Custom Build Part 3

Project Chloe started as a rifle that my daughter and I could share, as she expressed an interest in doing some hunting. Legally, when over 15, your child is allowed to use your guns under your supervision. So I decided to get a rifle built to her criteria that I could also use; so Project Chloe began.

Something mildly recoiling in a .22 centrefire and in a light/medium build were my first thoughts, with the ability to be good enough for foxing, varmints and small deer species Muntjac and Chinese Water Deer (CWD) and range practice. I started looking for a donor action and came upon an old CZ527 in 222 Remington. The action is essentially a mini M98 Mauser build, which feeds from a 5-round detachable magazine. However, I decided to stay with 222, as it was the wellspring that the 223 came from and a super accurate round in its own right. I got the rifle for the princely sum of £250 from Henry Krank & Co’s second hand rack.

Enda walsh

The biggest challenge would be the stock, as it had to fit two dissimilar people and I turned to Enda Walsh (Custom and Precision Rifles) as I had seen his custom work before and had been impressed. I told him what I wanted and turned the execution over to him with one criteria; it had to be a thumbhole design. He said he would make it both comb and length of pull (LOP) adjustable to get over the size difference in the shoulder. And by the way, what material would I want for the stock and who was doing the re-barrelling? I picked a grey, green laminate, and as Enda was also branching out into gunsmithing, he asked if he could do that side of it too and I agreed.

I opted for a 1-12” twist, light tapered and fluted, 23”, stainless Bergara tube, threaded 14x1mm with an invisible protector. I sent him the rifle and he sent me two plaster of Paris hand mould kits, so both mine and Chloe’s hand shapes could be incorporated into one custom pistol grip that would suit us both; interesting!

Taking shape

Enda sent me regular updates of progress and it was very exciting to see Project Chloe starting to take shape. When it came to re-barrelling he did say he thought the receiver’s integral scope bases were a bit off. I had shot the original rifle and it seemed OK but with a bit more right hand windage than I was expecting. I assumed that everything would be fine and thought no more of it.

The rifle was a beauty; the pistol grip fitted mine and Chloe’s hands nicely, so job well done there. Enda had done an amazing job on the stock with an LOP-adjustable butt pad that gave enough adjustment to suit both of us. The comb/cheekpiece was cut from the same blank and when down it all looked like one piece of laminate. He had also tweaked the trigger for a single stage pull that broke at 2.5 lbs and fitted a new firing pin spring, as the original was giving occasional light strikes.

Rigged, ready and far too right!

I fitted my Swarovski Z6i 2.5-15x56 with ballistic turret in a set of Tier 1, 15mm dovetails and up front went a Havana muzzle-mounted moderator. I originally used factory ammo from Prvi Partisan (PPU) and Hornady, but was going to find a reload. I ran the barrel in and excitedly settled down for my first range session. Well the rifle shot way right and I soon ran out of left adjustment with the bullets just clipping the edge of the target at 100m. Aiming off to compensate showed that Bergara barrel could shoot to the tune of ½” with Hornady’s 40-grain Varmint Supreme load and .70” with the PPU’s 50-grain soft tip. Not a bad start!

When I was cleaning the gun I looked down over the action and saw the scope was physically off the bore line. Guess Enda was right about the bases, bummer! But what to do? My first thought was to get a Picatinny rail fitted and trued up with the barrel, which would mean machining and re-proofing. Was there another solution?

Recknagel to the rescue

A call to Alan Rhone suggested that Recknagel offered a windage-adjustable base and ring set for the 527. A few days later it arrived, it was easy to fit with the front base allowing the ring to pivot and the rear having limited windage movement. I put the barrelled/action with scope and mounts on its right side in a Work Mate and levelled it using a spirit level. I then put the bubble on the scope and levelled it to the barrel using the mount. On the range I centred the reticule and hey presto the problem was solved!

I did a fair amount of load development, as I had not made my mind up on bullet weight and type. The 222 is a flexible calibre that can run 36 to 60-grain pills. Initially I was thinking light, fast and flat and had some promising results with Hornady’s 40-grain V-MAX factory and 45-grain Hornet JSP reloads. These cracked along at 3300 to 3400 fps, reloads in 50-grain V-MAX and Nosler BTs worked well, though some Barnes Varmint Grenades in 36 and 50-grains were not so good.

Taking a chance

I wanted just one load, as small deer were also in the remit and I think I was getting too obsessed by speed. It was then I found 900, 55-grain V-MAX bullets in the back of my loading cupboard, I had picked these up years ago on a deal and done nothing with them. I had not really considered this weight but with that quantity and if they worked then it would make for some cost-effective shooting!

Recently I had been doing a bit of experimentation with Ram Shot Wild Boar in 223 Rem and 6.5 Grendel and it had proved a good powder. Their data shows just two options in 222, one for a 55-grainer with 23.8-grains being the top end. I loaded up a test batch with 23.5-grains using new Lapua Match cases and Fiocchi small rifle primers, my Lee dies have a factory crimp option and I gave the bullets a little tightening in the neck. Results were most pleasing, with an average velocity of a surprising 2988 fps/1100 ft/lbs and an ES of 38 fps, the 23” tube could shoot sub-1/2” at 100m with this load!

Result!

Happy with this, I fed the figures into my Ballistic AE programme to get the data. From by base 110-yard (100m) zero, I set three more zero points on the Swarovski’s elevation turret rings @ 200, 250 and 300 yards, so I could select them as required. Starting at 200 I was using my BH Steel target with 4 and 8” gongs, I wound in the required 5 x 1cm clicks (green ring) and took centre aim on the 8” plate and fired, to be rewarded with resounding clang and a grey impact on the white surface in the middle; result. Making sure it was not a fluke I fired a few more rounds to confirm.

Switching to the 4” plate got the same results, I then repeated at 250 red ring (8-clicks) and 300 yards yellow ring (12-clicks) with equal success. The only problem; the 4” gong got greyer the more I hit it and I found seeing it less easy; certainly at 300! Spurred on by my success I pushed on to 350 yards as that’s as far back as I could go at this location. Aim small, miss small; I checked my data and wound in 17 x 1cm clicks and centred on the 8” and shot, a second later a resounding clang and the gong swung. Now the 4”, which even at x15 looked very small and I rang that one too. So it would appear Project Chloe can shoot straight, I will be taking it out to 400 yards at 23-clicks and beyond as the Z6’s elevation turret still has lots of adjustment left.

Final thoughts

This is not my first semi-custom rifle, in that you supply the action. But it is the first where I’ve used what is quite an old donor action, with the obvious scope base problem. However, it was easily sorted, but on reflection I would try and buy a new action or something more modern, as the 527 design is no spring chicken, but as can be seen it’s certainly capable. Ironically, by the time I’d got the rifle etc sorted Chloe’s gone off to university! But at the end of the day I’ve got myself a sweet little and different varminter that shoots well beyond its original remit! But she’s back at Christmas and keen to shoot her name sake, so win, win and maybe even her first deer!

Contacts

Lee dies, Ram Shot powders, PPU ammo and rifle, Henry Krank & Co Ltd, 0113 256 9163
Hornady bullets and ammunition, Fiocchi primers and CZ rifles, Edgar Brothers Ltd, www.edgarbrothers.com
Lapua 222 Rem Match cases, Hannam’s Reloading, 01977 681 639
2.5-15x56 Z6i II BT scope and 8x42 EL Range binos, Swarovski Optik
Recknagel mounts, Alan Rhone, 01978 660001
Havana moderator, VMAC moderators – RPA, 0845 880 3222
Gunsmithing and stock - Custom and Precision Rifles, 00353 876611993 (Enda Walsh)www.customandprecisionrifles.com
Ballistic Package – Ballistic AE Advanced edition for iPhone – Apple Apps