Upgrade a family retro weatherby build

[WanderingGoatie]

I've got a family hand me down Wby vanguard .270 win rifle I'd really like to make right again. The sporter barrel is pitted and poorly blued after our house fire in the 80's. An attempt at a home re-bluing job promotes surface rust when I even think of the word "humidity". I killed my first deer with it, and though my dad acts like it was just his tool for doing a job (a hammer of sorts for pounding meat nails), I'll never get rid of it.

Originally I was going to get it reblued professionally but since I almost always shoot suppressed and the current barrel profile won't allow for threading I'm not sure what to do.

I enjoy my custom rifles but I'd sell of all of them for one that means a little bit more. Seems silly to have a safe full of great (and costly) guns that get shot cyclically when what I really want and respect is "the man with one gun".

Please help me rebuild a pragmatically sentimental custom rifle .


Please answer:
-any way to keep my original stock without cracking due to larger contour barrel inlet?

If so then what would be your vote for:
-caliber
-length
-contour

 

[Bob Wright]

I would see if Weatherby could quote you a rebarrel, refurbish value first.
With that number in mind, you can find out what prices of components and smith labor estimates. You have room in the barrel channel to go up some. Running a can on a 26" barrel is not practical, but that's just me.
I could see a heavier 24" finishing with enough diameter for a brake or a can.
You could even change the twist to run the heavier 277's with a fresh barrel, maybe an AI version.

It's really a personal choice.

If it were mine, I'd just do that; a fresh tight twist 270 AI, 26", a bit heavier contour, brake and keep it close to what dad had. Just a bit of an upgrade and clean up the wood work. Just bring and use some hearing protection. I do.

 

[morgaj1]

I have a family Weatherby Vanguard in 300WM that wouldn't shoot consistently due to a tight spot in the barrel. My local gunsmith wouldn't re-barrel due to metric threads. So, I sent it off to Beanland rifles for a re-barrel to 7mmRM (Bartlein 5R), muzzle brake, cerakote and bedding job. It should be finished in a month or 2 and I can't wait to get it back. Jon says that the Vanguard's are shooters with a quality barrel. It is not a cost effective project, but the sentimental value was worth it to me. This gun will be passed to my son.

 

[Dosh]

Just received a first year Vanguard owned by a very good friend who passed. 300 Win Mag, sent the bolt in to Weatherby for recall. If it didn't shoot so well, I'd have Weatherby do the rebarrel. The bolt release and its inletting are different from later model Vanguards.