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Shooting & Reloading - Mausers, Big Bores and others >> Big Bore Rifles

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BlainSmipy
.375 member

Reged: 24/11/05
Posts: 558
Loc: Washington, USA

Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat
#45080 - 28/12/05 05:04 PM

I have an old Ruger #3 in 223 that is useless to me in that cartridge. Anybody have any idea how much it would cost to rebarrel in something like a 45-70 and put descent wood on? Is it worth even doing this?

Thanks

Colorado

--------------------
You horde gold, I horde lead.

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Otto
.300 member

Reged: 15/09/05
Posts: 111
Loc: Arizona, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45093 - 28/12/05 11:03 PM

There's some guy out there who would pay a fair price for your .223 #3. Take the money and buy a #1 in 45-70, if that's what you want. I've put a #3 in 30-40 in #1 wood...call it a #2...with minimal effort and the result is a nice looking rifle. IMO, any caliber you fancy available in a #1, you will be ahead selling your #3 and buying a #1. Conversely, should you want a non available caliber, modifying your #3 starts to make sense. I'm in process of making a 505 Gibbs #1...my idea of something "neat".

Otto

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DarylS
.700 member

Reged: 10/08/05
Posts: 27005
Loc: Beautiful British Columbia, Ca...

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45104 - 29/12/05 04:00 AM

Colorado- go to PacNor's web site and see for yourself. They even make ready to screw-in barrels, contoured, chambered and threaded for your action. Probably less than $300.00 US for a chromemoly barrel- slightly more for stainless.
: PacNor's are exceptionally accurate in any calibre. Shilen or Douglas might do the same, but PacNor's rule!

--------------------
Daryl

"a gun without hammers is like a Spaniel without ears" King George V

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mickey
.416 member

Reged: 05/01/03
Posts: 4647
Loc: Pend Oreille Valley, Idaho

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: DarylS]
#45109 - 29/12/05 07:22 AM

Colorado

Here is what I did with a #3

It is a 223 and a very accurate Sage Rat Rifle.

--------------------
Lovu Zdar
Mick

A Man of Pleasure, Enterprise, Wit and Spirit Rare Books, Big Game Hunting, English Rifles, Fishing, Explosives, Chauvinism, Insensitivity, Public Drunkenness and Sloth, Champion of Lost and Unpopular Causes.

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BlainSmipy
.375 member

Reged: 24/11/05
Posts: 558
Loc: Washington, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: mickey]
#45113 - 29/12/05 09:31 AM

Does any body know if the extractor would need to be modified and or changed? Is the action the same and or strong enough to handle the big bore?

To rebarrel including blueing and mating is $500.00 roughly.

Thanks,
Colorado

--------------------
You horde gold, I horde lead.

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BlainSmipy
.375 member

Reged: 24/11/05
Posts: 558
Loc: Washington, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: mickey]
#45114 - 29/12/05 09:55 AM

Were did you get the wood? Barrel? Gunsmithing?

Thanks its great looking! I want the same in a 577NE or 470 NE.

Thanks,
Colorado

--------------------
You horde gold, I horde lead.

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mickey
.416 member

Reged: 05/01/03
Posts: 4647
Loc: Pend Oreille Valley, Idaho

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45142 - 29/12/05 01:41 PM

I did everything except the checkering and changing the forend mount myself. Mark Stratton did those two things.

--------------------
Lovu Zdar
Mick

A Man of Pleasure, Enterprise, Wit and Spirit Rare Books, Big Game Hunting, English Rifles, Fishing, Explosives, Chauvinism, Insensitivity, Public Drunkenness and Sloth, Champion of Lost and Unpopular Causes.

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DarylS
.700 member

Reged: 10/08/05
Posts: 27005
Loc: Beautiful British Columbia, Ca...

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45214 - 30/12/05 03:01 AM

You can get a new extractor from Ruger, or a representitive.
: If you can get a good price on the #3, then perhaps the #1 in .45/70 wold be the better way to go.
: A stock #1 will make about 2,200fps even with 400gr. bullets, developing well over 4,000ft. lbs. if that is the powder level you want. As well, it could be chambered more deeply for whatever length .45cal. case you want.
: With that in mind, you can get 2.4" up to 3-1/2" brass. 3" or 3-1/2" brass will make 2,200fps(or more) with less than 35,000PSI & even put 500's out at 2,000fps easily.
: The possibilities are wide open at this point.

--------------------
Daryl

"a gun without hammers is like a Spaniel without ears" King George V

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CptCurl
.450 member

Reged: 01/05/04
Posts: 5284
Loc: Fincastle, Botetourt County, V...

Re: Converting an old Ruger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45239 - 30/12/05 07:02 AM

I have a #3 originally chambered for .375 Win.

To make things interesting it is drilled out to 9.5x57R. I neck down .444 Marlin brass in one pass through the sizing die. But being a Ruger, it will also extract rimless brass. I have made rimless cartridges out of .270 Win. and .30/06. You have to cut off the brass, run it through the sizer, and do a fire-form with cream of wheat.

By the way, my conversion was made to headspace on the shoulder, so the presence or absence of a rim is basically irrelevant in this rifle.

It's a great shooter. I load it with 250 gr. Sierras. They really arrive with authority. Quite a few deer can testify to this.

The same cartridge, in rimless form, would just be dandy in a custom Mauser 98.

Curl

--------------------
RoscoeStephenson.com

YOUR DOUBLE RIFLE IS YOUR BEST FRIEND.

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BlainSmipy
.375 member

Reged: 24/11/05
Posts: 558
Loc: Washington, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: Otto]
#45495 - 01/01/06 07:53 PM

I dought I could get $100 for this thing. It has a really lousy "redone" stock and the sights were filed off. It shoots well enough, but I don't have any prairie dogs to shoot any more. According to our state the Prairie dog is endangered.! HA!

A new #1 is going to be about $800 cash, I figure for about $500 to $600 I can have it rebarreled and restocked.

Colorado

--------------------
You horde gold, I horde lead.

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davem3
.300 member

Reged: 10/02/04
Posts: 121
Loc: birmingham,al usa

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45499 - 02/01/06 01:06 AM

Colorado:
Both barrels and wood for Ruger #1's show up on ebay on an irregular basis.
Large bore barrels usually go for a premium but something you can use may turn up if you keep checking. Dave

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banzaibird
.333 member

Reged: 18/09/05
Posts: 358
Loc: S.C. Pennsylvania, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#45501 - 02/01/06 02:24 AM

I'd give you a $100 for it

.

Seriuosly though. You can plan on spending more than $500-$600 on getting the work done. A decent barrel alone will cost you around $200. Same for a decent grade/quality of wood. Then you have the fit, finish, pad, checkering, chambering, threading, fitting the extractor, bluing, sights etc, etc, etc.

Custom guns cost alot for a reason. Only half of it is time and workmanship, the rest is parts.

BB

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davem3
.300 member

Reged: 10/02/04
Posts: 121
Loc: birmingham,al usa

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: davem3]
#45723 - 04/01/06 03:21 PM

Colorado, Ruger #1 stock set by Fajan on ebay right now at $12.50 with 4 days to go.

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sbs470
.333 member

Reged: 15/04/04
Posts: 378
Loc: Sheffield Tasmania

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: davem3]
#46317 - 11/01/06 12:15 AM

Hi Colarado
My suggestion is not to put a large calibre on a number 3# .A friend of mine has a 500 x 3' nitro on a number 3# .My experience from shooting that damn thing is that there is nothing like fresh blood to take bluing of a rifle as it dripped from my gashed finger.Another friend has the same calibre on a number 1# at least I can hang onto it for a second shot.The finger lever on a number 3# combined with a large calibre gives me no joy at all.
I do have a 300 win mag barrel that I took from one of my number 1#s and spare wood.
good shooting
sbs470

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banzaibird
.333 member

Reged: 18/09/05
Posts: 358
Loc: S.C. Pennsylvania, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: sbs470]
#46320 - 11/01/06 12:41 AM

The nice thing about the #3 is that it is easy to cut, bend and reweld the finger loop. So don't let that worry you. However again that will do nothing but drive up the cost if you are unable to do that yourself.

BB

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BlainSmipy
.375 member

Reged: 24/11/05
Posts: 558
Loc: Washington, USA

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: sbs470]
#46360 - 11/01/06 11:25 AM

I've decided to just to leave it as is. Maybe I'll shoot some coyotes with it some day.

Colorado

--------------------
You horde gold, I horde lead.

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k80
.333 member

Reged: 07/05/04
Posts: 314
Loc: San Antonio ,Texas, U.S.A.

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#46382 - 11/01/06 02:05 PM

The worst rifle I ever shot was
a #3 in 45-70 with some 500 grn.
hand loads. It was absolutely brutal
to shoulder and hand.

--------------------
Ken
San Antonio

Welcome to South Texas

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DarylS
.700 member

Reged: 10/08/05
Posts: 27005
Loc: Beautiful British Columbia, Ca...

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: k80]
#46425 - 12/01/06 06:24 AM

Amazing- I loaded up some 500gr. Hornady's for a friend with a #3 using Hornady's top load- supposedly 1,800fps.
: The recoil was pretty nasty for sure. It took 3 of us to shoot it all off for him - on a bet, of course. No sane man would to that for fun. We had a hard time hitting with our normal rifles immediatly afterwards - all of us developed flinches from that ventrue. Amazing what a 5 1/2lb. gun feels like with that load. Nasty is an understatement, however I'd expect nothing a .378 WTBY doesn't do with normal regularity - induce flinching, that is.

--------------------
Daryl

"a gun without hammers is like a Spaniel without ears" King George V

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BwanaBob
.300 member

Reged: 03/07/03
Posts: 178
Loc: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#46455 - 12/01/06 11:09 PM

I have a No 3 that is about to get the "No 2" treatment and be rebarreled to .450/400. I already have the barrel and am just about to order dies and reamer - then the project can start in earnest!

--------------------
"White men with their ridiculous civilization lie far from me. No longer need I be a slave to money" (W.D.M Bell)

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550Magnum
.224 member

Reged: 16/01/06
Posts: 1
Loc: SW Idaho

Re: Converting a old Runger #3 to something neat [Re: BlainSmipy]
#46740 - 16/01/06 04:29 PM

I really like the "old timey" look of the #3 lever. I have used a couple to build really neat big bore rifles. Last one was a 45-120 for Billy Dixon-type matches where you shoot as far as 1571 yards with lead. If you area interested in selling, I would talk.
regards,

Rich

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