the 338/408 PISTOL is done!

[GrampasGuns]

I just yelled "holy crap" and scared my gal ahah. This thing is unreal!

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[yorketransport]

My lord that thing is a beast! 

How do you fire a pistol like this?  Does it jump and thump you on the head?  I can't imagine the force on the wrist even with the brake.  I too can't wait to see the video of this being shot

The smith test fired it on Sunday. He called me to tell me that he actually sat there with a round in the chamber for nearly 10 minutes before he got up the nerve to shoot it! When he shot it, he realized something that I learned years ago, handgun recoil is perceived entirely different than rifle recoil. To the smith's surprise the recoil was actually extremely mild. The gun actually moves very little but the blast pretty brutal. The muzzle brake, weight of the gun, design of the stock and the balance of the gun make it more manageable than you'd think.

Love it. Very interested in this cartrage. Looking forward to see your results. No lefty action this time??

I was going to use a left hand action but BAT had this action already started when I called to order one. Going with the right hand action meant that I could have it in 6 months instead of 11. I'm pretty impatient so I just went with the right hand. As far as the caliber goes, I have a 30" rifle chambered for the same cartridge with the same reamer. I'm going to get some good data on realistic velocity loss between the 30" and 20" barrels.

[jasnt]

Awesome, now if you'll just make some time to get to the range that would be great

[bearpaw]

I was going to use a left hand action but BAT had this action already started when I called to order one. Going with the right hand action meant that I could have it in 6 months instead of 11. I'm pretty impatient so I just went with the right hand. As far as the caliber goes, I have a 30" rifle chambered for the same cartridge with the same reamer. I'm going to get some good data on realistic velocity loss between the 30" and 20" barrels.

Amazing gun and very anxious to hear the results of your tests.

[yorketransport]

I got t a chance to get a scope mounted up on the gun this weekend. I should get out next week to start testing. When I got the gun on Wednesday, one of the first things I noticed was that the escutcheons for the action bolts were machined from the barrel stubs. That's a beautiful touch of detail! The overall quality of the the work is absolutely top notch!






For now I have an NXS 5.5-22x56 mounted on there. It looks good on there, but NF scopes don't work very well on the SPs. I need to decide what optic I really want on there.

Awesome, now if you'll just make some time to get to the range that would be great

I don't really like to shoot these projects; prolonged exposure has been know to cause long term hearing loss, nose bleeds and minor brain trauma. I try to limit my exposure. I like to just build them so that people I shoot with can say they've shot something this obscure, and then I sell them for a fraction of what I have invested.  The problem is finding a buyer for some of the more "unique" projects. I only know of possibly 4 people who can really appreciate this gun for what it is. Then there's a ton of people who appreciate it for the "that's the most impractical thing I've ever seen but I want one" reason.

Amazing gun and very anxious to hear the results of your tests.

I'm pretty excited to see how it does. I'm going to try and have it ready to go in time for bear season to open and see if I can get something with it this year. If it weren't so heavy and pretty, I'd take it elk hunting this winter. I think I'll need to hire a gun bearer though to do that!

[jay.sharkbait]

That thing turned out great!

I am slowly warming up to this concept.

[yorketransport]

Got out and shot this for the first time yesterday. I had't really thought about it but my Magneto Speed Chronograph won't work because the brake is so long! I'll have to come up with a different chrony to get velocities. I didn't get my new front rest in time for the weekend so I improvised and made one that's specific to the width of the forend on the pistol. It worked surprisingly well.

The muzzle blast has to be experienced to be appreciated! This is the same load that I shoot in my rifle in the same chambering so no low power starting charges this time! The stock tracks as well as any BR rifle I've owned and should be perfect with a more solid front rest. It shoots surprisingly well considering that the 300gr Bergers are jumping .214" with this load since I have the freebore setup a bit shorter on the rifle than I do on the pistol. I'm not going to complain about how it shoots though. These are the first 4 shots fired out of the gun after bore sighting it.



The high shot is #1. Shots 2, 3 and 4 went into one elongated hole at 100 yards. I think this gun will shoot just fine!

[TVHunts]

Awesome!  That is one nice group!

[Widgeondeke]

Yup, shoots just fine. 
She is a pretty brute

[jasnt]

Looks promising. Bet this cartrage will be great elk or bear medicine

[bearpaw]

That's amazing Yorke, I'm thinking it needs to see elk country!

[yorketransport]

That's amazing Yorke, I'm thinking it needs to see elk country!

Do you provide a gun bearer as part of your guide service? I'm sure not dragging 18# worth of pistol around with me!

I may try and drag it out during bear season if I can find a good spot overlooking a berry field where I can set up my shooting bench.

[Angry Perch]

You just need to get a holster for that bad boy!

[jay.sharkbait]

You just need to get a holster for that bad boy!

I'll ask Tim to see if we can do it as a spoof.

[bearpaw]

That's amazing Yorke, I'm thinking it needs to see elk country!

Do you provide a gun bearer as part of your guide service? I'm sure not dragging 18# worth of pistol around with me!

I may try and drag it out during bear season if I can find a good spot overlooking a berry field where I can set up my shooting bench.

Maybe we can put it in a pack, how long is it?