I am having Mark Penrod put together a rifle for me. I bought a model 70 classic action in 7mm Rem and have been planning on turning it into a 300 H&H. Thoughts, suggestions, ideas would be much appreciated.

Stock - McMillan Echols Legend with Edge Technology
Barrel - 24" Krieger with a "Penrod Contour" (about a Krieger #3, but a bit heavier toward the action)
Standard twist
New bolt handle
Raised bolt release

Questions I have been pondering:

Finish? I leaning toward Mark's usual hot blueing. I have a gun with cerakote - don't like it much. Those with experience with teflon, etc, do you like it? I thought cerakote "gummed up" the bolt cycle of my other rifle a bit.

Caliber? I have always wanted a 300 H&H (cool factor). I want it to be a well used all-around North America Rifle. I know that there may be more practical choices, but then again is this all really practical.

Balance/Weight? Mark thinks the gun will come in at about 8.5 lbs with a scope. From others experience will it balance well, keeping in mind the edge stock.

Any thing I am missing to talk to Mark About?

Sounds nice, I had one built a few years back on a Classic action and it's worked out real nice. I did the Shilen #3 contour and if I had it to do all over again I would probably go with a #2. It's a little portly, but not bad. I think I would be a little happier if it wasn't as heavy though. I don't remember the bare weight but it comes in just under 10lbs with a Swarovski 2.5-10X42 PH scope and Talley QD mounts.

I tried a .375H&H follower in mine but found the 7Mag follower to be perfect.

Mine sits in wood. Classic rifle in a classic caliber. It just seemed like a natural.


Good luck and let us know how it works out,
Terry

My plan is to eventually have two stocks for this rifle - A nice wood one to match the McMillan. It does seem like 300 H&H would need a wood stock too.

The barrel contour was something on my mind - would a #2 be better? Still thinking. Also thought about cutting the barrel back to 23".

Also Forgot - I am adding Williams bottom metal.

Personally i would go with the Number 3 contour and cut the barrel to 24 inches. If i wanted to save weight i would do it somewhere beside the barrel. Like using a McMillan Edge Stock and lighter scope and rings.

Really no right or wrong answer there but my rifle could lose a pound and still be pleasent to shoot. Mine is 23". It's not too heavy but I wouldn't want to carry it all day either. I think a #2 24" barrel would balance fine and have more than enough steel to be super accurate.

After reading a post by D'Arcy Echols about the Edge stocks being a little more
finiky during load development, I think I would opt for the standard fill myself.

Terry

He is building a .300 win mag SS as we speak. I am going with the standard weight legend stock. I am going with 26 inch barrel to get max out of the .300 mag. Are you having him blue print the gun? I would also go with a new extractor. Talley rings would be perfect. Are you having him smooth out the saftey? How about adjusting the trigger?

Personally, I find a #2 Kreiger about perfect for the 7 mags I've built,but on a 300,would want a #3.I would keep it at 24",but have hunted with 26" 300 H&H's and had no problems.

To me,I would want a 300 mag to come in at 8-8.5,scoped.I would go with the Edge stock myself to save a bit of weight.The 300H&H is not a real heavy kicking cartridge compared to some other 300 mags.I've built a good many 300 winchesters on Brown Precision stocks that weigh about the same as an Edge,and they were finely accurate rifles.

I would go with the blue job myself.

And there lies the problem. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think you can do that with a #3 24" barrel.

A #3 is almost exactly the same contour they use on the factory super grade rifles. The single biggest complaint you here about these guns is the weight of them. I just weighed mine again this morning to make sure I wasn't mistaken. It came in at 9lbs 13 ozs. scoped. I'm sure I could make it lighter but I think it would be hard to make it 1-1.5 pounds lighter without a slightly smaller barrel.

I'm sure an Edge stock is lighter than wood but not that much.

Terry

Terry: I dunno but one of my favorites of long ago was built on a pre 64 H&H action,#3 Kreiger 24" and Brown stock.It came in at 8.25-8.5 depending on what scope it wore.

Well, I admit I could be wrong and it's just a guess on my part. Wanna fight about it anyway?

Terry

Nostalgia is a fine thing, and if .300 H&H is the caliber, strongly suggest the best wood stock you can afford in a classic set up.

That said, I'd think hard about making it a .300 Weatherby, especially if you plan to use it. Keep the weight at 8 1/2 to 3/4#, light 24" bbl.

You can make this choise later, if you like...the conversion from H&H is the simple matter of a chamber reamer.

Here's mine. It makes critters feel very nostalgic

The quarter rib has been removed since this picture was taken.

Terry

elkrazy,

I've since sold both of these rifles but I had Hill Country build a 300HH on a pre 64 action. Weighed 8 1/2# with scope. I loved that weight for the 300HH. Great handling rifle.

Lilja #3 barrel 24"
Blackburn bottom metal
Bridges synthetic stock (not edge)
Talley bases and steel screw lock rings
Leupold 3.5X10

Hein pre 64 type action with their bottom metal in 300mag. I didn't weigh it but I'm sure it was at least a pound heavier (maybe more). It was way too heavy (for me anyway).........

Pacnor #3 24"
Hein bottom metal (similar to blackburn)
Echols synthetic stock (not edge)
Talleys with a Kahles 3X9

The pacnor contour, as I recalled was way bigger than the Lilja. I believe it would probably go close to 1/2 lb. more. And of course the Echols stock weighed quite a bit more.

I'm having Mark build a 30-06 with a pre 64 action, blackburn bottom metal, echols edge, talleys, but I requested a #2 contour Krieger barrel. ( I believe Mark said it was an Echols #2 contour)

I think if I was going to build a 300mag. I'd go with exactly what you listed. If it comes in at 8 1/2lbs with scope it's going to be a dandy.

My 300HH from Hill Country was a little weight forward but I liked the feel. I would suspect that the Echols edge would give a little more balance.

Terry,
I'll trade you back for that 300 :-)...
Beautiful rifle!!!
Terry

Oh, if this rifle could talk. I look at all the nicks and handling marks and remember where most of them and the hunts they came from. I still make it a point to hunt this rifle every year and will do so until I'm no longer able to.

Terry

Sure...let's rock,baby!!!!

I have a .300 H&H built on a M70 Classic action. It was originally a factory 7mm STW, but the factory barrel wouldn't shoot, so I had Dan Pedersen of Classic Barrel & Gunsworks in Prescott, Arizona rebarrel it in .300 H&H. He precisely matched the contour of the factory barrel, so it would fit in the factory stock. After a while I acquired a fancy-wood Super Grade stock from another gunsmith, who bought a Super Grade rifle just for the action. The rifle's beautiful, weighs about 9 pounds with scope and shoots very well.

My only mistake was in getting Dan to make the barrel 23" long. I've had a bunch of 23" barreled rifles simply because I could not make my mind up between 22" and 24". While this .300 H&H shoots superbly with 180 Partitions and 71.0 grains of Reloder 22, the velocity is just about exactly what Nosler lists in their manual with the same load from a 24" barrel, 3023 fps.

Just think, with another inch of barrel I could have beaten published data!

I think the 300 H&H is the cats meow,im getting ready to have one built myself as Ive already got the pre chambered Hart barrel,Ive got to find the right Rem.700 Donor action,I took an elk a couple years back and the ol 300H&H made quick work of the task at hand and they are pretty accurate ol shooters any way,Good luck with the new rig and happy hunting............

BobinNH,
I think the Brown stock is a lot lighter than Terry's.
Butch

Oh, so you wanna fight too.

Terry

Butch: Suspect you are correct;but nowhere near as nice looking



JB: I would think those velocities are very good for a 23" barrel.

I am having him completely work the action, trigger, etc., over for me. He has done some other work for me (fixing others mistakes) and I have been very pleased.

That gun is beautiful! Coveting is a sin - so I had better stop.

I'm doing the same thing, picked up the 7 Mag Classic before Christmas, haven't decided yet on what I'm doing for a barrel yet, but have the VXIII 2.5-8 already on it, don't shoot the donor right? For sure it will have a wood stock on it, probably start off with the factory original, but sure would like to upgrade sometime. I know one thing, the factory 26" barrel sure is long compared to the 22's I have in the safe.

Rather than use a bbl makers number system I would suggest that you specify the muzzle diameter. The usual rule for a light sporter is .250" plus the bore diameter. For a 30 this is .560 which is what the pre-64 Fwt and German Wby 300's measured. Heavy would be .600. Many of the high end makers use .575-.580 for their big 30's.

The #3 on mine is .625 I would have been been happy with .600.

Chessy, that's exactly how I did mine. It sat in the factory wood stock for the 1st yer until I got a little extra $$$ for the stock.

Terry

Nice gun! Who made the stock?

It came from Great American Gunstock Co. It was in the "bargin bin."


Terry

I don't wanna fight, but I would not have over a #2 contour myself on a 300 H&H and it would be at least 24 inches long. One of my 300 H&Hs is a Colt Coltsman on an FN Mauser action with a pretty skinny barrel that is 24 inches long. If I remember correctly the barrel is about .560 at the muzzle. It wears a Weaver V4.5 steel scope and is right around 8.5 pounds, a perfect weight for a 300 H&H in my book.

Good build....

I built myself a 300 H&H in 1954, and I have hunted all over the world with it..With heavy 200 gr. Noslers it will duplicate all the 300s but the 300 WBY and a few of the new ones that bang too loud and kick too hard..

It comes very close indeed to duplicating the 300 WBY but only with the heavy bullets as with that long neck you don't intrude on powder space like some do..It feeds good as most know, and it always extracts, it is impossible to stick one of those big tapered torpedoes..

My only load after years of experimenting is the 200 gr. Nosler a 3074 FPS with some old Army Surplus 4831 and I can get almost 3000 FPS with todays IMR-4831, and may be able to duplicate it with short core but have not tried..The 220 gr. Woodleihs are really effective but I have not used them in quite sometime.

My gun is a pre 64 Win. M-70 30-06 that was opened up in the action and I installed an original 300 H&H M-70 barrel..It is a true tack driver and wears the first custom stock that I ever built. That was my senior year in high school (1954)..It has almost no blue left on it, and I have been accused of owning a SS rifle, God forbid. The stock is scarred and looks like driftwood, the checkering is chipped and worn to some degree. Every nick, gouge, scrape, and scratch has a story and a fond memory, It still supports an old turning purple 2x7x33 Leupold in old Redfield rings and bases...I wouldn't even consider refinishing it, and if I did my kids would have me shot.

Love the 300 H&H...

Larry, that's what I've been saying. We aren't going to fight. Besides, I don't think I could take you or Butch. I might try Bob though

Terry

I dug out my 300 H&H today and took a quick photo of it. I also weighed it and as it sits in the photo it weighs eight pounds six ounces. The barrel mikes .560 on the nose at the muzzle. This to me is a perfect match for a 300 H&H with a 24 inch barrel. Others mileage may vary.

Good looking old rifle. How is the recoil? I see it doesn't have a pad.

Terry

MD, since you've done the experiment, do you believe now that the explanation for some phenomena (eg, 23" bbls that shoot as 'fast' as 24" bbls) is just simply 'magic'? 23" barrels need no rational explanation IMO - there just that's why deciding between 22" & 24" is impossible! So much for all that scientific stuff.

Terry

The recoil is a little stiff but actually very manageable, definitely less than my 338 or 375. Felt recoil would probably be even less if the butt were a little bigger as it is quite small. I have thought about restocking it but I may just refinish it to look factory original instead as it is not a real common rifle.