Rifle ice/snow freeze eval 2025

[Formidilosus]

When are you running these trials?

As soon as the deep cold and snow comes. Usually in December.

 

[Choupique]

If I knew anyone that had one, I would include it this year.

Yall are welcome to my new-ish BACO model 70 ewss if yall ever want it for something like this. Wouldn't hurt my feelings to have it tested in ways I really can't do convienently.

It's a bare muzzle .338 win mag though...

 

[Formidilosus]

Yall are welcome to my new-ish BACO model 70 ewss if yall ever want it for something like this. Wouldn't hurt my feelings to have it tested in ways I really can't do convienently.

It's a bare muzzle .338 win mag though...

Appreciate the offer. The M70’s CRF are pretty well known commodities at this point.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Curious how a Ruger American would fair in this, since there are so many out there.

They can’t even function properly with a bit of desert sand in them, freezing them will be catastrophic I’d imagine. Just a guess though.

 

[swampy14]

Has a savage 110 been tested?
I know they moved to a closed top action with the release of the 110 trail hunter but I can see their trigger failing completely as it is exposed and not an enclosed unit like a tikka.

 

[tkabzems]

Maybe I just missed it being discussed but is the ruger hawkeye crf design that much different in these teststhan a model 70?

 

[PathFinder]

Maybe I just missed it being discussed but is the ruger hawkeye crf design that much different in these teststhan a model 70?

Here's at least a partial answer, and it's disappointing. Pulled this gun out of the safe to thread it, and the wheels got spinning. CRF, 3 position safety, easy to bed, solid scope mounting, very solid action, no extractor cut, super easy to rebarrel. Thought about spinning up a 6 UM barrel for it.
Since the triggers are usually the issue in ice tests, the M77 looked so promising. Very easy to lighten/modify, few components, not a lot of surface area for ice to stick to. The action was doused in water in a sink, then shoved in the freezer. Immediately on pulling it out, all trigger components moved freely. The bolt could be opened with a rubber mallet. Despite that, the bolt would not fire, it was frozen up badly. Maybe the open cuts on the bottom allowed a bunch of water to freeze the firing pin solid. Maybe it's the rear of the bolt. Either way, it could be tapped forward with a rubber mallet and re-cocked, but wouldn't fire for quite a while after.
I may disassemble the bolt and see if it can be mitigated, but it was pretty disappointing overall.