Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

[BlackWhiskey]

This project has been in the works for a long time and is almost completed (waiting on the final paint job).

I have been into long range shooting my entire adult life, and my dad has been an avid golfer since he was in his early teens. Almost every time we talk, we discuss the similarities between the two sports (patience, projectile selection, range estimation, wind etc...). I knew it was only a matter of time before he decided to get a rifle and try this out for himself.

A little over a month ago the project was approved by Nana-6 (my mother) and my dad gave me a $1,500 cap on the project. This is how it went:

First I ordered a B&C Medalist A2 and got to work sanding down the forearm, rounding the edges and cutting out the rear hook. I have always loved the look of the blocky forearm on the McMillan A4 from my time in 3/7 STA Platoon and wanted to do something similar for my dad.

When I cut the hook out I discovered a large cavity in the stock. I also discovered some small bubbles in the forearm after sanding it down.

To solve these problems I used some Bondo type filler.

 

[BlackWhiskey]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

I then sanded both the hook and forearm smooth.

Next I taped off the grip and part of the forearm and applied a texturizing spray paint.

After that I applied several coats of Krylon to smooth everything out.

Then came the installation of the rest of the parts:

Howa 1500 .308 Fluted barreled action
Bushnell Elite 4200 Tactical FFP
TPS 30mm rings
Talley 20moa base
Howa DBM (still waiting on that one…)

I’m waiting to do paint the cammo pattern until my dad and I get together for Christmas so we can do it together. I’ll post pics as soon as that part is complete and we take it out to the range for a test drive.

All in all I think it has turned out pretty good, and considering we are still $50 under $1,500 budget, I’m going to call it a success.

Thanks for reading,

Cory

 

[coldboremiracle]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Nice work Cory, few things bring more pleasure than shooting with Dad. Great work on the rifle, hopefully you have many years together of some fine shooting. I' doin a similar project with my Dad and a pre 64 Mod 70.

 

[slowyellow]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Great work man, rifle looks awesome. Before my recent upgrade I shot a howa. That gun shot great. Consistently under a moa. I'm sure that he will love it.

 

[BlackWhiskey]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Thanks, it was a fun project.

There is a very warm place in my heart for Howa rifles. They are the best bang for your buck for a factory rifle IMO. I got the fluted 20" barreled action for just over $400, which is a steal in my book.

 

[dwt]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Nice work !

 

[clayne_b]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Good work man!

 

[Boltfluter]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

Nice job. Nothing beats quality time spent with your Dad.

Regards,
Paul

 

[acloco]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

VERY nice work. Congrats to you AND your dad.

 

[BlackWhiskey]

Re: Project for Dad (Pic Heavy)

**Update**

I took my dad out to the range yesterday for the maiden voyage of his rifle. I helped him zero it and then gave him a breakdown of bullet drop and only gave him his dope for 200 and 300 yds. I wanted him to miss beyond that so he could start to learn how to do corrections with his reticle. To my complete surprise, he made first round hits from 200-600 yds (the extent of the range) on 8" gongs.

He was obviously ecstatic about how the rifle performed, and I was speechless about his natural ability to predict the trajectory of his bullets. I couldn't have asked for a better experience.