Converting a magazine rifle to tube feed?

[Phaethon]

I have this .22 rifle that I picked up a few months ago, and it's a great rifle. One of those imported Polish WZ-78's.

I really dislike magazine feed for .22 rifles though, because tube fed rifles have so much more capacity, and speed loaders make reloading a lot faster than having to swap 5 round magazines all the time.

How hard would it be to convert this magazine-fed rifle to a tube-fed rifle? I can't really find any diagrams on how a tube-feed works, but I imagine I could just inlet the stock, get a spare tube magazine from a Marlin or something on gunbroker, and maybe make a small customized "loading device" that I could screw in in place of the magazine well. Or maybe make a custom magazine that enables loading from the tube, but would still enable the use of conventional mags?

Is this possible? Having a tubular magazine on my WZ-78 would make it the perfect rifle, in my opinion.

 

[HOOfan_1]

my guess is it would be cheaper and easier to just buy a Marlin 60

 

[briansmithwins]

Given enough time & money you could do it.

I suspect you do not have enough of either. It's going to be way cheaper to just buy what you want.

BSW

 

[Tophernj]

^^^yup^^^

C

 

[Phaethon]

I don't understand why people assume I have no time or interest in undertaking a project. I asked how difficult the task would be, but never asked people to provide alternative solutions. I want a tube magazine on my WZ-78. If I wanted a Marlin 60 I'd just go out and buy one.

Would anyone be kind enough to take some pictures or provide schematics or advice, or anything that could assist me, on tube magazines? I actually own no rifles of the sort and thus can't pick one apart to figure out how it works.

 

[briansmithwins]

The lifter mechanism is going to require a new receiver to be fabricated along with a new bolt and a mechanism to actuate it.

TLDR version: You're going to need a new gun.

BSW