Pre-64 Win 70 re-barrel and load development

This was all performed in house. Except engraving.

Customer brought me a 1956 Winchester 70 “Featherweight”. It was chambered in .243 Win. He has enjoyed learning the ballistics of the 7mm-08 Ackley Improved I’ve written about so many times, and wanted the rifle re-barreled in that cartridge. But, he wanted to keep the barrel contour and length the same, and he wanted the new barrel blued. The only barrel manufacturer I found that makes a Pre-64 Winchester 70 “Featherweight” contour was Lilja barrels. And it’s going to come in stainless steel. Not to worry, I told him we can Cerakote the barreled action a custom house blend to make it look like it’s blued. “Do you want gloss, semi-gloss, or flat?” He said he wanted semi-gloss. That’s going to be way down the line, but check.

First things first. We’ve got to install pillars in the stock, bed it, and free float the barrel channel.

Lilja definitely provided plenty of barrel tenon.

After getting the bore centered with a .0000″ Mitutoyo dial indicator, I could finally start cutting. I measured the angle on the Win 70 barrel and set out to match it.

Lots of measuring, part off the barrel, but leave me some wiggle room to face it square.

Get all that cleaned up.

More measuring, and careful single point threading.

Action screws on with no wobble.

The Pre-64 Win 70 bolt is a coned bolt. So the relief for the cone had to be cut next.

And, of course, it’s got to get chambered.

Take the barrel out of the lathe, cut it to the same length as the Winchester barrel which was 22″. Muzzle side out the jaws, re-zero the barrel via the bore, and cut in the crown. 40 minutes of zeroing, 4 minutes of cutting and polishing. 

Then we have a barreled action again.