Gewehr98 has a soft spot in his heart for old target/varmint rifles. Sorry for the dining room table shots, but it's the best I can do until the weather improves here.
The story: A friend's grandfather passed away years ago, and he gets about 15 or so of the collection. He kept this one because it was odd, and he remembers Grandpa vaporizing prairie dogs and making tight groups in targets from way off. Fast forward about 10 years, and the '68 Camaro RS convertible needs some more restoration work. You can see where this goes...
Ok, it's a 1917 Eddystone action, heavy 5-groove barrel, marked B.E. COTTRELL .236 Super on the barrel near the receiver. I miked the bore at the muzzle, and it measures (surprise) 0.236". I'm assuming that's just a 6mm or .244, and I caught the lands with my micrometer. I hope so, because I don't know where a person gets .236 bullets these days.
As I'm miking dimensions and shining a light down the chamber looking for throat erosion, the grandson says Grandpa used to make the brass from .270 Winchester, necking it down to 6mm. So it's a 6mm/.270 wildcat, I can swing that, but where are the dies and fired brass? "Lost years ago, sorry." Great, so I either get a Cerrosafe chamber cast done, or call RCBS and ask if they have drawings and dies for something called a .236 Super.
I'm into it cheap enough that I can probably have another heavy barrel, perhaps stainless, chambered and the Unertl barrel block mounted, maybe in 6.5x55, 6.5-06, 6.5-284, or even .30-06. But I'd like to know more about this elusive .236 Super. If it really is a 6mm-.270, it's definitely overbore, and the barrel throat deserves a closer look.
That's an early Fajen laminated stock, with the wide plies, and a varmint/benchrest forend. The Unertl 12x scope requires no introduction. I was never really big on using 1917 Eddystone Enfield actions for target guns, those receivers usually showed up on belted magnum hunting rifles like A-Square made. But my friend's grandfather was full of surprises, it's smooth as glass, including the 1-lb. trigger pull. The metal finish is gorgeous, you cannot see where the rear sight ears were milled away, and the blueing is deep, like it goes into the metal for miles.
This was a target/varmint gun from way back. I'm wagering late 1960's, based on the early Fajen laminate stock, and the Unertl scope. Anybody want to hazard a better guess, or throw in what they know of B.E. Cottrell or his .236 Super? Either way, I'll share these pics for folks to see and enjoy a vintage custom rifle.
The story: A friend's grandfather passed away years ago, and he gets about 15 or so of the collection. He kept this one because it was odd, and he remembers Grandpa vaporizing prairie dogs and making tight groups in targets from way off. Fast forward about 10 years, and the '68 Camaro RS convertible needs some more restoration work. You can see where this goes...
Ok, it's a 1917 Eddystone action, heavy 5-groove barrel, marked B.E. COTTRELL .236 Super on the barrel near the receiver. I miked the bore at the muzzle, and it measures (surprise) 0.236". I'm assuming that's just a 6mm or .244, and I caught the lands with my micrometer. I hope so, because I don't know where a person gets .236 bullets these days.
As I'm miking dimensions and shining a light down the chamber looking for throat erosion, the grandson says Grandpa used to make the brass from .270 Winchester, necking it down to 6mm. So it's a 6mm/.270 wildcat, I can swing that, but where are the dies and fired brass? "Lost years ago, sorry." Great, so I either get a Cerrosafe chamber cast done, or call RCBS and ask if they have drawings and dies for something called a .236 Super.
I'm into it cheap enough that I can probably have another heavy barrel, perhaps stainless, chambered and the Unertl barrel block mounted, maybe in 6.5x55, 6.5-06, 6.5-284, or even .30-06. But I'd like to know more about this elusive .236 Super. If it really is a 6mm-.270, it's definitely overbore, and the barrel throat deserves a closer look.
That's an early Fajen laminated stock, with the wide plies, and a varmint/benchrest forend. The Unertl 12x scope requires no introduction. I was never really big on using 1917 Eddystone Enfield actions for target guns, those receivers usually showed up on belted magnum hunting rifles like A-Square made. But my friend's grandfather was full of surprises, it's smooth as glass, including the 1-lb. trigger pull. The metal finish is gorgeous, you cannot see where the rear sight ears were milled away, and the blueing is deep, like it goes into the metal for miles.
This was a target/varmint gun from way back. I'm wagering late 1960's, based on the early Fajen laminate stock, and the Unertl scope. Anybody want to hazard a better guess, or throw in what they know of B.E. Cottrell or his .236 Super? Either way, I'll share these pics for folks to see and enjoy a vintage custom rifle.