Oldfeller--FSO
Serious Thumper ModSquad
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Hobby is now "concentrated neuropany"
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Fayetteville, NC
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Ok, the various bits and pieces for this Mauser red dot system came in and are put together now.
Result turned out better than expected, the barrel clamp Weaver rail is actually lower than the Mauser sights, so when taking the dot scope off (a quarter inserted in two slots) the gun is "natural Mauser" again from the operator's perspective. Nothing is affected mechanical sight wise, the elevation ladder still works, etc. etc.
(Note: the Weaver taper system naturally re-seeks the same scope zero upon reassembly)
Since it is actually on the rifle barrel in the middle of the barrel (the vertical axis centering is there naturally) you can slap the gun to your shoulder and the dot is simply right there in the center of the ghost ring effect that the red dot tube provides. If you are canting the gun any at all then the dot drifts to one side or another in the ghost ring, so you auto-correct for gun cant naturally and instantly.
Put the dot on the target and squeeze the trigger -- 260 grain slug goes home and the target goes down. Centering of dot inside the ghost ring effect is completely automatic and totally natural to the shooter.
This overcomes many of the issues seen with the little Steyr short rifles with the off center mounting of both scopes and red dots.
Now, bad eyes ...... really don't play for much. You see a somewhat fuzzy target, just as good as your glasses prescription can provide. Ghost ring effect works just the same, fuzzy or not. Keep the dot turned down low and you can find a smaller target inside the weak projected red zone at those longer distances and still pop it with a bullet. My dot scales from 1 to 10 and I generally run it at 2 to get a weak dusk dot, and 3-5 for normal daylight plinking.
In short, this system is pretty much ideal for poor old eyes and quick hunting type action. High magnification scopes are good too, but can require too much time in some sorts of hunting situations even if you turn the scope magnification way down.
A cast bullet gun is always used inside 150 yards, generally speaking. Max range is set by the sub-2000 fps launch speed of the best, most accurate cast lead slugs, which means you get a rainbow trajectory at longer distances coupled with reduced arrival energy when they strike home. Bullet drop at 150 yards is 16-18" which on a red dot gun says "put the dot up over the top with the bottom of the dot touching where you want the bullet to strike". Easy enough, I guess.
Being limited on top end speed, historically cast bullet guns shot heavy for caliber cast bullets. My Mauser shoots a custom designed slug that weights a whopping 250 grains and is noted for being the 8MM Maximum bullet .... hee hee, that's its name too, the Oldfeller 8MM Maximum.
I current shoot the Frankenstein version of that same bullet, at 260 grains and this one is cast to be a throat fit, not bore fitted. as the .330" diameter of the slug suites the size of the throat, which on Mausers is oversized on the old JS chamber design, leaving room around jacketed bullets for a thick coating of viscous WWI trench mud.
So my Frankie custom cast does not require the bullet nor the fired cases to be resized, just deprime, reprime, add powder and lightly crimp a new Frankie bullet in place. Full case and neck chambering fit and location are maintained as shot previously.
Accurate, yes, but it goes POW with authority when you shoot it.
Shot start pressure is increased as the bullet is getting COMPLETELY re-sized inside the first two inches of travel and rifling marks fully engages the entire length of the projectile right up to the big flat nose. This means cheap milsurp W860 and IMR 5010 powders can be used to good effect and they will burn cleanly enough as the pressure gets on up there enough to get the powder going good before the resizing action is completed and the now bore fitted slug squirts on down the barrel.
Most plinking or squirrel / rabbit hunting is done at 50 yards or less and no drop needs to be considered. So, as you can see this red dot sight system is good within the limitations of what the gun will be used for and it is very quick and easy to use.
Example, squirrels running and hiding on the other side of tree branches -- no problem, the big slug can go right on through a 10" diameter hardwood branch and the high velocity hard wood splinters constitutes additional "bullet mass" as far as concerns the squirrel on the receiving end.
Deer get hit hard and do not go far at all. This same bullet has been used on large Elk and American Bison, so a deer presents a relatively easy kill for a Frankie slug.
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