Gun Show , Tulsa, New Toy

[Pistolero]

Beautiful rifle, Ben, and should be great for cast, and maybe some young man that you know might need a
deer rifle in the next few years....

One question. Do you, or anyone here understand the intent of the groove at the front of the
handguard? I have seen those, but have not a clue why it is there.

Bill

 

[Bret4207]

Bill, I think it's purely cosmetic and a sort of suggestion of a schnable forearm treatment.

Ben, nice platform and caliber. Sure hope that #1 can handle the massive pressures involved with cast 30WCF loads! As far as a scope, that combo screams externally adjusted scope on blocks to me. But that's just me.

 

[Rally]

Bill,
Buddy of mine uses that notch for a homemade sling. It has a leather thong on the forearm end he loops over the barrel and snugs down, the other end has a QD swivel for the stud on the stock. He said he doesn't like the idea of clamping anything on the barrel and only uses the sling when walking into his stand.

 

[Brother_Love]

Ben,
I’ve been thinking about ordering an NOE plain base version of the Lyman 311299 for my 788 30/30. It just sounds like a good combo for 30/30 cast. You probably already have one of those. Just thinking.

 

[Ian]

The forearm groove is a nod to the Alexander Henry single-shot rifle design, much of which Bill Ruger copied.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...-henry-single-shot-rifle.cfm?gun_id=101163749

 

[Ben]

Ben,
I’ve been thinking about ordering an NOE plain base version of the Lyman 311299 for my 788 30/30. It just sounds like a good combo for 30/30 cast. You probably already have one of those. Just thinking.

Yes, the 299 plain base shoots well in all of my .30 cal. rifles.

Ben

 

[KeithB]

Makes me wonder how many people looked at that rifle and weren't interested because of the "antique" non-magnum chambering.

 

[Ben]

A good point Keith.
Experienced cast bullet shooters KNOW EXACTLY what the cartridge is capable of.

Ben

 

[KeithB]

Not to cast shade on anyone's favorite cartridge, but how many shooters would pick a .30-30 over a .308, a .22 hornet over a .223, or even a .44 Spcl over a .44 magnum? That's how folks like us can sometimes find a deal in the picked-over end of the rack.

 

[Ben]

True.

I've made the rounds through the " GEE WHIZ ULTRA- MAGNUMS ".
I'm glad I'm finished with all of that.
No more of that for me.

Ben

 

[Gary]

Never say never Ben.

 

[Ian]

I tend to go with "modern" chamberings because of brass and power availability. We can easily download a .308 to 32-20 specs and shoot the same bullet sized to .310", but can't go the other way if we buy a 32-20. .223 brass litters the ground everywhere, and .308 isn't too difficult to find either. When was the last time you saw three boxes of .44 SPL brass laying on the ground for the taking? Nothing wrong with the older calibers if you're willing to shoulder the extra cost of shooting them.

 

[KeithB]

Probably an inapt comparison on my part to use military cartridges since they tend to have all the advantages Ian points out. Let me restate my observation this way: Would you pick a rifle like Ben's in .30-30 or .300 magnum something? What do you think most people would buy if they were identical and sitting side by side for the same price? Same with a 7x57 vs 7mm mag.

I can tell you that about 10 yrs ago I bought one (and should have bought two) S&W M296 for $339 before tax. Its a titanium frame concealed hammer L frame 5 shot .44 Spcl with a 2" barrel. The dealer was selling them at cost because they weren't .44 MAGNUM and nobody wanted them. They kick enough with a 240gr 750 fps load that I wouldn't want to shoot magnum anything in it. I've also picked up several used M24/M624s because of the .44 non-magnum chambering.

 

[Brad]

Some cartridges are just cast friendly. 30/30 is high on that list. Just like it was designed for cast.

 

[462]

Keith,
I'm with you regarding the .44 Special. I bought a new-in-the-box 6 1/2" Model 624 for $300 and a lightly used 3" Model 24 for $250. We each have our wants and needs, but those two guns will do whatever it is I need a handgun to do. Thank you, Lew Horton!

 

[Rally]

Me too Keith. I’d choose the .30-30 over a .300 mag any day, same for the 7x57 over the 7 mag. I’m not a big fan of mags nor impressed with the amount of meat damage I’ve witnessed. I have both a 624 and 629, and shot equal number of deer with both. I’d prefer to use the mag on bears, but far from “under gunned” for deer with the 624.
Buddy of mine went from 240 gr to 200 gr in his bulldog .44 special, said it was pretty dramatic difference in recoil.

 

[Ben]

If you shoot ( and hunt ) long enough, you learn that bullet placement will trump raw power most every time ( with the exception of Grizzly , Brown, and Kodiak bears ) .

Ben

 

[Rushcreek]

Beautiful rifle! The first U.S. smokeless .30 cal sporting round(.30 WCF) and the first U.S. .30 cal smokeless military round(.30 Army) were my favorites before I ever fired a cast bullet from a rifle. All other .30 cals just don't interest me and I used a .308 for everything at one point in my youth. Someday I'll live on Tulsa Time- so close and I've still never been!!

 

[Bret4207]

Rally, I've been looking for a 200 gr bullet for the Bulldog for a long time. Haven't found the perfect design yet. Any idea what your bud is using?

 

[Tomme boy]

When was the last time you saw three boxes of .44 SPL brass laying on the ground for the taking?

I actually find a bunch of it here. I found over 500 of them last year alone.

Awesome rifle Ben. That would be hard to pass up for me also.