New Rifle find ( not yet purchased)

Well apparently the one I looked at will use the same British 303 as my SMLE. On later or other variations they went to a .280 cartridge if I remember correctly wasn’t this about like the 7mm Express or some such thing many many years later? Maybe it was called the 7mm Remington Express. I’m not sure at all now which means I need to go dig some books out and do some homework. Heard a guy say one time “ a dollar spent on books can save thousands spent on mistakes” that’s a pretty true statement in my experience.

Like I said this rifle hasn’t seen a good cleaning in a long long time! It was really cruddy but most all the metal I looked at today was just really dirty with a worn finish all over but no big pits or anything. I couldn’t inspect the bore because when I tried to look at it with a flashlight it just wasn’t happening. I know it might not sound like a bunch but the $800 asking price is pretty steep for me especially for a rifle that would be a novelty for me I think. I really would like to clean it up a bit so I could better asses it’s condition. I may try and go by there again next week if he’s open. I’m friendly with the owner and I would bet if I took the cleaning supplies down there he probably would not object to me making it look more desirable for him to sell. I really want to see if the straight pull action would really smooth out with a good scrubbing. Hopefully our fearless leader will have time and feel like talking a little about the Ross. I seem to remember him telling me you had to be careful when you reassembled the rifle because done incorrectly the straight pull bolt could end up planted in your face maybe? Getting so old!😁

they have a bunch of stuff on you tube.

the 280 Ross is actually .287". it is very hard to find. so is the brass, i'd try 375 Ruger brass first, then there is a 300 Win Mag brass. there is no need to turn the belt, supposedly. i think that had done something to the bolt that you had to reassemble it right.....i think

There were to my knowledge two versions of the Ross rifle one military and one sporter. I believe both came in 303 Britt. I once had a sporter in 303. My assessment was that it was a well made well balanced accurate rifle that I liked very much. I gave mine away on what would turn out to be a last visit to a man I call my adopted Montana Dad.

I think of ignorant fear the Ross rifles have been largely overlooked. There was at a time so much warning about the Ross being deadly if not correctly assembled that it just scared people away from them. Besides if you wanted a 303 there was no shortage of Enfield's. From my memory of assembly and disassembly of the Ross the safety issue was quite apparent to anyone that had a basic understanding of how mechanical things work. What I mean or am trying to say is that if assembled incorrectly it is obvious though I cant remember exactly what that was. The issue was with the bolt head rotating to lock into the receiver. When correctly assembled the last inch of bolt closing  you could see the bolt head rotate and lock. When improperly assembled the bolt moved fully forward but the bolt head did not rotate to lock. This is my vague memory of its operation.
If that bolt head does not rotate to lock into the receiver it can still fire but there is little to stop the bolt from becoming an equal and opposite reaction to the bullet accelerating in the opposite direction. Its one of those things that yea the danger is there but pretty easy to identify end eliminate.
Your the guy on the block Rob but personally about half that asking price would be my limit especially considering the alterations from original. As you said its a novelty but the novelty wears off in time and then buyers remorse sets in and the degree of the affliction depends on the purchase price.

Thank you for the great information about the Ross Pard! Watching videos and reading more about the Ross I would agree with your assessment about the over hyped safety concerns. I also agree with you that it’s a neat rifle but I just don’t feel it’s an $800 rifle to me at this point. That’s ok though you don’t have to buy each one you find for it still to be fun!!

I agree! As I’ve gotten older and hopefully have gained a small amount of wisdom along the way learning about various firearms and the cartridges they used has become more important than actually owning them. I say more important but perhaps what I also mean is I’m now content with the fact that unless some miracle happens a lot of the weapons I’m really interested in are simply unattainable. They are this way either because of price or rarity or maybe scarcity. That’s ok though because thankfully I have friends here that often have experience with some of the firearms I really like but haven’t gotten a chance to try yet. I really believe I enjoy reading some of the stories and experiences of others here with or when using those weapons. If I’m completely honest the best and most fun part of discovering and researching a new firearm is the hunt! Don’t we all want to go into the old country hardware store that just happens to be closing and look above the register and see a Winchester(fill in your fav) one of one thousand rifles quietly waiting there for you all these years?😁

That sort of thing does not exist here where I live as do many other conveniences many people enjoy or feel the need for to feel normal. Its a trade off though that because we dont have those things available people avoid living here. The trade off is obvious and I willingly accept it and prefer it. Our local population does increase for the month of hunting season though.

Another fine rifle I will need to look up.

I’m not sure if it’s the exact model but I believe a rifle of this design was made by Styer it’s in the 8x56 I think and the coolest part to me is the stripper clip ejects out the bottom after the last round!!

Oh and I almost forgot about the K-31 Swiss rifles. They are butt ugly but they sure do shoot good. We sold about a dozen of them from our shop in Alaska when they were really cheap. We were getting model 91 Russian's 303 Britts and K-31 Swiss rifles for about $75.00 each at that time. Wish I had the for site to have bought a semi load .

Ditto on the 1922 Springfield. Never had one and the gap of possibility grows constantly wider.

The Win 52's are legendary and I do also admire those but there is a mystique about the 1922 Springfield for me because of its connection to the 22 Hornet a cartridge I dearly love. The first 22 hornet was built on the 1922 Springfield at Springfield armory either by or for Townsend Whelen. Years ago there was an article in I think The Rifle magazine written by Layn Simpson titled "" Shooting The Colonel's Rifle"" For the article he was given the use of Colonel Whelen's 1922 Springfield conversion to 22 hornet . Layne developed several loads with that rifle for the article. I well remember the groups he was getting using jacketed bullets of appropriate weight for the 1/16" rifling twist. I still use that memory to evaluate the accuracy of my loads with cast bullets. Might sound like tooting my own horn but I think my 1898 Springfield conversion to 22 hornet would beat out the Colonel's rifle for accuracy. But to be fair I have had access to my rifle for years to learn what it shoots best but for his article Layn had very time limited access. The only way to prove that theory is to give me unlimited access to the Colonel's rifle and that would be the high point of my shooting life. Maybe if Layn had used Bullshop bullets in his testing he could have done better. Now I am tooting my own horn !

My all time favorite 22 target rifle is the model 37 Remington. It is pretty much Remington's counter to the 52 Win. I was fortunate enough to have had one in my history but with prices being what they are it will likely be the only one.
When I was young and more prone to stupidity I had a Remington model 513 - S factory cased in a leather bound hard case with all accessories fit to the case. It was given to me by an elderly gentleman that boarded with my Mom. His name was Guss and he had been best friends with my great uncle Bill that had willed my Moms house to her but his will stated to get the house she had to home Guss for the remainder of his life.

One day I visited my Mom and brought her a couple pheasants I had shot. We had a nice visit and Gus was there but didn't really talk much. The next time I went there Gus said he had something for me and went to his room and got the cased 513-S. He said that it had belonged to his brother that had worked in Illion NY that had passed away and he had just been keeping it. He said that since I was a hunter and spread my game wealth that he thought I should have it. It was as new with all original Rem pamphlets in the case.

It was serial number 101 and some time later I was told that Rem started new serial number lines at 100 so likely the first one. Guss's brother had to have been someone important at Illion. If you start looking for model 513 Remington's you will find many 513-T (target)rifles but the 513-s (sporting) is rare. So after a time being of sound body but questionable mind I traded it off for an original trapdoor carbine in 45-70 and that started a whole new chapter in my education