Rebarreling a Ruger 77 questions

[nekshot]

If I was(had the money) to blue print and rebarrel a action for its best performance I would go no further than Tim Malcom.

[Wolfer]

I have the Green mtn blank here. Been playing with my lathe a lot cutting threads on a 1" bolt. Since he lives at Sparta this has to be a weekend thing. Since my lathe is under a lean to outside decent weather would be nice but not mandatory.

[ackleyman]

We had one heck of a time with a Stainless 77 Mark II. The action and bbl threads gauled upon trying to remove the barrel. The threads were ripped out of the action, it was destroyed.

I had a blued tang safety re-barreled to 243 AI, put in a McMillen Hunter class stock, and oh my goodness what a shooter!

[Wolfer]

The barrel came off relatively easy. Reamer arrived today so we can start putting it back together.

[Wolfer]

Got the barrel threaded and the chamber finished today. Started cutting the contour and quit for the night.

Rebarreling these is no more difficult than a Mauser. Easier than many rifles.

[nekshot]

Impressive! New gunshmidt in town! I bet you have a secret lube based on bee honey also!! Just having fun with you, I wish I could figure how to cut threads with my metric lathe and its german directions.

[kmrra]

Where were you in German class in high school......oh wait never mind that was spanish

[Wolfer]

Im about as fluent in German as I am in Spanish!

Got the barrel contoured and sanded to 100 grit. A little more sanding, cut a crown and a coat of paint and we will be ready to shoot this puppy.

[John 242]

Good job Wolfer!
You'll have to change your sig line at the bottom of your posts. It looks like you've been doing some living and learning after all!

Anxiously awaiting your range results.

[Wolfer]

It's been an adventure. My lathe is an 1894 Porter machine works. I don't know when it was made but they stopped branding them that in 1898.
It originally ran on a flat belt from the ceiling but someone has rigged an electric motor to a model A transmission to run it now.

While I have 3 foreward speeds and reverse in the transmission to change speed on the lead screw you literally have to change gears. I have a bucket full of gears.

My thread dial has no markings on it whatsoever. No matter what I can't disengage the half nut and get it to pick a thread back up.

The only way I've found to cut threads is to leave the half nut engaged. In reverse it wants to bind up and kick itself out of gear. I get around this by helping it along with the apron wheel. If I get ahead of the lead screw the half nut will fall out. A string on a weight looped over a nearby handle keeps the half nut engaged but I can still disengage it if need be.

The cross slid tends to rotate on it own so another string/ weight keeps it in one spot and I do fine adjustment with the compound.

The old girl has a lot of quirks but is still pretty capable if you have lots of patience.