My .308 Winchester Tactical Rig

Here are some finish pictures and a write up of my first custom build. The weapon is currently about 2 years old, but I thought it might be nice to add to the projects gallery as a reference source.





The rifle is a pre-’64 Winchester Model 70 action. The locking lugs have been lapped smooth and the firing pin has been replaced with a Titanium SpeedLok model to cut down on firing time after the trigger has been pulled.

Trigger is a Timney drop in, tuned to just a hair under 2 pounds of pull. I really like the Timney triggers because they have three levers, most triggers have two, and fine tuning them is really easy. Once you get the trigger pull you want it has really good lock down screws, and add a couple of small drops of clear finger nail polish, and you have a rock solid trigger with great travel and almost NO over travel.

Barrel is a 1 in 12 twist Krieger cut down to 24 inches and has been cut into a special “Delta” shaped configuration to save on front end weight. Barrel has a purpose built tactical muzzle break that vents gas up and out, without venting any gas down into the dirt or grass, reducing signature after firing. The barrel was aligned to within 2/10,000th of an inch bore to breach before being custom cut with a reamer designed specifically for the .308 Federal Gold Medal Match, 168gr. BTHP. This choice was based on the availability of high quality “factory” ammo available from the good folks at Federal and I didn’t have to worry about learning all the ins and outs of reloading right out of the gate. As I have said, this was my first rifle build, so I wanted to be able to concentrate on shooting. Not having to worry about is this load too much, not enough, am I doing this reloading thing right, is my case weak walled, is the powder measurement right, etc. greatly increased my interest and limited my disappointment.



Stock is an H-S Precision 2 way adjustable fiberglass model with the full tactical rail running the entire length of the underside of the stock, from the front of the trigger guard to the breach. This gives you the ability to attach your bipod, in this case I have a Harris, in any needed configuration along with adding weights or custom hand holds as desired. All my rifles have this feature and I find it terribly useful. We ordered this one with a custom Decelerator recoil pad, which tames the punch to your body down to minimal.

On the top of the action I have mounted a cool rail from this company in Minnesota that has 20 MOA built into it, this gives you the ability to get much more travel out of your scope for much longer ranged shots. The name escapes me at the moment, but if you are interested in it PM me and I will get the name and address for you.

Scope is a Leupold 6.5 to 20 x 50mm Long Range Tactical Mil-Dot configuration that is zeroed in at 200 yards. With this zero I can make shorter shots using the Mil-Dot quite easily and step out to 300 or 350 yards without much changing of the knobs at all. The Mil Dot isn’t for everyone, but I really like the ability to make subtle changes without messing with the windage and elevation knobs all the time. Badger Ordnance scope rings and Butler Creek flip up scope covers round out the optics. The rifle weighs in at 12.2lbs, but that weight will increase a bit when I have it rebarreled in the Summer.



The black box with the red circle is a Leica LRF 1200 – a laser range finder, this one is a monocular. Accurate to within +/- 3 feet at 1200 yards, according to the manufacturer, this is a good, durable unit that will get you on target in a hurry. Rubberized armor and water tight, you don’t have to worry about it in the field going T.U. on you.

My new Kestrel 4500 wind & weather meter; 5.11 HRT Watch & range book complete my shooting solution package.

I house the rifle and the Leica in a Pelican 1750 case with my action guide, cleaning rod, sling, torque wrench for the scope and collimeter ( used for recalibrating your scope to zero should you need to remove it for any reason ) keep everything safe and sound.

The black mat below the rifle & gear is from Tactical Tailor and is a fold up, easily portable shooting mat. High density foam and a traction grip are sewn in to give you a real comfortable place to lie and send rounds down range.


Hope you enjoy -

D

 

Thanks. I appreciate that. It was a labor of love and took a ton of research before I was ready to make the move and start putting the pieces in place. Luckily I had A TON of good input by my gunsmith, so the final package turned out to be a tack driver.

 

Sure. Be my guest. Just know that she sits in my safe at night.

The weapon was built piece meal, over a year's time, so the actual impact to the pocket book was minimal. My 'smith has a year or so backlog anyways, so it all worked out and I got a hell of a nice stick in the process.

 

LOL - That depends on what you consider to be "your" home....

 

Thanks Big Daddy. It shoots a solid half minute of angle just about everyday of the week, but the tightest group I have personally put through it was about .40 or so, depending on where you mic'd the outside of the burn/tear in the paper. I imagine it would shoot tighter, but I am running through my second case of Federal Gold Medal Match and haven't started reloading with fire formed brass yet. I specifically had the chamber cut for Federal GMM - so I don't expect there to be a ton of difference with handloads, but general thinking is that it will be a bit more accurate with the fire formed stuff.

As for range, I am kind of wuss to be honest, I haven't pushed it further than 500 yards. I originally took some bad advice and only bought a 4.5x14 Tactical for it, so seeing small targets out at 500 in the waving grass & mirage of Northern Kali was a bit of a stretch. I upgraded to the scope that is on there now, the 6.5 x 20, and haven't been out to the range when they open it up to 600, which happens about twice a month. It's on my list of many things to get done this summer, along with about 100 other things.

JD

 

LOL - You know, when I saw that you had responded to this post, I was almost afraid to see what you had to say about the weapon itself...

This rifle was my first ever project into the long range tactical department. I read a couple of books ( Ultimate Sniper by Plaster and Accurizing the Factory Rifle by MacPherson ) before ever consulting a 'smith. All I knew was Remington and Winchester - those were the only two actions anyone ever talked about. I knew about the extractor issues, but like a lot of people, there was so much written about them, I figured that many people couldn't possibly be wrong.

Luckily my 'smith is one hell of a guy and about the most knowledgable I have ever met. The Howa/Vanguard wasn't yet prominent in the market place and they weren't offering any stocks that weren't complete customs. My 'smith suggested going with the Winchester and I have been happy ever since...

JD

 

No Kidding? That is pretty cool actually. I read the whole Dillinger biography and was enthralled by it. Couldn't put it down. The history books and the "press" of the time make him out to be this renegade robber killing everyone he came across and seducing women all over the country. It was really interesting to read what actually went on.

Van Meter & Dillinger had a shoot out with the FBI on April 23rd, which happens to be my finacee's birthday. Six degrees of separation anyone?

Van Meter got the same treatment in the end that Dillinger got - too many bullets and a lack of "resisting" arrest that could be "proven".

Pretty cool facts none the less there Tango, I might need to cut you some slack in future posts because of it.

JD

 

I built plant in Redding, Shasta, Anderson, Chico, Oroville, Paradise, Palermo, Oak Grove, Sacramento, Oakland, S.F. + Daly City and San Mateo.

You can keep it... LOL

JD