I bought a Model 11 in .308 several months ago and went to the range. I had fun with a 100 yard zero trying to guess hold over at a 700 yard silhoutte with a couple different loads. I was close several times, but was really there to get my .223 Howa dialed in so I switched the rifles and went to town at 200 and 300 yards. I have been considering several options for a long range varmint load/caliber for dual use as a deer (and bear if I decide to try that) round. I traded an unused scope for a 7mm-08 Shaw varmint contour barrel and believe it is between 9 and 10 twist from my measurements. Being on a tight budget, I am extremely thankful to THOMAE and WHIT for allowing me to borrow the tools etc. to swap my barrels and the advice I was given when we met. It took about 45 minutes to get everything done to my satisfaction. I put it in a HS Precision stock I purchased from another member and it looks like it is ready to draw blood. I now just need my pre-ordered scope to come in (promised to ship in the spring so it could still be a while).

Down to the gritty...I purchased some Prvi Partisan 7mm-08 ammo this morning and took a couple rou ds in a mag to the bas of a hill by my house. With muzzle pointed at the base of the hill, I cycled the action to check the headspace and make sure all was feeding properly. The bolt was stiff, but closed on the rounds. I checked the bullet and there are no marks. I also don't see marks on the shoulder or anywhere else on the case. Every round extracted perfectly. I bumped the barrel on the gauge and tightened the nut, added a piece of scotch tape to the gauge and it was hard to start camming the lugs. I felt the tape start to squish (very technical term) and stopped because I was using more force than I feel comfortable using to chamber a round. The feeling of the cases this morning chambering required about half that amount of downforce I used before stopping on the pseudo No-Go gauge. Should I back the barrel out a tad so it closes on one piece of tape but not 2? I had an experienced handloader cast a .308 chamber for me and do some custom loads years ago. From my recollection, they were also difficult to chamber, but slightly less than that Prvi. Should I do a remote test fire as is or...? If this is normal, I'm thrilled. If it isn't, I'm glad to learn before things go boom.