I have a M70 in 264 win mag that is surplus, I am thinking of having it re-barrelled in caliber for wild boar, any suggestions, bearing in mind the head size on the bolt,and it has to be a sporter barrel. I must also take into account any objections my FLO might have.
I thought of a 450 marlin!

regards
griff

regards
griff

griff,

O.K. - you solicited the responses!

Any Magnum bolt head sized 2.5" cartridge would be an ideal fit for your Model 70 without any additional modifications including the bolt head, sporter barrel, stock, magazine, etc., so; 7mm Rem Mag., 7mm Weatherby Mag., 300 Win Mag., 300 Weatherby Mag., 338 Win. Mag. 358 Norma Mag. or the new .375 Ruger including the 458 Win. Mag. Although without taking any logistical issues into consideration another whumper with great potential would be the .416 Taylor.

I've NO experience witht the 450 Marlin and other than the industry hype haven't even given it a second thought; so I'll have to admit I'm probably packing some cartridge ignorance on that one.

If it was mine I'd go straight to the .338 Winchester Magnum, second choice the .375 Ruger, 3rd, the 416 Taylor and lastly the 458 Winchester Magnum (and download the cartridges to Piggies specifications) but the last two may require a beefier barrel - the .338 being a little bit more versitile for you and probably easier to talk your FLO into - a great cartridge with many applications. Buddy of mine has a .338 Winchester Magnum in a Browning BAR with a Red Dot he uses for Piggie Drive Hunts - a tough combination to beat.

+1 for .338 WM. Hard to beat for a do it all round. It will thump a boar

Hmm,

I love the 338, and the 358 Norma. I am on my 3rd or 4th 338, and I am building a 358 Norma. To me the having a 338 is more important than having a 375.

If I lived in the UK I would probably go that route. 338 or 358 Norma. As it has a lot more global applications than the others do.

If I lived in central Europe I would probably build a 450 Marlin. It's hog thumper supreme. Since this would be my number on passion.

7 more years and I will be back in Alaska where the 450 Marlin, 45 Blaser, 338, 358, 375, 416, 9.3x62, 9.3x64, 300, 30-06, and all the others will have full time jobs.

Is the weight of the finished rifle important?

I really didn't want a loud an boomer, just wanted something that would be quite adequate at 50 yds and didn't need a bucket full of powder..

Weight is not an issue, but the more I come to thinking about this, the more I am erring towards a 12g rifled slug barrel on my remmy 1100, one that has the csd!

Wink, have just sent some Wipeout and Accelerator to someone in your neck of the woods!

regards
griff

Hi Griff

For wild boar in Europe a lovely choice would be 8x57IS or 9.3x62. I would go for the 8mm personally. Cartridges are easy to obtain in Europe and generally more interesting IMHO.

Mark

quote:

Originally posted by griff:

Wink, have just sent some Wipeout and Accelerator to someone in your neck of the woods!

regards
griff

I hope it was me! Seriously, I would buy a few cans if the pound/euro exchange rate doesn't make it look too ridiculous an expense.

By the way, given the new rarity of the Model 70 action, and assuming it is a CRF, you might want to conserve it for a DG caliber. There is always the 404 Jeffery. Loaded with 350 grain bullets at around 2100 fps or more it would be a pussycat on the shoulder and you can always load it for the really big stuff. It is a much more versatile caliber than people would have one believe.

I had the same problem 4 years ago. I rebarrelled my 264 WM M70 to a 338 WM and now it's my favourite rifle for boars. I'm happy with it.

In the 2.5" case lenght I would stay on 338-06 or 9.3x62 or 30-06, if belt and bolt are not a problem.

Anyone of the three above is fast or superfast. If you hunt in close bush area, a slow but heavvy bullet is better than any other combination where the word fast is present.

For a belted case, as others have said the 338 is hard to beat for non-DG! If I were to do it, here are my 3 choices-

-338 WM
-375 H&H (will always keep its value due to CRF and DG caliber, if that is important to you)
-Trade off for a bolt with smaller face and start the choosing process all over. You may be able to get a good deal by offering the bolt and barrel as a package, if allowed to do it that way on your side of the pond.