M14 Forum

losok · December 17th, 2011, 07:21 PM

I love my old 1917s and Model 30s. I like to buy the old sporters done in the 50s and and clean them up. I have even take some and modded them to take detachable mags of the AICs long action variety. I now have chance to pick up one rare bird though, a Model 30 that is Cherry, its the express model with both the barrel sight and the factory installed Lyman sight. The wood is nice, and the blue is just a bit on the patina side, but not dinged or rusted at all. The bore is great, and 5 groove left hand twist, just like the 17s.

I will post some pics of the my daughter's rifles, they are soo nice, both winny 17s that had hatchet jobs of ear removal done before I got them. I reshaped the rear rings and mounted optics correctly and they are both sub MOA shooters with their now 20 inch or so barrels. They both had pitting near the end of the barrel so I just cut back to get away from it, and they shoot great now.

M1A's r BEST · December 18th, 2011, 04:45 AM

I too like the M1917's. I've got a couple of sporters (Winchester and Eddystone) that I bought more than 30 years ago. I've got a couple of originals (again a Winchester and an Eddystone). I haven't shot the Winchester in years (covered up by bags, stuff in the attic) but the Eddystone went to the range a couple of trips last year. I need to dig it out and let my son and nephew shoot it so they have something to compare to the M1 Garands.

If you're a big guy with long arms the M1917 is a better fit than an 03. The 03A3's and A4's seem to have longer buttstocks and fit me okay but the 03's are just too short to be fun to shoot.

losok · December 18th, 2011, 06:53 AM

I am heading over to another dealer this week to pick up 4 17 actions he has, all complete actions, no stocks, no barrels etc, he said they are in great shape, just need to see for myself. I am guessing they are ones he picked up from an estate sale from a retired gunsmith, as I know he got a bunch of stuff at one a while back he has been sorting through. If I can get them and they appear OK, they will be turned into some real nice sporters in 06 that I will throw in the SHTF rifle locker for the family to use.

Earthquake · December 26th, 2011, 01:27 PM

I have a 458 Win mag built on a Remington P14 action, I straightened out the bottom metal and left the magazine box full lenght so it will hold 5 rounds, then mounted scout scope on the barrel above the receiver ring, it has a 24" barrel with a brake. It shoots so nice and has very little recoil for a .458 WM, I'm thinking about having the chamber cut for .458 Lott to get a little more umph out of it, I need to work on the feed a bit to get it to feed 350gn loads better. I would love to have a clean 1917 for the collection though.

Casey

bmcgilvray · December 29th, 2011, 06:51 AM

Here's a couple of Enfields kept around here. The '17 is an original Eddystone with a 9-11 barrel date. It's only in average condition but is all original, unmolested, not rebuilt or refinished. Apparently '17 Enfields in their World War I as-issued configuration are uncommon. Very little was originally given for the rifle which was acquired as a place holder for a budding teenaged hobbyist with an interest in all U.S. military rifles. Only recently did I learn of the originality of the rifle.

The sporter is actually a P-14, built by Remington and originally chambered for .303. I obtained it from the fellow who originally sporterized it. He sent it to P. O. Ackley in the early 1960s where the barrel was shortened to 22 inches, the trigger guard housing was modified, narrowed to give the rifle a slimmer girth around the receiver area, receiver cleaned up to remove the rear sight assembly and protective "ears," and rechambered to .303 ICL Improved, a cartridge which is effectively a ".31-06." The owner then stocked the rifle in cherry wood.

A commercial .303 British cartridge and a reformed .303 ICL Improved case.

A load using the .311 Sierra 150 grain spitzer bullet and IMR 4320, averaging 3004 fps over the chronograph screens, has been used to take a couple of whitetail deer here in Texas. It was effective in the way the .30-06 is effective on deer.

USMC6094 · January 20th, 2012, 09:12 PM

That sportered P14 is a work of art.

kabanchik · January 21st, 2012, 06:29 AM

Despite the naysayers' protestations, this is certainly NO "bubba job"! Congratulations on owning such a thing of beauty!
Swords into plowshares at its finest!!!

nicholst55 · January 21st, 2012, 09:57 PM

I've got a 1917 sporter in .458 Lott nearing completion. I can't wait to see it, because it's been at the gunsmith's for the entire four years I've been overseas! It was a bubba job on a Winchester 1917 when I bought it, so I don't feel at all bad about sporterizing it. It should kill anything I'll ever encounter DRT, especially in Arizona, where I'm headed when I leave here!