Custom Barrels for a Ruger No. 1

Slowshot

Member
As near as I can tell the only difference between different Ruger No. 1 Varmint rifles in different cartridges is the barrel. If that is true then converting one to a different caliber and improving accuracy in the process would simply involve installing a high quality custom barrel chambered in the cartridge you want.

Does anyone here have any experience in rechambering and rebarreling a Ruger No.1? If so, what companies supply barrels in different cartridges and calibers for a No.1? I hit a total dead end at Sturm Ruger.
 
# 1

The only differences between different caliber #1

Comparing # 1 B s the only difference in calibers is the extractor and of course the chamber and bore.

comparing 1 A to 1 B is simply the extractor for the different calibers , the barrel contour , the quarter rib and forearm .

All # 1 receiver components are the same except the extractors .

The 1 varmint uses scope base blocks rather than quarter rib .I have rebarreled several # 1 . One needs to be careful to have the correct profile where the scope base sits or you will never get sighted in . Proper alignment is critical .

Chris
 
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i've had 3 #1's rebarreled, and 2 Browning B- 78's rebarreled. All wildcats. Not many like working on the falling blocks but some do and they tend to do good work. Iam happy with mine.

ML
 
Yes, I understand the difference between different models of the Ruger No. 1. Mine is a Varmint model in 220 Swift, with the scope mounts directly on the barrel. Having realized that I am not going to be a varmint shooter, the 220 Swift seems like overkill, no pun intended.

You say you have rebarreled several No. 1s. Who was the barrel supplier? Were you changing calibers? I am interested in changing to a different caliber or cartridge design and have been exploring possibilities including 6 PPC, 22 PPC and the different 20s.

As I stated, am not really interested in killing anything and I doubt I will ever enter any serious competition. I just enjoy getting better and better at shooting targets. The Ruger No. 1 works especially well with my disabilities. Though it is not a serious competition rifle, I want to get the best out of it that I can.

Russ Haydon says he is willing to consider my project. I just want to do a bit of leg work before turning the project over to him. He said he has never rebarreled a Ruger No. 1. That is why I am asking for information from others who have.

Any shortcuts and dead end issues wold be appreciated.

Ruger No 1 220 Swift 007.jpg
 
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Ruger # 1s are really no more difficult to rebarrel than a bolt action plus one does not have to worry about feeding issues . I suggest having the barrel manufacture supply the barrel in the same contour as the original barrel ,then one does not need to worry about getting the base blocks in the right plane . then have the barrel threaded and chambered and headspaced for your action , index the barrel and cut the extractor slot and drill and tap in the proper location for the base blocks .GO SHOOTING
I have built 17 ackleys all the way up to large magnum calibers on #1 s. one of my all time favorite rifle was a #1 I built by rebarrelling to 17 rem using a Shilen barrel , shot fantastic at crazy velocities and just felt right.
good luck
Chris
 
# 1

There nothing difficult about rebarreling a # 1 .The easiest way is to have a barrel manufacture contour you new barrel to the same contour as your original . Have your gunsmith remove the old barrel , thread and ream , index the barrel so one can cut the extractor slot , drill and tap for the base blocks ans go to shooting . You can pretty much rebarrel a #1 to any caliber you want . I have made 17 ackleys out of #1 and other calibers all the way to large magnums . One of my favorite riles I ever had was a # 1 I rebarreled , using a Shilen barrel , in 17 Remington . Shot fantastic at crazy velocities ,and just felt right .

Chris
 
In rebarreling a No.1, I would suggest looking at the various barrel blank makers on the home page of this forum as a starting point. Most offer contouring services to match your particular foreend if that is a requirement. Lots easier for the vendor to do the contouring, than your gunsmith, lots of time on the lathe which equates to $.

The No.1 is somewhat different than most bolt guns to rebarrel. The No.1 has its scope mounting on the barrel in factory form, which means that the gunsmith must clock the drill/tap for the quarterrib or whatever scope mounts. A bit ticklish to some, just a slight clocking error is pretty evident to the eye. The other clocking task is with the ejector slot in the barrel face. A bit more forgiving than the rib/scope mounting task, however is important not to go too deep because of case exposure issues.

The threading of the barrel to 16tpi on a 1" nominal shank is a common task in barreling. The gap between the breechblock and the barrel face can be reduced from the generous factory setting. Some think such helps accuracy, check with your gunsmith on his thoughts on this modification.

Ejectors can be had from Brownells or the factory for less than 10 bucks. A No.1 action is a No.1 action, the action proper for function only differs by the extractor type(head size).

No.1's can benefit from trigger updates, usually the factory trigger today is a bit much. Replacement triggers can be had or the orginal trigger can be reworked if necessary. Later models of the No.1's trigger removed the sear engagement feature of earlier models. A three screw trigger is available aftermarket as well as a set type trigger. To each his own there.

The forearm of the No.1 can be tuned for accuracy enhancements if necessary. A ton of information is on the net for such. Some No.1's shoot well from the start, some don't; but lots of information/opinions on the net to begin with. Your gunsmith will surely have his own opinions on the No.1 working well; just have to ask when the time is right.

The 220 No.1V is indeed a handsome rifle. I found that IMR4350 works pretty good in it, not overly fast, but seemed to have nice groups in mine.

I have done No.1's in 22lr, 17 centerfires, and 257 Roberts; kinda gotten away from the hard kickers in my later years. Not much to brag about really, just enjoyed the doing on my own.

Enjoy the No.1, hope it works out for you.
 
Slowshot,
This is a pic of my latest #1 varmint rifle. The barrel is a Krieger #18 contour, .20 cal, 11" twist. I chose this contour because it has 1.200 dia. for 5" so I use two #85 Weaver bases 3.5" apart. I use Burris Signature Zee rings with the plastic inserts.
rifle007.jpg

I use 60 grit sandpaper wrapped around various sizes of 1/2 drive sockets to open up Varmint or 1b forends to clear straight taper barrels. Doesn't take long.
rifle006.jpg

My Rugers are all 30-30 based wildcats.
rifle2007.jpg

.204 Wasp, .219 Wasp, .219 DW PDK, .224 BRM, 6.5 Bullberry Imp., .30 Herrett
The Kepplinger set triggers in my Rugers are 1 1/4 unset and 10 oz. set.
http://www.saubier.com/forum.html
Try this link for more pics and info, this is the first time I've tried to put in a direct link and I'm not sure it will work.
Dave in IN
P. S. Link didn't go directly to my thread. Thread is " my first .20 cal project" on page 3 under Project Guns.
 
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Thanks A Lot

Thanks a lot guys. I think I have enough information to get started. I'm going to print out all of the last couple of posts and head down to Russ Haydon's shop. Now I have enough information to be able to carry on an intelligent conversation on what I am looking for.

I really appreciate your willingness to share your knowledge.

Don (A.K.A. Slowshot)

PS: 219DW-Why did you pick the 204 Wasp wildcat cartridge you did, rather than 20 BR, 20 PPC or 204 Ruger? Is there some advantage for longer ranges? I am still undecided on this.
 
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Slowshot,
I designed the .204 Wasp to be very close to the .20 BR in performance. My PD shooting buddy had a .20 BR built a couple of years ago and was happy with it. My fascination (obsession?) with necking down 30-30 cases made me go with the rimmed case rather than the BR case. There is a lot of choices in cartridges to consider, besides the three you mentioned there's the .20 Tac, .20 Practical, .20 VT and several others. One advantage of .22 and 6mm PPC's and BR's is the vast choice of match bullets for paper punching. Also most of your better gunsmiths would have reamers for them.
I'm shooting 39gr Blitzkings at a little over 4100 fps with 31.5 gr of Varget. This gives me about the same long range performance as the .20BR and .20PPC and maybe a little advantage over the .204 Ruger.
I've been thinking about ordering a Pac-Nor .20 cal 11" twist barrel to replace the barrel on my .219 Wasp which has over 6000 rounds thru it. The Pac-Nor .20 barrels are 3 groove which I've heard good reports about. They have a contour called target weight that has the 1.200 dia for 5 inches and they are about $100 cheaper than a Kreiger or Bartlein. I'll likely have it chambered in .204 Wasp since I have the reamer.
Dave
 
I bought a Ruger #1 223 thinking I would re barrel it, but it shot too well.

I bought a Ruger #1V 223 thinking I would re barrel it, but it shot too well.

I bought a Ruger #1 7mmMag thinking I would re barrel it but it shot too well.

I bought a Ruger #1 270 thinking I would re barrel it, and it shoots poorly.
I took the scope mount rib off the 270. That is a pain to get off. I made an Aluminum Weaver rail for it and put that on. It still shoots poorly.
I bought a 6mm Shilen select match barrel to put on it, but I have not got off the dime yet.
 
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