Recent content by JFE

Both Lee and Lyman make neck expanding dies for seating cast bullets but I doubt that they make one specifically for the 470. NOE moulds make neck sizer expander buttons for Lee dies. Alternatively, you can try to find a machinist to make a suitable sizer expander button to fit these dies.

The 270 is one of my favorite cartridges. Loaded properly it is quite versatile. A 22” barrel 270 might be a little blasty for a 12 year old. Muzzle blast is more off putting than recoil IMO. If he starts to flinch you might want to load it down to reduce the muzzle blast, at least until he...

Well done on buying a piece of Australian hunting history. These camp rifles never saw much love but your results show they were well put together. Good luck with it.

What a sweet build. Unusual builds often take more time and patience than you’d like but the end result will be worth it. That long neck is crying out for a cast bullet. In case of interest I used a RCBS 416-350 FN GC sized to 0.414 in my 405 Win levergun and it’s quite accurate.

I recall correctly he used a model 71 in 348 Winchester to follow up on wounded leopard.

The Browning 1886 can load and cycle 45/70 rounds loaded to 45/90 length. However the throat on a 45/70 rifle is very short to non-existent and becomes a choke point You can either have it throated or by being selective with the bullets you use, you can still enjoy 45/90 power in a factory...

I had a 45/90 built on a Browning Model 71 and did use it on the buffalo we have up in Northern Australia. I wanted to use my own cast bullets to spice the hunt up a bit. I used the RCBS 45-500 FN GC mould. I cast the bullets from a Lyman No.2 alloy and when cast, lubed and checked, they...

LH Win M70’s in 375H&H are not common and bring big money. Your rifle doesn’t look original with all the stainless steel parts, but any way you cut it you’ve got yourself a bargain for $1000. Winchester released two versions of lefty M70 rifles in 375H&H. I have one and IMO the factory stock is...

Not sure you will gain much by using a short barrel on a long action. Besides, a cartridge of that capacity will produce a lot of muzzle blast in a short barrel. Good luck with whatever you decide.

To me it looks more or less like a 338 based on a WSM case. If it’s going into a Blaser platform what’s wrong with just using a 338 Win mag? You’d have a lot less headaches trying to find ammo for it.

A bit academic now, but FWIW a friend of mine built an 8x64 here in Oz. It still is quite a popular cartridge in Europe. He ordered a Walther Lothar 98 prefit barrel in 8x64 which solved the problem of trying to find a reamer. Loaded ammo and dies are available but need to be ordered. It more...

EAW scope mounts are a little tricky to fit and they do sit up a little high. Great for large objective lenses. The mounts are also adjustable for wear and you can externally adjust them for windage. Elevation can be externally adjusted by swapping a part in the rear ring for a part with a...

If you want something close in a BLR, look for a one in 450 Marlin and use a mag that suits a 325 WSM. The factory 450 mags are blocked and the 325 mags aren’t and allow a loaded length of 2.8”.

Hi Sarg, good to hear from you. I hope life has been treating you well. That photo brings back a lot of fond memories. While I love my leverguns, when it comes to hunting DG, there is nothing quite like a tuned bolt action in 458Win.

There have been a few BLR conversions here in Oz. The most recent ones I’ve heard of were in 375 & 416 Ruger. The starting point is a BLR with a steel receiver.