Skout Skout Epoch Share and Discussion

Is there a “poor man’s” version for narrowing the transfer port?
Being that when you push out the seat from the valve body / manifold, the transfer path is a straight .350" hole the entire way to the barrel thimble. ( @ .900" in length )
I had to LATHE turn an insert straw with a tapered I.D. hole and Loc-tite it into position. As designed no other way to do it came to mind.
 
Some FYI if your really leaning on your EARLY EPOCH .30 looking for Very high power and finding as if the cocking lever is stuck after a shot. :oops:

I was out shooting mine the other day with NSA 49's and 65's with HP reg set up around 2000/2100 psi operating @ 120-130 FPE range using the 35" long barrel. Kept having the cocking handle stick, i mien stuck stuck !!! Rattling around the magazine it would free up & work just fine .... What the heck ?

So, loaded a slug, open breech again removing mag. Then take the shot. Handle stuck, tho now could see the probe and it was TILTED as if the pressure was trying to blow it out which does make sense. Due to the tilted angle yup it was bound up mechanically & wiggling it ( As was rattling mag ) it snapped straight again :oops:
On the phone to SKOUT and they already had a fix that had been in the assembly pipeline for @ a month already. So there N/C sending me two upgrade parts. #1 That being a much beefed up ALLOY shuddle link ( Connects to the basket surrounding barrel you see move back/forth when cocking ) and then attaches to the Probe carrier. ( It travels within the upper frame under the scope rail to rear of action ) * they had seen flex in .357 having similar issues, so corrected the beefier part on all guns moving forward.
Second part an updated Probe that I'm assuming screws into the carrier we'll be reusing.

Again ... we're finding small things & SKOUT is on it taking care of them N/C (y)(y)
 
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Another thing to note for early production owners is a newly machined version of the probe. These have been found to improve projectile positioning and increase consistency and efficiency. The latest shipments already have the new probe, but for early gun owners it is available. Call Skout.

below: Comparing the original .30 cal probe on top, to a redesigned .25 cal probe.

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Well that is telling ... While never getting any feed back directly, had shared the picture below of my modification to the OEM .30 probe so as to gain some increased area within transfer windows on thimble. The shoulder required to make sure rotating magazine cassette does not get hung up.
Pin set back a tad as it was slightly over depth seating slugs & even a tad too deep for pellets.

COOL ! mine was a hokey JB weld built up ramp, tho worked fine.

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Received the UPDATED cocking rail & probe yesterday .. installed it late afternoon.
With rail being a lot stiffer the cocking cycle is even more solid now.

So while there ... figured a good time to better refine the previous self installed MAGNETIC detent that held the cocking handle open / probe retracted. * had it originally holding the basket.
With the upgraded rail we had lots of material between the two screws holding the probe carrier at the rear, so a 1/4" Neo magnet was placed there & glued in.
Figured out the position it was it once all the linkage was reattached & breech fully open & then placed a second Neo magnet within the top frame.
All is out of view & protected being it resides under the cheek guard.

Pic #1 shows the Mag in rail before attaching to basket. Pic #2 as assembled and cock handle full open. * You can point muzzle straight down and handle stays opens, tho only offers a slight bump feel as magnets get close tho never touch.

* Shared this with Bill at SKOUT ... FYI

Update 5-29
The new probe supplied with the new rail, after yesterdays testing appears to be TOO SHORT in seating pin length :mad:
while it seats flat base Slugs flush into barrel a pellet such as 44.75 JSB having a cavity it does NOT seat a pellet deep enough to have skirt at or just into barrel. *I have gone back to the modified OEM probe & will save the New One for SLUG ONLY use.
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One thing that remains an issue for me as a LR bench shooter is the POI inconsistency when using the stock moderator.

Here you'll see several 5 shot groups. All were at 100 yards. There are three parts to the moderator so I tried a group with and without each of those installed and then shot the four numbered groups without the moderator.

The blue squares are 1/2 MOA @ 100 yds. The white grid squares are 1 MOA @ 100 yds.

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One thing that remains an issue for me as a LR bench shooter is the POI inconsistency when using the stock moderator.

Here you'll see several 5 shot groups. All were at 100 yards. There are three parts to the moderator so I tried a group with and without each of those installed and then shot the four numbered groups without the moderator.

The blue squares are 1/2 MOA @ 100 yds. The white grid squares are 1 MOA @ 100 yds.
Precisely why ... even before shooting the EPOCH .30 I gutted the factory LDC and made new parts. Having been around AG's now enough years knew straight away the design in use had questionable design traits for not only noise but turbulence & destabilization.

This was when 1st made, since then added a few vent holes at outer most edges of the 2 baffles.
Gun was not only quieter, it continues to shoot with stellar accuracy.

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I put an adapter (Donnyfl) to 1/2-20 on and added a STO Falx, but have problems with clipping. STO customer service leaves a bit to be desired as far as communication goes…very slow to respond.
Take barrel out with LDC connected ... look from muzzle down the bore against a well lit white surface. Adjust or shim the LDC so that bore and hole threw LDC are aligned straight & true.