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Just sitting around in between cleaning rifles of various descriptions, my mind wanders. I wish to pose a question to the assembled gentlemen, calling ourselves a horde, seems akin to calling a bunch of dentist on Harley's a motorcycle gang. I was pondering the feasibility of building a Browning A Bolt in the now apparently defunct WSSM action length? I have checked the length of the case and they seem to be very compatible. As far as the feed lips go I feel they could be modified to satisfactorily handle the Grendel. Has anyone given this a thought? I am a very big fan of the Browning A Bolt and the short lift bolt. I would love to see some opinions on this , I would rather see a completed rifle. I know Howa has the Mini bolt, but its not the A Bolt action with the 3 lug bolt.
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I think it would make a fine Grendel, but the biggest issue will mostlikely be the bolt face, IIRC it is recessed and much larger than the Grendel. I have a Winchester 70 in 223 WSSM but also have enough brass to last a long time so not really worried about it that much. There was a run in late 2016 of some of the WSSM ammo that was the first run in several years.
Good luck on the conversion.
PS: If Browning makes an A-Bolt with the PPC bolt head a competent gunsmith that is very good can remove the head from your bolt and replace it with the PPC bolt head. Most will probably not want to tackle that though, and might get costly. -
I was thinking about that as well, it may be a hard fix, but I believe David White would be fully capable of turning one out. Expensive yes, impossible ? NoComment
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A good smith no doubt can do it, would it be worth the time, effort and $$$ is a question for you and the gunsmith.
I have one that is serial numbered R-001 that I would love to know the history of but doubt I ever will. Receiver is a mix of 1903 and Mauser, cut down to be the correct length for a 44 Magnum, the shortening took place in the middle of the action. It uses Remington 44mag 788 magazine, has a 16 inch McGowen barrel Williams sights and full length Walnut stock. At one time Mausers and 1903s were used for lots of custom rifles and there weren't a lot of actions long enough to handle the full length H&H cartridges so they would take 2 and make one action long enough which left 2 pieces that were short which I understand often were trashed. I suspect this one wound up being a smiths project gun from some of those parts. I got it at a gunshow from a dealer that said it came from an estate sale.Comment
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Some of the smiths who cut the actions to make the longer magnum action and the two shorter bit to make a kurz length action. I would love one of those.Comment
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One in the kurz action length would be a good one to have. Here is a pic of the 44mag, it came with the leupold mounts so I tried a little 1-4 scope on it but have since gone back to the open sights.
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If you've got a WSSM action you've got the option of 25 WSSM. Winchester does runs of ammo every year. New brass is available from gunbroker or Hillbilly Brass. I can't imagine why anyone would go backward from a 120gr .257 out of a WSSM case to a 120gr .264 out of a much smaller case. I know about this because I have an A-Bolt in 25 WSSM with the excellent chrome-lined barrel. It functions very well and prints bug holes, too.
Now, more to your train of thought. The WSSM action is also known as the Super Short Action (SSA). They make that one in .22-250. They even catalog a new X-Bolt version. That would be the one to consider for a Grendel. Thing is, if you've got a .22-250 the obvious choice for a cartridge isn't the Grendel. It is the ballistic equivalent, the .250 Savage.Comment
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I wouldn't convert a WSSM to Grendel because of the large bolt face, action diameter, and feed mechanisms all being ideal for WSSM.
I would do a 6.5 WSSM instead.NRA Basic, Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, RSO
CCW, CQM, DM, Long Range Rifle Instructor
6.5 Grendel Reloading Handbooks & chamber brushes can be found here:
www.AR15buildbox.comComment
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+1. Too many other viable and less costly options out there. A model 7 in .223 with bolt opened up and m16 extractor installed would be about right. A SA model 700 works well with a PT&G bolt with PPC bolt face and above extractor already installed. Just my opinion, not trying to discourage you.Originally posted by LRRPF52 View Post
RichardMember since 2011, data lost in last hack attackComment
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Lots of good ideas here, that I had not considered. The idea is to stick to Browning A Bolts, of which I am a big fan. I would have thought the 22-250 was on a short action. The A Bolt Micro Hunter I had was a short action not the super short. Remingtons are decent rifles , but they only have 2 opposing locking lugs and hence the 90 degree bolt throw. I guess what started me down the trail of the short lift bolt throw was the Remington 581 that I started out with as a kid. 788 was also a sweet rifle. Thanks for the opinions and recommendations. So far this is just arm chair gunsmithing. I suppose I should go load some more bullets to occupy my thoughts.Comment
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Armchair gunsmithing is one of the very best and most rewarding pastimes as a project can go through the theoretical stage right up to the brink of laying out dollars for any of the components with the proposal fully proved on paper or contradicted by the cost/benefit ratio, the inpracticality because of balistics loss, or the advise against the project on the grounds of a gunsmiths accumulated wisdom.Comment
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The Grendel would be doable, but the BR case would better suit those short little actions. I've thought about the BR on one of the WSSM actions a few times, either that or a 400 WSSM, using 450/400 bullets in a necked up WSSM case.
Bush the boltface, fit an extractor to suit, fit a barrel to suit. Most any competent machinist could do it, but it certainly won't be cheap.Comment
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