Lithgow LA101 Crossover

Lithgow Arms has been manufacturing rifles in Australia since 1912, and although they originally produced military rifles for the British Empire, their latest sporting arms are ultra-modern and built using popular materials and coatings. They are well respected as durable hunting rifles and the LA101 ‘Crossover’ rimfire rifle certainly doesn’t disappoint. It shows a durable fibre-reinforced polymer stock and visually appealing titanium-coloured action and barrel. Even if it initially looks to be stainless steel, the gun is actually chrome-moly steel, Cerakoted with H series ‘Titanium’ colour to give a durable, corrosion-free life.

Steelwork

The hammer-forged barrel has a 11º crown, is screwcut ½” for a moderator and has a 1:16” twist rate from the six rifling grooves and lands within. The barrel shows a subtle external twist pattern that’s attributed to the cold hammer-forging process, and it’s no secret that Lithgow makes a lot of rifles under patent to Steyr, possibly the original masters of the art. Australia has licensing restrictions, meaning the gun arrives with a barrel measuring exactly 20.9”. Lithgow does promise a ‘semi-match’ chambering with closer tolerances than SAAMI specification to ensure the best accuracy from the barrel. The bolt features three locking lugs at the very rear of the action, locking into neatly machined abutments for a 60° bolt lift. Its handle extends away from the scope with a polymer ball on the end and it is certainly one of the fastest rimfire bolt guns I have used. However, be a little cautious as you can technically lower the bolt handle with the action open if you rush too much. This is because there is no rotation lock with the lugs out of battery. The bolt’s stroke is long enough for magnum rimfire chamberings like the alternative and equally popular, .17 HMR. Twin bolt face extractor claws draw fired brass from the snug chamber towards the fixed ejector blade that sits under the bolt. This runs in a groove where it’s exposed at the rearmost point of the bolt stroke, flicking the brass from the action’s right-side ejector port. Feed is from a flush-fitting, single-stack polymer magazine. It’s physically identical to and compatible with CZ’s commonly available 452/455/457 magazines ( 5 and 10-round capacity), so there is no problem getting spares for fast reloads.

Operating details

A single catch positioned at the front mag well drops the mag into your waiting palm. There is also a chamfered rim around the magazine and a rebated rim to aid insertion and withdrawal at speed. These work perfectly with hastily fed mags, as they are easily centralised and directed into the action. Ammunition feed to the chamber is smooth, without meplat damage, and shaved-off lead or waxy lubricants don’t seem to accumulate. Ejection is reliant on bolt speed, so it’s worth being reasonably swift and positively snappy to make sure brass is flicked well clear. The Lithgow is moderate in weight for a rimfire at 6.8lbs and the action sits in a black, fibre-reinforced polymer stock with visually modern styling that combines straight lines, swooping curves and angular elements for a very modern look that’s not dissimilar to some Steyr offerings, like the Scout. Short fibre reinforced injection mouldings might not be the most exciting composites but this one is well-designed and great to use both mechanically and ergonomically, from prone with a bipod and in more freely positioned scenarios, like kneeling or sitting. A spacer system is included that alters the length of pull from 12.75-14”, which makes the gun acceptable for nearly all users. I liked the feel, with a longer length of pull enabling a less cramped feeling behind the scope for more multipositional shooting. The rubber butt pad isn’t absorbing significant recoil but grips comfortably to lock the rifle into your shoulder pocket. Both the forend and open radius grip feature inlaid stippling beyond the overall matte stock finish that remains grippy in all conditions. The forend has a broad radius base and finger grooves for acceptable grip and finger space, meaning there is no risk of interfering with the barrel’s harmonics. Sling studs are fitted under the forend and butt with the former enabling easy, secure bipod fitting. The latter shows a hand stop underside for accurate prone shooting with a fist wedged under it for precise elevation control. The barrel is advertised as freefloating, but it does contact at the tip of the forend. Regardless, I deliberately applied clumsy lateral hand pressure and/or shoulder force through the bipod, neither of which seemed to upset the consistency or point of impact. The POI was also maintained after the gun was removed and reinstalled in the stock.

Design detail

Removing the barrelled action from the stock shows extensive triangulation of the ribs to reinforce the forend and a tightly fitting action inlet with two action screws spanning the magazine well to lock everything in place. A recoil lug is sandwiched between the trigger unit and magazine well on the action, which is quite an unusual location. The polymer magazine well is bolted to the underside of the barrelled action and on the .17HMR and .22WMR versions, it won’t have the spacers the .22LR version shows. Everything is very neat and tidy, showing the latest precision manufacturing standards and superb design from concept to completion for a thoroughly sorted build. With the action removed, it’s also a lot easier to see how the three bolt lug abutments are sited at the very rear of what is an almost tubular receiver. This does make the gun very easy to clean. It is also radially symmetrical to balance the pressure of linear force along the bolt shaft from the barrel’s internal pressure to the lug/abutment junction.

Paper precision

Weaver bases are fitted to the receiver and this makes tubular scope mounting in separate rings secure and simple, with plenty of space to accommodate correct eye relief. I tried four brands of subsonic rimfire ammunition through the gun, which showed a distinct preference for SK ammunition. 5-round groups shot prone at 50m were all well under MOA standards and it did this almost every time, so those tighter chamber tolerances may well be paying off in what is clearly a decent barrel/stock combination. The average muzzle velocity was 1040 fps, with an extreme spread of only 13 fps, which I found impressive. This means that there is no chance of any ‘crackers’ exceeding the sound barrier and disturbing your regular subsonic rimfire hunting experience. Ejected brass showed well-defined firing pin impacts, so that’s a thumbs up for Lithgow’s striker tenacity. The non-adjustable single-stage trigger had a fractional amount of creep and measured 1080-grams at its breaking point. It was still easily predictable and consistent in use. There are linear grooves along the trigger blade for grip and a lighter spring is available should you prefer! There is also plenty of space in the trigger guard (which is part of the stock’s overall moulding) for gloves in cold weather. The safety is a conventional, righthand side, 2-position unit, with knurling for grip. It operates silently, yet because it’s in front, rather than behind the bolt handle like most rifles, it does need your hand to be taken off the grip to operate in total silence, with the lever pinched between your index finger and thumb. It doesn’t lock the bolt closed when applied either, so it is well worth familiarising yourself with it before the first dark night out rabbiting.

Conclusion

When it first appeared, the 101 Crossover stood out from many of it’s competitors, some of which clung onto blued steel and timber or used early cheap and floppy polymer stocks. Wind on eight years and it still looks fresh and different, with creative, yet not ostentatious, ergonomic styling to the stock. Overall, it has impressed me with its design, manufacture and great precision in all situations. It’s very fast to shoot once you get used to the bolt design and the hand-filling forend coupled with adjustable length of pull does benefit taller shooters. The bolt handle and 60º lift speed up its cyclic rate without your hand bumping the scope’s ocular bell, plus a true left-hander is available too.