Customised IOF .315 (was "rifle Id quiz")

[vishosingh]

sir time varies according to how much work he has on his hands

[TwoRivers]

Absolutely top class. Good to know that India still has some top notch gunsmiths, after all the years of restrictions. Cheers.

[bullshitwalks]

beauty,
thats what i can say right now.
definitely money well spent.
anybody knows a gunsmith like bobby in u.p.?
cheers

[penpusher]

Checked up with Bobby.The cost now is from 49-52,000/- depending upon the work that needs to be done.The contact details are here -
http://indiansforguns.com/viewtopic.php?p=54388#54388

[cottage cheese]

Sorry to drop in late here.

Superb work!

Going just by the pic I'd never have guessed it was done in country.

My full regards to the gunsmith.

42K is reasonable considering the surgery and also the quality of work. No crib about it.

[TenX]

Absolutely top class. Good to know that India still has some top notch gunsmiths, after all the years of restrictions. Cheers.

Yes, good to know about any competent Indian

[mundaire]

So that's still less then 100k for a brand new 8mm rifle... not bad at all considering the current Indian scenario! So long as you can reload...

BTW that Indian walnut looks great. Have an Indian Walnut stock on my M1 Carbine, but it's currently finished "natural" without any stain whatsoever... Now I have have a good mind to redo it with the Birchwood Casey kit

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[Risala]

Amazing work,the moment I saw the pics knew it had to be him.
He is a wonderful person to deal with,this I say from experience.
Cheers
S

[saahil]

i havent seen a desi gun this beautiful.please post pics of ashani pistol done by him.

[dodger]

Applause ...
can't believe it is an IOF ...
I really want to know how has the Powder coating been done on it.. i've heard that Powder coating on Aloes corrodes it beneath the surface as it is no 100% Atmosphere resistant. .. but still i would love to take the process details and how protective it is for the Priceless Metal Barrel beneath ?

Regards
Kshitij

[sharan_kan]

Really great job done by the gunsmith..!! Certainly would have made the owner proud...

One curious question: Are .315s have the provisions for Scope?

Cheers..

[timmy]

I am inclined to agree with Abhijeet. The taper of the barrel is very like the issue SMLE barrel. I am noting that the action is bedded very deeply in fore stock -- so deeply that only the bolt head retention groove is exposed and the top edge of the front stock is nearly as high as the bolt handle where it meets it. This not only makes for a nice look, but it also neatly covers any surgery needed to remove the charger bridge. The checkering is fine and the pistol grip area show signs of use.

The portion of the butt stock socket that retains the trigger guard/magazine/floorplate has been ground off and an entirely different magazine has been fitted, along with a custom trigger guard. The new magazine floorplate looks "Mauserish" and, judging by my Radom wz 29 and my Ishapore 2A, is the right length to be a Mauser floorplate.

Other than the king screw, I cannot see any attachment holding the fore stock to the action. I suppose that its possible for something to be silver soldered to the bottom of the barrel and the stud for the forward quick release swivel threaded into it, since I cannot imagine a sling being able to work with only the king screw holding the fore stock to the action. Perhaps the gunsmith used the issue SMLE barrel band by cutting the top off and expanding the remaining arc to match the barrel radius -- this is just a guess, since the sling stud is further aft of the SMLE barrel band position.

With the original trigger guard gone, some sort of custom trigger is being used and it would probably attach to the action where the old sear and magazine release was. I wonder about there being enough room for a fore end retaining screw to be in this area, what with the trigger being there.

I would guess that the gunsmith has just gone "whole hog" and fitted a Mauser magazine to the gun. Further speculating, he's used a custom Mauser trigger guard and then fit the rear part of the assembly into a groove in the bottom of the butt stock socket somehow. The front uses the king screw to hold it on.

If the gun shoots well, and given the apparent workmanship, I suppose it does, someone must be a very clever fellow, because there are all sorts of critical surfaces for proper bedding at the rear portion of the fore stock and the way it seats against the sear/magazine release boss under the receiver.

I don't see any markings, except on the breech swell portion of the barrel -- this is where my Ishapore 2A also has a stamping for the serial number.

If a Mauser magazine is fitted, I am guessing that a cartridge shorter than .30 06 is being used that is rimless. If this was at one time a 2A action, the .308/7.62x51 would be the obvious choice.

Anyway, the workmanship and wood, along with the SMLE itself, makes me drool. Beyond these observations and speculations, I don't know.

I hope the mystery will be cleared up soon!

-- Sun Apr 05, 2009 20:49 --

Well, after reading the entire thread (I didn't want to cheat) I see I was wrong about caliber. I was also wrong about the business with the charger guide surgery. But I would like to know how close I came about my guess about the Mauser magazine and the way it's held on, the way the fore stock is held on, and the custom trigger.

Thanks!

[Fowad]

Friends for a second it looked like the rifle used in " The Ghost and the darkness", by Val Kilmer, I think it was .303 lee- metfort, but later after enlarging the photos it was clear the work is done on a SMLE or apni Indian .315.

DECLARATION: The gunsmith should be recommended for a post of " Special Advisor to the IOF".

Ghazab kar Dia..........

Great work done...

Check out the polish on the bolt and the Taper of the barrel....everything in the rifle is perfect..
Great

[HydNawab]

My guess is a 30-06 IOF but I might be wrong.

Anyway what every rifle it is, it looks great and you have done a wonderful job with it Visho.

Cheers

Ashar