I'm going to rebarrel my long action Ruger 77 MkII to 6.5 Swede.

My preference is to get a pre fit barrel from one of the majors (Shilen, Lilja, PAC-NOR or similar) however I've been told that some use the original .480 rim size, others chamber using the '06 rim size (.473")...

Can anyone shed any light on this?

Thanks...

As far as I know, all US made ammo for the 6.5 is of the SAAMI std .473" size, and I do beleive that the "prefit" barrels are also SAAMI std. I'd check with the barrel maker to be sure.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by craigster:
As far as I know, all US made ammo for the 6.5 is of the SAAMI std .473" size, QUOTE]

All the American brass I have measures below .473 ; Fed. and RP. Four euro brands measure between .476" to .480". roger

Thanks for the replies so far...

I received an email from PAC-Nor saying that their chambers are cut to CIP standards (ie larger rim size)...

Lilja don't do chamber work...

Still waiting on replies from a few others..

Hmmm.... gotta think about this - looks like I'd better do some more reearch..

Lapua brass is definitely CIP, Rem is SAAMI...

You might be wondering why this is an issue for me...

The rifle is used as my main hunting rifle (fallow, pigs, goats and so on at all sorts of ranges - from less than 30 ft out to a couple of hundred yards... it is also my main 'target rifle' for use in MSD - (much the same as HiPower in your neck of the woods) and I like accurate rifles (who doesn't!!)

The 270 is fine for both, but as I get older, the 'snap' recoil of the 270 gets a bit tiresome after 30-40 rounds..

OK, here's the logic - if I go with CIP specs, I'm limiting myself to Lapua brass, which is bloody expensive here, OK to pick it up on the range, but in hunting, don't always have time to search for brass after a shot or two... Rem?win brass is about half price (or less) so I don't mind leaving it behind...

Also, sometimes even 200rds isn't enough to last a week in some areas, so being able to pick up factory is a real advantage (bear in mind that a gunshop can be a day's drive away)...

I'm thinking that logically, I should go with whatever chamber fits US ammo... cheaper brass, availability of factory if I run out, and better chamber fit for the target stuff... better fit = better accuracy...

Any flaws in my logic?

Cheers,

Pete

I've got a Mauser with original chambering and have been shooting with brass from both standards. I cant tell the difference other that the US made brass gives out at around 5-6 loadings. The European made stuff goes to 8-9 reloads.

quote:

Originally posted by RayGunter:
I've got a Mauser with original chambering and have been shooting with brass from both standards. I cant tell the difference other that the US made brass gives out at around 5-6 loadings. The European made stuff goes to 8-9 reloads.

You might consider just neck sizing or partially sizing with the full length sizer.

quote:

OK, here's the logic - if I go with CIP specs, I'm limiting myself to Lapua brass,

I don't believe that is true. You can still shoot the .473 brass in a CIP chamber. In addition, I would bet that the extractor on your Ruger was optimized for .473 brass. Even if it was optimized for the .480 rim size, most likely it would not have a problem with .473 brass.

I have 3 different 6.5x55 barrels. One is cut with a standard reamer. Two are cut with a reamer with a tight neck and throat but standard body dimensions. I've not noticed any significant difference in performance in any of the barrels regardless of the brass used. I have used Winchester (smallest), Remington and Lapua (largest) in all three barrels. I like the Lapua best but mt best score was fired with Winchester brass. Regards, Bill.

Gents,

thank you so much for your information... As usual, this site is great for getting real life info.

Its appears I'm worrying about trivial matters.

Now all I have to do is decide on which barrel to buy, and whether to get it chambered and threaded to be fitted here, or just get a blank and have a local 'smith do the chambering work...

'Pre-fit' appeals, as gunsmithing tends to be VERY expensive and time consuming here (there are very few good 'smiths, and they charge accordingly)... and as a single Dad, I'm trying to be 'cost effective'... (not being cheap, but trying to get the best value for my dollar

Any opinions on the above would be welcome.

Thanks again fella's...

Try

http://www.lothar-walther.de/html/168.php

easy and top class

Cheers

Just asking another question -

As mentioned before, the barrel will be chambered to CIP specs... apparently, all the dies and ammo coming out of the USA are SAAMI spec.

I'd like to ask a couple of questions of some of you:

RayGunter

you mention that you have original chambering - are your reload dies also original, or SAAMI?

Starmetal , yep, that's probably my best option.

Bill Leeper , pretty much a similar question to that for Ray - are your rifles done with SAAMI, or CIP chamber? If they take Lapua, I'm guessing that they are CIP? If that is teh case, are your dies SAAMI or CIP spec?

Yes, yes, I know I'm probably being pernickerty....

Im just about to order a new 6.5x55 reamer and im specifying it be built to the true specs of the 6.5x55 swede, I intend to use excellent Lapua Brass.
Your question about the reloading die specs now interests me.

quote:

Its appears I'm worrying about trivial matters.

Yup....that's a big 10-4.

Cut the chamber for the European brass and shoot American brass in it.....works just fine!

This way you can also shoot European loads in it as well!

I much prefer the Winchester and Remington brass for reloading.....but shoot them in the standard chamber.

Thanks fellas...

quote:

Originally posted by RayGunter:
I've got a Mauser with original chambering and have been shooting with brass from both standards. I cant tell the difference other that the US made brass gives out at around 5-6 loadings. The European made stuff goes to 8-9 reloads.

Agreed...

I typically use Lapua brass, but have been testing my loads from my Lapua brass in Winchester and Federal brass. This is a strange caliber in the sense that it doesn't seem to react to small changes. The Lapua I have measures 0.478" and the USA manu is all right at 0.473"

glad to hear you are converting the rifle to a swede. be sure and try out hornady a-max bullets. i use winchester brass because i found a good buy a few years ago for a couple hundred brass. can't remember if my best load uses RL-19 or 22. I don't load mine hot. I run a kahles fixed 6x with a bullet drop compensator that is regulated to something like 2500 or 2550. i have not shot it in quite some time but like knowing i have it in the safe.

I use Lapua Megas 155 grain at 2580fps with a 25 inch barrel. I had to dispatch a wounded forked horn tonight and it is amazing how soft the noise and recoil of the caliber and how hard it slams the bucks.

I have a pushfeed Model 70 in 6.5 x 55...

I have a factory Ruger in it...

and an original 1919 made Mauser...

the only one that is finicky on extraction of brass is the push feed Model 70.. which use to be an 06

Remington brass extracts all the time.. Win and the others don't always....

but since the Mauser and the Ruger have a claw extractor... any brass will present no problems...

If you’re chambering for CIP standard 6,5x55mm you’ll get best performance using European ammunition designed for the CIP standard. Also, although the initial purchase price for loaded ammunition is more it works out cheaper after amortizing the purchase price vis-à-vis the number of reloads for the brand of brass.

Here are prices from the Grafs & Sons website:
Loaded Ammunition:
Federal 140gr SP @ $25.97 = $1.2985 each / 6 reloads = $0.2164 each
Hornady 140gr SP @ $25.99 = $1.2995 each / 6 reloads = $0.2166 each
Lapua 139gr HPBT @ $30.59 = $1.5295 each / 8 reloads = $0.1912 each
Norma 140gr NSL @ $48.59 = $2.4295 each / 8 reloads = $0.3037 each
Prvi 139gr SPBT @ $13.99 = $0.6995 each / 6 reloads = $0.1166 each
Bulk Brass:
Lapua, unprimed bulk 100/box - $55.59 = $0.5559 each / 8 reloads = $0.06949 each
Norma, unprimed bulk 100/box - $74.05 = $0.7405 each / 8 reloads = $0.09256 each
Remington, unprimed bulk 100/2xbox - $43.98 = $0.4398 each / 6 reloads = $0.0733 each
Winchester, unprimed bulk 100/ 2xbox - $43.98 = $0.4398 each / 6 reloads = $0.0733 each

I’ve read on other forums that users have been very satisfied with the Prvi ammunition performance and number of reloads from the brass, also the price is a steal!