This is my first attempt at a rifle build and how it has progressed to its current configuration. The whole setup (less the glass) totals up to $818. There is no dangerous game where I live. I shoot recreationally, at paper and carry a handgun for personal defense. My life will never depend on this weapon. As such, I cut a lot of corners, did it cheap and got the “tacticool” look I was going for. Hopefully it doesn’t get me laughed out of here… It actually performs pretty well.
It started life as an all-black 700 SPS Varmint in .308 win with a 26” barrel. It was $569 off the shelf new. At the time, I thought the VTR stock looked better, so I painted it green. No, your eyes don’t deceive you…. That is a Barfska. (I have made more than one uninformed decision in my life.) It didn’t shoot too bad from the factory, about 1moa with FGMM.
The 2nd configuration consisted of a Choate stock ($189), new paint and hand lapped bolt lugs. The lap job consisted of a wooden dowel rod down the barrel, some valve lapping compound out of my garage and an hour or two of my time, so we’ll call that a free-bee. Oddly enough, it now started showing a (slight) preference for 168 gr Hornady TAP-FPD. I haven’t tried any Black Hills thru it yet. With the TAP and FGMM, it shoots between .5 and .75 moa at 200 yards. These are three shot groups. I don’t know if it is me, or the rifle. When I go for 5, I inevitably get a flier. Hell, maybe we both get nervous.
This is how she sits today. The Viper PST (for now) gets passed back and forth between this rifle and my Savage 110BA, until I can convince the wife that there really is a good reason to spend the money on a PMII. If anyone has a compelling argument I can try, let me know! The base is an EGW 20MOA, $43, (bedded to the receiver, per a How-to video by LonewolfUSMC). I had a moment of profound wisdom and chopped the barrel down to 20.” With a hack saw. I intended to buy a crowning reamer, and still probably will. For now, it has a crown of unknown angle, done with a high speed grinder. I haven’t lost any accuracy, at least at 200 yards. That is the limit of my range. I’m sure it could be suffering farther out, but I don’t have the room to test it.
Finally, the bolt knob…. $5. It is a ball of epoxy based metal putty. I had this wonderful idea after I found that there are no well equipped gunsmiths advertised in my area. During the “R&D” phase, I mocked up a ball on a 9/16” head bolt. I let it set and commenced beating the crap out of it. It survived that, so I figured I’d give it a try. Worst case scenario, it falls off and I am back where I started.
I wear latex gloves to keep the crap off my hands. Washing it off is a PITA. The pan of water is to wet the gloves after getting the ball formed around the bolt knob. It kept it from sticking to the gloves and helped smooth the surface.
After it sat for about 30 minutes, I sanded with 60, then 180 grit. I should have sanded and shaped some more. It sands really well.
And after some paint…. A clearance check. Got lucky! Should have reversed the order there
It started life as an all-black 700 SPS Varmint in .308 win with a 26” barrel. It was $569 off the shelf new. At the time, I thought the VTR stock looked better, so I painted it green. No, your eyes don’t deceive you…. That is a Barfska. (I have made more than one uninformed decision in my life.) It didn’t shoot too bad from the factory, about 1moa with FGMM.
The 2nd configuration consisted of a Choate stock ($189), new paint and hand lapped bolt lugs. The lap job consisted of a wooden dowel rod down the barrel, some valve lapping compound out of my garage and an hour or two of my time, so we’ll call that a free-bee. Oddly enough, it now started showing a (slight) preference for 168 gr Hornady TAP-FPD. I haven’t tried any Black Hills thru it yet. With the TAP and FGMM, it shoots between .5 and .75 moa at 200 yards. These are three shot groups. I don’t know if it is me, or the rifle. When I go for 5, I inevitably get a flier. Hell, maybe we both get nervous.
This is how she sits today. The Viper PST (for now) gets passed back and forth between this rifle and my Savage 110BA, until I can convince the wife that there really is a good reason to spend the money on a PMII. If anyone has a compelling argument I can try, let me know! The base is an EGW 20MOA, $43, (bedded to the receiver, per a How-to video by LonewolfUSMC). I had a moment of profound wisdom and chopped the barrel down to 20.” With a hack saw. I intended to buy a crowning reamer, and still probably will. For now, it has a crown of unknown angle, done with a high speed grinder. I haven’t lost any accuracy, at least at 200 yards. That is the limit of my range. I’m sure it could be suffering farther out, but I don’t have the room to test it.
Finally, the bolt knob…. $5. It is a ball of epoxy based metal putty. I had this wonderful idea after I found that there are no well equipped gunsmiths advertised in my area. During the “R&D” phase, I mocked up a ball on a 9/16” head bolt. I let it set and commenced beating the crap out of it. It survived that, so I figured I’d give it a try. Worst case scenario, it falls off and I am back where I started.
I wear latex gloves to keep the crap off my hands. Washing it off is a PITA. The pan of water is to wet the gloves after getting the ball formed around the bolt knob. It kept it from sticking to the gloves and helped smooth the surface.
After it sat for about 30 minutes, I sanded with 60, then 180 grit. I should have sanded and shaped some more. It sands really well.
And after some paint…. A clearance check. Got lucky! Should have reversed the order there
