Hi FLT-

The varmint rifle stock can be best described as a modified Featherweight stock (different barrel channel, no provision for a barrel bedding screw).  Rule asserts that the rifles like yours, i.e. made by modifying the barrel channel of a standard stock came along near the very end of production as an effort was being made to use up excess parts.

That said, I have a 1955 manufacture M70 “Van Orden Sniper” rifle (see pics on the link below and/or my earlier thread on the subject), that has exactly the feature you are describing (dummy barrel bedding screw filling the hole in the fore end of the stock and a target weight barrel not dovetailed underneath to accept the screw escutcheon).  See if the treatment of the screw on your rifle looks like the 1955 Van Orden. 

http://s1382.photobucket.com/user/luttrell4/media/M70VanOrdenSniperedit351439_Page_1_zpsd4940125.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0

Cheers

Hi Fielding-

I honestly have not see (or paid enough attention to) enough 1st year M70 varmint rifles to be able to say that I have/have not seen other examples.  My two varmint rifles are a 1959 243 WIN (s/n 442192) with steel butt plate and a 1961 220 SWIFT (s/n 522939) with composite butt plate.  Both lack the barrel bedding screw.

It would not surprise me if there were some variability in the early Varmint rifles.  Hopefully we’ll get others to share their observations.  I just pointed out the pics of the Van Orden rifle because (like yours) it is a 1955 manufacture rifle with the same feature.

The Van Orden rifle stock is a curious example of superfluous work, just like, for example, drilling the top of the pre-war 375 MAGNUM 24″ straight taper target weight barrels for scope blocks (can’t imaging many people planned to put a Lyman Targetspot on a 375 MAGNUM!!!).  The Van Orden stock is not a regular standard rifle stock made without checkering, as it has special butt stock dimensions approximating the ’03 Springfield National Match rifle.  Since those stocks were made up specifically for those rifles, it made no sense whatsoever to drill the fore end for a barrel bedding screw and then have to cover it up with a dummy screw. 

I believe that the diameter of the medium heavy barrel (as used on the Varmint rifles) is the same or slightly greater at the point of the ‘goose egg’ on standard barrels.  So one could open up the barrel channel of a standard stock for a target barrel without it showing.

Best,

Lou

Fielding-

Looks pretty similar, doesn’t it?  The ‘edges’ on the inletting are a bit cleaner/sharper than on my gun, but the backing nut looks the same, etc.  This picture below may show up a bit better than the Photobucket composite:

One ‘clue’ might be to look at whether there is stain/filler slopped over into the barrel channel at the juncture between the finished top edge of the stock and the inletting.  If this were a stock that had the barrel channel opened up after it was finished, such finish ‘over runs’ would be missing.  The Van Orden gun above doesn’t illustrate this, as it was ordered with a linseed oil finish, not the standard stain/filler/lacquer combo.

For what it’s worth, in all I have eight M70s with the combination of ‘standard’ stocks and medium heavy target weight barrels.  Five are pre-war rifles (two 375 Magnums and three in other chamberings), two are Varmint Rifles, and the last is the Van Orden gun.  Of the pre-war rifles, four have a dovetail cut under the barrel with escutcheon installed and a working barrel bedding screw.  The fifth does not have a dovetail cut under the barrel, and the stock (which has other ‘special dimension’ features) lacks the hole.  The two Varmint rifles are not dovetailed underneath and the fore end of the stock lacks the hole (which is how they’re ‘supposed to be’).  Only the Van Orden rifle picture above shares the features of your rifle.

Just to put into this post, the S/N of the Van Orden gun is 351439, which is pretty close to your 358360.

I can’t say for sure, but they look similar to me!!!

Best,

Lou