You can get a new highwall action from C.Sharps Co. or from ???? (come on guys, help me out --Brain f##t). There is also an excelent bbl/action from Borchardt Rifle Co. in Silver City, N.M. or if you would like a side hammer action, there is the Wesson #1 action from Steve Earle -- see action on this site.   Ken

Sounds to me like something on the order of a .25 Krag Improved, in a Winchester Single Shot action, set triggers, and about a #3 weight barrel.  I'm sure Ballard Rifle Company can fix you right up, in whatever degree of finish, and extra cost options, that your heart desires.

Just might have to wait a bit while they build it, but that'll be the case anyway if you have one built from scratch.

Greg

Green Frog: if you found a $500 beater M1885 action, I think you’d be lucky. And you’d need a body guard. Up here, they are scarce & ‘spensive’.

I echo your comments about finding a gfood one to build on. Then when you figure in the materials & having someone do the work if you can't do it yourself, "rebuilding " an original adds up very quick. If you're not careful, it can easily exceed the price of a new/reproduction rifle. Every time I look @ & contemplate a rifle built on my #5RB action, I feel the $$ leaving my bank acc't....

From what I can gather from your initial post, your two prime criteria are deer-killing power out to 350 yds and tack-driving accuracy. A unique action and quality appearance are also on your list but maybe not quite as important as the performance?

In any case I would not suggest an original or original-style Winchester or Stevens action. I know I'll take some heat for this but that's my opinion, based on lack of guaranteed accuracy potential. Mainly lack of a drawbolt on the buttstock, which means a less-rigid platform. Some of the high wall repros such as Ballard or Meacham can be had with a drawbolt & they have a reasonable accuracy potential because of it IMO.

I've seen a couple of test articles on Ballard & Meacham rifles built on their high wall actions, and they appeared to shoot very well according to the writers. I say again, "according to the writers" they shot well, but, even according to the writers, none of them approached .5 MOA.

One of my shooting buds has a Miller-de Haas light rifle in 225 Winchester, built in its entirety by Kyle Miller about 8 yrs ago. Weighs about 9 lbs including scope & will shoot into about .5-.75 MOA after some tuning by the owner. Cost over $4000 (before optics) about 8 yrs ago and is built on an ugly action but is the best-shooting single shot of my somewhat limited experience, only about 4 dozen over the years so far.

Out of about 2 dozen Winchester high/low walls so far, my best shooter (223 Rem reline) will do about .75 MOA on average.

Col Whelen said that the most accurate of his many single shots was a custom Sharps Borchardt varminter. One of my Borchardts is extremely accurate (17 lbs) but it won't do .5 MOA on a guaranteed basis.

So I guess what I'm saying is that maybe your accuracy requirement is a little far out there for a single shot sporter.

To kill deer reliably & humanely at 350 yds requires a flat-shooting cartridge with reasonable bullet weight, IMO nothing less than 115 grains & no less than 2800 fps. I chose these numbers specifically to exclude almost all of the 6mm-&-smaller calibers, because in my experience they aren't good killers on deer at long range unless with head shots. This isn't the forum for a caliber argument but I can say that my opinion is based upon extensive shooting of several hundred whitetail deer at ranges from 20 yds to 600 yds with several rifles. The 243 Winchester M70 bull gun soon got rechambered to 6mm-284 and matters improved noticably. The 25-06 was noticably better still, and the 7mm Mag was the best of all those tried.

One of the very best single shot (read rimmed) rifle cartridges for your purpose is the 7x65R. It's basically a rimmed 280 Remington although they're not interchangeable. Another good choice would be the 30R Blaser, although it's certainly more powerful than necessary & so would be less pleasant to shoot. There are also other high-velocity European rimmed cartridges in the 6.5-7mm family that would be almost perfect for you, but ammo might be a problem unless you handload.

I emphasize high velocity, at least 2800 fps muzzle velocity, because you intend to shoot out to 350 yds. I consider that to be the maximum range for the very good rifle shot, and very few hunters are also very good rifle shots, OR good range estimators for that matter, so a flat trajectory is a must. My personal rule is, if I hafta aim over the deer's back then he's too far unless I've gotten a clear reading on my laser rangefinder & also have had time to figure the exact holdover. How many times does this happen?

My other personal rule is, when I pull the trigger I want to see feet in the air. No running off, no havng to wait 30 min & trail him up, no second shot required, no 'behind the shoulder' shots, no lost game at all, period. So I tend to use enough gun so that the animal dies instantly or as close to it as possible.

Of course we have a lotta deer down here, they're sometimes considered more of a dangerous nuisance than a big-game animal. I could tell you stories...........

My personal choice would be a Hagn action built by Edd Webber to the same specs as his 30-06 Hagn shown in Steve Hughes' outstanding book Custom Rifles in Black and White. This rifle is just about perfect IMO but I'd like it in either 7x65R or one of the hot 6.5 mms, with a scope of course.

It's my understanding that the Hagn action alone starts around $4000, so a nice rifle would cost at least $8000 IMO. Wish I had the money. I consider the Hagn action to be the most aesthetically-pleasing of them all, when built by a genuine artist such as Webber. MUCH better and better-looking than either the Ruger or especially the M10 IMO.

Now let me brace for the flames, 'cause I KNOW they're out there!
Good luck on your quest, Joe

I'm going to stick in one more sugestion the Little Sharps. It is a slightly smaller version of the origional Sharps. I know that it has been chambered for 30-40 Kraig. It would make a neat deer rifle and be light enough to carry in the woods.

40 Rod

WoW!  What great feedback!  I think these suggestions have narrowed down my choices considerably.  Looks like I need to avoid original actions and look at a Hagn, Borchardt or High Wall repro from Ballard or Meacham.  Does anyone have links for photos or specs on these actions?  I'm not interested in a side hammer or Sharps.

There doesn't appear to be a Kenny Jarrett, Charlie Sisk or Mark Bansner of single shots, someone who can put together a rifle with premium components and painstaking craftsmanship and produce a .5 MOA rifle.  Is there anyone close?  I'm not familiar with Al Story.  Is he a craftsman?  I've had good luck sending rifles to Hart, Shilen, Lilja, Kreiger, Pac-Nor and even Douglas.  I've also had mediocre luck.  It just depends who's running the lathe and the reamer that day.  I want someone who cares.   

Why is a rimmed cartridge preferable?  Won't a rimless cartridge function reliably?  All my single shots to date have chambered rimless cartridges.  Other than the 25 Krag and 7.65R, what are the rimmed cartridges you would recommend that produce ballistics similar to the 25-06 to 280 range?  What are the hot 6.5mm's I should look at?  I would much rather have a traditional cartridge but I don't think I'll find one with the energy or trajectory needed for 350 yard shots at large deer.

I like the idea of getting a Ballard High Wall Classic or a Browning 1885 and rebarrelling it, etc., but I don't want to spend a lot of money and just roll the dice on it's accuracy potential.  If I change my accuracy requirement to less than 1 MOA out to 350 yards, does that open up any new avenues?  Thanks for all the great advice!  As you can see, I need all the help I can get!

Jim

hi-ho old dog,,

i do have an 85 browning hi wall that was a 30-06. had it chambered to 3oo win mag. because it is a hunting rifle, it was only tested with 3 shot groups.(if you need more than 3 shots, find another hobby) (:>) 

it will put 3 out of a clean bbl into .5-.75 at 200yds all day long. this is the rifle i use when hunting on a manmade hill on the farm. have yardage markers out to 500 yrds around the man made hill. and like jd steele sez, it's feet up with one shot.

..ttfngrampa...

Singelshotman:

Thanks for your reply, but I don't understand your concern about offhand shooting.  I don't think I've taken an unsupported shot at a deer in 20 years.  I take deliberate shots.  I want excellent accuracy because many of my shots (in four different states) annually come from stands or on stalks where I have time to use a tree, a rock or crossed  sticks before taking a shot.  I don't jump shoot deer.

I'm a little surprised that there doesn't appear to be an icon like Echols, Jarrett, Sisk or Bansner, whose ability to put together a single shot rifle with premium components and painstaking craftsmanship to produce a .5 MOA rifle is legendary.   

I'm also not sure why a rimmed cartridge is preferable in a single shot?  Won't a rimless cartridge function reliably?  All my single shots to date have chambered rimless cartridges.  Other than the 25 Krag and 7.65R, what are the rimmed cartridges you would recommend that produce ballistics similar to the 25-06 to 280 range?  What are the hot 6.5mm's I should look at?  Is the 7x57R a popular choice?  I would much rather have a traditional cartridge but I don't think I'll find one with the energy or trajectory needed for 350 yard shots at large deer.

I do appreciate the input from those who have been there and done that!

Jim

Old Dog,

Rimmed cartridges were the state of the art when most of these actions were designed, and thus the extraction systems were designed around them.  Rimless cases didn't come into vogue until well into the bolt-action era, and the typical claw-type extractor was designed for these cases as well (to maximize magazine capacity and give reliable feeding in military bolt guns).  These classic actions can be converted to handle rimless cases, but it requires all sorts of mechanical gyrations.  Rugers (which you don't like) and the new Browning 1885's were likewise designed to handle rimless cases, as well as rimmed.

As far as accuracy potential, you're comparing apples to non-apples.  While the classic single shot can be made to shoot VERY WELL, it typically requires much more effort, from both the 'smith and the shooter (and his handloading skills) to maximize the potential that might be in the barrel.  It just ain't the same as screwing a Hart barrel on a sleeved Remington 700 action, glueing the works in a McMillan fiberglass benchrest stock, and calling the result a hunting rifle.  I don't doubt that Kenny Jarret can build an accurate Ruger No. 1, for example.  I'd bet you won't get him to make his famous 1/2" guarantee with one, though...

As always, your mileage may vary, and these opinions are worth exactly what they cost!

Good luck in your search,
Greg

Greg,

  Looks like it, doesn't it.  But, you did add a few points, and maybe we can put to rest the idea Old_Dog is gonna get a 1/2 MOA rifle out of the box. If we could do that with a SS I'd lay out some pretty good money to get one to.

PETE

the sharps borcharct is one of the best, i had one till my wife went on disability and i had to sell it to pay my property taxes.
If you like hammer guns it's hard to beat a high wall-i don't recommand Stevens 44-1/2's- i have trouble getting in a 38-55 cartridge.

Old Dog, If I were emBARKing (no pun intended    ) on the quest you are, I would start with a Browning/Winchester (new made) in .25-06 and learn the idiosyncracies involved with two piece stocks, breech blocks instead of bolts, etc., etc., etc.  Once I had really convinced myself that I had learned what I wanted and needed to know in order to make an informed decision and armed with the knowledge born of experience, I would then plunk down the several thousand hard earned dollars you mention to buy the ideal rifle that I now knew to ask for.  From my current vantage point, I would probably end up with a Meacham or Ballard Rifle Co high-wall in some appropriate caliber (I still kinda like .25-35, but YMMV) or I would call Al Story in Oklahoma, I believe, and order one of his gorgeous Sharps Borchardt repros.  But these are MY feelings developed from MY experiences and as with all such matters YMMVWidely!   
One thing we should have mentioned from the get-go is that you should read everything you can get your hands on about single shot design, building, care, and feeding.  I highly recommend "The Modern Schuetzen Rifle" by Dell and Schwartz and "The Breech Loading Single Shot Rifle" by Roberts and Waters.  You also should go through (if not buy and outright devour) at least the first couple of James Grant's series, "The Single Shot Rifle," "More Single Shot Rifles," "Still More Single Shot Rifles," etc. and at least the first of Frank deHaas' books, "Single Shot Rifles."  Much of what you read here we gleaned from these and similar sources, but just like reading the Bible and ending up a Baptist or  a Presbyterian, your views will be based on your life experiences, personal views, and a strong shot of serendipity...heck, you might even find out you like something wierd like a Stevens!  (Sorry, leadball! 8)  ) 
Well, this rant has gone on long enough, but I hope you will enjoy and get something out of it, congratulations for finding "the one true way" of shooting, one shot at a time!   8)

Regards,
Froggie

Your high end estimate is a couple hundred shy.

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I am amazed, nay I'm astounded at the price of the Hall action. IMO it's not worth anywhere near that much, primarily because it's not very attractive to my eye. Kinda reminds me of the Dakota 10 in that aspect, it's just not very attractive to my eye considering the price. The self-setting set trigger is an excellent feature but doesn't make up for the price. The rear line of the receiver is very unattractive to my eye because it clashes with the lines of the wrist, it really needs to be altered somewhat in order to be good looking. Also the receiver ring is far too short for either best looks or best accuracy IMO.

IMO it would be a great action for around $1500 or less, sorry Alan.

If I wuz planning on spending $3-6K for a rifle, I would INSIST that it be attractive, in fact I would insist that it be a VERY nice art object in and of itself in addition to and regardless of its performance. This does not mean simply good or even excellent workmanship although a superior workmanship level is absolutely required in a rifle costing this much.

No, I would also insist that the lines and shape of the rifle be very attractive to my eye. And the Hall isn't, nor is the Dakota or the factory Borchardt or any Stevens for that matter. And the Hoch or Miller-de Haas kinda look like trot-line sinkers to me. But that's why they make chocolate & vanilla and have horse races & elections, differences of opinion.

I guess I'll hafta stay with my choice of the Hagn for an expensive action with either an altered Ruger or altered Borchardt as my second less-expensive choice. I love Winchester walls but they too are not the most attractive if left unaltered, they need a different top tang line for best looks IMO, and the wall tang line is difficult to alter successfully. And then there's that lever.........

You can get either a Ruger or Borchardt for much less than a Hall or Dakota or Hagn, and use the extra money to alter and improve its looks before your smith begins the stock work. AAMOF a new lever & a little scalloping on either action will effectively improve and disguise its appearance so that it's almost unrecognizable as the common or ugly original that it once was.

When I worked in nuclear power we were introduced to the famous 80-20 rule, i.e. solving 80% of any problem takes 20% of the total time and the last 20% of the problem takes the other 80% of the time.

Well, I figure that I spend 80% of my time in handling & fondling a rifle but only 20% of my time in actually shooting it or hunting with it. So the aesthetics are very, very important to me & therefore a rifle that's less than beautiful is NOT what I want to spend my money on.

True, accurate rifles are always interesting rifles but I'm sorry, ugly rifles don't attract me at all regardless of their accuracy. It's too easy to have both beauty AND accuracy, why sacrifice either one?

I suggest you call my friend the estimable Mr hst, he can build you a rifle that's as accurate as any. His record of proven personal accuracy performance with his own rifles is very enviable and his machining skills are impeccable. I haven't yet seen any of his stockwork but his metal-working skills are unsurpassed IMO.
Good luck whatever your choice, Joe

Joe:

I agree with you on both the accuracy and the aexthetic requirements.  In fact, about the only thing we don't agree on is the attractiveness of the Ruger action. 

Jim

I certainly can't speak for its accuracy, but the high walls from (You need to Login or Register to view media files and links) are available in .270. I'm certain they would chamber for any of the rimmed European 7 mm jobs already mentioned as well as the .25-06. The owner once told me their rimless extractor works well and that he had no reservations in offering it. Certainly that in the Ruger No. 1 works well enough.

Thank you, Froggie.  I appreciate your comments.  As I mentioned previously, I have owned numerous single-shots, a Dakota #10, a Browning Low Wall, and several Ruger #1s, including my current #1B.  I have fiddled with all of them (except the Model 10) including rebedding forearms, installing Hick's accurizers, Moyer's triggers, modifying quarter-ribs etc.  I believe that I am familiar enough with single-shots to know that what I have had so far is not what I want. None of the above have shown the accuracy that I am looking for or the features that I am looking for.

I don't want to pick up another vanilla single shot.  I want something that shoots better than anything I have had and that looks better than anything I have had.  I don't find side hammers attractive.  I don't find Rugers attractive (or maybe since you see them every time you turn around they have just lost their cachet).  I want something different. I want something that will be at home in a treestand shooting at deer at 350 yards.  I want something that I can use to stalk deer.  I want something that will be fun at the range, developing loads and poking holes in paper.

That's why I'm soliciting opinions.  I haven't had these traits in one gun.  I have bolt guns from Forbes, Sisk, Jarrett and Grisel.  They do excellent work, but they are not single shot experts.  I was hoping to get recommendations for smiths expert in both metal and woodwork on single shots.  I am familiar with most rimless cartridges but don't think I have owned a rimmed cartridge other than the .22LR and the 30-30.  I was hoping to get a rimmed cartridge recommendation that would accomplish my goals.  I'm currently set up to reload at least 20 different cartridges.  My ULA is a 250 Savage Ackley Improved.  My Jarrett is a 6.5-06 Ackley Improved.  Wildcatting doesn't bother me.

If there is someone who specializes in setting up modern High Walls for competition, I would love to have their contact information.  I haven't found that information yet.

I apologize to all if my questions seem too basic or too nitpicking, I'm just trying to get all the information I can from people who have actual experience with the subject matter.

Jim

Jim, it's gonna be hard to find a single top-level smith who:

Does both wood- and metalwork to the same excellent standard
Does accuracy work to your desired level
Specializes in single shots
Will build a rifle in your price range with an appropriate accuracy guarantee

There are a lotta guys who do some of this, and some others who do most of this, but I don't know of anyone who does all of what you're seeking. I can point you toward a few whose quality is unsurpassed, and who do both wood- and metalworki to the same excellent standard, but they're not necessarily accuracy smiths. A few good single shot accuracy smiths come to mind but they specialize in target rifles & not lightweight sporters with high-intensity cartridges.

You said you have had rifles by such folks as Jarrett and Grisel but they were not single shot smiths. Well, if you meant Pete Grisel, he is very knowledgeable about single shots and is also one of the best custom workmen around. He's not an accuracy smith as such but is well aware of accuracy requirements and is an excellent shot himself. I met him while we were in school together & have seen his work and also seen him shoot, albeit the occasions were many years ago. I would imagine it would be hard to find a better smith, and if you weren't happy with his work then you're probably pretty hard to please. Or maybe you had one of his bolt actions & didn't know he built single shots?

In any case it may be difficult to find one guy to do it all for you, to your satisfaction. I would suggest finding a new Browning/Winchester repro in either 25-06 or 270 WCF, tuning it up to your accuracy standard, and then having it restocked to your specs. If this means first having it rebarreled by an accuracy smith and then later having it restocked by someone else, then so be it.

Appropriate rimmed cartridges include the 6.5x57R, 6.5x61R, 6.5x65R, 6.5x68R, 7x57R, 7x65R, 7x75R and 30R Blaser. I have experience with the 6.5x57R and the 7x65R, both will do what you want but I personally prefer the 7x65R. My second choice among these would be the 6.5x65R which is basically a rimmed 6.5-06. These cartridges can be found in the book Cartridges of the World.

Good wildcats include the 25-06 or 270 WCF with rimmed cases, easy to make using various other rimmed brass (see above) for a basis and you can use standard dies & chamber reamer. The full-length 25 Krag is another excellent alternative.

Another idea that I've been considering is the 284 Win or 6.5-284 using rimmed brass made from 45-70 or 45-90 cases. It would be easy to have the 45-70 brass spun out a little longer or shorten the 45-90 stuff, & then size it down in standard dies, and of course your smith could use a standard chamber reamer & then cut the rim recess with the lathe tool. Necking down the larger brass will automatically give you the option of a tight-neck condition due to the neck brass thickening, so you have a built-in accuracy improvement possibility when adjusting neck thickness. A lot better than a tight-neck chamber IMO. This is one of the possibiliites I've been considering for my switch-barrel Borchardt, 4 barrels in 6-284 Rimmed, 284 Win Rimmed, 33 WCF Improved and 45-90, all using the same extractor size.

Like Paul Simon says in his song, there are fifty ways............
Good luck, Joe

Jim, if it was my project and for some reason I couldn't do the work myself (don't get me wrong, I don't consider myself THAT good but I sure work cheap! VBG) then I wouldn't hesitate to use Glenn Fewless (hst) for the barrel work. I've seen his metalwork & it's as nearly flawless as I've ever seen.

Woodwork is another story. A friend of mine, Billy Tierce, who Ken Hurst also recommends, is an excellent sander, finisher & checkerer but his shaping doesn't match my personal taste. And the shaping is at least as important as the actual finishing IMO. Please don't misunderstand, Billy's shaping is first-class as far as workmanship goes, i.e. tiny shadow lines, no runovers, delicately-formed comb nose flutes, etc etc, but the flowing lines themselves are not exactly as I would have sculpted them.

A local Guild (ACGG) gunsmith, David Christman, is also a first-class woodworker and does as good a job as I've ever seen up-close-&-personal, but he doesn't specialize in single shots & I've never seen one of his single shot stocks. David's in the same class as Pete Grisel, and his mentor was Maurice Ottmar who did some of the very best single shot work around, but as it happens I've never seen any of David's single shot stocks & so can't give him an unconditional recommendation so far as shaping goes. And his workmanship doesn't come cheap, I think his stocks start at $2500 plus wood and accoutrements. But he's GOOD! REAL good!

If you intend to use a pre-shaped semi-inlet or similar, then either one of these guys would do nicely. If you have definite ideas and want your stock shaped to match them, then perhaps you might need to do some research to find someone who can meet your exact needs. The only way to determine this would be to examine enough of their work so that you are confident that they can shape it like you want.

I've found that it's a big help for me to actually draw the entire rifle on a big sheet of paper, full size, so that I can experiment with different shaping ideas and dimensions before actually cutting any wood. This is especially important where the woodwork is concerned, but for instance I also like to draw different lever shapes to see which one(s) will look the best with a particular rifle.

When I have the shape like I want then it's a simple matter to scissor out the outline and lay it on the side of a stock blank so I can saw it to match. It's a lot harder than just using a semi-inlet but it's about the only way to get exactly what you really want.

A high-end smith who does specialize in single shots is Edd Webber of Montana, one of the very best in the world IMO. He's very particular about his projects however, and he's sure not inexpensive!

There are some folks here on this board who do good woodwork but I've never seen any of their work up close, maybe someone else can give you some more info on them.
Regards, Joe

It looks like it will be a Winchester/Browning High Wall repro in 25/06 or any other caliber that will facilitate rebarreling to 25-06.  As long as it is a model that has a pistol grip stock, my sensibilities shouldn't be offended too much until I get it restocked.  The names provided me will be a good start to select a metal smith and a wood smith.  I want to thank everyone who helped me with my selection process and too the time to write me with their opinions.  I truly appreciate it.

Now, who's got a line on a High Wall repro!   

Jim

Thank you, grandpa!

That's the kind of cartridge recommendation I was looking for!  I've heard other mutterings regarding the 25/06 before.  I've had two of them, one, a PacNor barreled Sako shot pretty well (1") with 100gr. bullets, the other was a Model 700 that didn't shoot worth s**t.  I assumed the problem was me.  I appreciate your recommendation regarding the WSM cartridges but, with apologies, will never own one.  Just personal bias, no rational reason required.  How about the 257 Whby?  Any experiences?

I love the bore size.  It seems the perfect compromise for whitetail deer.   I could go to the 257 Roberts Improved, but was looking for Godzilla.  Am I now back to looking at a 25 Krag or 25 Krag Improved?  Will a 1885 Repro set up for a rimless cartridge shoot a rimmed cartridge with a minimum of muss and fuss?  Oh, by the way, I may have found a donor action!  Thanks!

Jim

Another option for a rimmed cartridge would be anything based on a .308 case. The .307 Winchester case could be used to make a rimmed .243, rimmed 7mm-08 or that 6.5mm-whatever that they came out with a while back. There must be a .25 caliber version of it as well.

Glenn

Let's not forget all the very fine variations on the .303 Brit, by Epps  and others in the British Commonwealth.  Brass is readily available and cheap, unlike the .307 Winchester.   

One of my "one of these days" projects is to make up a .35 Remington Rimmed, using .303 as the base case, so that I can use a standard chambering reamer and dies...probably on a Rolling Block action.

David 
Montezuma, IA

Old Dog, you might consider a Browning Wyoming Commemorative .25-'06, these have 30" octagon barrels.  Dealers usually offer them for $1000-1200, but I picked mine up several months ago from auctionarms.com for $750 new in the box.  Have not shot it yet and the trigger is awful, it has to go to Lee Shaver for his $25 trigger job.  I would have liked it better without the gold "inlay" on the frame but I have seen worse.  The stock has to be replaced because it has the horrible old rifle crescent buttplate for the Western look, I can't imagine anything less rational for a .25'06.  The pistol grip cheekpiece stock for a B-78 will fit and I am hunting for one.   Velocity out of this long barrel should be right up there with a .257 Weatherby.   You might buy one of these and try it out, if you luck out on the accuracy you can stop there.  If not, go ahead and get one of the good smiths to put on a match quality barrel and sell the original barrel on ebay.

O.K.!  I've picked up a 30-06 Browning 78 made in the 70's.  I am going to have it rebarreled in 6.5-284.  I wrestled with a traditional cartridge but in the end, my priorities of accuracy and 350 yard deer potential have led me down this path.  What I need now is the following:

Rebarrel with a match grade, half octogon barrel and rework that abortion of a trigger.  Need to rebed the forearm and remount the scope bases, etc.  A cool replacement lever might be a good idea, too!  That S shape doesn't do a lot for me.  Anything necessary to make this a first class shooter.

Refinish and perhaps reshape the current Monte Carlo pistol grip stock.  The existing wood looks very nice and has fabulous figure,  but there are numerous scratches in that shiny, plastic coated finish.  I need a hand rubbed oil finish and I wouldn't mind if someone could knock off the raised comb, leaving a nice shawdowline cheekpiece.

I need to be talked into either a nice color case or french grey finish on the receiver, with a rust blue barrel.  Some nice scribbling on the sides of the receiver might be nice, too.

I don't ask for much.  Just a super accurate, 350 yard deer capable, awesome looking single shot with an incredible fondle factor.     I probably shouldn't tell you guys this, but I plan to sleep with this gun!   

Any suggestions regarding the appropriate people to call for each remaining phase of this project would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks for all the input,  guys!

OK, sounds like you're on your way...I love the planning of a new rifle project almost as much as actually getting started...almost!

Just a word of caution...the Browning B78 and the Browning 1885 use completely different trigger mechanisms, and Brother Dale's sear engagement screw doesn't quite work on the B78.  The two actions are nearly identical, and use a lot of common parts, but the trigger ain't one of them.  I rebarreled a B78 and shot it in BPCR silhouette competition for a couple of seasons, but couldn't find anyone who was willing to work on the trigger group.  I finally started messing with the adjustment screws (after getting a copy of the factory instruction manual from Browning) and was able to get a consistent, manageable, 3 pound pull on mine. 

Greg