Arisaka in .358 Win?

[Pystis]

This week one relative offered me an Arisaka T38 in 243 Win. It has been rebarreled by Sako. The bore looked fine. However, I don´t have any use for 243 Win as I can borrow my dads .222 Rem Sako L46 Carbine if I need. I´ve also been dreamin about custom gun for big game. .357" caliber sounds nice with good selection of handgun bullets and molds available for practising. There is also 300grs woodleighs for big game to provide a good punch. Correct me if I´m wrong but isn´t 35 Whelen too long for T38 action? Then .358 Win would be the choice.
I´ve read that arisaka is difficult to rebarrel because of extractor slot milled in the breech.
The stock is already chopped and peep sight base soldered on the receiver.

[StarMetal]

Not anymore difficult then rebarreling a 1903 Sprinfield. I done up a T38 in 260 Remington. Here's what you have to watch for. The 260 Rem is based on the 308 case, just as the 358 Win you talk of, and it is alot fatter then the original 6.5 Jap the T38 was designed for. What this means is first you can't get five 308 size cartridges in the magazine. It also means that the feed rails will not feed it into the chamber because the noses of the bullet miss the breech hole. I had to do conciderable work to my magazine, feed lips or rails, and magazine follower to get my Jap to feed those 260's. I'd love to see that 243 done up and see if they altered the feed rails.

Yes the 35 Whelen would be too long for that action.

What do you mean that Sako rebarreled that T38? Did you mean that it had been rebarreled with a Sako barrel instead?

Joe

[Pystis]

What do you mean that Sako rebarreled that T38? Did you mean that it had been rebarreled with a Sako barrel instead?
Joe

Joe, I meant both. There is Sako Riihimäki cal. 243 Win marking or something like that on the shank. I´m not sure if there was Sako Riihimäki text, but the font is the same and the barrel contoure.
Sako sporterized milsurp weapons like Mosin-Nagants, Arisakas and Mausers after continuation war. My fathers Mosin-Nagant, for example is sporterized by Sako.
There were also many smaller shops doing that, because there were lots of surplus rifles in Finland.
I think if a weapon had a handguard and option for fixing bayonet it was military weapon according the law, and it wasn´t allowed to be used in hunting. Also the caliber for moose had to be at least 8mm.
Thats why we have so many bubba´ed guns down here.

[Ricochet]

That"s an interesting thought. I'd wondered why so many want to sporterize the old infantry rifles, when they're so perfectly handy as hunting rifles just as they were issued. Hadn't thought of it being inspired by California-like gun regulations forbidding military features. Bet that's where a lot of the impetus came from.

[Pystis]

In some cities it is very hard to get license for pistol carbines like MP5. The outlook seems to be more dangerous than the actual firepower.
I think those gun laws were made to protect Finnish companies like Sako and Tikka, and trying to keep moose hunting as a high-class hobby. It was until 1990´s when reloaded ammo was allowed to be used in moose hunting.
I´d like to use that arisaka action in a project because bare M98 actions are more expensive than a whole jugo mauser. But I hate the idea of ruining a weapon in original condition. I once bought Swedish M96 for sporterizing but I juast couldn´t do it.

[TCLouis]

If one has ever seen the chamber in a 6.5X50 Type 38 they would fully understand why rechamber or rebarrel is an option . . .
Norma brass is TOO expensive to shoot out of an oval chamber!

I have never seen one with a round chamber.

I did see a pristine example of one of the Italian made ones (complete with Walnut stock) I have always wondered if it had a decent chamber, it was as close to 100 % as I have ever seen in a milsurp gun!

[26Charlie]

I don't see why it wouldn't make a good .358 Win. As to feeding, I've got a .308 American Eagle Mauser - built on a 8mm action, and the rails are tapered for the 8mm cartridge, so the feeding with the straighter .308 body taper is fairly poor. I just haven't got around to doing anything about it yet; you would undoubtedly have to fool with it some in the Arisaka.
In one of P. O. Ackley's books he has an article about action strength, and as I recall he tried but couldn't blow up an Arisaka.
Then there was a bit in the American Rifleman magazine about a jackleg gunsmith who rechambered a 6.5mm Arisaka to .30-06 and was shooting 220 gr. jacketed ammo in it, wondering why it kicked so much. Must have been squeezing that .308 220 gr. down into a 6.5mm bullet about 2 1/2 inches long by the time it got out of the barrel.

[StarMetal]

You'd have to fool with an Arisaka action more then some to get it to feed anything on the 308 family.

Joe

[waksupi]

I have seen with even high dollar actions, if you are going to feed ANYTHING in the .308 family, you are going to have to do some careful tuning of the action, to get them to function well.

[Pystis]

I think it would be a lot of grinding if it wasn´t already worked.
It feeds those .243 Win rounds pretty well, especially from the right row. Round from left row feeds too much to the right. But as far as I can see it will work with some tweaking.
I´ll try to send some pics today.

Jukka

[Pystis]

Here´s the gun I mentioned above.
http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/1455/sakot385zf.th.jpg (http://img161.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sakot385zf.jpg)

I took some pics of receiver as I promised. I have to apologize the quality of some of them.
http://img467.imageshack.us/img467/4682/pict00471hz.th.jpg (http://img467.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pict00471hz.jpg)

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/4823/upper2yt.th.jpg (http://img138.imageshack.us/my.php?image=upper2yt.jpg)

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/7549/upper24vv.th.jpg (http://img135.imageshack.us/my.php?image=upper24vv.jpg)

http://img352.imageshack.us/img352/5827/feedingl5hq.th.jpg (http://img352.imageshack.us/my.php?image=feedingl5hq.jpg)

Please feel free to ask for more pics.

[StarMetal]

Jukka,

I spoke too soon on the pictures. I can see from your closeup of the feed rails that they were openned up quite alot. The original T38 feed rails taper down fast towards the breech and you can see that too. Your feed rails look pretty straight.

Let me ask you, when you load five rounds in the magazine does the last one fit tight? Mine did until I did some work on the feed rails and magazine, and magazine follower.

Joe

[Pystis]

Jukka,

I spoke too soon on the pictures. I can see from your closeup of the feed rails that they were openned up quite alot. The original T38 feed rails taper down fast towards the breech and you can see that too. Your feed rails look pretty straight.

Let me ask you, when you load five rounds in the magazine does the last one fit tight? Mine did until I did some work on the feed rails and magazine, and magazine follower.

Joe

Joe,

Yep, the rails are almost straight. The last round has some play in magazine. I think it still needs some work to get it chamber .358 rounds properly. As you can see in one those pics a round from left row turns too much to the right and the bullet hits the chamber face. Also the bolt face is pretty rough, so it may affect also.

Jukka