hangunnr

Nope, no Hemi.... Plenty of horsepower though. hangunnr

Took a little road trip today and met up with Paul Dustin the owner of Coyote Guns out in Columbia City, Indiana. He had for me one of his custom Encore barrels. This is an 18" heavy taper, chambered in 458 Win Mag. I'm gonna have to open the barrel channel up in a rifle length forearm to balance it out a little better but for now it's time to start shootin.... Ya'll can color me platinum..... hangunnr

T/C corrected the problem with the early Contenders when they produced the G2. hangunnr

There you go, tellin all my secrets... Domino says hi.... hangunnr

Neither.... To load these you squeeze the trigger guard and pivot the action open. When you're ready to shoot you pull the hammer back and let her rip. The old style Contenders had to have the action recocked if you cocked the hammer then let it down. hangunnr

...goodness..... Details this weekend..... hangunnr

Never seen a scope move back. They generally move forward. Ruger factory rings aren't the best. They should be lapped to ensure complete contact with the scope. I don't use anything on my ring screws. Never had one loosen while shooting. Now if you want to use a little blue #242 Loctite on the mounting screw that would be OK. Be sure to completely degrease the threads. hangunnr

The Encore can handle the larger calibers up to the belted magnums. The G2 is limited to the smaller calibers. The G2 will take any and all barrels originally intended for the Contender firearms. There is quite a difference in the frame sizes. Top is an Encore and bottom a G2. What did you have in mind? hangunnr

Got my 300WSM XP back from MPI stocks today. I hope it shoots as good as it looks. The barrel is threaded for a muzzle brake. I haven't decided whether it's gonna get one or not. I think I'll shoot her first. hangunnr

If you go with a mil dot reticle be sure you know at what power setting the reticle is set for. Leupold for instance uses the highest power setting on several of their scopes but a median power setting for others. It's very important to know this value for proper ranging with the mil dots. You're just whizzing up a rope if you don't know this. hangunnr

Got back to the range with the Sendero today with perfect atmospheric conditions. 72 degrees with no wind and slightly overcast. Perfect for shooting. After about a dozen sighters to get the scope centered after changing the mount and rings I let the barrel cool then set out to shoot groups. I've been doing some load development in effort to find the right combo.......The right load was found.... This group was fired off front rest and rear sand bag. I don't believe I'll put any more effort into load development. This is the smallest group I've ever fired with any type of firearm. To say I'm thrilled is an understatement. Moved over to the 225yd range after this and shot a couple groups with the same load. The mirage was wild making the target appear to jump around quite abit. Still was able to record this group. I think it's possible to clean up the flier but that'll have to wait till the next range session. Nothing better than shootin bug holes with an OTPG gun..... hangunnr

The Chey-Tac cartridges were designed from the ground up as looooong range stompers. I'd love to have a bolt gun chambered for this cartridge. Here's a size comparison of the 408 CT with the 419gr copper solid along side the 402gr ball with a 300WinMag for comparison. hangunnr

Happy birthday you old codger. I'll hoist a cold one in your honor this evening... hangunnr

Nice looking rig. That mount looks to be quite a bit taller than the Armalite one I have. I've had good results with the Black Hills fodder. hangunnr

SWFA lists most if not all of the Leatherwood scopes. Here's one that fits your criteria. http://www.swfa.com/pc-2656-234-leatherwood-65-20x44-expert-rifle-scope.aspx It's been my experience that you pretty much get what you pay for when buying optics. Not to say that this level of scope wouldn't provide years of service. Unfortunately there aren't any free lunches out there. hangunnr

I've heard some good things about the Millett tactical scopes. Here is a 4X16X50 Illuminated Mildot at SWFA. It almost fits your criteria for magnification and does make the price limit. http://www.swfa.com/pc-10039-1395-millett-4-16x50-tactical-30mm-riflescope.aspx hangunnr

How much cash you wanting to spend? hangunnr

What caliber and length might this barrel be? hangunnr

Don, his money is no good! I'll pick up the tab for his stuff. I too would like to have 2 hats and 2 XL shirts. hangunnr

My first guess would be Rosie O'donnell..... Sorry, I couldn't resist... hangunnr

With properly crafted loads......any of the three. If it were me choosing I'd go with the 7RUM. Why, because you don't have a belt to contend with or a funky double radius shoulder. I have a 7mag which is a fine shooter and I'm sure Strut 10 will chime in on the virtues of the STW. I unfortunately don't have any practicle field experience with the 7RUM. If you don't mind me asking, what are your intents? Is this gonna be a hunting gun or a target piece? hangunnr

That's gonna be a handful with the 440gr loads. Invest in a good recoil pad... hangunnr

Not being familiar with that model I'm gonna assume that the rib is steel. They are typically soldered on. Not a job for the average home gunsmith. The mating surfaces would have to be throughly cleaned then resoldered. I'll do a little research and see if I can locate a 'smith that does this kinda work. I will tell you this.... The repair will likely exceed the value of the firearm... BTW, Welcome to the Realtree forums. hangunnr

I've never been wild about Taurus but there are those who swear by them. Do you have your heart set on a revolver or would you consider a single shot such as a Contender? You can find a good used Contender in a suitable whitetail caliber in the $400 dollar range. If you are set on a caliber that's capable out to 150yds you will be very limited in a revolver. hangunnr

What is the model number of your Savage? hangunnr