Poor Man's 500 J on a Ruger No 1

[ktk120]

I am priced out of the 500J bolt gun market so I went looking for options. I cannot find a single post on anyone converting a 458 Win mag No 1 Tropical to a 500J. I talked to Wayne York at Orgunsmithing. He said he has done them in the past so I just shipped my rifle off for the 4 month wait in his que to rebore and chamber and some work on extraction.

JES would rebore but not chamber and Wayne is full on gunsmithing operation so he can take care of all of it and not have to ship all over to gunsmiths.

Anyone on here ever heard of this particular conversion or know one that was done?

I found this new unfired 2005 No 1. Gun was $1350. Rebore/Chamber/Machine work is expected around$600. Hope to be all in at about $2000 return shipped.

 

[Aaron N]

Sounds hard on the shoulder….. is there any way you can get him to add some weight in the for-end and butt while he has it?

 

[colorado]

I would rethink and go with a 500 NE if I were you. Better choice for a Ruger No. 1 in my opinion and almost as powerful. Cooler too and I own and love my 500 Jeffery!

 

[ktk120]

Sounds hard on the shoulder….. is there any way you can get him to add some weight in the for-end and butt while he has it?

the 458 ruger no 1 tropic has a massive barrel and is around 10lb without optic. Most Jeffery are 10-11lb so I dont think its too far off. I may add a radial brake, weight in buttstock and kick eez to mellow things out

 

[ktk120]

I would rethink and go with a 500 NE if I were you. Better choice for a Ruger No. 1 in my opinion and almost as powerful. Cooler too and I own and love my 500 Jeffery!

I've fallen for some reason for the 500J and already accumulated a fair amount of components. I'm all in on trying this

 

[Aaron N]

the 458 ruger no 1 tropic has a massive barrel and is around 10lb without optic. Most Jeffery are 10-11lb so I dont think its too far off. I may add a radial brake, weight in buttstock and kick eez to mellow things out

I have a heavy barrel No1 in 450/400, and I dare say it’s wilder than my CZ 505 Gibbs.

 

[R.M.C.]

Very cool idea, go for the Jeffrey if that's what you want. Thanks for sharing!

 

[uplander01]

You may run into problems with the rebated rim on the 500j, hence why most would recommend going with 500 ne

 

[colorado]

Yes enjoy, it's recoil is but a maiden's kiss ...

 

[Avus22]

I had a number 1 in 416 Rigby and it hurt more than my 505 Gibbs imho. But, with that being said, I'd gladly shoot this Frankenstein behemoth rifle you're having made lol.

 

[ktk120]

The smith said he will have to do a little work but was confident he can make it work with the rebated rim. That was for sure a concern going into this. 450 bushmaster is a rebated rim and was made by ruger in the No1

Yep if its too much to handle it will make it cheaper to shoot. I like to do things different.

I like the idea of the 500 NE. Maybe I'll do that one next

 

[Bullthrower338]

Go for it, the rebated rim would worry me a bit with the diameter of the case. But the no 1 is no stranger to non rimmed cases, I’ve got quite a few of them and no problems out of any of them.

 

[RR 314]

Laws of physics seem not to apply to No.1s. . A 10 lb. No. 1 sure seems to buck more than 10 lb. In same chambering in other rifles. Wish Isaac Newton was around to explain it. . Good luck. Will follow along!

 

[ktk120]

I have a Whitworth 458 and a No 1 in 458 with a radial brake on it. The no 1 is mild by comparison so I do think the brake may be a must but we will see. Almost to 45/70 tune.

Some of it I think is how they tranfer the energy/recoil. A barrel lug spread it out over the entire length of the stock. No1 only applies recoil to the stock a the block/action so it not spreading it out as far. That said I don't feel like my No1 in 45-70 is any worse than an 18" lever gun.

 

[Rare Breed]

Yes enjoy, it's recoil is but a maiden's kiss ...

Lol…don’t think so!

 

[Frederik]

If it works and the action is fine wit the rebated rim you would have a very good example of a cheap man's 500 J wish you all the best with the project.

 

[ET1775]

With the fa

Laws of physics seem not to apply to No.1s. . A 10 lb. No. 1 sure seems to buck more than 10 lb. In same chambering in other rifles. Wish Isaac Newton was around to explain it. . Good luck. Will follow along!

With the factory stock they sure do. Comb height is designed for use with the Ruger rings and an optic. Running irons the No 1's will punch you in the face as well as the shoulder. They benefit from reshaping the stock and fitting a better recoil pad.

 

[geoff rath]

as a basis for a 500J build, a gunsmith/dealer Down Under is advertising a double square bridge Bauska action as suitable for either 505Gibbs, 500Jeff, or larger... True? Not that I could afford it or tolerate the recoil )

 

[AZDAVE]

I built one in 500 NE about 10 years ago and it was a nice rifle, recoil was kinda harsh but controllable.
I asked about the 500J at the time and the gunsmith gave a look of you gotta be kidding and a lecture on the rebated rim and flanged rims in a double or single shot. I would be interested in seeing how your gunsmith gets it to work and whether the extractor scratches the brass every time you load and eject a round.

@colorado I dated that maiden back in the day she was a 98 lb cowgirl from Arvada. One of the guys on my football team goosed her and found she packed a hell of a right cross. So I would be careful comparing kisses.

 

[krish]

as a basis for a 500J build, a gunsmith/dealer Down Under is advertising a double square bridge Bauska action as suitable for either 505Gibbs, 500Jeff, or larger... True? Not that I could afford it or tolerate the recoil )

Bauska actions are very much similar to CZ 550 MAGNUM ACTIONS. They will work for 500j easily. 505 gibbs has has a larger rim. May fit like cz 505 gibbs if not better. How ever there are better choices like Granite mountain action. Then you are talking about 3 to 4 times the cost. My 2c's
Krish