Looks pretty similar, doesn’t it? The ‘edges’ on the inletting are a bit cleaner/sharper than on my gun, but the backing nut looks the same, etc. So one could open up the barrel channel of a standard stock for a target barrel without it showing. I believe that the diameter of the medium heavy barrel (as used on the Varmint rifles) is the same or slightly greater at the point of the ‘goose egg’ on standard barrels. Since those stocks were made up specifically for those rifles, it made no sense whatsoever to drill the fore end for a barrel bedding screw and then have to cover it up with a dummy screw. The Van Orden stock is not a regular standard rifle stock made without checkering, as it has special butt stock dimensions approximating the ’03 Springfield National Match rifle. The Van Orden rifle stock is a curious example of superfluous work, just like, for example, drilling the top of the pre-war 375 MAGNUM 24″ straight taper target weight barrels for scope blocks (can’t imaging many people planned to put a Lyman Targetspot on a 375 MAGNUM!!!). I just pointed out the pics of the Van Orden rifle because (like yours) it is a 1955 manufacture rifle with the same feature. Hopefully we’ll get others to share their observations. It would not surprise me if there were some variability in the early Varmint rifles.
My two varmint rifles are a 1959 243 WIN (s/n 442192) with steel butt plate and a 1961 220 SWIFT (s/n 522939) with composite butt plate. I honestly have not see (or paid enough attention to) enough 1st year M70 varmint rifles to be able to say that I have/have not seen other examples. Is this an example of that or is that an impossible? Rule does speak on the bolt being glued in place on some 1963 era rifles but does not mention anything about first year 1955. The Rule book makes numerous references to rifles cobbled together with the parts inventory on hand. The rifle is in exceptional condition, the price was fair and I am very satisfied this the purchase. He also fully disclosed the bolt in our dealings. I have complete confidence in the collector the rifle came from that this is the rifle as he bought it 30 years ago. It has a steel but plate, correct checkering, and one of the few marks on the rifle appears to be a scuff (or blood stain) on the barrel that continues to the stock. The stock does appears to be original to the rifle. It passes through the stock, not long enough to touch the barrel, and is capped with a nut (not a standard nut but something that is almost resembles the shape of flower petals). The stock is a modified standard stock opposed to a modified featherweight stock. I have a 1955 first year 243 Varmint Rifle #358XXX. Are the stocks of the varmint rifles a modified featherweight, a modified standard weight, a combination of both or a stock created just for the Varmint rifle?
0 kommentar(er)
