US 1917 barrel question

[Calfed]

I've got a Remington and a Winchester 1917 both of which have been counterbored. They are original military otherwise. Can't get either one of them to hit paper at 50 yards.



I've also got a sporterized Eddystone that has an original length JA barrel, but has had the ears cut off the rear sights.



Questions:

-Is it possible to remove the JA barrel from the sported receiver and install it on one of the counterbored rifles. The JA barrel also has the front sight cut down, but I have a replacement front sight set (base, pin, blade, ears and key). It measures about a "1" on my CMP muzzle gauge, and shoots reasonably well ( about 2moa on the sporter)

-I've read that the CMP will soon have criterion 1917 barrels in stock again. Are these any good and would it make more sense to just install one of those barrels?

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[jjroth]

the sporter barrel will need a relief cut an the barrel shoulder to unscrew.

How deep the c'bore on the others? Can you inspect the result and could a smith chock in lathe and use a good boring bar set-up to clean up?

Also check the the chamber, as sometime the throat may have been c'bore.

[kcw]

Calfed,

Don't mess with the sporter. Check the thread entitled "Who is good at rebarreling a 1917". I'll give you an idea as to the quality of the Criterion barrels and a possible smith to help you out.

[jmoore]

Generally, M1917 barrels can't be removed w/o destroying them! As noted above, a relief cut must be made just forward of the receiver. However,.... if the the receiver is no good you can cut it down (carefully) until the barrel can be removed.

First though, since it IS a JA bbl. it MIGHT not be so tight. If you've a proper bbl vise and action wrench it won't hurt to try a conventional removal! IF you don't care about the reciever it won't matter if you over torque and crack it.

[Chuckindenver]

says who???gawd guys, find another gunsmith, i have never ever had to cut a barrel to remove it. EVER.
this aint rocket science.
i say kill that POS of a sporter, use the barrel for a nice 17..
anyone who jumps at cutting a barrel to remove it, needs to hit the Gym, or just admit, im too lazy to do the job right..

[us019255]

Quite a few years ago I purchased a M1917 that had been imported from ?. It was counterbored "for accuracy". Had trouble hitting the broad side of the barn (from the inside). About what I expected. At that time JA barrels were cheap.

I used a Brownells action wrench (the kind where you can hit it with a hammer). Contrary to the previous post, after only several hits with a very large hammer, the barrel came out. Action and barrel were fine.

By the way, it is a fine shooter. Qualified with it under the old DCM rules one summer.

[Jim K]

Listen to Chuck and us019255. I have had to cut an Eddystone Enfield barrel to remove it, but to just say flatly that it must be done with all Enfields is silly. It is a step taken when all else fails and the barrel is scrap anyway. The JA barrel is a replacement and very likely was not put on as tightly as some original barrels, especially Eddystone.

With one barrel a replacement and the other rifles Winchester and Remington, I doubt there will be any need to cut any barrels to remove them.

Jim

(P.S. I have previously mentioned the time I got set to remove a super tight Eddystone barrel only to find it was barely hand tight and I almost fell on my ... . Don't assume anything about those barrels.)

JK

[irishsteve]

What ammo are you shooting? 17"s like heavier bullets so if your shooting 150 grain step up to 168-180,non boat tail.I have a 17 that will shoot 1.5 inches with Remington 168 grain hand loads,but is all over the place with M2 GI ball ammo,5-6 inch.

[Calfed]

I was using CMP LC or HXP--I no longer remember which. I've got some US military match ammo and some Federal Power Shok 180 grain SP. I'll give the heavier bullets a try before I give up on the counterbored barrels.

[Chuckindenver]

i had the same thing happen to me with a 1903, owner said it was shooting poorly.
so i set up, gloved up, put my hands on the wrench, let go for a second to get a better grip, and the handle just fell loose..
no wonder it shot bad.
had my first cracked 17 receiver today, check my new post for the story.