RE-BARREL/CHAMBER ARISAKA 99
Wondered if it was feasible to take Arisaka receiver and re-barrel & chamber to 6.5 x 55 or 8mm-'06? Wanted something different. What are other possible calibers for this action? Thx!
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certainly possible. the arisaka's (assuming not a late war rifle) will handle anything on the .30/06 head size. 0 -
Possible. If you can do the work yourself worth doing. If you pay someone to do it you'd be better off just buying another gun. 0 -
The 7.7 is of shorter OAL than the named cartridges.
But Frank DeHaas said the magazine could be lengthened to accept .30-06 and similar.0 -
enbloc,
To answer the 'feasible' question, I quote P. O, Ackley:
"Japanese actions came mostly in 4 models, and were chambered for the 6.5 & 7.7 Jap cartridge. The 6.5 action is especially strong, and in blow-up tests has proven to be the strongest military bolt action tested. The later action made for the 7.7 cartridge is not as well designed. It is usually very rough, but still is an extremely strong action. However, it must be mentioned that strength is not synonymous with desirability. This means that in spite of their strength, these actions are not particularly desirable for use as a basis for a custom rifle. It is not recomended to spend too much money on either model. The other two models are not desirable enough to discuss."
FWIW, I have to agree with Ackley on this one!
Jim0 -
The easiest and cheapest conversion is to set the barrel back and rechamber for .300 Savage or .308.
The 7.7 barrel shoots 30 caliber bullets very well.
7.7 Jap rifles were American arsenal converted to 30-06 in the early '50s for issue to Korean Service Corps for guard duty.
Besides rechambering to 06, feed ramps were ground forward to accept the longer cartridge.
The magazine box front end was cut off and lengthened with a sheet metal squared off "U", spot welded to the box and the stock cutout extended.
I believe a longer follower was installed.
Anyway, the rifles were quite accurate with M-1 or M-2 Ball BUT, headspace grew to the 1.951 rejection limit after 500 rounds.This test was repeated with several rifles.
If you go to the .308, buy a no-go gage and keep it with you.
These are doggy guns that don't justify putting money into.
There are too many better actions today that justify playing with.0 -
IMO they don't exactly shoot .30 cal bullets "Very well".
The 7MM bore is oversize for .30 Cal. And accuracy is fairly poor. Especially at longer ranges. Beyong 75-100 yrds things go downill.
The S. Koreans that were given converted Arisaka's in the Korean War weren't well armed by any stretch of the imagination. It was obviously more of an economic issue. Arisaka's were plentyfull in Korea as there was a (previously Japanese Arisaka arsenal (MFG plant) in Korea. And it was cheaper/easier to use it to convert the guns that came w/it to an American caliber, than to ship in American weapons.
Like the others have said, Arisaka's while extremely strong actions that will easily handle most modern rifle calibers. Are a poor choice to invest much money in.0 -
Thx for all your input. I agree that 7.7; 7.65, or .303 will not handle .308 bullets very well. I handload for all these .31 cal. rounds. It's probably better to buy a new gun. Better yet to find a well made sporter out of these military long arms. Some were done very well by gunsmiths & tool & die or machinists, others are hack jobs. With a Ruger in 6.5 x 55 no longer available going for $7oo or more would this be the "budget" to build a sporter? Wondered if 264 Win Mag would work in Arisaka 99 with bolt opened up a bit? Use a 26 inch bbl. Or more work with follower? Or like you recommend stick with the .30-'06 .473 inch rim diameter. Then there are alot of choices!? 0 -
ENBLOC,
Tikka and CZ both chamber for the 6.5x55 Swede.
The Swedish Mauser was standard in the 6.5x55 cartridge and is noted for its accuracy.
Find a Mauser M98 in better than decent shape and have the chamber reamed to the 8x60S or the 8mm-06. If you really want to go for the gusto, work with the 8x68S.
There is a wide range of variations available to satisfy your desire for something different.
Best.0 -
While I didn't bench rest them they shot Gov't 30-06 well enough for me to hit what I was aiming at while using a Weaver 330 scope.
Please pay attention to the headspace growth with 50kpsi level ammo.
These rifles were designed for less than 40kpsi. 30-06 class ammo represents a 25% design overload.
These rifles were not issued to ROK Army troops but to the KSC, a Korean Government labor force. Korean soldiers were issued M-1 Carbines.
As far as I know, the 30-06 Arisaka 99 conversions took place in a US Army depot in Japan.
The accuracy I experienced may have been due to very precision rechambering jobs, bolt face resurfacing and to the 172 gr FMJ AP boatail bullets at 2750fps or so.
I shot thousands of rounds through them.
Losing accuracy after 100 yds doesn't sound right unless the bullets are under stabilized.
Converting to a fatter cartridge will give you magazine problems but more importantly, increase forces on the bolt face and locking lugs.
The economics of sporterizing a 99 Jap haven't been good for at least 40 years.
Sporterizing any military rifle today can cost you more than some brand new high powered rifles and you probably won't get your costs out of it on resale.0 -
I have a custom Jap rifle I bought a couple of years ago on the G.B.auction cheap, some of you may remember it.I'll post some pictures of it later today, I would never spend the money that was spent on this gun.The action, barrel and stock are engraved and the the original barrel is re-chambered to 30/06 and it seems to shoot well.I'm thinking of fixing up a seating die so I can load .303 British .311 dia. bullets in the 30/06 cases. [8D] 0
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