Help design this year's winter project

[usnmars 136]

Well every year I go ahead and build a gun over the winter.  Something to take up the time when the snow is falling and there is nothing else to do.  Well I have had a piece of junk ghetto sporter Jap type 99 in my shop that keeps getting kicked from one corner or workbench to another so I am going to be using this as a donor gun.  I have Douglas .308 diameter 6 groove blank sitting on the shelf, and the most impressive Exhibition grade qilted maple stock blank and some EAW swing scope mounts.  So here is what I need from 'yall.  Gimme some input... what caliber should I chamber in, Stock style, thumbhole, tactitard, monte carlo, or manlicher. Bull barrel, sporter, or target barrel profile.   Polish and leave in the white, gloss or matte blue.  I am planning on doing a flame blue on the small parts.  So lets have fun.... gimme some input of how it should be made and we'll see how it comes out. 

 

Here is a pic I found online of what quilted maple looks like.  My blank is like this but with a darker color and tighter swirls.

[Heavyopp 167]

With wood like that you have to use as much as you can --  Thumbhole manlicher stock??

[302w 83]

Mannlicher is cool. 

 

One of my favorite rifles is my dad's Mohawk 600, a short .308 bolt gun with an 18" barrel and a mannlicher stock. If I had a random action to build off of, I would do something like that. High polish blue, stock all the way to the crown almost, and something in a common .30 caliber.  

[junkmanted 54]

Junk the Jap and start out with a better receiver.

I will say you have a nice chunk of wood there 

 

go with a mauser you can do so much more with it and it would be worthy of the wood . hunt around and find something alread sporterized and maybe engraved 

[Bully 749]

 Manlicher stock.  Polished blue action with nickeled bolt for a touch of contrast.  18" target crowned and fluted barrel in polished blue as well.  .308. 

 

C

[djg0770 481]

I have a Yugo Mauser you could use as a donor...

 

I also have a Mauser bringback that was sporterized that may be available if you want to use that action as the barrel on that piece is already toast.

[usnmars 136]

Well I managed to snag a shilen barrel blank in a LARGE caliber for almost nothing this morning, and since the Jap actions were the strongest actions ever made I am going to go play with this one.  I am not going to use the fancy maple blank on it but if I remember right I picked up at an auction last year a few bastogne walnut blanks at an auction, Dan I think you were with me.  But anywho, I am going to build something from the Jap and I promise it's gonna be wild.  Considering the donor gun I am using, this years project is named "Godzilla."  Stay tuned in January when I get home from work because I promise this thing is going to be wild!  I am going to do a step by step build like I did with the Monster Mosin so hopefully the write ups will be semi educational. 

[djg0770 481]

Bolt action 50?

[MedicYeti 96]

I have an Arisaka that was converted to 30-06 and placed in a Remington stock. It is my hunting rifle and is a great gun.

The Arisaka receiver is increadibly strong so it will take anything you want to give it. The face of the bolt doesn't have a lot of room to work with so cartrages with a base in the 30-06 or 308 range are ideal.

I like the manlicher stocks.

Perhaps a manlicher stock with a 243. Maybe a creakote of all the metal that compliments the wood and some peep sights.

[usnmars 136]

well I haven't been home yet to play but the project now includes a Unertl.  It keeps getting more and more wild.