Eager to see it when refinished. That’s a shoulder buster for sure.

 

I can't imagine shooting a full power load on a buffalo with that rifle. I hope your orthopedic surgeon is going with you.

 

Looks like a fun project...all the way up to the point where you pull the trigger.

 

First step in dealing with recoil, all shooting, even the practice loads will be done standing, crossed sticks.

 

That’s going to be brutal.

 

Oh I don't know about brutal recoil, robust, brisk maybe, but sure hope not brutal.

Who am I kidding, those 750's will be nasty. That's why I am going to build the 480 grain loads for practice.

 

So this morning some looking and planning. Here is what I am starting with on the buttsock.

This is the buttstock attached and stock screw fully in, The lever tip does not fully seat and there is a large gap bet between the action socket and the tenon. I will make a thick bushing the will go between the head of the butt stock screw and the seating surface in the stock bolt hole. The cheek piece is coming off. This cheek piece was laid out in the wrong place and is to small.

This is the gap I will have when the lever is seated properly in lever socket.

That still looks like a lot of gap. These stock are notorious for chip out along this line, especially along the top. I will give this a heavy layer of Acraglas and bed this stock hard.

I have a 13 inch LOP. So when I install a butt pad on this guns I will be cutting on the left side of the vertical bar.

I ordered a new pattern makers rasp. My old one is dull. What should I expect for tool that I have used for 38 years. When it come in I get after this.

 

Here what a 38 year old worn out pattern makers rasp looks like,

Those flat shiny things are suppose to be pointed.

 

First off try sharpening the rasp teeth. If that sounds totally crazy well you’re right it would be. Just like trying to shoot that howitzer from your shoulder.
Need a 6” recoil pad on that thing.

 

Back in the 80's there were people offering file sharpening services. Tried once, bought new files after that.

 

I have all the brass rounded up, I think. I found both Jamison and Bertram. Jamison brass is 3 inch, the Bertram Brass is 3 1/4 inch.

I have some brass already trimmed. the loaded rounds are all dummy.

Bullets are Woodleigh 650 SP, CBE 480 gr. Snider, and CBE 650 gr. NE bullet.

 

Some nice 40mm rounds you got lol

 

Looking forward to the video of you touching one off...

 

Sorry Steve only 14.6 mm, plinker rounds.

Oh yes there will be video. Jane wants proof, that this is self inflicted.

 

I was going to leave that gap filled with glass bedding compound. I decide to just snug that stock up with a bigger bushing under the stock screw.

I will still glass bed the butt stock. I think a thin layer of bedding over wood versus a thick layer will be stronger.

The new pattern makers rasp came in, so its time to get after that cheek piece.

 

The Cheek piece is gone.

I am reminded why I no longer do this kind of work. Arthritis and carpal tunnel leave me with aching burning joints and "electrified" hands. But that is whining. The cheek piece is gone.

That line is 13 inches, my LoP. I will cut that butt off 1 inch shorter for the Decelerator butt pad.

I have been watching Cape Buffalo hunts on YouTube. Nobody but a bunch of old men huntingBuff. Humm I fit right in. Also noticed when you can tell, those that appear to be shooting .375's sure use a lot of ammo. Another thing I noticed a well placed shot only means the shot is well placed. To the Buffalo, no big deal. Unless the cartridge is bigger, then it doesn't look like it takes as many well placed shot to get the job done.

My belt slide carrier only hold 5 rounds, wonder if I can get one that hold 10 rounds? Yep Cape Outfitters has one.

I am also going have to install sling swivels on this gun. I need to find a split barrel band front swivel. No forestock mounted sling swivel on this kind off gun, it will rip you hand open in recoil. I could have a full barrel band solder on but that would require reblue. I don't want to get involved in that just yet.

 

You ever thought of a custom sling, Mag pouch and such for it? My long time buddy Chance Shelton owns Custom Leather Work Hand crafted by Lever; does a lot of work for guys in the TV industry as well.

 

I use 1-1/4" military slings most of the time and do use them sometimes for shooting. Although I will most likely will be shooting from crossed crossed sticks and not using a sling. I may get a carry sling, thanks for the link.

I would not want these heavy cartridges dangling from my sling as I am trying shoot. Bullet 750 grains, load 70-80 grains of powder, brass ?? Some where between 900 and 1000 grains a round 2 to 2 1/4 ounces a round.

No sling carriers either. Nice for carrying spare rounds not easy to load from.

Butt stock carriers. I have never been on board with that idea as it never fails when I had one, I had to shoot from the other side of the rifle/shotgun. I did that once with shotgun and the cartridges banging into my face with 12 gauge recoil were not nice, imagine the recoil with this gun.

I'll do in hand between fingers of my off hand for carry for one round and the rest on my belt.

 

He makes belt pouch ammo holders and belts that are ammo holders like the old western 6-shooter, minus the pistol holster.

 

Had a bit of memory refresher. Open the reamer drawer of my tool box and saw two more cartridges. Before I went to Afghanistan in 2013 I sent these two round off to JGS Reamers and had a reamer made.

As I looked at the cartridges they seemed a bit long to me. The reamer is Marked .577 3" NE. Here is one of the cartridges up against a ruler.

I think I had checked and found that the 3" version of this cartridge would fit this action and intended to rechamber.

Because of the rotational breech block of the Martini length and diameter of the cartridge is critical. Some long cartridges will not slide down the breech block into the chamber. Geometry is critical. Long cartridges will not "turn the corner" and go in.

But, this one does.

As pictured this 3" cartridge won't go all the way in the 2-3/4" chamber. Reamed out it should fit.

But should I?

Right now the gun functions with 2-3/4" shells. Extraction is weak on the Martini design and crisp extraction is required for ejection to work. The load position of the breech block is critical in the Martini. Position now is fine. For the 3 inch shell it would need adjustment.

The other problem is, will this reamer clear the current neck out when the chamber is lengthened. There could be sstep if the current chamber has an over sized neck.

No I think for now I am going to leave this alone. No need to create issues that don't exist.

.303 British, 577 2-3/4" NE.

Douglas

 

My shoulder hurts just looking at that round.

 

Is there a pressure difference between the 2-3/4 and 3" cartridges?

Playing with old steel and increased pressure wouldn't give me that 'oh so comfy' feeling, but if there is a ~ 1K PSI or CUP difference, I don't think its going to hurt anything.

However I'll finish this by stating that I have zero experience with that rifle or cartridge.

 

Pressure is an important consideration and often mis understood particularly in these larger British cartridges.

The action was made in 1925 and in steel that is consider to be a modern steel. The barrel is also modern steel. This a not an old antique gun. This gun has a barrel the weight of a rifle barrel and not the thin barrel of a double rifle. I have the utmost confidence my rifle is safe.

The 577 NE's were made primarily for double rifles and thus pressures are low. The pressure standards of the original cartridges are recorded in tons per square inch. Cordite loads for both the 650 grain bullet and 750 grain bullet in the 2-3/4" chambering have a working pressure of 12.5 Tons. Both of these bullets used 90 grains of cordite.

The 3 inch version used 100 grains of cordite for the 750 gr. bullet and 90 grains of cordite for the 650 gr, bullet These of course were loads consider safe in double rifles. The 750 grain load is rated at 15 Tons, the 650 gr at 10 tons.

For loading I will be working with the Woodleigh Reloading manual, load data from Barnes Bullet's and Greame Wright's book Loading for the British Double Rifle.

Wright's book is an extensive work on loading the old big British cartridges with modern components to be be safely shoot in old antique rifle. His work in is done in cooperation with and by extensive testing in the Birmingham Proof house. He also collaborates with Kynamco the modern Kynoch company.

Wrights methodology is to pressure test original cartridges. Then using modern smokeless powder develop loads that produce the same pressures as the original. Greame work has determined that pressure is the critical factor in making double rifles regulate-that is to get both barrels to shoot to the same point of aim. Not a big issue for me shooting a single shot, beyond find a safe load.

I will be scrupulously following Wrights works as I know his loads has been pressure test and will be safe to fire.

If you can shoot 12 gauge slugs, this one should be a pussy cat. Well the practice rounds will be anyway.

I'm not kidding my self recoil will be robust.

 

Sounds like you have the load data and writings of someone who certainly did his due diligence in writing that book/manual.

 

Yeah, one needs reference material for this kind if stuff.

My F-I-L has a S&W 66-2. He was showing it to me one day. He showed me the "hot" handloads his buddy made fir him using (18!) grains of Alliant 2400 under a 158gr SJHP. That one opened my eyes a bit as I knew it was wayyyy over max without looking it up. I pulled up the info, which shows a max of 14.8gr. Just because the powder will fit doesn't mean you can load it. I explained to him what a proof load was, and then detailed how he was essentially proofing his gun everytime he shot it.

Anyway, he loaded the revolver back with those overloaded rounds and put it up...F me I guess. I went back behind him and swapped some of my mag loads in his gun. I checked it some time later and saw that he had reloaded the gun with his damn handloads again, so I swapped my stuff in once more and then chucked his 'exploders' in the woods below the house.

Forgot I had done that until we did a controlled burn about two years later. Handful of booms . F-I-L was stating about how "those sandstone rocks can really let out a pop when they get hot enough."

 

If it were mine, I would leave it alone. As you said, geometry is crucial and, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it!' If you have a 100% reliable rifle at this point, I would count my blessings. Just my 2 cents.
BTW - On my one trip to Africa, I wound up putting four shots into every animal. Not necessarily because they needed it but, with dangerous game, there is always an 'insurance shot.' I'm sure my Cape Buffalo was dead after the second shot. However, the way we had to approach him, he was laying with his back toward us after that second shot. He didn't seem to be moving, but the PH told me to put one between his shoulder blades. I did, and he didn't move. Still, we maneuvered around to approach him from directly behind. PH approached very cautiously and nudged him in the butt. Again, he didn't move, but the PH still had me put one more right behind his shoulder. There were lots of villagers nearby, and they had a villager get killed in a previous year when they approached a "dead" buffalo that wasn't quite dead.
Anyway, I'm enjoying your reports of working up all the details with this rifle prior to your trip. And, I really look forward to the post-trip reports!

 

If it were mine, I would leave it alone. As you said, geometry is crucial and, 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it!' If you have a 100% reliable rifle at this point, I would count my blessings. Just my 2 cents.
BTW - On my one trip to Africa, I wound up putting four shots into every animal. Not necessarily because they needed it but, with dangerous game, there is always an 'insurance shot.' I'm sure my Cape Buffalo was dead after the second shot. However, the way we had to approach him, he was laying with his back toward us after that second shot. He didn't seem to be moving, but the PH told me to put one between his shoulder blades. I did, and he didn't move. Still, we maneuvered around to approach him from directly behind. PH approached very cautiously and nudged him in the butt. Again, he didn't move, but the PH still had me put one more right behind his shoulder. There were lots of villagers nearby, and they had a villager get killed in a previous year when they approached a "dead" buffalo that wasn't quite dead.
Anyway, I'm enjoying your reports of working up all the details with this rifle prior to your trip. And, I really look forward to the post-trip reports!

No harm in an assurance shot. If a hog is laying upright, they always get a second shot from me. I'd bet 80% of the time they are still laying upright that they aren't dead until they get that assurance shot.