32 H&R mag

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  • Last Post 08 February 2018
shjoe posted this 06 February 2018

I have access to an old hopkins and allen falling block 20ga action that I think would make for a nice 32 H&R magnum target/small game rifle. I am not sure what barrel to use. .308 or .312 diameter and which twist rate. I have on-hand a 300 rem magnum barrel with a damaged chamber from drilling a scope mount hole too deep. am also wondering if a decent used mosin nagant 91/30 barrel would work. any advice would be greatly appreciated. john

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shjoe posted this 08 February 2018

thanks, ken. all sage advice. I am meeting with the gunsmith next week to brainstorm the project.

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 08 February 2018

oh, i forgot to mention that on many of the factory pencil barrel take-offs they have cut the diameter down just ahead of the receiver ... so you cannot set them back very far unless you make an adapter .... 

one of the tricks to get a factory barrel to shoot better is to put in a better chamber / throat ... often the factory throat is off center, or too long, or too large in diameter ...  just not a good alignment for your cast bullet .  sometimes the bad throat is an inch long, so you need a chamber image to see how to improve your chances of improvement .

the other trick is to lap the barrel after the new chamber is cut .  after that it is just luck of the draw .

somebody said " bullets, bedding, barrel " ...  that is a good start ...

good luck, ken

 

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shjoe posted this 08 February 2018

thanks to ken and larry for their feed back and brench rest info. I may have to research what bullet weight range I wish to use and the use of something different than a 1-10 twist rate. also would need to consider a sighting system for the old mark 1 eye ball. I am thinking tangent rear with a globe front.

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 07 February 2018

i have bot several take-off match barrels from bob white at shooter's corner.  at least in the past he has described the barrel's condition correctly and often even knows how many shots are through the barrel .

the lists are fun to read but best to call him and ask for up-to-date barrels .

30 cal match barrels in 16-17 twist are used by most  of the bench score shooters ....  and since they are mostly 20 inches long, they are too short to set back an inch or so when they stop shooting 0.2 moa ... but for cast, an 18 inch barrel would just be more accurate .

when considering a match take-off, remember that most are threaded for a 18 or 20 pitch receiver ....... but shooter's corner also has take-off factory barrels, so best to call him .

for a purely budget barrel, there are a lot of these new factory 18-22 inch pencil barrel takeoffs at local gunsmiths ...  should go for about $40 if new .

here is bob's list for stainless barrels ...

http://theshooterscorner.com/files/2017/02/2016-USED-STAINLESS-MATCH-BARRELS-unless-otherwise-noted-2.7.pdf

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Larry Gibson posted this 07 February 2018

I would prefer using a .312 barrel with a 16 to 18" twist but the cost would be prohibitive considering the shotgun platform contemplated.  Might look around the BR sites or check with a few BR gunsmiths as they might have a "shot out" 30 BR (or similar cartridge) take off barrel with 16, 17 or 18" twist.  Many of those still have lots of life in the front 90+% of the barrel.

LMG 

Concealment is not cover.........

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shjoe posted this 06 February 2018

thanks for your response, rick. your correct about the cost of a decent 308 barrel. in another project, I used an old springfield barrel take off and had it mated to an single shot break open H&R rifle action chambered in 32acp, ala ed harris. my concern was the .312 dia 32 H&R bullet. a 91/30 would be close to 312 but perhaps too loose a fit. I also had a bunny pistol made up with a 6 1/2" 308 barrel mated to an H&R 732 revolver. the cylinder and extractor plate were modified to chamber and extract a 32acp. makes for a great trap line pistol. best, john

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RicinYakima posted this 06 February 2018

I've made two bunny guns and used standard .308" barrels, mainly because they are inexpensive. After chambering, reamer has a .299" pilot, I just put a 1 1/2 degree .311" throating reamer in to clean up from front of throat into the bore. HTH, Ric

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