TargetTalk

Just for fun, I thought I would tell you about this!

I have a Win 52C with a CanJar trigger and Al Freeland 3-position stock and accessories that I bought in 1969. I am guessing that it was made in the 1950s or earlier since it came with a16x JW Fecker scope with a M K Lee 1/8' dot. The original crosshair was included in the gun box too! I still shoot the rifle a few times a year, including last week. I am a bit sight impaired (total of 6 cornea transplants including 1 in my shooting eye) so aging and that make the cross hair a bit hard to see, well actually impossible!! So today with much trepidation, I disassembled the Fecker to see if I could get the old cross hair reinstalled and salvage the Lee Dot. Much to my relief, I was able to get the crosshairs switched and the Lee dot is safely stored in the ORIGINAL packaging. I don't know how old the Fecker actually is but the Air Mail ($0.12 postage!) mailing tube from the M K Lee company was dated SomeMonth 31, 1952 so the Fecker is well older than that.

The rifle still shoots very well even if I can't assume the proper prone position without a chiropractor to put me back on my feet. I shoot off a bench. Last week I put 20 consecutive shots with Norma TAC-22 in the 10 ring of a 100yd small bore target at 100yds.

I also have a very early serial number Rem 40x .22LR that dates from the first year of production. It is based on the 722 action, with a truncated bolt that has a nose on it for the rim fire conversion. I bought it from the original owner who used it for 1 year in a local shooting league. Only mark on it was a rub mark from his gun cabinet. I found a 15x adjustable objective Unertl Varmint Scope, also nearly unused, to go with it. I had to buy a Model 70 Winchester .243 Varmint rifle to get it!

The 40x action is still pretty stiff but it shoots a little better than the 52C. A few thousand rounds should limber it up. An even older shooter was explaining the trigger to me one day. It supposedly has three segments that makes the trigger pull more precise. I'm not sure if he was right or if I understood him properly. Anyone know where I can get more information about it?

Cheers!

Great story ! Nice to hear that old accurate guns are still being used !

Just back from the range!

I was able to get the Fecker scope correctly aligned and working great. Off a sandbag at 50 yds, Several many shot groups under 1" Most would have scored 10 or x on a regular target. Nothing fancy in ammunition too! CCI Std Velocity, some Norma TAC22 and a couple groups with RWS Match Rifle that I had left from years ago and half a box of Fionnchi (sp?>?_+++) that appears from somewhere a few years ago.

When tinkering and working on a rifle, I use white butcher paper and 1" splatter dots at 50yds as test targets. It makes it easier to find the holes when a scope is WAY off to start with. When doing this I shoot what I call MANY shot targets that can be as much as 40-50 shots. Gives me a good average for the ammunition and saves trips to the target butts.. When I am satisfied with the results, then I shoot 5 or 10 shot groups to simulate competition a bit better.

Fun day!

I definitely exposed my ignorance of Remington 40x - 22 LR in my first note! This is the only one I have ever owned and I haven't looked at too many of them and certainly not in detail. It does shoot well though!

I thought, assumed, or had been misinformed by someone that the 40x I had was a first generation rifle using the 722 action as a base and was later modified to something else. I have now read a bit on the 40x and found they were initially made using the 722 action as I noted but later were based on the 700 action with a similar shortened locking lug system. My assumption had been that sometime later the action was upgraded to improve the bolt. It appears I was wrong and the shortened bolt with the rimfire nose (for lack of a better name) continued in use.

A question for 40x fans? This one has the two adjustment screws near the front end of the stock. I understand that the purpose was to apply a bit of upward pressure on the barrel to dampen vibration. Did it seem to work? Does current thinking suggest that free-floating the barrel will improve accuracy even more??

Anyway, my quest to stamp out my personal ignorance continues.

Cheers

The "bedding devices" you ask about were commonly used back in the 60's. Some would hook up a "test light" to tell when the screw touched the barrel, then test with that pressure, a little more pressure, or no pressure to try and find the best setting for the ammo they had.

I just lightly touch the barrel and stock with my finger, and can tell when the screw slightly moves the barrel, then back off one "click" (I'm not sure all had click style adjustments). Just one more thing to keep you busy playing with it to find what your rifle likes.

BTW, my 40xes (built in 1957 &1964), Winchester 52 (1964), and Anschutz (1964) ar4e NOT "antiques", and are younger than I am.:)

My current favorite 22 is a Winchester Low Wall (1909) and it IS antique.

Have fun playing with your 40x.

thanks for the tip. I'll see what I see when I next get out the 40x. I had heard of the electrical connection system but have no idea how it was supposed to work or what it actually entailed.

As noted, this 40x is from first year of production 1955-56 based on manufacturing code and serial number 1998! My 52C is definitely older than that. I haven't tried to track that date down but might give it a shot now...

I believe I am older than most of my toys here (71) but thought they qualified as antiques compared to what people shoot with today.

\I don't feel the desire to spend a ton of money on these since I don't care to try to be competitive, I thought referring to them as antiques would quiet the crowd who would blow off what I am doing. I find tinkering around to be more fun than working at it too much. I have so many other toys.....


Cheers