Is this possible?
I have been planning on buying a used 700 in a magnum caliber, and then rebarreling it in 6.5 Rem Magnum. Today while driving into work I had an idea that almost sounds too easy to be possible. here's my question. would it be possible to take a rifle that is chambered in 264 Win Mag and have a gunsmith shorten up the chamber by cutting off enough of the breech end of the barrel to rethread it and do a finish ream job of the 6.5 rem. That may not be the best wording for the question, but if you know whether I can or not, then you can probably decipher what I am trying to ask. Thanks for your replies.
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I think that's the best idea you've had yet in your 6.5 Rem. Mag. quest! Any good gunsmith familiar with re-barreling work can do that. BUT--do yourself a favor: Shoot it while it's still a .264 Winchester Magnum and see if you still want to proceed. There's a bunch of Rem. 700's in .264 on the auction side.
I understand your desire for the 6.5 Rem. (I had to have one, too. I also have it's companion-the .350 Rem. Mag.) But you're considering spending a good deal of money on a cartridge with less performance potential than the one you start with. The .264 brass is still available (last I checked) and, if necessary, you can easily make cases from 7mm Rem. Mag. by just running them into your sizing die. 6.5 Rem. are hard to find and, while you probably could make them from belted brass, you'd have to shorten, anneal, neck turn, get form dies and it would just generally be a PIA.
There; I said it! I've been following your 6.5 Rem. quest and I promised myself I'd honor your wishes not to suggest another cartridge, but I just couldn't help it! I'm serious about your shortened .264 being a good idea and I'm also serious about you shooting it before you have it cut. Whatever you decide, good luck.0 -
Thanks for your response Ambrose. I've been contemplating your very suggestion this aftrnoon. I'm asking myself what it is about the 6.5 that i like so much. Well, for one, it seems to be like the red-headed step-child that doesn't get any respect, yet has alot to offer. From what I've read, the 264 really needs a 26" barrel to do it justice, and I think a 26" barrel would be kind of unhandy in the hunting conditions that I frequent the most. When looking in the Nosler reloading manual, they use a 26" barrel to work up the loads for the 264, and a 24" in the 6.5, and the way I've got it figured, the 6.5 gets 54 fps per grain of RL 19, and the 264 gets 52.5 fps per grain of RL 19, and that's out of a 26" tube, compared to a 24' tube for the 6.5. I think I could do a little better than that if I could stretch the bullet out of the case of the 6.5 as well. Other than that, I can't think of a good reason. As far as brass goes, while it is a little harder, Midway always has had a supply. like you, I also have a Rem 673 in 350, and I've got to tell you, that is my "go to" rifle for accuracy. With 180 grain speer flat points and 61.0 gr. of 4064, that dang rifle will print 3/4" groups at 100 yards, I don't care if it's 0 degrees or 60 degrees. I don't understand it, but I'm not going to complain either. That rifle just thrills me every time I pull the trigger. Thanks again Ambrose 0 -
Just so you know, I do believe that remington did make their limited edition 700 Classic in 6.5 Rem. Mag. too...if you can find one. That 264 sounds like a steller idea though. Ever think about a 6.5-284...about the same performance level.
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tsr1965 I have thought about the 6.5-284, but in all honesty, not very seriously. I just like the fact that the 6.5 remington gets no respect, and yet, when you start doing the math and putting all aspects on the same plane, the 6.5 remington is, IMHO, equal to, or better than any or all of them. You just need to put it in a long action to get it even better. Thanks for the input tsr1965. 0 -
if you are talking about a factory barrel, I would say NO. The dia of the barrel, is the max around the chamber,..now considering you are thinking of setting the barrel back, you have less of that full dia section, which is usually pretty short on a factory sporter barrel anyway. Just a thought.
Also, your choice, although nosltalgic, is a bygone chambering. The 264win mag is a better choice all around from the standpoint of ammo availability, loading cost and availablility, performance, etc etc
look at a 6.5WSM on your action just for fun[8D]0 -
JustC, I don't believe I've ever heard of a 6.5 WSM, unless you're talking about a 6.5-300 WSM. I've heard of that, but where would I find reloading data for that? As for the previous question, yes I was talking about a factory barrel. Would setting the barrel back approximately 1" make that much of a difference? Not trying to be a smart aleck, just asking. Thanks JustC for the input. I know you're way more smarter on matters such as this than I am. I would definitely trust what you say. 0 -
hadjii,
Look at this image and it should be clear what JustC is trying to point out.
There isn't enough of the proper barrel diameter in front of the tenon after you cut that tenon off.
This is not to say that the principle isn't good because it is. It just doesn't work with Remington factory barrels.
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Hadjii,
It's not a flawed idea as I wrote above. It's been done successfully many times in a manner similar to your original thought. The problem is with the factory dimensions of the Remington barrels.
This is another version of a barrel contour that would work:
In this example, the threads can be cut off with the remaining breech diameter being sufficient to cut new threads and having the proper diameter to lock up against the receiver face.
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I'm a long time 264 shooter, and you are right about the 26" barrel, that is one of the main reasons it didn't gain popularity, that and the fact that back in the day there wasn't a large selection of good 6.5 bullets. That said, you'll go a long way to find a flatter shooting, harder hitting round in it's class. You'll get best results with 140gr bullets. Read what Graig Boddington says about the 264.
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Thanks everybody for the intelligent responses. Once again My flawed idea has been corrected by the input of many with more experience than I. It sure sounded like a good idea though. 0 -
Hadjii, contact Al Story, 505-535-2923, and price a barrel through him. I couldn't be happier with the 264 he put into my MkX Mauser. 0
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