Need Help, First Time Custom Rifle Build

[Feddog82]

BUILD UP STORY

I guess I will give a small explanation to start.

Last year before I took my father on his first ever hunting excursion out of our home state I bought him a new rifle. Forever, as long as I can remember, he had hunted with an Interarms Mark X in .30-06. He loved the rifle and it had never failed him during any season that I can recall.

At some point the nice, shiny, commercial mauser stock that this rifle came with had developed a terrible crack at the tang. My father had it re-stocked by a friend who in my opinion did not do my father any favors. The new stock looked like hell, fit like hell, and all together seemed like a rushed amateur job. Any how, the rifle still did not fail my father during any season that I can recall after the botched re-stock job.

Then it happened. We were sighting in our rifles with our chosen big game loads for our Colorado elk hunt. It took about 6 shots to make me feel overly confident that my .300 win mag was dead on accurate with my chosen load. My fathers trusty old Mark X was another story. It wouldn't shoot, plain and simple it was like it quit. Whether we put the old deer loads that always shot great in it or the new carefully made elk loads it simply would not shoot any kind of group.

After this I spent countless hours checking over the rifle itself. It got a thorough cleaning, didn't help, new scope, didn't help, new scope mounts, didn't help, etc. On and on I went trying to get my dear old Dad's rifle to shoot as it once did.

By chance shortly after the not grouping debacle I came across a gorgeous Interarms Mark X in .30-06 that looked just as my fathers had way back before he had it re-stocked. Nice glossy wood, grippy checkering, dark gloss blue metal. It was selling at a great price so I picked it up, took it home, put the new mounts and scope on, then sighted it in. It shot wonderfully with both of the loads that we had put together.

To make a long story long I gave it to my father as a present and he loved it. He took it to Colorado on our hunt and killed a very nice bull elk. Now he is happy and has his go to Interarms Mark X in .30-06 again.


OUTCOME

So now in the end I have my Dad's old Interarms Mark X Mauser in .30-06 that won't shoot worth a damn and wears and ill fitted ugly stock.

I really can't bring my self to sell it to someone knowing that it won't shoot. On top of that it was my Dad's for so long and he had so many successful hunts with it that I just want to keep it around. Now, I have been thinking and I am not against using it to build my first custom rifle. Then it will become useful, accurate, good looking, and I will still have Dad's deer slayer.

Now that you have the background story and you know that I am a complete custom rifle novice, I need your help. I am not savvy on the old Interarms Mark X guns either so any info about them that will help with customization would be great.


RESOLUTION

If I were to picture the rifle finished it would be re-barreled with either a gloss blued barrel or a SS barrel chambered in 6.5-06 since I am a confirmed 6.5 nut and the rifle is already a .30-06.

If it went gloss blue I would like to find a beautiful walnut stock to set it in but if I went SS then something synthetic in an olive green black splatter pattern with some type of factory aluminum bedding block.

I would like an aftermarket trigger of some type, I am not knowledgeable on this matter.

Any and all suggestions on where to send the rifle to have the bolt locking lugs lapped, the bolt face and receiver trued, barrel installed and headspaced. These are suggestions that I have got from fellas at the gun club but I do not know if it is necessary.

Also, if anyone knows of a competent gunsmith in my area of southeast Pennsylvania that I could go to in person please speak up. I always prefer to deal with people directly instead of through the mail.

Thanks in advance for all of your help.

[joseywales]

Some observations:

1 - If the gun was shooting fine when dad first put it away, before the stock went to hell and was replaced, can we assumed that with a new stock, properly installed it would shoot fine again? If so, why go any further?

2 - Regardless whether 1 is true, perhaps you just want a project, which is fine. I will PM you a fellow in Downingtown. I believe he still works, but it doesn't happen fast. He's semi-retired for many years. He reblued a Colt woodsman for a friend and honestly, it might have been better than the original. He would sit in front of the TV at night and continue to hand rub that thing. It was unreal how it came out.

3 - As you probably know, mausers are among the most common actions used on customer rifles. Custom, buy my definition, means a gun that you will sink more money into than you will ever sell it for. Not a big deal, but just keep that in mind and make sure that the benefit to you is worth it.

4 - The synthetic stock has a few things going for it: a) it's less likely to be affected by temperature. b) in your scenario it would make a nice foul weather backup for dad's gun. His gun, or yours, could very well have quit on the day of the hunt. Exactly what happened to you is why we all follow the golden rule of survival. "Two is one, one is none." To fly hundreds of miles, only to discover that your gun doesn't work is disheartening. Taking a bull elk must have been exciting, but if he had done it with a guide's gun, it would have taken away from the experience. Think about that when you decide not only the stock, but the caliber. A backup 6.5-06 isn't much good if you're carrying 300 Win and 30-06 ammo. Plus, as a backup, I probably wouldn't spend the money for much custom work. Just get er going again.

5 - On the topic of caliber, think ahead. I am not familiar with the 6.5-06, but as I get older, the 06" loses some luster - for my shoulder. I had done a lot of research of calibers, ballistics, etc. and if I were building a gun today, it would be the 6.5x55 Swede. It can take any game in North America. In doing so, it provides less recoil, making it easier for me and perhaps your dad, to put those shots where they count in years to come. My dad took a large bull moose in Canada with his 300 Weatherby. First shot did not even phase the moose (dad got a little wound up and pulled the shot. I can't help but think that his 06' would have been easier to place that shot). He winged him enough that when he sat to lick his wound, dad put one in his chest where it belonged and he collapsed on the spot. I was impressed the with the rack when I was young, but as I gain more knowledge I am even more so today. It's now on my wall and I have to say, I haven't seen many this large, even at Cabelas or BassPro. I'm sure they're out there, but dang this thing is big.

I will PM you the gunsmith, mostly because I'm not certain he still does work and I don't want him getting a gazillion calls.