This is probably one of the rarest/most unique builds we will ever do. The Dakota Scimitar was a receiver I helped design with Glen Harris (Defiance Machine), and Cyle Miller (Emerging Design Group) in 2004. It was a project done for the Royal Jordanian Anti Terrorism unit. Most likely the 71st Battalion forces, but I don't know for sure.
It lead to my department being tasked with building a pair of presentation grade versions for President G.W. Bush and Vice President R.B. Cheney given by His Majesty, King Abdullah III.
A little over a year ago Mr. Cohen contacted me about building a one of a kind rifle chambered in 260 Remington for his collection. The Scimitar was my immediate choice because there are very, very, very few in public circulation.
It's a controlled round feed, non rotating extractor type receiver featuring a cone breech. Nothing really special other than that the breech has NO extractor cut in it. It's a true cone like you'd find on a single shot custom action. This was done to provide rock solid feeding at any orientation. The non rotating extractor aids in this because it physically latches/retains the cartridge rim.
The trigger unit is all Dakota Arms model 76. Open architecture with a crisp single stage 2.5lb trigger pull. Bar stock EDM machined trigger components are fully heat treated so that they will last for generations. No castings or case hardened pieces exist anywhere on the action.
The three position safety with the fire control block means it can never go bang regardless if the trigger breaks in half or not. It also has a very clever anti rotation feature on the shroud so that it can never accidentally rotate when out of battery.
The magazine retention system is also unique in that its attached to the action. The magazine (Sako TRG) is physically attached to the receiver during lockup. This means the trigger bow can be set to run perfectly flush with the stock with no fear of the magazine creating feeding issues due to insufficient case overlap with the bolt head. This was done so that the unit could run in a variety of stock configurations while still maintaining a fit and finish consistent with other Dakota rifles.
The non rotating extractor and shroud designs means we have an effective breech block to mitigate gasses reaching the shooter in the event of a cartridge failure.
The mechanical ejection setup just ices the cake. If the shooter needs to go full throttle he can do so and cases will resemble an NFL kickoff as they catapult out of the action. If a shooter needs to minimize his signature he can fire a shot, pull the fired case manually, and put it away to preserve a sterile hide upon exit.
Sounds kind of Hollywood I know, but this was a heavily funded/committed effort with the idea of building the ultimate bolt action precision rifle for killing men.
The port and tang design makes for a robust receiver that will support a fully floated heavy barrel with no problems and no barrel pad in the channel. This was done to make Level 3 echelon service simple and fast.
Bolts are one piece design. No soldered handles on this bugger and it had more primary extraction than any other receiver design of its time.
All in all a very well thought out and robust unit designed for any environment/encounter.
So it begins. Here's Garrett working on getting the barrel fitted up. We proofed out our barrel tennon program on a piece of stock material before going after the 8.5ROT fluted Kreiger that were fitting it to. 260 Remington Tactical is the cartridge. Just a 260 setup to run hot/cold/dirty/wet with heavy bullets in a magazine length appropriate for the Sako TRG magazine.
We'll update this as we move along further with the build. Hope to have the stock inletted this afternoon/evening.
Won't be long now Mr. C. !
It lead to my department being tasked with building a pair of presentation grade versions for President G.W. Bush and Vice President R.B. Cheney given by His Majesty, King Abdullah III.
A little over a year ago Mr. Cohen contacted me about building a one of a kind rifle chambered in 260 Remington for his collection. The Scimitar was my immediate choice because there are very, very, very few in public circulation.
It's a controlled round feed, non rotating extractor type receiver featuring a cone breech. Nothing really special other than that the breech has NO extractor cut in it. It's a true cone like you'd find on a single shot custom action. This was done to provide rock solid feeding at any orientation. The non rotating extractor aids in this because it physically latches/retains the cartridge rim.
The trigger unit is all Dakota Arms model 76. Open architecture with a crisp single stage 2.5lb trigger pull. Bar stock EDM machined trigger components are fully heat treated so that they will last for generations. No castings or case hardened pieces exist anywhere on the action.
The three position safety with the fire control block means it can never go bang regardless if the trigger breaks in half or not. It also has a very clever anti rotation feature on the shroud so that it can never accidentally rotate when out of battery.
The magazine retention system is also unique in that its attached to the action. The magazine (Sako TRG) is physically attached to the receiver during lockup. This means the trigger bow can be set to run perfectly flush with the stock with no fear of the magazine creating feeding issues due to insufficient case overlap with the bolt head. This was done so that the unit could run in a variety of stock configurations while still maintaining a fit and finish consistent with other Dakota rifles.
The non rotating extractor and shroud designs means we have an effective breech block to mitigate gasses reaching the shooter in the event of a cartridge failure.
The mechanical ejection setup just ices the cake. If the shooter needs to go full throttle he can do so and cases will resemble an NFL kickoff as they catapult out of the action. If a shooter needs to minimize his signature he can fire a shot, pull the fired case manually, and put it away to preserve a sterile hide upon exit.
Sounds kind of Hollywood I know, but this was a heavily funded/committed effort with the idea of building the ultimate bolt action precision rifle for killing men.
The port and tang design makes for a robust receiver that will support a fully floated heavy barrel with no problems and no barrel pad in the channel. This was done to make Level 3 echelon service simple and fast.
Bolts are one piece design. No soldered handles on this bugger and it had more primary extraction than any other receiver design of its time.
All in all a very well thought out and robust unit designed for any environment/encounter.
So it begins. Here's Garrett working on getting the barrel fitted up. We proofed out our barrel tennon program on a piece of stock material before going after the 8.5ROT fluted Kreiger that were fitting it to. 260 Remington Tactical is the cartridge. Just a 260 setup to run hot/cold/dirty/wet with heavy bullets in a magazine length appropriate for the Sako TRG magazine.
We'll update this as we move along further with the build. Hope to have the stock inletted this afternoon/evening.
Won't be long now Mr. C. !
