Nearly 6 months ago I started a project to rebarrel a Savage Striker from 300 WSM to 338/375 Ruger. After tracking down the correct reamer from PTG, I started looking for a muzzle brake to put on there. I ended up with a Muscle Brake from Centershot Rifles. Now it was time to find a barrel maker to work with on the project. I went with Benchmark Barrels up in Arlington. After waiting for the reamer to be made (about 4 weeks) I sent the reamer, headspace gage, my action, and the Muscle Brake up to Benchmark in mid April. After what can only be described as a series of "setbacks, complications, and minor inconveniences", I finally got the finished barrel back on Thursday.
I'll admit that I was a little frustrated with the time it took to have the barrel made. But to be fair, the reamer was apparently ground incorrectly so that it didn't have any throat
. So 4 weeks of the time at Benchmark were just waiting for a new reamer to get made. When I finally got the barrel, I was disappointed to see that the incorrect caliber was etched onto the barrel. It was marked as a 338 RCM instead of a 338/375 Ruger. That's a pretty big difference. While I was initially pretty upset, but after contacting Benchmark again, Barry apologized and offered to fix the caliber markings as soon as they could get the correct stencil. I was initially pretty disappointed with my experience with Benchmark. Now that I've had time to put the gun together and really look at the quality of their work, I feel much better about my experience. It seems like this was just one of those projects where everything was destined to go wrong. It's not Benchmark's fault, it just happens sometimes.
So here it is, the finished project. At least for now. I still plan to switch to a rifle scope and a rear grip stock. But that can wait. Right now I just want to get out there and shoot this thing.
Andrew
