Rebarelling a Ruger No 3

[Coltdriver]

Anybody ever done this??

I have a No 3 headed my way that is chambered in 45/70.

I want to change out the barrel to a smaller caliber.

A barrel has been located, just a new, stock, unmodified No 3 barrel.

Any idea how involved the changeout would be?? I am not thinking about doing this myself, just curious as to what all is involved. The mechanism seems simple enough.

 

[4 eyed six shooter]

I have herd that the #1 in 45-70 is one of the rarer calibers that this model was made in. Maybe some else can comment. If it is, you may wish to not modify it. I'm not sure about the above info, but thought I would throw it out there.
John K

 

[Coltdriver]

This is a number 3. I really dislike rifles with heavy recoil and I have a 30 06 for serious game hunting so the 45 70 is going to go. This little 6 pound rifle is going to be carried in the forest and used to smote small game with. The remaining decision is between 22 hornet and 223 remington.

I have discovered that it is fairly easy to swap the barrels assuming you use a factory number 3 barrel.

Depending on the caliber of the barrel the extractor needs to be changed.

I have also discovered that you can put a number 1 barrel on a number 3 block and that there is some fitting of the extractor required but that it is no big deal and that the number 3 block is up to the pressures of anything the number 1 is barrelled for.

The two major differences between a number 3 and a number 1 are the extractor is improved in the number 1 and the number 1 has a safety release to the lever wheras the number 3 can be lowered (accidentally) by pulling it down.

Quotes from local and distant smiths have run from $80 to $200 for the swap and the fitting. Factory barrels are available relatively cheap.

Custom barrels, on the other hand, are breath taking expensive. I just do not have the ducats to lay out $500 or $600 for a custom barrel. Hope I get a good factory barrel!

 

[Brian Williams]

I would love to have a #3 in 22hornet or 221 fireball with a 18" barrel, Tang sight, enjoy and let us know how it comes out. This would be a great wood/fencerow walking rifle.

 

[4 eyed six shooter]

ColtDriver, I have a #3 in.223 with less than 50 rounds fired thru it. It is in mint condition. The stock has been refinished and looks beautiful. I am a FFL, if the #3 in 45-70 is in excellant condition, I might be interested in a strieght across trade. Let me know if you are interested. I would have to send my rifle to a FFL dealer in your area to be transfered to you, and you would be able to send yours directly to me. I can send pictures if you are interested.
Good shooting, John K

 

[Jim Watson]

A friend of mine has what we call a No 2; really a No 3 barrelled action in No 1 wood. A handsome little gun, started out as a .22 Hornet but had been rechambered to K-Hornet before he got it but it came with K dies and brass. It was miserably inaccurate. He tried all manner of loads and bedding tweaks that did little good. He asked a pro gunsmith what to try next. "We end up rechambering most of them to .223." So he had it done and it is considerably more accurate. A better round? Cleaned up a poor chamber or a poor K-Hornet rechamber? We don't know. Another guy at my office has a Ruger 77-22 Hornet bolt action. It isn't much either.

I'd go with the .223... or a custom .221, Perfesser.

But it is going to be tough to put a tang sight on a gun with a tang safety. If you want to keep the safety, that is. Maybe you could recess the sight base and make an extension of the safety button out to one side.

 

[Brian Williams]

Oops I forgot about the tang safety, Duh

 

[Coltdriver]

More research on the ballistics of the rounds has me convinced that .223 is the way to go.

The Hornet is a short range varmint round and will do almost nothing that my .17hmr will not do. All of the other available rounds are big, slow, expensive and kick like a mule. 30-40 crag, 375 winchester, 44mag are all for a style of hunting I don't see myself doing.

I would love to pick up a .243 some day, but getting that barrel on this action would run the price up another couple of hundred dollars. Too much!

The .223 is a pretty good medium range varmint round and the ammo is cheap and available. I have a couple of boxes of hornady v max waiting for the gun.