Cosmoline
Member
I picked up a Puma '92 in .44 mag a few months back, and got it all tricked out with a customized Mojo sight:
It won't cycle max OAL rounds, but while I figured out how to fix this I opted not to as it's an easy matter to simply seat the bullet a little deeper.
Once I got the front sight filed down to a 50 yard zero, the carbine has been shooting very well. Accuracy with 240 grain Keiths and 300 grain XTP handloads has been great. There's no blowback even with stout loads of 2400. The sights aim instantly. The carbine is FAST, really fast. And shooting it is loads of fun.
But then there's the #@$#$@ magazine tube. Rossi made a really nice carbine for a reasonable price, but then just stuck on a tube mag with nothing but friction from some loose clamps and the forestock to hold it in place. It's no surprise that the thing starts heading out every time it's shot. With stout loads about 20 rounds are all that's needed to send the mag tube an inch rangeward. Amazingly it still functions even then, but it's not kosherized to have your mag tube sticking out an inch beyond the end of the barrel!
I keep a hammer with me to smack it back in place, which prompted me to dub the rifle "Jayne" after the lethal but oft-straying character from Firefly. I've tried these fixes:
--Remove the weight of the light mount and tighten down everything (no effect)
--Slice open the bottom of the front clamp and tighten it even more (slowed down but did not stop the drift)
--Epoxy the entire fore-stock to the tube and to the rifle itself (held for 15 rounds, then gave way and started drifting again)
I could of coures simply solder the tube to the receiver or otherwise permanently afix it, but I'd rather not take such a drastic step.
Drilling and tapping the hole under the sight and screwing the tube to the barrel there is one option, but I really do NOT like the idea of putting that kind of stress on the barrel or the tube. Both wiggle like snakes on high speed camera footage, as I'm sure you know. Tie the heads of those snakes together with a screw and who knows what will give. Unlike a clamp, a metal screw doesn't have much flexibility, so my guess is it would put stress on the barrel and tube alike as the shockwaves rolled past. I don't mind messing up the stupid tube, but the barrel is kinda sacrosanct.
My next step is going to be to lock it in place with some industrial strength clamps. Maybe hose clamps, maybe U clamps! Something. And I may drill and tap for a hole locking the clamp to the tube. These should have some degree of flex but keep the tube firmly in place. I'm also debating cutting a notch in the side of the tube--a small one--and puling up the steel to rest against the clamp, so it can't drift forward.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. This is intended to be a working Alaska carbine so how it looks afterwards is of absolutely no concern. If I have to paint it with auto sealant and wrap it with tape to fix it I will, just as long as it works.
It won't cycle max OAL rounds, but while I figured out how to fix this I opted not to as it's an easy matter to simply seat the bullet a little deeper.
Once I got the front sight filed down to a 50 yard zero, the carbine has been shooting very well. Accuracy with 240 grain Keiths and 300 grain XTP handloads has been great. There's no blowback even with stout loads of 2400. The sights aim instantly. The carbine is FAST, really fast. And shooting it is loads of fun.
But then there's the #@$#$@ magazine tube. Rossi made a really nice carbine for a reasonable price, but then just stuck on a tube mag with nothing but friction from some loose clamps and the forestock to hold it in place. It's no surprise that the thing starts heading out every time it's shot. With stout loads about 20 rounds are all that's needed to send the mag tube an inch rangeward. Amazingly it still functions even then, but it's not kosherized to have your mag tube sticking out an inch beyond the end of the barrel!
I keep a hammer with me to smack it back in place, which prompted me to dub the rifle "Jayne" after the lethal but oft-straying character from Firefly. I've tried these fixes:
--Remove the weight of the light mount and tighten down everything (no effect)
--Slice open the bottom of the front clamp and tighten it even more (slowed down but did not stop the drift)
--Epoxy the entire fore-stock to the tube and to the rifle itself (held for 15 rounds, then gave way and started drifting again)
I could of coures simply solder the tube to the receiver or otherwise permanently afix it, but I'd rather not take such a drastic step.
Drilling and tapping the hole under the sight and screwing the tube to the barrel there is one option, but I really do NOT like the idea of putting that kind of stress on the barrel or the tube. Both wiggle like snakes on high speed camera footage, as I'm sure you know. Tie the heads of those snakes together with a screw and who knows what will give. Unlike a clamp, a metal screw doesn't have much flexibility, so my guess is it would put stress on the barrel and tube alike as the shockwaves rolled past. I don't mind messing up the stupid tube, but the barrel is kinda sacrosanct.
My next step is going to be to lock it in place with some industrial strength clamps. Maybe hose clamps, maybe U clamps! Something. And I may drill and tap for a hole locking the clamp to the tube. These should have some degree of flex but keep the tube firmly in place. I'm also debating cutting a notch in the side of the tube--a small one--and puling up the steel to rest against the clamp, so it can't drift forward.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. This is intended to be a working Alaska carbine so how it looks afterwards is of absolutely no concern. If I have to paint it with auto sealant and wrap it with tape to fix it I will, just as long as it works.