As some of you may know I have been fooling with the 375/338 and now wonder if it might be more direct to bore out a 338 Winnie instead of rebarrel.

1. Is 338 to 375 a big enough jump to allow reboring?
2. How much does reboring cost?
3. Are there quality control issues with reboring, or can they be just as accurate as, say...Adams and Bennett new barrels?
4. Can you recommend any gunsmiths or web sites where i might initiate some 338/375 reboring business?

Thanks!

Still PLENTY visible! Don't know how popular anymore, but those who do it seem pretty well booked up!

You certainly have enough metal there to go clean up from .338" to .375"!

Don't know how much this would cost - this varies between 'smiths.

Quality control is always an issue. Some kinds of bores are harder to do well than others!

However, a GOOD rebore can be as accurate, OR, VERY OFTEN, EVEN MORE ACCURATE, than the barrel was before it was rebored. Reboring seems to relieve internal stresses, making the barrel vibrate more uniformly every shot. I've had three done. One from .338" to .458, and two from .348" to .458". ALL shot better as .45's than they had in their original caliber. All were Winchester barrels.

I gess my budget for reboring from 338 to 375 would top out at, say...$225. This makes it a better option than barrel replacement. Anybody think I am way under what is typical for this job?

Reboring is really popular, as those who do it are booked way ahead.I am getting 50 cal barrel redone to 55 cal
at Classic Barrels(Wells)..Ed.

spoke to cliff labounty last year. he quoted me $150 i think to rebore and throat my barrel. using the existing chamber he was going to throat for new caliber. this was just sending him the barrel. you shouldn't need any head space gauges, just a fired case to make sure it is correct on reinstall. i think your budget would be ok....
woofer

The consensus I've heard on re-bores is, if the barrel you are starting with cannot be economically re-produced, ie 1/2 octagon 1/2 round, integral quarter rib, special finish etc, then a re-bore makes sense. If on the other hand, you're using an off the shelf generic barrel, then you just might not be willing to wait the 1 or 2 year back log that the few folks who re-bore have.

Think of it this way, the factory barrels are low dollar jobs, and if the chamber is cut oversize, or non concentric with the bore, a re-bore won't fix that. A good aftermarket barrel properly chambered will generally produce a superiour barrel then having the factory tube re-bored.