't included boxed up ready to ship). That is a federal facility, not state. It is not under the jurisdiction of the the local people. I know from personal familial experience that the FBI is not a funloving organization. I would be careful about posting things like this. The Feebies could be only one subpoena away from obtaining your IP and physical address. Things like this happen all the time, and I wouldn't be admitting to federal crimes on a public bulletin board.

quote:

Originally posted by Art S.:
In all seriousness, there is a posting at the entrance to most post offices that it is illegla to carry a gun onto the premises. (I suppose that doesn't included boxed up ready to ship). That is a federal facility, not state. It is not under the jurisdiction of the the local people. I know from personal familial experience that the FBI is not a funloving organization. I would be careful about posting things like this. The Feebies could be only one subpoena away from obtaining your IP and physical address. Things like this happen all the time, and I wouldn't be admitting to federal crimes on a public bulletin board.

I'm guessing the guns were boxed, with the cardboard weighed, either before or afterwards.

I'm sure nobody would walk into a post office with a gun, in plain view!

quote:

Originally posted by 1 Shot Hunter:

quote:

Originally posted by Art S.:
In all seriousness, there is a posting at the entrance to most post offices that it is illegla to carry a gun onto the premises. (I suppose that doesn't included boxed up ready to ship). That is a federal facility, not state. It is not under the jurisdiction of the the local people. I know from personal familial experience that the FBI is not a funloving organization. I would be careful about posting things like this. The Feebies could be only one subpoena away from obtaining your IP and physical address. Things like this happen all the time, and I wouldn't be admitting to federal crimes on a public bulletin board.

I'm guessing the guns were boxed, with the cardboard weighed, either before or afterwards.

I'm sure nobody would walk into a post office with a gun, in plain view!

He had to weigh 'em boxed up so he could calculate postage in case he ever decides to sell them and needs to ship them. Just being prepared, I'd say.

Arthur, I am finishing up my G33/40 in 30-06 with a Douglas featherweight contour cut to 21"
Its a blind magazine with a Sunnyhill trigger guard.
English walnut stock.
The scope is a Leupold 4x in S&K mounts and the finished weight is 7lbs4 ounces.

I tend to hike long distance when I hunt and carry a full size pack to haul out my game,so my rifle spends alot of time in my hand and
the rounded bottom of the blind magazine carries well and feels good in my hand.
If you are thinking of going that route I highly recommend it!

Off topic, but how did you take a gun into the post office (not in a box being mailed)?

isnt that illegal to carry a gun into the PO?

Boxes are wonderful items into which one might place objects that might attract attention otherwise...10 p.m. and in the dark is also a great idea as well...please note that in the original post I mentioned the Fed. Post Office Bldg. Well aware of the need for "boxes" that have no gun-reloated look to them...Arthur Olds

An article I enjoyed was called "The Practical Light Sporter" by James R. Olt in the 30th (1976) Gun Digest, page 154 if you can find a copy.

He gives the following weights for various actions: Enfield 58 ounces, pre-'64 M70 (with steel trigger guard and floorplate) 48 ounces, large ring 98 Mauser 44 ounces, Remington 700 long action 43 ounces, small ring 98 Mauser 42 ounces, G33/40 Mauser 40 ounces.

He mentions the early Husqvarna rifles on what were basically a small ring Mauser design are 40 ounces, and the Ruger 77 long action (obviously the tang safety model), 42 ounces.

Olt's rifle was built by Dale Goens on a 33/40 action with Timney trigger, steel floorplate, slimmed down trigger guard, and the magazine box was "Swiss cheesed" to save weight. He used a Douglas barrel in the Win 70 Featherweight contour, French walnut stock, Leupold 4X scope, Whelen one-piece sling, for an all-up weight of exactly eight pounds. Caliber was .270 Win.

Beautiful rifle, as you can imagine. Today of course you can buy lighter rifles right off the rack, but none that are classier.

My point was not that I thought the poster carried 2 open barrelled actions into the post office. They were obviously boxed or wrapped, since he didn't report that he was arrested or detained. My point was that he frankly admitted to the public that he broke a federal law, and then in a followup post described in detail how he did it and ackowledged his intent to do so and his thought process as to how to successfully get away with it.

I personally fall on the side of a lot of personal liberties and little government interference. However, a lot of people are not like that. I have a nephew who is FBI and SWAT in DC, and can tell you that there are federal agents in different branches who, upon reading this, might decide to go on a vendetta. The comments made here would likely be more than enough to get a federal warrent to subpoena you records from the IP, and pay you a visit.

People on boards need to understand that this is not a bunch of guys talking, it is posted so that anyone in the world can read it. I have heard of people nailed because they discussed their homemade silencer or trigger disconnecter on a gun board. I have actually read discussions on these subjects before, and have no doubt they could instigate action. My comment was not aimed at how the post office scales could be used, it was aimed at how you might go to jail for mentioning it, instead of just saying they were "accurately weighed". There's no use to invite trouble.

quote:

Originally posted by Art S.:
My point was that he frankly admitted to the public that he broke a federal law, and then in a followup post described in detail how he did it and ackowledged his intent to do so and his thought process as to how to successfully get away with it.

As my handle implies, I am a former Assistant United States Attorney. If a "federal agent on reading this might decide to go on a vendetta", he would still have to find a US Attorney willing to prosecute such a case. Considering that the level of loss in a bank robbery is $50,000 for the FBI to get involved, it is highly unlikely that such a US Attorney could be found. If an FBI agent brought me such a case to prosecute, I would have laughed him out of my office.

What people fail to realize is that there is still such a thing in this country as a jury trial, and I can guarantee you that it would not be possible to find a jury in my former district, the Middle District of Tennessee, who would convict someone for such an action.

Even before reaching the trial stage, however, such a case would have to be put before a Grand Jury for an indictment to be returned. Although it has been alleged that a competent prosecutor can obtain an indictment against a ham sandwich, my experience with Grand Juries has been that they take their task very seriously and are not the rubber stamp organization they are popularly supposed to be. I can't imagine a Grand Jury returning an indictment in such a case.

Incidentally, no one can be convicted solely on the strength of his confession to a crime. There must be independant proof that a crime was committed and that the person making the confession could have committed it. What would that proof be in this case? The postal clerk involved is hardly likely to testify to facts which would make him (or her) an accessory to an offence.

I prosecuted all kinds of firearms crimes, including one brilliant gentleman who was buying Sten gun kits, assembling them, using parts he manufactured himself, and selling them to drug dealers. Another case involved a high school chemistry teacher, who was selling instructions on how to make explosives, bombs, and remote control devices, AND selling the materials and ingredients at the same time. This was before both Oklahoma City and 9/11, or he would still be in prison.

I now live in a small community with a rural post office presided over by a postmistress, who is one of the privileged few allowed to hunt deer on my property. I don't think she would report me, if I wanted to use her scales for the same purpose.

Talking about "homemade silencers and trigger disconnectors" is another matter altogether.