Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

[Beepy]

So, got Savage 10 SA sitting around that needs a barrel.

I have been shooting longer ranges for a while now, but I have decided to dedicate one rifle to hunting. I only have the one action to play with, so that limits me really to short action rounds. I am pretty sure I can get a 300 WSM to work, and that is the direction I am thinking of heading, I just wanted to bounce it off you guys to see if there were any cartridges I missed.

I live and hunt where longer, cross canyon shots on elk happen frequently. So this is what I have in mind for the end game. Basically, a good long range cartridge with the most retained energy for penetration....

So what have I missed?

 

[bohem]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

Here's the bolt head you'll need to use if it's not already a mag bolt face on there.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=866933

You will probably need to have the magwell massaged for proper feeding. If it's a centerfeed action it will be easier to make it handle that stubby, fat case easier.

Don't limit yourself to a 300 WSM, the 7mm WSM or 7/300 WSM are both excellent choices with good bullet selection for both hunting and target shooting.

If you're not a reloader already, either plan to start or plan to shoot a lot less for your given budget. Factory ammo for the WSM's isn't cheap.

 

[bward]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

I would go with the 300 wsm over the 7 wsm on a dedicated hunting rifle. You can get larger grained bullets in 300 wsm that will have more energy.

 

[bohem]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: bward</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I would go with the 300 wsm over the 7 wsm on a dedicated hunting rifle. You can get larger grained bullets in 300 wsm that will have more energy. </div></div>

Until what range? Neither is bad, but just because a bullet is heavier doesn't mean it will retain more energy at distance.

 

[snipedogg]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

Agreed with Bohem. 7mm has some of the highest BC Bullets available for a short action, Especially if you plan on shooting at 500+ yards. Not downing the 30 cal because it is also one hell of a round, but for energy/accuracy, I know more guys going in the 7mm direction. You will sacrifice velocity with the higher grain bullets in the 300WSM which down range, at a long enough distance, it would be better to go with 7mm. Both are great cartriges and will most likely serve you well, just adding to Bohems comment.

 

[Beepy]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

Reloading is no problem... It may be my favorite part of LR shooting (helps ya know with the OCD...

Had thought slightly of the 7mm in some wild cat cases, I guess I have never looked at that as close since I am very comfy with 30 cal.

I guess I have to run some numbers

Already have a magnum bolt face to swap in, and it is off a savage 10fp center feed. I checked, and the 300 WSM will fit the rails, but the mag will need some tweaking, though with a center feed I guess I could find a native 300 WSM mag and it should fit no problems...

 

[BrettSass844]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

+1 for 7mm

Another option is to post a WTT either here or over on Savageshooters.com and see if someone has a LA they would trade you. That would open up a few possibilities for other rounds in the same size caliber that would give you better barrel life than a short mag. Such as 280 AI. Just a thought. And for the record I wish I had your problem here in Ohio! No 500 yard elk shots going on around here!

 

[snipedogg]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

I would look for 300 WSM Mag before modifying, but as far as I know(I could be wrong) Savage doesn't offer 300WSM or any Magnums for that matter, in a DBM set-up. So you will most likely have to modify the magazine. But if that is all you have to do to have a DBM Magnum Savage then I would do it because personally, that's just too cool. Nobody will have that. My girlfriends Dad has a model 12 300WSM and he has never had any problems with it feeding rounds, but it's not a DBM set-up.

 

[bward]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

I ran a few numbers on a ballistic program and the 300 wsm retained higher energies until 1000, which is what I put as max distance. A 210 grain berger vld 308 has a bc of .616 and a 180 grain berger vld 7mm has a bc of .659. You will get very similar velocities so a slightly higher bc won't make up for the 30 grain weight difference.

 

[snipedogg]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

They are both very close and it would be a flip of a coin ic most cases. I do a lot of BR shooting so my reason for 7mm with energy being so close would be for accuracy. I know what ballistic charts say but nothing is better than finding out for yourself. We have a couple 7mm that completely tear it up on the 600 and 1000yd line. Wind or no wind. 300 WSM hasn't compared at 1000. I know it could be differences of shooters/ scopes/ guns/ wind etc...But experienced guys are shooting both and this is just my observation. A 500+ yard shot would require pretty damn good accuracy and as I am not a hunter and don't claim to be, I would think if the two compare so close with energy, I would definetly take the one with more potential for accuracy. Just my .02 on this but I could be wrong

 

[Beepy]

Re: Rebarreling... what to do, what to do....

Now 284 Win, that's a thought. That would give me good barrel life as well. Anyone have hunting or long range experience with this one? I figure that I would not have to worry about the mag bolt face and the magazine problem either...

Found this
http://www.6mmbr.com/gunweek095.html

The only problem, was he was unable to get the heavy Amax's to work in the magazine length of a SA. Any problems as such in the 7mm WSM?