Weatherby MkV gunsmiths?

[Kobra]

Just curious if any gunsmiths accurize these rifles? I read the MkV trigger thread below and I see 338thunder has run with an idea I have always had - long barrelled, TTR stocked 338-378. Is it the expense of Weatherby rifles, their design differences, or their lack of use in competition that precludes many gunsmiths from working on them - other than trigger work and rebarrelling? Or the combination of all three?

Also 338thunder, did you buy a regular 338-378 MkV rebarrel it and add a TTR stock from Weatherby? I always assumed Bell and Carlson made the stock but could never locate the source of it.

 

[Fiftydriver]

Kobra,

I guess I will be the first of the smiths on this board to offer my opinion on the Wby MkV.

There is a reason they are not used widely by top smiths, frankly, their design does not lend to consistant extreme accuracy compared to the likes of the Rem 700, M70 and even Savage receiver.

There is only so much you can do with a Wby MkV as far as accurizing the receiver and at times even fully accurized rifles on these receivers do not perform as they should.

Cost is not prohibitive if they were able to produce extreme accuracy rifles. Hell, look at the cost of the BAT and NEsika receivers, makes a Wby look relatively cheap but in those cases its money well spent. In my opinion, there are several other receivers that rank far ahead of the Wby for custom building.

There is a reason the Rem 700 is the most widely used factory action for custom rifles. The reason is accuracy and strength. There is also a reason why the Wby is not as popular, it just simply is not as consistant.

Not to say an accurate rifle can not be built on a Wby receiver, hardly the case, just much more likely to get your moneys worth with a Rem 700 instread!!

Just one smiths opinion, I am sure others will differ.

Kirby Allen(50)

 

[Kobra]

Well Fiftydriver that is pretty much the answer I expected. I view enough of these different forums (wife says too many) to have noticed most use the three you named. At present all I have myself is Rem 700's.

So just to further my curiosity what is the inconsistent element in the Weatherby's - lug design or receiver design assuming the barrel and the trigger have been replaced/reworked?

My main interest in Weatherby's has always been 30-378 and 338-378 as I would prefer to dabble in 240, 257, and 270 wby's with Rem actions. My dealer back home has a Sako in .30-378, how well does that action accurize?

Thanks for feeding my curiosity.

 

[chris matthews]

The Sako's are better than the Weatherbys.....but if you want a 30-378 or a 338-378, why not do them on a Remington?

 

[MemorialRifle]

Google Remington under fire !

 

[Dalebow]

Ive had 3 in 257 weatherby that were accurate as any custom rifle. I have one now that will shoot an honest .120 all day long with factory 80 gr TTSX all been done is I bedded the rifle with glass and put a zeiss on it................

 

[texas]

Bell and Carson do the stock you can get it at Stocky's. Rob Turner down in Austin Texas is the best I know of.

 

[J E Custom]

Well Fiftydriver that is pretty much the answer I expected. I view enough of these different forums (wife says too many) to have noticed most use the three you named. At present all I have myself is Rem 700's.

So just to further my curiosity what is the inconsistent element in the Weatherby's - lug design or receiver design assuming the barrel and the trigger have been replaced/reworked?

My main interest in Weatherby's has always been 30-378 and 338-378 as I would prefer to dabble in 240, 257, and 270 wby's with Rem actions. My dealer back home has a Sako in .30-378, how well does that action accurize?

Thanks for feeding my curiosity.

I for one have had just the opposite results with Weatherby Mark 5 actions.

There machine accuracy is better than any other commercial action that I have used.

I am a big fan of the Remington action and do more of them than any other commercial action.
One reason is that the Remington action is very reasonable (Around $400.00 for Chrome molly
and $500.00 for a stainless action). And They respond well to any accurizing.

The Mark 5 Weatherby action is more consistant action to action and normally need very little
accurizing. The main issue with using one of the MK5 actions is price. They run from $700.00
(Best price) to $1400.00+. So it is just as easy to buy a custom action unless you can find one
in the $700.00 dollar range. (The rifles are to expensive to buy as a don er unless you find a deal).

As far as strength= White labs did a test to destruction of all commercial actions and the Mark 5
was the only one to survive without blowing up, brass flowed into the bolt,extractor,ejector and
locked up the action where it could not be opened. All the other actions exploded and were unusable.

Like most smiths I have My favorites and have good luck with them there are tricks to building
an accurate rifle on any action I personally don't like to build on a Ruger because it is a hit and miss
for me because of the angled recoil lug others have got it wired and like them.

So you can talk to a dozen smiths and you will probably get 12 different first choices and most will
name two or three that they dont work on because of there experiences with them.

The Mark 5 makes a great action to build on (Especially the big cartriges with the .580+ case head
diameters) because of magazine length,and the availability of center feed mag boxes from the
factory for under $50.00 complete. Extractors are easy to buy and replace with the correct size.
And the last thing is the nine lugs, They are machined like a thread and then cut/interrupted
making them very accurate/consistant with very little, if any lapping required.

Some of the most accurate rifles that I have made or own are on Mark 5 actions and have/will
shoot under 1/10th of an inch (1/10 MOA).

Just my opinion

J E CUSTOM

 

[Autorotate]

+1 on the response above.

Obviously Kirby's resume on LRH is known.

But....it's my humble opinion....

That if you were to draw two vertical lines on a rifle capable of LR precision...one at the bolt face, and the other at the aft action screw....

The stuff in front of the bolt face is the most important factor in determining a precision rifle's potential (the ammunition, the chamber job, and the barrel).

The stuff behind the aft action screw (namely the shooter) would be the second most important factor.

The stuff between the two lines...(namely the action, and "blueprinting" machine work, and the mechanical function of the optic)...is the third most important.

I'd spend my time, money, and research accordingly. You'll need all three to work at thier full potential to get all you can out of the rifle as a system.

It'd take one helluva shooter to lay behind two different 1/2 MOA rifles, one a Wby and one a R700 clone...and make the R700 one shoot 1/4 MOA better than the Wby rifle.

If you're at that level...you're not posting this question on LRH.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[LR3]

Concerning Wby actions my 30-378 was terrible out of the box - 2-3" at 100yd. Kirby wisely turned me down on working on it but Dave Viers took it on. After a lot of work, expense, Lilja barrel, custom trigger, brake and Manners stock and a nxs scope I bought from Kirby ( with my 375am) it shoots 6" groups at 1000yds. Have a look at Long rangers posts on 338-378. Kirby is building me a 338am and I agree with him it will not be my dragster for going to the drug store with but will be I hope my super long range rifle.