:p Greetings!

I am Duffy, and I have reloaded the following calibers:
38/.357, .44/.445 Supermag, 9mm, .30-30, .270 Win, .300 Imperial, .300 Win Mag, .300 RUM, and several others I don’t recall. My training is in radical behaviorism, and I am highly recoil insensitive.

You may recall from the days of DOS and Rec.Guns, a thread of mine titled DESIGN MY RIFLE! I ended up with an N.A.S.S. Sako action, 26-inch McLennon bull barrel, Robar NP-3 finish, chambered for .300 Imperial. It was pillar bedded in a MacMillen Baker stock with adjustable cheek piece and 3-way adjustable butt plate. It featured a Harris bipod and Ching Sling, and was outfitted with a Burris 6-24X Signature scope with illuminated dot reticle. The target chamber took two pushes of the bolt to chamber a fully resized round. Accurate? My word, it was the most accurate piece I’ve ever enjoyed. But it weighed more than 15 pounds.

Handy? Not at all. Let me be blunt – it SUCKED! This piece was meant to shoot from a fixed position after freighting it in on the backs of a mule train.

I had the barrel rechambered for .300 RUM with hunting chamber dimensions, had the barrel turned to a smaller diameter, and mounted a David Gentry muzzle brake. It remained highly accurate but it was still a pig with lipstick! When a roommate failed to meet their financial obligations, I sold it.

The lesson? A horse designed by a committee looks like a camel!

Now I’m trying to devise a new rig, suitable for large game in North America and Europe. Suggestions will be solicited in the appropriate section of this website, but “camel rifle” suggestions will be greeting with a sneer.

Iowaloha Duffy,
I am thinking that you need to return to your roots. Perhaps a single shot .22 with iron sights? It is lots of fun and cheap to shoot.
Nice to meet ya,
Cheezywan

Duffy
Get a Marlin 95 or Winchester 1886 EL in 45-70, have a gun smith install a reciever sight and depending on bullet weight and construction you could bring to bag every critter the flys, slithers, walks here in North America and everything in Europe.
The determing factor will be the shooter.
Jim

Welcome to the forum Duffy. After a lot of years of shooting and hunting I've settled on a Remington 700 mountain riflle in 280 Rem. It's light, nice looking, low recoiling, accurate and easy to carry and shoot. It's good for most anything in North America less the big bears.

Mine shoots inch groups from the bench rest which is better than I can do in the field.

I've carried and shot the Remington 8mm mag for a lot of years and bought this last year for an easier gun to pack around the woods. I use the 8 in Alaska and it worked good up there, but down here in Idaho where I grew up something lighter was needed.

Good luck in your search and again welcome to the forum.

welcome Duffy, investment begins with a dream-you obviously had a nightmare. You like .30 calibers and that is a start. Nothing wrong with a push-feed bolt either. On the flip side of cost investments as such the experience you just had why not buy a project rifle that will please you for years down the road. Hit the gun shows and find a commercial Mauser 98 in a .30 caliber and go from there--there is still some pre-locks out there. You can do a many cals on a standard long action and keep the weight down and still have near magnum performance. The 308 Norma Mag., .30-338., .338-06, .30-06AI, .35Whelan Improved and list goes on. I am convinced there is no perfect rifle except for the one you shoot and favor alot. We here share a common bond-to get the most out of our firearms,rebuild,rechamber,restock,rescope,remount and reloadl. You get satisfied once and then it becomes an addiction :D gotta to be something more. I've many rifles and each have a purpose but so does the one next down the road.ha. keep us informed as to what is happening. good luck.

15#'s that's not too bad but I know my 12# highwall gets a little heavy after an all day carry!

First off, forget the adjustable stocks! Get properly fitted and have the stock made once to fit you, be sure to be fitted in the clothing you will be wearing for hunting...that extra inch of cloths thickness on the shoulder and bunching up around your cheek for artic op's will play h*ll if you're fitted with a tee shirt on!

Caliber is up to you and will depend on what you're shooting at what range. Wether you want a flat shooter or an artillary rainbow arc is a very personal choice.

As for barrel length, go for the longest you can justify. Granted if you'll be hunting thick cover at close ranges, you really don't want a 26" or 28" barrel. On the other hand, if you're hunting relatively open timber, snow & rock mountains or plains, longer length is not a concern.

Dump the bi-pod too. Learn to shoot from crossed sticks. If you want to stay USA traditional, these can be made from any variety of hardwood. Euro traditional is also hardwood but many of the Euro african hunters used bamboo. If traditional is out, there are some really nice super light & strong carbon fiber ones available that will barely add a few ounces to your pack weight.

If you really want a scope, go ahead but consider a quality receiver mounted micrometer peep sight. Less weight and much less profile than a scope yet when mastered, calibrated to the cartridge load and coupled with a proper front globe, they are as accurate as a scope and never fog-up!

I don't feel chamber dimensions are as critical as tuning the cartridges to the gun. I rarely do more than neck size for most everything. Once fire formed to the chamber, you shouldn't have any trouble doing a minimum amount of sizing.

The new rifle project has begun. In the rifle and rifle caliber section of this site I have entered a new thread regarding input on a custom rifle. The first consideration is caliber for worldwide general-purpose use. The .30 caliber option was appropriate for North America, but for worldwide use the .338's may have the edge.

Please proceed to the Rifle and Rifle Caliber section of the forum and give me some ideas.