At least five 600 OK bolt rifles are in existence now and more of us are signing up every day.

Just this morning, I was doing a rainy day chore going through old mag articles, ala Nickado--AR Historian, when I came upon an article by our favorite guy, Mark Sullivan, in GUNS Sept 1997.

Read the article by Cameron Hopkins, which had a lot of hype in it, but also a lot of sensible hunting concerns. Most of us take issue with Mark on his approach to hunting, not his choice of rifles or his expertise in using them.

He felt shooting the 600 NE Marcel Thys sidelock double rifle at under 14 lbs was a challenge at 1950 fps with 900 gr solids. Besides getting back on target quickly due to body motion, there was the issue of the trigger guard mangling the joint in his middle finger. He states, "A precise shot prompts him to use the rear trigger first to save the recoil to his finger" a bad habit he relates. Also, indicates that the 900 grainers are not so good for raking shots due to limited penetration. I imagine he is right as the SD must be low <0.3.

Personally, I get the idea that for the average hunter, and I plan on using my 600 for hunting, the average hunter may do better with a properly stocked bolt rifle with a brake, even though it may be somewhat heavier.

Any comments on this, forget about reaction time and cost of the double, etc.


Dak

You would think that a) the trigger guard on a .600NE would be large enough to avoid contact with the shooters' digits, b) the edges of the trigger guard would have been radiused to eliminate sharp edges, and c) a leather glove with padding on the back of the fingers (like the PAST gloves) would prevent injury.

Old timers often stated that the .577NE out-penetrated the .600NE. Ross Seyfried holds the same opinion. Perhaps the higher velocities and quiker twist rate will make the .600OK a much better penetrator.

George

Dakota,
Hopefully the blueing will be done on my rifle in the next week or 2. Then I'm going to try some timed fire drills and see how quickly I can get the rifle back on target. This should be fun. I'll be using the 2150fps load and my rifle weighs just about 13lbs.

I could be wrong, but going from memory, the SD of the 900gr .620" Woodleigh is .334, I believe that is what was printed on the box.

I was the proud owner of the 600 NE heym bolt gun. It was a wonderful rifle that fit me perfectly and was very classy.

However, at about 14 pounds with no brake and no mercury, the rifle hurt too much to shoot 900 grains at 1950 fps. Follow up shots would be slow but not unmanageable. I think the rifle needed a couple of mercury tubes in its but plus an F990 recoil pad. At that point it would have been reasonable to hunt with if I did not have to hike the 14 pound weight very far.

A double provides more 'felt recoil' than a properly designed bolt gun, so personally I would not consider a .577 or .600 NE double.

600NEvs 600 OK bolt rifle I can't think of anything that I'd rather have than NEITHER ONE OF THEM!

A good 500NE double rifle, or a 505 Gibbs bolt rifle will do anything either of those will do, and is easier to carry, and recover from!

GeorgeInNePa
Your memory is good, I went downstairs and checked the Woodleigh 900 gr solids also, both the BC and SD were 0.334. Seems high to me as I remember the 500 Jeffrey .510 535 gr bullets to be less than 0.3 with the same approx shape. Well taking measurements and checking the formula will solve that. Mark indicated that the penetration is not what he expected with raking shots with the 900 gr 600 NE solids, so maybe the SD is only part of the penetration process.

I am asking AHR is get as close to 15 lbs as possible and still have a well balanced rifle. Ed seems to be able to properly stock his rifles even in the big bores without turning them in to A-squared two by sixes. Rob has warned me that any loads above 2000 fps will get my attention and I had hoped to load to 2050-2100 fps for hunting, but then maybe not

500grains
You partially answered what I was wondering, does a double rifle produce more felt recoil than the same caliber in a bolt rifle. I only shot a ph's .458 Win Mag double once and it didn't seem bad, but I don't count that caliber as one of the big bad performers. My guess is that a bolt rifle would be easier, but 700 NE with the Searcy double just completed an elephant hunt with it. Of course, it now is for sale .

Dak

Honestly, with the .600OK now gaining a resonable amount of popularity, In a properly stocked/designed gun you will have absolutely no problems with recoil. At 1950fps you can recover from a .600OK way faster than you can from a .600NE in a double. Been there, done that! I've shot Mark Sullivan's Marcel Thys and yes it kicks HARD! My .600OK is a pussycat in comparison, but I'll bet it gets the job done just as well maybe better and certainly for about 1/10 the cost!-Rob

500,
You know, I am coming to believe you in these... I'll see when the 550 express is running, with sim. recoil as a 577.

jeffe

and, just for giggles

sd of the 700 gr .550
.331
sd of the 650 gr .550
.309

sd ofthe 750 gr 577
.313

jeffe

5 600 Ok Who has the fifth

rob 2
george 1
john 1
???



500 grains call me slow but I just put 2 and 2 together


RNS

I think Tonto is getting pretty close. 500 grs you should have built yours! I have one barrel left and am considering selling it. I am also considering making a barreled action with sights and blued. It will be expensive but it will be for sale.I am willing to do it on a GMA or CZ550 action.This way I will know the gun is set up properly! I plan to get to it later this year.-Rob

Rob, I had to draw the line somewhere, and those funds are being well spent on elephants.



Honestly I think an unbraked .585 Ny is my personal recoil limit.