A year or so ago I bought a beautiful Winchester M70 Super Grade Maple in .30-06 (I think it was a 2018 SHOT special). Sure, the parts were sourced from all over and it was assembled in Portugal, but it's still an American icon - and the new production is a wonderful homage to the Pre-64 with the exception of the MOA trigger module. However, I don't really buy rifles because they look pretty.
After spending a fair amount of time with the rifle, I had fired Hornady 178 ELD-X, CM Sports 167 Lapua, Hornady 165 SST SF, Cu Creek 208 ELD-M, Federal 150 Blue Box...perhaps some other fodder. Unfortunately, my M70 didn't shoot anywhere near as good as it looked - a 2 MOA gun that occasionally fired a 1 MOA group, even after bedding (which made no difference - the factory glue gun job might have been ugly, but was apparently adequate). At this point, I was committed to and waiting on a McMillan stock with a custom LOP...
Next, the rifle went to an almost local smith (Whidden Gun Works). The action seemed "true" and I had previously lapped the lugs. That left installation of a new barrel. I was pretty stoked to see Bartlein release CF barrels, so that's what I ordered. The "red" color is incredibly subtle and I think it's quite nice. I was surprised to learn, as this is my first CF barrel, that they have "character" - places where the CF isn't even and smooth along the exterior. The original stock needed significant relief to get the much thicker barrel in. Overall, the weight has remained at ~9.5 lbs. When it returned, I fired the first 41 rounds "as in" with a pressure point at the tip of the stock.
The CM Sports ammo produce a couple almost decent groups. The SST ran at 3030 fps with pretty decent SD, but I've yet to find a rifle in any caliber that shoots well with it. I did realize how awful the stock trigger is, but had forgotten and finally ordered a Timney to replace it. At this point, I'm on a mission born of pure stubbornness to get my M70 to a point where it will out shoot a stock Tikka T3x. Having spent enough money to buy a Seekins PH2 (or 3x Tikka T3x) with cash left over for ammo, I certainly see the appeal turn key packages or those for which pre-fit barrels are available.
A note on heat transfer - my MSv3 went on for the SST, stayed on for the CM sports ammo...and 20 shots later the strap had partially melted/deformed and the bayonet dropped right off the front of the rifle. Yes, -06 burns more powder than 6.5 CM - but I've parked my MSv3 on the end of my SOTIC for entire shooting sessions with no issue. Initial impression is the Bartlein CF has no problem at all shedding heat...
I get the sense that the original maple, while attractive, is likely going to need a lot more TLC and I'm just not sure I'm up to that. I did got after it pretty aggressively with sandpaper and the Dremel to get the barrel floating, although just barely enough for a piece of cardstock. Sadly, my trip to the range today was cut short. I think I'll get the trigger swapped and head to the range one more time to get a sense of its potential before I park it in the safe to await its new stock. Gotta get some pics up once I figure out how to internet good.
After spending a fair amount of time with the rifle, I had fired Hornady 178 ELD-X, CM Sports 167 Lapua, Hornady 165 SST SF, Cu Creek 208 ELD-M, Federal 150 Blue Box...perhaps some other fodder. Unfortunately, my M70 didn't shoot anywhere near as good as it looked - a 2 MOA gun that occasionally fired a 1 MOA group, even after bedding (which made no difference - the factory glue gun job might have been ugly, but was apparently adequate). At this point, I was committed to and waiting on a McMillan stock with a custom LOP...
Next, the rifle went to an almost local smith (Whidden Gun Works). The action seemed "true" and I had previously lapped the lugs. That left installation of a new barrel. I was pretty stoked to see Bartlein release CF barrels, so that's what I ordered. The "red" color is incredibly subtle and I think it's quite nice. I was surprised to learn, as this is my first CF barrel, that they have "character" - places where the CF isn't even and smooth along the exterior. The original stock needed significant relief to get the much thicker barrel in. Overall, the weight has remained at ~9.5 lbs. When it returned, I fired the first 41 rounds "as in" with a pressure point at the tip of the stock.
The CM Sports ammo produce a couple almost decent groups. The SST ran at 3030 fps with pretty decent SD, but I've yet to find a rifle in any caliber that shoots well with it. I did realize how awful the stock trigger is, but had forgotten and finally ordered a Timney to replace it. At this point, I'm on a mission born of pure stubbornness to get my M70 to a point where it will out shoot a stock Tikka T3x. Having spent enough money to buy a Seekins PH2 (or 3x Tikka T3x) with cash left over for ammo, I certainly see the appeal turn key packages or those for which pre-fit barrels are available.
A note on heat transfer - my MSv3 went on for the SST, stayed on for the CM sports ammo...and 20 shots later the strap had partially melted/deformed and the bayonet dropped right off the front of the rifle. Yes, -06 burns more powder than 6.5 CM - but I've parked my MSv3 on the end of my SOTIC for entire shooting sessions with no issue. Initial impression is the Bartlein CF has no problem at all shedding heat...
I get the sense that the original maple, while attractive, is likely going to need a lot more TLC and I'm just not sure I'm up to that. I did got after it pretty aggressively with sandpaper and the Dremel to get the barrel floating, although just barely enough for a piece of cardstock. Sadly, my trip to the range today was cut short. I think I'll get the trigger swapped and head to the range one more time to get a sense of its potential before I park it in the safe to await its new stock. Gotta get some pics up once I figure out how to internet good.