In the 9.3 vs 375 world; is the 9.3x66 the perfect compromise?

-load it down to 9.3x62 levels for comfort against large non dangerous

-load it to 375 levels for buffalo

anyone any experience of this calibre?

Compromises tend to be just that -compromises.

IMHO the 9.3x66 was created in order to create a nisch that was already filled -by the .375H&H and the 9.3x62,

cewe, thanks for your candid observation.

The 9.3x..what? Buy one now if you can find the rifle (and catridges) because you will be one of the VERY few rare owners.....

Is this cartridge available outside Finland?

I didn't think it was. The gun mags were spouting half truths about it soon being brought to the rest of us on the continent and North America. I doubt it thought, the 9.3x62 and 9.3x64 have a 50 year head start.

....I'm an experienced stalker / game shot planning my first non-dangerous plains game trip next year. At non-dangerous I don't want the kicking of a 375 and was leaning toward 9.3x62 (or maybe just my 308 with 180s!), consequently the idea of getting a calibre with 'stretch' potential seems prudent should I decide to undertake subsequent trips.

I don't Know about the rest of the World, but Sako are offering their rifles in UK in 9.3x66.

Yes it's a Johnny-come-lately, which will probably bring obvious logistic problems, but I'm not sure that makes it a bad idea/concept....it strikes me as rather a good idea...unlike what cewe implies, compromises are not always bad.....er, peace in Northern Ireland etc

The 9.3x64 is often touted as the ideal 'upgunning' of the 9.3x62, as far as I can tell, it seems to have the same logistic problems...makers of rifles/dies for that calibre seem very few and far between.

I'm posting to learn. Please correct me where I'm wrong!

quote:

Originally posted by cewe:
IMHO the 9.3x66 was created in order to create a nisch that was already filled -by the .375H&H and the 9.3x62,

I agree that the new cartridge is superfluous. But the niche is really filled by two others:
9,3x64 and 9,5x66 SEvH.

Carcano

For all of you who find the .375 to be "to much gun" due to recoil.

Maybe you should stick to floral arraignments and lingerie and leave the hunting to the women in your lives.

A .375 that is well fitted just doesn't recoil all that much.

If you prefer the 9.3 than by all means use one.

I think a 9.3x64 even though also scarce will have more longevity.

Brown Dog, If you are not going to hunt dangerous game, learn to reload and have a 338-06 made.If you are going to go bigger than 338 go all the way to a 416 rem mag. You can kill everything up to eland with a 3006,but small holes don't leave a good blood trail. Build a 10.5 or 11 lb rifle they will kick less, and hold steader, you just need to get in shape to carry it. You will spend most of your time riding on a truck looking for game.My average stalk took a hour or so, my longest 4 hours or so. If you can carry a 8 lb rifle you can carry a 11 lb rifle with some training. Get a caldwell lead sled to do your load development and basic sight in.When shooting off hand neither 375 or 416 rem are a big deal with proper stock fit, from the bench without the lead sled either kick like hell. During the hunt I did not notice recoil,and saw the game go dowm in my scope with the 375. The 416. 350 gr tsx shot flatter than the 270 gr .375 tsx. I shot a blue wildebeest though the heart at 200 + yards, with the 416 it ram 175 yards before it bleed out, a blind nman could have followed the blood trail. Spend the time and money need to learn to shoot the big guns you will proud that you did.

JD

I too have been looking with great interest at this new cartridge from Sako. I know that any cartridge can be made favourable to anything if you twist the statistics, but a few facts are worthy of consideration. Looking closely at the information from the Sako homepage the 9,3x66 delivers more muzzle energy than the 375 (9,3:286gr/780ms vs 375:270gr830ms)
and set bullets off about 300 fps faster than the 9,3x62. With the 250 gr BTs it even shoots flatter than the 338 win mag with 250 gr NP out to 400 meters. And you can still stuff one more cartridge in the magazine than either magnum, that alone is a 20-25% improvement over the 375H&H.

Besides, all you Americans feel that you own something rare and exclusive when you have a 9,3x62. Back here in Scandinavia the 9,3x62 sends the same massage as driving and Oldsmobile sedan. The 9,3x66 on the other hand....I want one too!!!

I believe we will see this caliber in Australia along with Sako rifles later this year, interestingly enough.

quote:

Originally posted by a120:
I know that any cartridge can be made favourable to anything if you twist the statistics, but a few facts are worthy of consideration. Looking closely at the information from the Sako homepage the 9,3x66 delivers more muzzle energy than the 375 (9,3:286gr/780ms vs 375:270gr830ms)
and set bullets off about 300 fps faster than the 9,3x62. With the 250 gr BTs it even shoots flatter than the 338 win mag with 250 gr NP out to 400 meters. And you can still stuff one more cartridge in the magazine than either magnum, that alone is a 20-25% improvement over the 375H&H.

I think judging the usual velocities claimed by the European rifle and ammunition manufacturers that chronographs in private hands are extremely rare.

BD.

Another vote for a soft kicking .375hh. I have noticed that felt recoil in this calibre is VERY chassis specific.

I have an ancient and much loved BRNO - with a Decelarator it is soft enough to shoot from the bench. By comparison, EXPRESS has a love affair with an early Sako in this calibre. Although he is very competent and accurate - the difference in felt recoil is remarkable.

Some years back I spent a day at Bisley playing with safari rifles. The star of the day was a Sako 75 s/s in .375hh. It felt like a 30'06 in the shoulder - a lightweight 300wm in a Rem synthetic was the complete opposite - it beat the hell out of me.

I would use the .308 you are so familiar and practiced with. Bonded/premium bullets will ensure you punch far beyond what would have been acceptable only a few years back. That is unless there is a possibility of Buffalo in a few years.... in which case,look at the .375 again.

The logistic benefits make it score highly. When you are the other side of the world it is often helpful if your cartridge of choice is a stock item in every gun store.

Should you be interested in playing with my baby - just get in touch. I know you won't go away calling it ugly!!

Rgds Ian

quote:

Originally posted by cewe:
Compromises tend to be just that -compromises.

IMHO the 9.3x66 was created in order to create a nisch that was already filled -by the .375H&H and the 9.3x62,

The 9,3x62, the 9,3x64 and the .375 H&H just tried to fill nisch that already was filled by the 9,3x63 -don't you agree boha?

Husky

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:
I think a 9.3x64 even though also scarce will have more longevity.

Sako would have been better to just chamber the 9.3x64

I have a Westley Richards prototype rifle which is a 9.5X66. I am told it is a duplicate of a 375 Dakota. If your heart was set on a 9.3X66 why not simply neck down Dakota brass which is available although expensive? I'm probably wrong with this conclusion since it seems to easy!

quote:

Originally posted by Brown Dog:
In the 9.3 vs 375 world; is the 9.3x66 the perfect compromise?

-load it down to 9.3x62 levels for comfort against large non dangerous

-load it to 375 levels for buffalo

anyone any experience of this calibre?

The 9,3x66 Skao is an answer to a non asked question.

Take the 9,3x64 Brenneke and be happy. If think you need even more power buy the 9,3x70 Magnum!

The 9.3x66 is not catching on in Finland, nobody seems to need it.

Then again I could do all my hunting with a shotgun, my 9.3x62 and the .416 Rigby...but I do own a few more.

Luckily I no longer live in SF!

I dislike compromises, but for my purposes, I feel as though the perfect "compromise" African hunting cartridge remains the 375 H&H.......

AD

The .375 H&H shooter will find ammunition everywhere, and a choice of rifles. A 9.3X66 shooter will struggle to find a rifle, and moreso to find ammunition.

jim

All this be as it may, the best reason of all is to get one if it pleases your heart.

I believe that if you are a handloader, the round is a splendid one to load 320 grs Woodleighs or similar heavy bullets to 2400 fps, and be happy to have a DGR. Also load the ligher bullets to 2600 - 2700 and reach out.

And of course, Husky, when the real 9,3 - I am referring of course to the 9,3x63 - came around and started kicking, there were no such thing as a niche between anything. There were only the 9,3.

But Brown Dog, please, build a Mauser actioned 9,3. The Sakos look like vacuum cleaner handles, are made of PLASTIC and have contraptions like MUZZLE BRAKES and they lack CONTROLLED EXTRACTION. I know I´m a traitor to my native land - but then the Italians own Sako now.

Boha

Dont compromise, get a 9.3x68s,

For what it is worth,
I have ordered a 9.3 x 66 reamer, and thanks to cewe, whom I will visit at the first opportunity, I also have some virgin brass. I have a Sako AIII in 30-06 for conversion, and will lend an appropriate reamer to Redding or Forster for building dies.

Once I have had my barrel cut I will rent the reamer out for a nominal fee. Don't keep it too long or I will stop by to visit, and will eat all the food in your house, and watch back to back NOVA episodes on your television until your gunsmith is done with the job. The good news is my German Shorthair Pointer Magda will kill your cats, and any other cats within a kilometer radius.

The main advantage of the 9,3 x 66 over the 9,3 x 62 is that there is a bit more case capacity so you can use the newer full or semi monometal bullets in the 286 grain weight.

The main advantage of the 9,3 x 66 over the 9,3 x 64 is that you don't need to mess with the bolt face or feeding rails. I'm told by people with much more experience in this area that the only real problem is the lowering of your magazine capacity by one round in some actions.

The only issue is brass availability. I am working to solve that problem. problem by taking my 9,3 x 66 over to Finland for a moose season, and buying as much ammo as I can. Then I will get Boha, cewe and Husky drunk. Then we will go around shooting the insulators off of the power poles. Voila, fresh brass.

lawndart

quote:

I have a Westley Richards prototype rifle which is a 9.5X66. I am told it is a duplicate of a 375 Dakota. If your heart was set on a 9.3X66 why not simply neck down Dakota brass which is available although expensive? I'm probably wrong with this conclusion since it seems to easy!

That actually is a very good idea.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm. No, it is actually an excellent Idea.

lawndart

I already have a reamer-from the USA-and dies-from the USA.Brass has been promised by the local Sako dealer.98 action and 'smith set to go when brass arrives-all this and I am in Australia.

quote:

The only issue is brass availability. I am working to solve that problem. problem by taking my 9,3 x 66 over to Finland for a moose season, and buying as much ammo as I can. Then I will get Boha, cewe and Husky drunk. Then we will go around shooting the insulators off of the power poles. Voila, fresh brass

Ok!

I´ll have a drink this evening for veterans, hunting and freedom! Happy Rhodesia UDI 40 years everyone concerned!

.366 rules, for a while anyway..

Responsible bunch, aren´t we!

quote:

The only issue is brass availability. I am working to solve that problem. problem by taking my 9,3 x 66 over to Finland for a moose season, and buying as much ammo as I can. Then I will get Boha, cewe and Husky drunk. Then we will go around shooting the insulators off of the power poles. Voila, fresh brass.

Don't forget drive-by shooting at the moose-warning signs!


Regards,
Martin

Lawndart: Nice to hear that you travel plans are progressing!

Keep me posted on when your plane arrives.

quote:

Originally posted by lawndart:
Then I will get Boha, cewe and Husky drunk. Then we will go around shooting the insulators off of the power poles. Voila, fresh brass. lawndart

A good idea and you are welcome lawndart!
But first we will go to the Sauna

Lawndart:

Swedes aren´t usually very good at taking sauna baths -Husky is the exception! You are warned! He can take any amount of heat for prolonged periods.

Luckily large doses of lager helps one recuperate.

I think of the 9.3x66 as really just an improved 9.3x62. (I do have a CZ 550 in 9.3x62) The attraction to me would be a little more power than the 9.3x62 while still retaining the standard 8x57/.30-06 case head and rim diameter. It just appears to me to be a neat, compact cartridge that basically gets .375 H&H power out of a .30-06 sized case and action. The 9.3x66 Sako also gets close to 9.3x64 Brenneke power but without having to open the bolt face if doing a rebarreling. Rebarreling a spare .30-06, that one happens to have lying around, to 9.3x66 Sako should be relatively easy. (I'm not a gunsmith so I claim no expertise.) No big earth-shattering reasons, though, to have the 9.3x66 Sako over a 9.3x62 Mauser, a 9.3x64 Brenneke or a .375 H&H. Now, having said all of this, I have no plans to acquire a 9.3x66.

-Bob F.

"Cartridge released by Sako in 2002-03 as a powerful new hunting round. It has the same head size as the 9.3x62 Mauser and was designed to be the maximum sized cartridge to fit into a standard sized .30-06 action without alterations. The case dimensions are similar to the 9.3x62 Mauser except it is stretched 4mm in length in the body section, no other changes otherwise."
from: http://www.reloadersnest.com/frontpage.asp?CaliberID=344



(For the velocities, multiply meters per second (m/s) by 3.28088 to get feet per second.)

quote:

I already have a reamer-from the USA-and dies-from the USA.Brass has been promised by the local Sako dealer.98 action and 'smith set to go when brass arrives-all this and I am in Australia.

Hey Wombat,

Did you get a reamer from Dave Kiff at PT&G?

lawndart

Marterius, cewe, Husky, boha,

I can take the heat, I was married once.

I am getting the feeling that I will be the designated driver for all of Scandinavia when I get over there?

How to piss off a Norweigan? Tell them they ski like a Dane.

Do you think anyone would notice if I put a moose crossing sign in my luggage to take back home?

LD

Brown Dog,

If you get three hundred pieces of brass, the rifle and dies you will be set for the next fifty years.

I have a 9,3 x 62, and love it. I will eventually build a 9,3 x 64 as well. I think the 9,3 x 66 is a great idea. If I were more mature and didn't need to make my inadequate psyche feel better by owning two rifles in every caliber ever made, I would consider using the 9,3 x 66 as an all around rifle.

lawndart

PS Thank God I am not mature.

quote:

Originally posted by wombat:
I already have a reamer-from the USA-and dies-from the USA.Brass has been promised by the local Sako dealer.98 action and 'smith set to go when brass arrives-all this and I am in Australia.

wonbat I don't mean to be argumentitive but I reckon the 9.3x64 brenneke would have been a better option same power levels etc. and I feel it will be around longer than the 9.3x66. I reckon sako should have just reintroduced the brenneke version IMHO.

Gentlemen, we have a small, local, private sauna society in a hamlet out of town where you end the sauna with a bath in the sea. If there is ice, we just cut a hole. I have been bathing there since I was 12 years old, and even a few Finns have given an approving nod when they had tried it. I should be delighted to take either of you there as a guest should you pass by Göteborg!

Lawndart, the German tourists have been stealing those moose-signs for years so I think all the signs are welded to the posts these days...

Regards,
Martin

quote:

Originally posted by Marterius:
Gentlemen, we have a small, local, private sauna society ....

Too much information!


Only joking.

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:

quote:

Originally posted by Marterius:
Gentlemen, we have a small, local, private sauna society ....

Too much information!


Only joking.

You have a far too dirty mind. I did not write sauna club. I better be clear about this in case you ever comes this way - don't want to dissapoint you.

Regards,
Martin

Lawn Dart, I had a 9.3x64 done on a pre64 M70 in '06 by simply reboring and rechambering. No rail or bolt face mods required. Bob

9.3X66
250 2756
286 2559

9.3X64
250 2979
286 2684


differance 223 with 250s
125 with 286s