Buddy has inherited a VERY nice German made Weatherby in 22-250 from his dad. Gorgeous stock! He'd like to up the caliber a bit. Case short enough to fit the action. 6mm or larger. Creampuff recoil. Something out of the norm. Long barrel life. Deer, antelope, varmints, long range.

Suggestions. What diameter/caliber can the bore be reamed out to?

Alan

257 Roberts, or Ackley Improved if he reloads.

6.5x47 Lapua

.250-3000. Parent case of the current round. No problem getting it to kill deer, antelopes and varmints at pretty respectable ranges.

6.5 creedmoor Little recoil with extreme accuracy. I'm getting 3143 FPS with 120gr GMX bullets and they are devastating on game.

I'd have a tough time bastardizing this rifle if it's original.
If not, I'd go to .250AI in a heartbeat. With todays powders it's not only viable for what he wants but it would be tough to beat.

That's a beautiful re-stock!

if he want's out of the ordinary that leaves the 6mm or 6.5mm on the 250 or 300 savage case.
i would probably just rebarell it for it's intended use.
a 300 for deer hunting.
or the 22-250 for varmints.
or the 250 savage if for both.

I think that action will accommodate anything up to the length of a .308/243 case. It might crowd a .257R/7x57 case, but I'm not sure of the magazine length (or whether the .22-250 has a removable block which would allow you to lengthen it.)

Regardless, your selection factory cartridges includes .243, .250S, .260 Rem, 7mm-08, .300S, .308, .338F, .358W -- and Ackley Improved versions thereof. Your selection of proprietary or wildcat cartridges on either the Savage case of the Winchester case is limited only by your imagination.

Having had and currently owning piles of the common (and versatile) .243 rifles, I think I might personally opt for a .250 Savage. But you really can't go wrong with any of the choices.

I found in my on-line resources 251 cartridges that your friend could have the Weatherby re-barreled to that are from the 240Madame up to the .56-52Spencer necked. Most of these are not commercially available ammo and some would require custom reamers and dies. Some of them would require bolt/extractor modification but none would have the magazine altered. I am limited to my wife's Apple laptop and can't copy and paste, therefore I will not attempt to list the cartridges.

The bore can be reamed to pretty much anything as large as or larger than .243", so long as enough meat is left around the bore at the muzzle end of the tube.

That leaves the case to be chosen. If he wants a wildcat that not every Tom, Dick, or Harry has, then the 6mm Donaldson Ace or the .250 Donaldson Ace are both nice cartridges based on the same case as the .22-.250.

If he doesn't want a weirdo that is a lot of work to make ammo for, I'd second Stonecreek and suggest he get it made into a .250-3000 Savage. Wonderful round that has been serving us for 100 years and will still perform very, very well in the varmint fields and deer woods.

I will say thirds on a 250 Savage

heck that is out of the norm these days--

While he is making up his mind , have him try nosler 60 gr partitions and a barnes or two--he might not even want to change.

quote:

Originally posted by Remington40x:
.250-3000. Parent case of the current round. No problem getting it to kill deer, antelopes and varmints at pretty respectable ranges.

I vote for a .250 AI, with a fast enough twist to handle 115-120 grain bullets.

Interesting, when I read the original post, my first thought was the 250-3000 Savage but I was concerned about your friend's long range requirement.

I am pleased to see others, who have more knowledge of the cartridge, have also recommended it.

I would investigate the caliber fully for your use. Good luck.

Hard to beat the 250AI or with a magazine box change 257AI. Better yet, 6.5x47...

Is the action a standard short action that would accept .243/.308 length cartridges or is it shorter like a mini-mauser length? A standard short action opens a world of possibilities, but the opens are limited if it is shorter. Need to know the mag box length.

I'm thinking along the lines of AC Canuck...but my 6mm choice would be the 6mm International.

6.5/08 or 243, I think that the chamber is already too large for a 6.5x45, maybe a 6.5 Creedmore would work. It would be a shame to set that barrel back and mess up the stock to barrel fit.
I like Big Nate's idea. 250-3000 AI, except that it would still be necessary to set the barrel back in order to clean up the chamber.

I think a 250/3000 would fit the bill.

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
I think a 250/3000 would fit the bill.

X 2 roger

rebarrel to a faster twist and shoot heavier .224 bullets--65-80 grains

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
I think a 250/3000 would fit the bill.

Yes, rebore, go have fun.