I'll start off by saying i'm new to this forum and have never hunted Africa, but i plan on doing a plains game hunt in the next 2 years. I've got 2 .375s and looking into a .458lott for bigger game.
I'd like to buy a .300 H&H. The problem is only the CZ 550 and Ruger No. 1 are the only rifles currently in production that chambered it and I don't particularly like either one. I'd like to have more than one round and i feel like the 550 is to much for just the little .300 H&H. I've seen some old Win. 70s but they just don't feel quite right. I'm comfortable with the Remington 700 action and the Ruger M77 action so I'd prefer to stay with one of those but I've read so much good stuff on the Mauser action and the CRF and i'd be open to that route as well. The down side to the Mauser is i know absolutely nothing about them. I've never been into them before and i don't want to get a lemon.
Does anyone know of a good place to purchase a Mauser or Remington magnum action? I cant seem to find any. Also what barrel should i go with? I've read a lot about Shilen barrels but most of them are pretty pricey. Is there anything comparable at a cheaper price point?
Thanks for the help guys!
I only use three fellows these days Joe Collier at
Welcome To CollierRifles.com, Bobby Hart at
www.rwhart.com (R.W. Hart & Sons not his cousin at Hart Barrels, though I'm sure Paul the Hart barrel maker would also be a good choice I have not had him do a build for me in years so can't attest personally) and Roger M Green at
Custom Gun Maker:: Roger M. Green, Custom Guns, Made to Order after having made several mistakes over the years.
Joe is my long-range accuracy guy and is very reasonably priced, same with Bobby and Roger a classic rifle maker, one of the last of the "old masters". Roger carves and checkers his stocks by hand, machines his own metal and has you send him the scope you discuss so he can make the mounts, put everything together so it balances just right in the hand and comes up to the shoulder naturally.
Joe is a 700 specialist, prefers Bartlein 5R barrels and do they ever shoot. (Military uses 5r rifling for decades on the M24 and M40 sniper rifles, the theory is you get better velocities than a 6 groove and doesn't pinch the bullet like an even number of lands.) I'm in the gunstock business and talk to guys all day building rifles and they are doing a great job, never heard of a lemon and that's the big thing these days, the bad ones that slip thru since most barrel makers have the accuracy down these days. If Joe ships you a bad rifle send it back, he'll send you another, but I've never heard of that happening.
Joe built three rifles for me to take to Africa this year and is very reasonable. All of them are tack drivers, 1/2 MOA shooters. The 280 Ackley Improved he built has shot several 1/2" to 3/4" groups at 200 yards, one off the top of my PH's truck in Zimbabwe. That's inches, not MOA, 200 not 100 yards. He does have this reputation, from what others tell me this is not unusual for his rifles, but I am a bit biased after seeing the three he did for me.
I use either Manners' Composite stocks or McMillan's on Joe's rifles, Manners Elite Hunters for lighter weight rigs up to 30 cal, and McMillan Hunters for the medium bores. An H-S Precision or Bell & Carlson would be great too, and it'd save you a couple hundred bucks over the others. VAIS muzzle breaks not only reduce recoil but improve accuracy by taking pressure gas off the base of the bullet upon exit si I now swear by them.
I made Joe use a M70 controlled feed receiver for the .375 H&H, but as mentioned he's a 700 specialist so I'd stick with that when employing his services. At any rate the M70 will cloverleaf 300 VOR-TX factory if I do my part, does the same with 260 Nosler hand loads as well. So far this year its accounted for well over 20 heads of African game including a couple shots over 250 yards. It's been such a reliable killer for me my PH nicknamed it the Dragonslayer and told me never to show up at J-Burg or Vic Falls without it if I wanted a ride to camp.
Roger has almost completed a 6mm/204 Ruger for me with the best blank of Turkish walnut we could find cut in a British Express styling, complete with quarter-rib and barrel band. Took him over two years. The receiver is a 1940 (pre-war) Model 70 that he cut down (took about 1/2" out of the center) and scaled especially for this cartridge. Some guy had rechambered this Hornet for .222 Rem after the war, ruining all collector value and got a good price on the rifle from the owner. I felt it deserved a resurrection by a guy like Roger, and I'll be sporting it on a planned pigmy antelope hunt someday, once it gets its first ding. Roger one of the best (I think the best) M70, Mauser and Ruger #1 guys in the world. He does have Mauser receivers for sale and probably several complete rifles too. Maybe consider sending Roger your #1 for a .300 barrel, there's no way he'd be able to leave the rest of it alone and will make suggestions I'm sure.
I also feel comfortable to suggest another of my best industry-friends, Bobby Hart at rwhart.com. Bobby is one of the best guys you'll ever meet and is famous for his 1000 yard shooting and long range hunting rifles here and abroad. He's sort of our "international ambassador of the rifle shooting sports." He now runs his family's 3rd generation custom shop (Hart barrels of course) and has built me three or four real shooters over the years. Highly recommended and the folks I send to him usually call me back to say thank you for the referral.
That's my two cents anyway. Personal experience has proved its hard to go wrong with any of these three guys, but each has his specialty. Not to say others aren't as good, but being in the business I hear some real horror stories and see what the occasional butcher does to one of my stocks first-hand. Best plan is to call and have a chat with several and pick the guy you are comfortable with whether its one of these or someone else. Best advice I can give is to be sure he has a good deal of experience with the rifle YOU want built in your price range, they all say its nolo problemo on the phone then you have to live with the consequences. See it all the time when guys call for help to get bailed out a bad gunsmithing job so I guess I get a bit more wary these days.
If you just want a good barrel for a reasonable price by the way, call Rock Creek Barrels. Mike Rock made the original mil spec 5r barrels for the Marines, by the way, and he does it in most bores and tapers as well these days with relatively fast shipping. I carry his M40 military barrels in the shop and am very pleased with the results but don't currently handle the sporters.