Question for Smiths

[henryo]

On my .223 target rifle I have a 30" Lilja 1 in 7".

 

It seems to be losing it at about 1500 rounds - hot double base loads with heavy bullets.

Accuracy when new was consistently 0.25 MOA now about 0.75 on a good day perhaps 0.5.

 

I like to think (apart from running it hot) I'm looking after it.

I think the problem is fire cracking in the throat it literally feels rough with a nylon brush.

 

A thought has been going around in my head:

 

When rebarrelling the .223,

Then with the old barrel,

Could I find an old Sako as a donor,

Have a smith cut the first few inches off the barrel to get to fresh rifling,

(It's 1.25" for a few inches then a straight taper down to 1" at the muzzle - i.e. bloody heavy)

Rechamber it to something like .22 BR or .22-250 AI with 80gr A-Max.

and use as a fox/vermin rifle - doesn't need to be super accurate, wouldn't get a huge amount of use.

 

Perhaps bed it into a Joe West at the same time for the fat barrel.

 

Also already threaded M18x1, would it just need to be recrowned and not rethreaded?

 

I'm thinking this might be much more interesting / cost effective than a new factory rifle.

 

Thoughts appreciated.

[baldie]

You would have to recontour the barrel to fit a sako, they are thinner actions than anything else. Add that to the cost of rechambering, and you would almost be at the cost of fitting a new blank.

[henryo]

Thanks I see that now - well that's that plan out the window

[The Gun Pimp]

As Baldie says - it would be the same cost to shorten and re-chamber your old barrel as it would to fit a new barrel but, you wouldn't have to buy a new barrel.

 

I do it all the time. Usually it's the first four inches or so that are fire-cracked. You would probably get a good 26 inches of match barrel out of your 30in. Lilja and be £300 better off.