Siamese Mauser Action 444 or 45-50 Alaskan

[bouncer50]

I have 3 Siamese mauser action one of them i will sometime in the future send to ER shaw to fit a 45-70 barrel And the other one if it possible can a 444 marlin case be made to work in the action. I was all so thinking about a 45 or 50 Alaskan:bigsmyl2: made out of 348 Winchester cases I sure love my big bore guns.

[nekshot]

I feel your itch for a 444 in a bolt. I know nothing of the siamese mauser but I always held them in high esteem and kinda envied any one who had one! All that I saw converted looked real neat.

[leftiye]

If (and I'm guessing it is) the rim on the 444 is the same as 06 headsize ctgs to include 7X57 and 8X57, then other than feeding problems which might need to be fixed and/or length OA the conversion would be as simple as re barreling.

[elk hunter]

From my experience the real test is getting a rimmed case to feed properly. Generally not any easy task even in an action designed for them.

[nekshot]

If (and I'm guessing it is) the rim on the 444 is the same as 06 headsize ctgs to include 7X57 and 8X57, then other than feeding problems which might need to be fixed and/or length OA the conversion would be as simple as re barreling.

the 444 marlin has a rim of I think around .514. There is a 444 rimless that I am interested in for my 700 rem but I would take a 444 in this mauser in a heart beat. In a good action they can really buzz 410 grainers assuming twist is correct.

[longbow]

I had a Siamese Mauser converted to .45-70 back in the '70's. The bolt face had to be opened up a bit for the .45-70 rim which is a little larger than the 8x57R and feed rails opened up for the straight case but I never had any feeding issues at all with it. .444 should be an easier conversion as it is smaller all around than .45-70.

I am toying with making a bolt action .444 using a Lee Enfield action. Might get to it one day.

Sound like you have several fun projects coming up.

Longbow

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I have a Siamese Mauser converted to 45-70 years ago. It is an ugly beast and weighs close to ten pounds. Loaded with Winchester factory cartridges using a 300 grain bullet it kicks like a blue nose mule. The secret to smooth functioning is to work the bolt smartly, no pausing in mid stroke. It is equipped with a Lyman 48 rear sight.

[StrawHat]

I also had a Siamese in 45-70. Mine was reworked by Shaw and stocked by myself. It worked well but keeping ammunition for it separate from my Trapdoor loads was annoying so it went down the road.

If I were to have a Siamese action, I would give a lot of thought to barreling it for the 405 WCF. Factory loads hit hard and shoot flat, (compared to the 45-70) and having a bolt action 405 would be nice.

[bouncer50]

I also had a Siamese in 45-70. Mine was reworked by Shaw and stocked by myself. It worked well but keeping ammunition for it separate from my Trapdoor loads was annoying so it went down the road.

If I were to have a Siamese action, I would give a lot of thought to barreling it for the 405 WCF. Factory loads hit hard and shoot flat, (compared to the 45-70) and having a blot action 405 would be nice. I have thought about a 405 WCF. But my question is about finding brass and the cost to. Can you find barrels for the mauser in 405? I do like the 450 Alaskan from 348 brass not that hard to find.

[StrawHat]

Hornady made brass and loads for the 405 when Winchester reintroduced the cartridge in the rerun of the 1895. I have two boxes of those. I also have brass from Hornady. I see both are still listed on the Hornady website, not cheap, but how much do you really need? I fire 15-20 shots a year. Not sure if Starline makes the brass or not.

[kens]

I been thinking about a P14 enfield in .444.
Any thoughts on this?

[OuchHot!]

Would it be feasible to chamber for 450 Marlin? The brass is available and sturdy. I have a sliamese in 45-70 but am very careful to keep its loads away from weaker actions......I wish I had done it in another caliber now.

[longbow]

One of my only reservations of "modern" .45-70 loads is just that... making sure they do not ever get into a weaker action.

I think that was partly the goal of Marlin when the .444 was brought out as a modern big bore lever round but unfortunately they didn't seem to think it through too well. It ran at higher pressure than .45-70 but they saddled it with short throat and lightweight boolits. Had they gone with a design to handle heavier boolits I suspect the cartridge would have been more successful as there is nothing wrong with it.

I would be surprised if .444 wouldn't work in either the P14 or Siamese Mauser. It should be an easier conversion than .45-70.

Another option is .458 x 2" or as mentioned .444 rimless. I kinda like the idea of .444 rimless which can made from .308, 7mm Mauser or .30-06 brass depending on what length action you have or what length cartridge you want.

[StrawHat]

The P14 is a grand action, strong and the bolt face is already set up for magnum cartridges. The magazine is also long enough for true H&H length cartridges. Converting it to something like the 444 or the 450 Marlin would be giving up a lot of space that others wish they had.

[Preacher Jim]

I necked the 444 down to 375 and built a 375 express on my Siamese Mauser.
Shoots great Huntington has dies and brass is one pass forming.
Feeding was easy to correct.
Don't know what I will use it for as with the leg surgery hunting pigs is out.

[lar45]

I built a 30-378 on a M1917 action a few years back and had to build a new magazine box as the stock one was not long enough. The action is long enough, but needs to be opened up in the front and rear as well as sideways.
I think the 50 Alaskan in a Siamese Mauser sounds like a very interesting project.