Does a .284 case based wildcat in a short action enable the same sort of performance
as the equivilant .30-06 based wildcat in a long action??
In particular I'd be interested in a 6.5-284
compared to a 6.5-06 and a 338-284 compared
to 338-6. The latter load pretty much dulpicates the old 318 Westley Richards and
I'm wondering if that can be achieved on a modern short action i.e a Sako L591 which at present a .308.

Thanks,

Pete

the problem being two fold:

1. You still have to seat bullets deep to work through a short action and that eats up the powder space and if you use a medium action, you would have been better off with the 06 case in the first place.......

2, the 284 is a very hard case to make feed properly with that rebated base....

I could probably come up with a couple of more minuses but thats enough for the thinking man....

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Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

case capacity is almost identical, and performance is very close.

Hello Ray

Everything has its imperfections; the 284 does have a shorter powder column, hence more controllable burn times. This is the same small edge in accuracy which we see in the 308. I don't place the same value on the difference in weight between short and long actions ( especially since I use a varmint-weight barrel in the 6mm-284 ), but do want whatever accuracy and velocity I can get. I found an old single-shot 40X stock and put the 6mm-284 in it ( stiffer stock with no magazine cutout ). Floats my boat.

Tom

Thanks guys.

I just pondering what (if anything) to do with my .308 Sako. I hope to get doen to the
range in the next couple of weeks and run some lead through it. If it starts behaving again, fine; if not a rebarrel may be on the cards hence all the questions.

Pete

Cartridges based on the .284 Win do sometimes exhibit feeding problems, but it has little to do with the rebated rim -- more to do with a sharp shoulder and fat case for which the magazine rails have not been properly ground.

I've had good experience with a 25-284, getting velocities higher than most 25-06's, BUT, it was built on a full-length Mauser and had a 26.5 inch barrel. Also, handloaders tend to load the strong .284 case to higher pressures than standard cases since it tends not to show pressure signs as quickly.

Overall, a .284 wildcat in a short action will NOT equal the performance of an '06 based cartridge with the same bullet at the same pressure. But if you need maximum performance in a short action, the .284 case is your ticket.

I was working on the feeding of a 6.5-284 last night in a Mauser action.
As per the previous post, the trouble was the sharp shoulders hanging up at the front of the feed rails. Took a fair bit of opening, but this one will now feed empty cases with ease from both sides of the magazine box...

Not sure I know exactly why, but the cartridges like the 284 and yes even the 308 seem to do extermely well within a narrow spectrum of bullet configurations and weights, while the cartridges like the '06 do moderately well accross a much broader spectrum of bullet configurations and weights.

What's wrong with the .308? It is a lot easier to load for accuracy than a wildcat like the 6.5/284. And cheaper, too.

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"If you can keep your head about you when all others are loosing theirs and blaiming it on you..."

Phantom Duck,

There's nothing wrong with the .308 at all
apart from the fact it is a bit "ordinary"
if you know what I mean:-)I've shot the calibre for 10 years or so now, and I just fancy a change.
I suspect I'm better off keeping the old Sako action and stock, & investing my money
in a decent barrel and some tuning work, rather than selling the rifle at a loss and investing a similar amount of money in what would be an entirely off the shelf factory rifle. Apart from a .284 based wildcat, I don't know of a "common" cartridge which would offer a worth while improvement in performance over the .308 case in the constraints of a short action.

Pete

Feeding problems with the 284 are not particularly difficult with a push feed and I think most are making reference to that type of action, with a control feed it becomes a bit more difficult and I'm talking 110% reliablity which again may not be an issue here...Sorry, too many DGR's in my background....For this thread I think the single shot bolt action, as mentioned above, is the only route to go..

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Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

The Sako L579 isn't a particularly good choice for a 284 based cartridge. Besides being very short it is narrow and feeding while retaining a reasonable amount of guide rail can be a problem. I made a couple of 284 on them and while they worked out OK I didn't like them. I would stick with a 308 based case. The 260 comes to mind. Regards, Bill.

Although I've never tried to gunsmith a conversion of a Sako L579 to a .284 cartridge, I did once own a Browning Safari in .284 which used the Sako action. It worked and fed perfectly. I agree, however, that the LOA of the loaded round is very limited in this action (as with most medium or "short" actions).

The .25-284 which I mentioned in the previous post was on an FN Mauser and fed perfectly -- but watch out: Many '98 style Mausers will refuse to chamber a cartridge (of any caliber) placed directly into the chamber without being fed from the magazine. This is an inconveniece in shooting from the bench, but can be catastrophic in hunting situations.

Dear Pete, Having had the pleasure of playing around with virtually every calibre stuffed into a 284 case[17-416] the only ones that will readily work to you expectations in a short action like the Sako are the 22/284, 6mm/284 and the 25/284. Reason being the magazine length. The Sako is just .805 and the Rem 700 is .850. I think we would all agree the encroachment of the bullet into the powder space of the case is undesirable. The 6.5/284 is at its best when the beautiful long bullets are seated out allowing the full use of the case. The Win Ranger, a short action model, is well suited for this cartridge and others like it. The mag. has a block at the rear that, when removed, will allow about 3.050 cart. length. Ideal for the 6.5/284. The Yugos and the 27/47 Mausers are an option too. Check for Rockwell before using as the 6.5/284 is a high intensity case. Feeding adjustment can be a little tricky but will work fine if done properly. In the Win. Ranger, it fed like glass requiring no work at all. I love the 284 based wildcats and work on them frequently. Lots of fun. Aloha, Mark[in Ore]

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I don't know where some of this information is comming from but I will tell you that any time you use a different size case in a magazine designed for another size you automaticly change the stagger of the cartridge colum and then you add a rebated case that does not lift up high enough for the bolt to pick it up and your telling me its easy and will work??? Maybe, but not 100% reliablely I assure you....Some of you have been just plain lucky or have been reading too many gun magazines...A 284 in a Sako equates to damn near a stright colum..

In a Mauser you have a little more room to play and can open the rail in the rear so that the round can lift up so as to be picked up by the bolt, then you must open the front to allow for the wide shoulder and it must open at about half feed so as to let the control feed perform its duty at the correct location and that must be timed correctly, all this necessitates a stronger follower spring pushing up so the bottom round doesn't pop up and out and the follower itself sometimes need changing...

Many will feed fairly well and many don't know the difference and seem to except ocassional failures or even a lot of failures and if your shooting targest or varmints I don't suppose it makes any difference...

I build mostly hunting rifles and mostly DGR rifles at that, I can't afford a half a$$ed job, it'll kill my client and I don't want to live with that...besides I can't abide shoddy workmanship in a gun...

Sorry if I chastised anyone, but if you qualified, you deserved it.

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Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com