TESTED: Ruger Hawkeye Guide Gun ®

Sporting Firearms Journal Lyman IDEAL MODEL

Sharps

Winchester Model 1892 Carbine Number 282

Mauser Revives the Legendary M98! Display until 10/10/15

Printed in USA

September 2015

On the cover . . . The new M98 .375 H&H is pure Mauser big bore, pictured here with a Leica ER5 1-5x 25mm scope. Photo by Terry Wieland.

FEATURES

28

New Model 98 The big-bore Mauser is back! Terry Wieland

34

Rifle Rests

Sportitinng Fi Firrear earm ms Jour urnnal

Tips for Better Shot Placement Afield

ISSN 0162-3593 Volume 47 Issue No. 282

John Barsness

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Lyman Ideal Model Sharps

COLUMNS

Loads for a Single-Shot .22 Hornet

6

John Haviland

46

Ruger M77 Hawkeye Guide Gun

Dave Scovill

10

Shooting a New .300 Winchester Magnum Brian Pearce

52

Interesting Rifles A Semiauto, Bolt Rifles and a Single Shot

Spotting Scope Who’s Jack O’Connor?

Mostly Long Guns Winchester Model 1892 .44-40 Saddle Ring Carbine (Part II) Brian Pearce

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Down Range My Gun Buying Partner Mike Venturino

Mike Venturino

Number 5 September 2015

Publisher/President – Don Polacek Publishing Consultant – Mark Harris Editor in Chief – Lee J. Hoots Editor Emeritus– Dave Scovill Managing Editor – Roberta Scovill Senior Art Director – Gerald Hudson Production Director – Becky Pinkley

Contributing Editors John Haviland John Barsness Brian Pearce Stan Trzoniec Clair Rees Mike Venturino Gil Sengel Ken Waters Terry Wieland

Advertising Advertising Director - Tammy Rossi [email protected] Advertising Representative - Tom Bowman [email protected] Advertising Representative - James Dietsch [email protected] Advertising Information: 1-800-899-7810

16

Classic Cartridges .416 Rigby John Haviland

20

Light Gunsmithing Picatinny Rails Gil Sengel

24

A Rifleman’s Optics So Many Riflescopes Lee J. Hoots

58

Custom Corner Al Ward Custom Gun Stocks Stan Trzoniec

Circulation Circulation Manager – Kendra Newell [email protected] Subscription Information: 1-800-899-7810 www.riflemagazine.com Rifle® (ISSN 0162-3583) is published bimonthly with one annual special edition by Polacek Publishing Corporation, dba Wolfe Publishing Company (Don Polacek, President), 2180 Gulfstream, Ste. A, Prescott, Arizona 86301. (Also publisher of Handloader® magazine.) Telephone (928) 445-7810. Periodical Postage paid at Prescott, Arizona, and additional mailing offices. Subscription prices: U.S. possessions – single issue, $5.99; 6 issues, $19.97; 12 issues, $36. Foreign and Canada – single issue, $5.99; 6 issues $26; 12 issues, $48. Please allow 8-10 weeks for first issue. Advertising rates furnished on request. All rights reserved. Change of address: Please give six weeks notice. Send both the old and new address, plus mailing label if possible, to Circulation Department, Rifle® Magazine, 2180 Gulfstream, Suite A, Prescott, Arizona 86301. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Rifle®, 2180 Gulfstream, Suite A, Prescott, Arizona 86301. Canadian returns: PM #40612608. Pitney Bowes, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2.

Wolfe Publishing Co.

60

Product Tests Ruger American Rimfire .22 Charles E. Petty

70

Walnut Hill A Dream Gone Awry Terry Wieland

4

Background Photo: © 2015 Vic Schendel

2180 Gulfstream, Ste. A Prescott, AZ 86301 Tel: (928) 445-7810 Fax: (928) 778-5124 © Polacek Publishing Corporation Publisher of Rifle® is not responsible for mishaps of any nature that might occur from use of published loading data or from recommendations by any member of The Staff. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. All authors are contracted under work for hire. Publisher retains all copyrights upon payment for all manuscripts. Although all possible care is exercised, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for lost or mutilated manuscripts.

Rifle 282

MY GUN BUYING PARTNER DOWN RANGE by Mike Venturino

B

ecause I seldom write about new firearms found on gunstore racks, I’ve often been asked, “Where do you find the neat guns shown in your articles?” The answer is more complicated, but I often say, “I have a gun-buying partner called the Internet.” Now I will be the first to say that gaining knowledge from the Internet is a hit-and-mostly-miss affair. There has been so much errant nonsense posted on the Internet that the misinformation had to often be intentional, but for fetching up good quality vintage firearms, it is hard to beat.

My first great Internet deal came in 2002. I had no idea that such things as firearms auction sites existed on the Internet. Then one morning a friend called and said there was an original Sharps Model 1874 rifle being auctioned on a site named Gunbroker (www.gunbro ker.com), and it didn’t appear to be going at an outlandish price. His two boys were in college, and he just couldn’t afford to bid. Without having a clue as to what I was doing, I signed up on Gunbroker, started bidding on the Sharps and got it at a fair price. That deal turned from fair to exceptional after the rifle arrived, and I called

This German 1917-vintage Artillery Luger was bought off the Gunbroker Internet auction site. A reproduction shoulder stock and newly made leather gear were later found to accompany it.

for a factory letter. Not only had it never been lettered before, but also it had been shipped to Dodge City, Kansas. Among hard-core Sharps collectors, that is the ultimate destination. My old Sharps’ value increased enormously. Gunbroker is also a great source for accessories. Last year I wrote a Rifle column on wanna-be carbines, the star of which was a German 1917 Artillery Luger. It was found on Gunbroker as a barebones pistol. However, as soon as seeing that mine was the winning bid, a search was started for the proper wooden shoulder stock and a holster with all the straps and ammunition pouches. Those items alone, when original, cost thousands, but my search revealed quality reproductions. The newly made stock and leather gear cost

a bit over $200, and I might add both were of superb quality. Alas, not everything works out so perfectly. I also bought a reproduction 32-round drum magazine for the Luger. It would not even fit in the magazine well, but it was guaranteed, so my several hundred bucks were refunded minus shipping costs. Another time I bought a replacement barrel for a Czech BRNO VZ24 sniper rifle, because the one on it was badly pitted. It cost $80 plus shipping and $200 to have a local gunsmith install it. It was in noticeably better condition than the rifle’s original barrel, but to my chagrin it does not group as tightly. As with anything to do with the Internet, there are several caveats one should always keep in mind. Chief among them is that you seldom have any idea with whom you are actually dealing. That’s where the feedback system comes into play. Both buyers and sellers rate their transactions from A+ to F. Those grades should be heeded when buying. Another factor of which one should be aware is the photo accompaniment of an auction. If there are no photos of a firearm, the buyer should beware. Blurry photos are another thing one should look for. They might be hiding flaws.

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Rifle 282

Also pay attention to the firearm’s description. It is easy for a seller to leave out a pertinent point. I bought a U.S. 1903 Springfield for a great price but didn’t notice there was no mention of bore condition. Looking down it the first time, I had a sinking feeling that I had bought a lemon. It looked ter-

rible. To my relief, after some serious cleaning, it turned shiny and shoots just fine. Some sellers give a three-day inspection period, but many specify “as is,” so the buyer should be careful. Other points Internet buyers should take into consideration are

their own levels of stubbornness and impetuosity. Once when bidding on a Japanese Type 97 sniper rifle, my thought was to go to $3,500 and stop. Another guy evidently wanted it badly, and I got competitive with him. Finally at $4,200, good sense returned and I dropped out. The very next morning a friend called, saying he had found a Type 97 for me priced at $3,600. Then there is impetuosity, which is a personality trait for me. One day when perusing Gunbroker, I found a Japanese Type 99 Light Machine Gun at a bargain price. Some Gunbroker items have a “buy it now” feature. Without hesitation, I bought the machine gun and then worried about paying for it. Luckily we have a home equity credit line!

Mike is showing Rifle’s Production Director Becky Pinkley the finer points of shooting a Japanese Type 99 Light Machine Gun, one of his bargains found on gunbroker.com.

September-October 2015

Frankly, I don’t know what I would do without Gunbroker in the evenings. Searching through its thousands of listings sure beats R watching TV. www.riflemagazine.com

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Lyman Sharps

IDEAL MODEL

John Haviland

T

he Lyman Ideal Sharps is a tribute to a rifle and rifle sight developed way back in the 1870s. The Ideal Sharps is a scaled-down version of the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company Model 1874 single shot. The Lyman No. 2 tang sight on the Ideal traces its linage to just a few years after the Model 1874 was introduced. 40

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The Ideal Sharps is made for Lyman by Chiappa Firearms in Italy. The rifle conforms to the structure and function of the original Sharps, but it is 20 percent smaller and much lighter at six pounds. The smaller size limits the size of cartridges it can manage, and it’s chambered in either .38-55 or .22 Hornet. The rifle’s blued 26-inch octagonal barrel contrasts attractively with the polished silver receiver. “Lyman” is engraved in flowing script on the flats on both sides of the receiver, and “Ideal Model” is engraved on the side plate. The head of a bighorn sheep ram is engraved in a recess in the middle of the polished steel buttplate with “Lyman” and “1878,” the year the Lyman Gun Sight Corporation was founded. The walnut on the buttstock has a straight grip and Rifle 282

a bit of a forward pitch to the comb. The comb is just the right height to line up the eye behind the aperture of the tang sight. The forearm is slender with a “duckbill” to its tip. The instruction manual warns that if the hammer is fully down, the firing pin can protrude from the breechblock, and the pin might break when the lever is pushed down. Raising the hammer to half-cock prevents this. Pushing the lever down and forward, the locking lug on both sides of the breechblock drops below the receiver. With the muzzle tipped down, a cartridge placed into the trough in the receiver slides forward and into the chamber, and a final push with the thumb seats it. Raise the lever, fully cock the hammer, and you’re ready to fire. The rifle has a double set trigger. Lyman states the front trigger is the firing trigger, and it can fire in both the double-set or unset mode. However, the front trigger on my review rifle only worked after the rear trigger was pulled and set. With the rear trigger set, though, only a pound of pull was required to trip the front trigger. If the front trigger’s pull is too heavy, it can be lightened by turning in the regulating screw, located between the two triggers, with a partial turn and then testing until the pull is correct. When the breechblock is lowered, a cartridge or fired

Facing page, the Ideal Model Sharps was shot from an abandoned homestead barn.

case is ejected from the chamber and comes to rest in the feeding trough. Occasionally, a fired case pops clear out of the rifle. The Lyman Gun Sight Company was founded in 1878 on the invention of the No. 1 tang sight by William Lyman. Lyman was dissatisfied with the small amount of light that came through the pinhole-sized aperture of the Vernier sight on his Winchester 1873 .44 WCF rifle. He enlarged the hole to allow more light to reach his shooting eye. Some said the widened hole would cause a loss of accuracy, because the eye would have a difficult time centering the front sight in the enlarged hole. Lyman found the eye instinctively seeks the spot of strongest light, however, which is at the center of

an aperture. The wide target disk was also a problem, because it blocked the area around the target. Lyman set about designing a whole new sight that he and his shooting friends refined for a few years before offering it commercially in 1878 as the No. 1 tang sight. It included a large aperture inside a small disk mounted on a stem that could be raised or lowered by turning a sleeve. The small disk greatly increased peripheral vision, and when mounted on a rifle’s tang, it provided a longer sight radius. The sight was hinged at the base so it could be folded against the tang and out of the way when not in use. An enhancement to the sight catered to target shooters with a small aperture that turned down to reveal a larger aperture for hunting and shooting in dim light. This double aperture has been incorporated on many Lyman aperture sights over the years. The Lyman No. 2 tang sight on the Lyman Sharps is quite similar to the No. 1. About the only difference between the two is the No. 2 has a small or a large aperture that screws into the frame. These apertures can be left out and the even larger aperture of the frame can be used to aim with three different size apertures. The sight has .80 inch of elevation adjustment. Lyman next turned his attention to front sights. He was dissatisfied with blackened front sights because they faded from view in the dark woods. Lyman’s father traded in elephant ivory, and somewhat after 1910 Lyman used ivory as an insert in the front blade. The Lyman Ivory Bead Sight became an instant success, because it provided a bright aiming point even in the deep woods, but without reflective light. For target shooters Lyman designed the first globe front sight with interchangeable inserts, the #17A and #77. The different diameter insert apertures each encircle a black bullseye of varying diameter with a thin line halo of white showing for exact alignment. The hooded sight prevented bright sunlight from shifting the sight picture. The #17A globe sight on the Lyman Ideal rifle is made of steel and fits in a 3⁄8-inch dovetail in the barrel. Eight interchangeable inserts are included that lock in place with a threaded cap. The five apertures have diameters ranging from .093 to .120 inch in diameter. Two post inserts are .050 and .100 inch wide. A bead .062 inch wide sits on a post.

Loads for a Single-Shot .22 Hornet Right, “Ideal Model” is engraved on the side plate of the Lyman rifle. Far right, the buttplate features a bighorn ram.

Lyman IDEAL MODEL Sharps

The Lyman No. 2 tang sight comes with two different size apertures. The hole in the frame can also be used.

Due to the run on ammunition over the last few years, .22 Hornet cartridges and cases are difficult to find. I finally found a box of Prvi Partizan cartridges loaded with 45-grain softpoint bullets. While shooting the ammunition, I switched between inserts to deter-

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mine which one provided the best sight picture at a 2-inch diameter white circle at 50 yards. Aiming with the smallest aperture in the No. 2 sight, I shot a 1.37-inch group. Aiming with the largest aperture produced a 1.77-inch group. Using the widest post resulted in a 1.80inch group. The bead on a post fit inside the circle with a slight halo of white around it to provide an exact point of aim. A three-shot group of .93 inch with the post and bead was the result. The smallest aperture installed in the rear sight required crawling up the stock to put my eye right up next to it to see the front sight and target. Even then the view was less than bright on a sunny day. Quite a bit more light passed through the larger aperture and allowed some leeway in where I had to position my eye to see through it. There was no significant difference in the size of the groups shot with the two apertures. Group size may have opened up a bit aiming with the even larger aperture of the frame, but all the world was visible through it, and it should make a great sight for hunting. A few of the Prvi Partizan cartridges misfired. A look at the unfired primers showed a very shallow dent from the firing pin. I put them back in the rifle and tried firing them again; all but one fired with a second hit from the firing pin. The fired Hornet cases were reloaded with CCI Small Rifle BR4 primers, and about half failed to fire. A second drop of the hammer set off most of them. I had about 40 cartridges loaded, and it took a long time to shoot them. The next batch of handloads were loaded with Winchester Small Pistol primers, and every one of those fired the first time. I wondered if the small pistol primer’s reduced amount of hot gas would cause

The shooter’s eye must be placed close to the small aperture in the Lyman No. 2 tang sight for a full view.

powder to ignite less efficiently compared to small rifle primers, but there was no real difference. The velocity’s standard deviation for three shots with Hornady 45grain HP Bee bullets and the small pistol and rifle primers was as follows: powder

A-1680 Lil’Gun 2400

small pistol

small rifle

17 8 40

4 12 6

Velocity was 40 to 80 fps faster with the small rifle primers shooting A-1680 and 2400. However, Lil’Gun was 137 fps slower when ignited by small rifle primers compared to small pistol primers. That seems odd, but the chronograph had no ulterior motives. Lyman states the rifle’s rifling twist is one turn in 18 inches. That was read after shooting Sierra 50-grain SPT Varminter and Hornady 55-grain SP bullets that hit the 50-yard target sideways. That slow twist limited shooting to Rifle 282

The Lyman Ideal Sharps test rifle was chambered in .22 Hornet.

These inserts come with the Lyman globe front sight.

blunt-nosed bullets like the Nosler 40-grain FBHP Varmageddon and Hornady 45-grain Bee.

September-October 2015

Those two bullets shot fine with several powders, with groups ranging from an inch to 2 inches at 50

yards from a solid rest. Shooting prone with the rifle supported by my elbows, three-shot groups ran from 2 to 3 inches shooting the Nosler bullets. Offhand, the rifle held up its end of the bargain with its light trigger pull and 26-inch barrel that hung steady with the forearm and octagonal barrel in the palm of my forward hand. However, I was a bit rusty after a long winter of inactivity. The larger screw-in aperture for the No. 2 tang sight was the easiest to aim with from the different positions, because it allowed some back and

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Lyman

IDEAL MODEL

Sharps

Lyman Ideal Sharps .22 Hornet Loads bullet (grains)

powder

40 Nosler Varmageddon HP

A-1680 Enforcer Lil’Gun 45 Hornady Bee A-1680 Lil’Gun 2400 45 Prvi Partizan softpoint factory load

charge (grains)

13.0 9.0 11.5 12.0 11.5 9.3

overall loaded length (inches)

1.723

1.665

velocity (fps)

50-yard group (inches)

2,621 n/a 2,962 2,441 2,786 2,353 2,329

1.09 1.93 1.14 1.72 1.82 1.15 1.56

Notes: All handloads were assembled with Prvi Partizan brass and Winchester Small Rifle primers. Velocities were recorded 10 feet in front of the 26-inch barrel. Be Alert – Publisher cannot accept responsibility for errors in published load data.

forth leeway in eye position. The post with a bead insert in the front sight was as simple to use as floating the target on the top of the bead. This practice was in preparation for my spring ground squirrel campaign. I headed out on my April birthday into snow squalls and a biting wind, but with high hopes of sunshine. As the morning progressed, the sun peeked out and so did the gophers from their burrows. A lot of sustained shooting of the little Hornet cartridge is required to heat up a barrel. That is nigh on impossible with the Lyman rifle, because time is required to work the rifle’s lever, loading a cartridge, cock the hammer and align the sights on the target. That process, though, adds to the pleasure of shooting the rifle. Firing a bullet and knocking a gopher off its mound is fun too. I connected on a third of my shots out to 75 yards or so. Shooting the iron sights reminded me of how much I rely on a scope, both for its magnification and clarity of a target, to estimate distance. The rifle’s barrel is drilled and tapped for mounting a scope, but the tang and globe front sights are what the little Lyman is all about. Afternoon turned into a pleasant evening, and the sun shined on a century-old homestead collapsed in on itself and grown up in sage44

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Above, the 1-18 rifling twist failed to stabilize Sierra 50-grain bullets. Below, Lil’Gun and Nosler 40-grain bullets shot great from the Lyman .22 Hornet.

brush. Gophers ran among the ruins, and I plinked a few. As the sun waned, I leaned the Ideal Sharps against the weathered logs – the “new” old beside the past. R Rifle 282