Will They Ever Learn?
The old .38 Long Colt, a pistol cartridge obsolete for nearly a century, is stirring some unpleasant memories these days. In case you've forgotten, the
.38 Long Colt was the standard U.S. Service sidearm cartridge from 1892 to 1911. It had a muzzle energy of 195 foot-pounds with a 150-grain bullet (by comparison, the .38 Special gets about 380 foot-pounds with the same weight bullet), and therein lies the reason the Long Colt is now haunting military memories. That memory goes back to the Philippine Revolt, when our troops discovered that their pistols had scant effect on doped-up, machete-swinging Muslim fanatics. Not long after that bitter lesson the puny .38 revolvers were replaced with M-1911 Colt autoloading sidearms in .45 ACP caliber-a cartridge that was to gain a worldwide reputation as a reliable manstopper.
Anyway, as we all know, in 1985 the faithful .45 Auto was replaced by the pitifully obsolete 9mm Luger as the standard U.S. Service sidearm caliber. It was not a military decision, I'm told, but purely political and without regard for the actual needs of our servicemen. So guess what? Now we're getting
reports from the Middle East that the scenario is almost exactly the same as it was in the Philippines a century ago, with our soldiers again facing screaming Muslim fanatics with pistols that aren't equal to the task.
Takedown
Riflemakers
Dakota Arms, Inc.
1310 Industry Road
Sturgis, SD 57785
605-347-4686; www.dakotaarms.com
H-S Precision, Inc.
1301 Turbine Drive
Rapid City, SD 57703
605-341-3006; www.hsprecision.com
Jarrett Rifles, Inc.
383 Brown Road
Jackson, SC 29831
803-471-3616; www.jarrettrifles.com
Sigarms, Inc.
(Blaser and Sauer Rifles)
18 Industrial Drive
Exeter, NH 03833
603-772-2302; www.sigarms.com
Dealing with Scopes
In those happy days when American hunters traveled to their destinations by ship or rail with cased takedown
rifles conveniently stored under berth or seat, the lever rifle ruled the plains and mountains.
Nowadays the preference is for bolt-action rifles in increasingly powerful calibers. This has complicated the takedown issue in several ways, but it has also brought about some very creative designs and successful solutions.
Basically, a bolt-action takedown rifle can be of a simple barrel-unscrewing design, and many of them are. In fact, during WWII the Japanese made just such a takedown modification to their Arisaka Type 99 bolt rifle for use by their paratroopers. Likewise, along the way many gunsmiths have taxed their ingenuity by building special-order, one-of-a-kind takedown bolt rifles. But one basic problem has long plagued such efforts, no matter how noble the intent or exquisite the workmanship: telescopic sights.
With the old lever-action takedowns this was no problem, because the open sights-front and rear-were both fitted to the barrel. With scope-mounted bolt-action takedowns, however, a
potentially serious problem presents
itself. The scope is typically mounted on the receiver with the barrel being a separate (and not necessarily rigidly
attached) unit. In other words, the
barrel, and thus the shots it delivers, might be somewhat free to wander in various directions in respect to the line of sight. So there is no guarantee the
rifle will return to original zero after the barrel has been removed and
replaced. And with simple screw-in barrel attachments, the union with the receiver can become worn and increasingly sloppy after repeated use, making a bad situation worse.
This is why the latest and best thinking and developments with bolt-action takedowns have concentrated on a
variety of ways to keep the removable barrel centered and true in the receiver. Which brings us to the latest and best in takedown rifles.
The Latest Models
Blaser solves the problem of scope/
barrel alignment with ease, simply by mounting the scope on the barrel-an arrangement made possible by the short coupling of its bolt-to-barrel locking mechanism. Makers of longer, more traditional turn-bolt actions have had to rethink the attachment of the barrel to the receiver in order to achieve a close and constant union.
Two makers of high-quality takedown bolt rifles-Dakota Arms, here in the U.S., and Sauer in Germany-have replaced the traditional threaded barrel attachment with a non-threaded sleeve-like fit, in which the shank of the barrel slips into a tightly dimensioned hole in the front of the receiver.
This, of course, would not be a workable proposition with a traditional bolt-action in which the bolt's locking lugs engage matching recesses in the receiver. At least, it wouldn't work for long, because a non-threaded barrel would want to blow forward like a torpedo. Dakota and Sauer, however, solve this mechanical dilemma by locking the bolt into the barrel rather than the receiver. Thus the receiver becomes only a fixture that holds everything
together, but with no particular strength requirements. This system
allows the manufacturer to concentrate on a design that ensures the best
possible alignment of barrel, action
and scope. With the Dakota rifle the alignment is further enhanced by a simple clamping arrangement that tightens the receiver ring around the barrel shank for a near-perfect repeatable fit. In classic takedown fashion, the forearms of the Dakota and Sauer rifles detach to reduce the length of the stock.
The forearm of the H-S Precision bolt-action takedown likewise detaches, although the barrel-to-receiver attachment is of the traditional threaded type. The H-S attachment system has interrupted threads in three segments, requiring only a third of a turn to lock the barrel in place. In order to ensure tight alignment, the H-S system
employs closely machined plates at the barrel and action mating surfaces that snug together when the barrel is twisted into position. The fit is then secured with a lug and lever latch embedded in the forearm. The H-S system is the same one used by U.S. Re
peating Arms on the Custom Shop M-70 Winchester takedowns it offered a few years back.
There are, of course, quite a few
other takedown designs around, many of which are one-of-a-kind and very
original. And it's a sure bet that in the coming years more major makers will be introducing their own takedown models; some are almost certainly already on the drawing boards. After all, it's an idea whose time has come.
We require
all participants in interactive areas to accept the terms of the Bonnier Corporation subscriber agreement. Please
read the agreement
before making comments. When you click on the button above to submit your comments, you are indicating your acceptance of and
are agreeing to adhere to the terms of the subscriber agreement.
ADDITIONAL INFO
PREVIOUS 
