Okay, I am looking at buying a final rifle to play with.

I reduced my collection over the past few years, to calibers that really interest me.

This gun will never be taken to Africa or even Canada or Alaska for that matter.

I want it as a special, unique, fun gun just to play with.

It will be used on white tails/feral hogs/coyotes and possibly an elk cow or two.

I would really like for it to be a SxS double and yes I know that I can find O/U in this caliber quite readily, but I just don't like O/U's.

If not a SxS, then a Ruger No.1.

If on a Ruger No.1, I intend on having it barreled or rebarreled with either a 26 inch, or if I can find one a 28 inch heavyweight barrel.

What opinions do any of you have on the 9.3x74?

Too bad you have to have a 26-28 inch barrel, because Ruger already chambers their #1 in 9.3x74R, but it comes with a 24" barrel. Nice gun, I had one.

Lou

Dr.Lou,
I've been toying with the Ruger idea for several years. I just cant bring myself to get one when I have a 375H&H as well as a 416 Rigby and 458Lott. I guess I'll just have to break down.

Dr Duc
Have u seen this one...
http://www.cabelas.com/gun-inv...-merkel140-sca.shtml

I think Bullberry and MGM makes a custom barrel for the Encore, which would be sort of inexpensive compared to the other options. Seems like a good choice to me, for a scoped single shot.

For no scope, and if the price is not a problem, I sure like that Merkel though.

KB

Chapuis.

I have one in a Merkel drilling, 12-12x9.3 and it is among my favourite cartridges. Mine does an easy 2500 fps. with the 286 NP and puts the RWS 286 factory load and my NP load into the same group and the 270 Speer a few inches higher.

I would just go with the Ruger No1 in factory form, a friend here in Vancouver has one and it is perfect in weight balance and so forth and they SHOOT! Actually, if Ruger installed a cocking lever as with some Farquharson actions so I could carry one loaded but not cocked in the mountains, I would do almost all my hunting with two No1s, a 9.3 and a .303British as they are making a run in that old warhorse.

Crazy,

I love my Drilling; 20x20x9.3x74R with a 5.6x50R insert barrel; so I cover a bunch of ground when I tote it.

The 74R is a very good cartridge and one I found doesn't really take abunch of dicking about with to stumble on a good load.

Since like the 9.3x62 these two cartridges do their best work at around 2300 fps it's easy to get a mild-mannered load and any extra fps attained is IMO just gravy.

Since I shoot 300 grainers in my 375H&H, I sorta figured I could get by with 250 grain bullets in the x62 & x74R and so I've organized my "Thumper" cartridges by bullet weights and this consideration has done well for me. I'll never take the Drilling to Africa so loads for Continental game (Red Deer/Wild Boar) were the where I was aiming at (pun intended).

I started off with Nosler 250 gr. Ballistic Tips and consider Nosler's R&D efforts for this bullet were spot-on. The way I load them (right at 2300fps) they were sterling performers. Sadly they're gone and I'm currently using the Hornady 286 grainers but that only a temporary stop-gap measure until I can get my hands on some Nosler 250 gr. Accubonds. If they perform to the NBT's standard I'll be pleased.

Good luck on finding a DR in this chambering. I'm impatient, I'd probably snag the first Ruger #1 that came my way.

You can't really go wrong with either one IMO.

Have fun with your 9.3x74R.

Many Thanks for all the replies.

I checked out the lins that were posted, the double is really nice, but out of my price bracket.

The Ruger No.1 is doable I think, I will just have to find some one that can rebarrel it with a longer barrel.

One of my little quirks, is that I like longer barrels on my rifles, and especially do not like those stubby, to me, 22 inch barrels Ruger uses on its rifles.

When I bought my Model 77 in 35 Whelen several years, it came with that short heavy 22 inch piece of metal.

I hunted with it for about 3 years, then found a gunsmith that replaced the short barrel with a 26 inch No. 3 sporter weight barrel.

I don't hunt in heavy brush that much, so barrel length is not that major a consideration.

The 74R has interested me for a long time, and even though I have both the Whelen and a 375 H&H, I think the 74R would be a fun gun to mess with.

It's a great cartridge. I used a 9.3x74 in a DR in Zimbabwe last year. Lots of bullet choices now. It would be really cool in a Ruger #3 action. No matter what you build one on you'll have lots of fun with it!

Here's my 9.3x74 Ruger No. 1. It's a great rifle/cartridge combo. This one has a 26" Kreiger. You won't be disappointed with a longer barrel. Good luck.

I'm bad with this photo posting here's the right view.

Just go down the road a piece to the Cabelas Ft Worth. They have a nice William Evans 9.3 X 74 (About $19K). A nice toy to play with!

Ozark Hunter, Many Thanks for posting the pictures of your rifle, that is what I am looking at trying to put together.

That is a really sharp looking rifle rig.

One thing I might do different, actually 2, is look into the possibility of using a Ruger No.3 action if it is strong enough, but probably trying to find someone that could work up a tapered octagon barrel 26 to 28 inches long in 9.3x74R

eezrider, if I had 19K available I still would not be able to go buy that gun, too many other irons in the fire.

I need something that can be built and paid for in stages.

Gary Reeder in Flagstaff can barrel it anyway you want.

As you can tell, I like the caliber a bit:

Many Thanks for the info. I will be checking into it as time goes along.

My intentions are to have a somewhat modernized version of a plains buffalo rifle.

While neither are actually in the same class as the big 45 and 50 caliber Sharps rifles, IMO, both the 9.3x74R and the 375 H&H should make good long range rifles out of the Ruger action with the proper barrel.

Just to clutter your mind a little, don't forget that Sabatti builds their basic double rifle in that caliber and Cabela's sells them for around $3,000.

Ozark Hunter -

Now THAT toy of yours is my concept of a really sweet rifle!! I don't think I've ever seen a rifle of any type on AR (except maybe a Dan'l Fraser or a Farquaharson) that I would say that about, regardless of maker or chambering.

I'd been intending to do that same exact kind of thing (again) for the past 15 years. Luckily The fire had died down to embers, but now you have re-lit the flame.

I don't know whether to thank you or damn you, but I suspect thanks are more in order.

For the others here, ya know any good barrel-maker who inormally nstalls his own barrels for customers can/will do that for you, in case you too get taken by the infectious mania. Lots of gunsmiths can too, Some. obviously with nicer work than others.

Oh Ozark...I didn't NEED to spend any more gun money this decade.....

Would you like to borrow my Chapuis and see if you like the 9.3X74R in a double? If so I can arrange that!

That would be great if I could hook up with you, Many Thanks for the generous offer.

Right now I will have to limp along with my 375 and 35 Whelen, but I did look at some used Ruger No.1's today, and depending on price and if I can find the right person to do the barrel I want, maybe Gary Reeder, a 9.3x74 Ruger/Sharps might be in my future.

It is a great classic caliber. Here are a couple of pix of my Number One.

Good looking gun, really nice piece of wood in the buttstock.

Thanks for sharing the pics.

The 9.3X74R rocks! You will be happy with it I am sure.

I think the 9,3x74R is one of the best calibres on the Planet.

My Chapuis double has served me well in Texas, Montana, Idaho, Canada and Zimbabwe.

From varmints to giraffe,cape buff, and elephant, it has performed perfectly.

Beautiful rifle PH!