kresk 10,063 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Finally finished this conversion, starting with a S-308 21 inch barrel, synthetic furniture. The barrel has been fluted and recrowned. The handguard is custom made with venting, and is free-floated. A rail was added for a laser or other device. The rear sight block was built up anteriorly slightly, and a base to attach the hand guard was welded on. The muzzle device began as an 'SVD' (Tigr, actually) from Rusmil.com and the front sight aperture was raised about a quarter inch to align with the rear sight, with front windage adjustment via a set screw. The folding stock is a custom FN-FAL style using a Galil hinge from Sarco with an adjustable cheek rest fashioned from a block of synthetic material. The rifle was first parkerized (manganese phosphate) then finished with Brownells bake-on lacquer in a simple camo pattern. The FCG is a G2 single hook; PG is from CAA. Bipod is a quick-detach Versapod. The scope is an 8x POSP from Eastwave. It wasn't zeroed in due to the use of different ammos. Much of the work was done by my good friend where I hang out, at Ottocomp (Otto Matyska), an extremely talented custom gunsmith here in St. Louis. The rifle was range-tested (by another forum member, Otto's Dog) using different types of ammo including NATO surplus 148gr. and several brands of 168gr. boat tail. With iron sights at 50 yds. a four shot group of about a half inch was achieved. With the scope, at 100 yards, a three shot group of about an inch was shot (the leftmost round was felt to be a flyer with range conditions being windy.) The rifle definitely likes the surplus ammo much better than the heavier expensive stuff. A stock S-308 was also tested side by side with the converted rifle and the accuracy is definitely significantly improved; recoil was reported as soft. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ArcFault 4 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Wow... good show. That front aperture looks familiar, is it off a Mosin? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted August 13, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Wow... good show. That front aperture looks familiar, is it off a Mosin? No, it's one of the SVD flash hiders from Oleg's website, but it's been modded a little. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ArcFault 4 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Oh, OK, I get it now. I didn't realize that the FSB and FH were integral, I thought that the FSB was separate. It still looks like a Mosin aperture to me though. Cool build. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cobra 76 two 2,677 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Wow that looks great Doc! Another fine build from Otto. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bayoupiper 738 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 A very sweet looking build! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
macbeau 902 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Man! That is nice! I feel a priapism coming on that I'm sure will last longer than 4 hours! Congrats... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
getitat 609 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 It's a beautiful thing, Sir. Awesome originality. I'm feeling shock and awe. guido2 in Houston Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DTakas 2 Posted August 13, 2008 Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Very nice, I like custom stuff like that. I'm assuming the forend is free floated and attaches only to the receiver, and you said it has been re-crowned. Is there anything else done to improve accuracy? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted August 13, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2008 Very nice, I like custom stuff like that. I'm assuming the forend is free floated and attaches only to the receiver, and you said it has been re-crowned. Is there anything else done to improve accuracy? Those two measures were sufficient to improve the accuracy considerably, otherwise I may down the road consider swapping out the FCG for an adjustable one. The fluting helps dissipate heat more quickly and should also be contributing to accuracy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mechsterbator 0 Posted August 15, 2008 Report Share Posted August 15, 2008 Very nice, I like custom stuff like that. I'm assuming the forend is free floated and attaches only to the receiver, and you said it has been re-crowned. Is there anything else done to improve accuracy? Those two measures were sufficient to improve the accuracy considerably, otherwise I may down the road consider swapping out the FCG for an adjustable one. The fluting helps dissipate heat more quickly and should also be contributing to accuracy. might get a little more accuracy if you ditch the muzzle brake and just go with a target crown Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Surly 11 Posted August 15, 2008 Report Share Posted August 15, 2008 might get a little more accuracy if you ditch the muzzle brake and just go with a target crown Possibly, but the brake is integral with the FSB and it looks great on that rifle. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DTakas 2 Posted August 15, 2008 Report Share Posted August 15, 2008 might get a little more accuracy if you ditch the muzzle brake and just go with a target crown Actually, a properly installed muzzle device will not degrade accuracy at all, and because a good muzzle brake reduces muzzle jump when shooting and reduces felt recoil it often increases the shooter's performance by making them less likely to flinch or mess their shot up by subconsciously trying to counteract the recoil. It doesn't really make the gun more accurate but people often shoot better with a good muzzle brake. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ironbarr 0 Posted August 16, 2008 Report Share Posted August 16, 2008 Man! That is nice! I feel a priapism coming on that I'm sure will last longer than 4 hours! Congrats... priapism::: S C A R Y http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?sm1=SS...4&method=25 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TS2 0 Posted August 31, 2008 Report Share Posted August 31, 2008 Wow... good show. That front aperture looks familiar, is it off a Mosin? No, it's one of the SVD flash hiders from Oleg's website, but it's been modded a little. Hello, i see you are from Missouri . i have a 21 that i would like to convert like yours only to a 18 inch barrel can you help or do the work let me know im in Carroll county . Thanks TS2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted September 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2008 Wow... good show. That front aperture looks familiar, is it off a Mosin? No, it's one of the SVD flash hiders from Oleg's website, but it's been modded a little. Hello, i see you are from Missouri . i have a 21 that i would like to convert like yours only to a 18 inch barrel can you help or do the work let me know im in Carroll county . Thanks TS2 PM sent. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted September 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 10, 2008 I've had a couple inquiries as to how the hand guard is attached to the rifle. An adapter plate was welded to the rear sight block and the HG is screwed onto it, free floating it. A plug was added to the front bottom of the receiver just to block the hole that would otherwise be there. A few pix: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Paladin_Hammer 8 Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 Alright I'm sold on the idea of free-floating a handguard, but even after reading this thing I can't seem to figure out how it's done. Any chance you can doctor up some pics and tell me how that works? Maybe I'll even (oh God I'm going to catch flak for this) think of converting a 7.62x39 (BUT I'LL STILL KEEP ONE IN STOCK!) to see if the mythical "Accurate" AK-47 is actually just a creature cryptozoologist haven't found yet. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PinkFloyd 63 Posted June 12, 2009 Report Share Posted June 12, 2009 Where can one get a barrel fluted like that? Can most gun shops do it? Any idea how much weight it'll knock off and can I do it to a .223? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BKLYN_C 14 Posted June 13, 2009 Report Share Posted June 13, 2009 Would never put anything that requires any kind of tool to disassemble, but this handguard looks really sexy Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted August 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 Where can one get a barrel fluted like that? Can most gun shops do it? Any idea how much weight it'll knock off and can I do it to a .223? A custom gun shop can do it with the right equipment. Fluting will remove about a pound of metal off the barrel. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Azrial 1,091 Posted August 23, 2009 Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 Super nice job! First class! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
fxhart 14 Posted August 23, 2009 Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 That is VERY cool! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JulianH 4 Posted August 23, 2009 Report Share Posted August 23, 2009 Hmm... I don't suppose your gunsmith might be interested in selling a kit, consisting of the handguard, adapter, and receiver plug? Then I could get a local smith to install it. Otherwise, what does he charge to do just the free float conversion? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kresk 10,063 Posted August 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2009 Hmm... I don't suppose your gunsmith might be interested in selling a kit, consisting of the handguard, adapter, and receiver plug? Then I could get a local smith to install it. Otherwise, what does he charge to do just the free float conversion? No kits--just a one off conversion. You'd have to ask the smith about the cost for free floating. It's all custom machined/welded and ain't gonna be cheap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 How did I miss this one?I love that fluting job. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
THX1138 7 Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 That is a nice shooting rifle sir, and it looks cool as hell on top of that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
1Pitbullman 0 Posted July 23, 2014 Report Share Posted July 23, 2014 Now that is Sweet!!! Great build Sir:) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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