Help me choose a 30 cal cartridge!

[vulrath]

I am waiting for a .30 cal 1:10 twist straight taper Bartlein blank to show up next Tuesday (shout out to the guy at Bartlein who helped me find what I wanted in stock at Grizzly on Thursday). In the meantime I'm left with a choice of what (short action) caliber I should chamber in.

Currently it's got a Shilen 25" 308Win bastard child that I finish reamed myself, and the factory barrel was 308win as well. I've got plenty of 175 SMK left over, so I'd like to keep using those, but also keep the possibility of moving up to the 200+gr territory when the availability is there again.

Without any real knowledge about it my first thought was to just do Winchester because I have all the tooling and supplies. A friend suggested 308win improved, 30-284 ai, and 30-6.5x47, all of which sound like decent options.

I shoot mainly between 300-1000 yards (usually 500-600) and this is just a target rifle right now. Doubtful I'll be shooting competitively with it as I have my Nucleus in 6.5 Creedmoor for that (all comps here are 600yd anyway). I did have a goal of getting this rifle to 1k back when I first got it back in 2013, and it was 308win back then, too, so I'm tempted to just do the Winchester chamber and rechamber it down the road once I've achieved my goal within the majority of my original parameters. Availability of factory ammo would be a boon (not that I use any these days...), for sure.

 

[284winner]

I am waiting for a .30 cal 1:10 twist straight taper Bartlein blank to show up next Tuesday (shout out to the guy at Bartlein who helped me find what I wanted in stock at Grizzly on Thursday). In the meantime I'm left with a choice of what (short action) caliber I should chamber in.

Currently it's got a Shilen 25" 308Win bastard child that I finish reamed myself, and the factory barrel was 308win as well. I've got plenty of 175 SMK left over, so I'd like to keep using those, but also keep the possibility of moving up to the 200+gr territory when the availability is there again.

Without any real knowledge about it my first thought was to just do Winchester because I have all the tooling and supplies. A friend suggested 308win improved, 30-284 ai, and 30-6.5x47, all of which sound like decent options.

I shoot mainly between 300-1000 yards (usually 500-600) and this is just a target rifle right now. Doubtful I'll be shooting competitively with it as I have my Nucleus in 6.5 Creedmoor for that (all comps here are 600yd anyway). I did have a goal of getting this rifle to 1k back when I first got it back in 2013, and it was 308win back then, too, so I'm tempted to just do the Winchester chamber and rechamber it down the road once I've achieved my goal within the majority of my original parameters. Availability of factory ammo would be a boon (not that I use any these days...), for sure.

Are you using the same action from the current rifle ?

 

[vulrath]

Correct. I'm on a 700 SA.

 

[centershot]

Too bad it is not a long action. I would vote for a .30 Gibbs.

 

[nakneker]

300 Saum comes to mind for your intended purpose but if your keeping the action that’s not an option. 30-284 AI sounds like a fun one. I know the 308 winchester doesn’t have the curb appeal that many have but it still does a decent job.

 

[vulrath]

Honestly, my initial reaction is that I have a small fortune in dies et al for 308win and would like to keep the caliber.

I'll probably shelf the Remington action eventually in favor of a custom and reevaluate then), but for now it's what I got.

 

[CJ6]

I have a 30-284..and it's a real shooter. Having said that, Unless you single load (like I do) it's better suited to a long action as most any bullet you choose over 125-130 grs. is going to be seated too deep for any real benefit.

 

[vulrath]

I have a 30-284..and it's a real shooter. Having said that, Unless you single load (like I do) it's better suited to a long action as most any bullet you choose over 125-130 grs. is going to be seated too deep for any real benefit.

That is a good point. I don't mind single loading (have to do it in my 6.5), but I would prefer the flexibility of being able to use a magazine.

 

[Matches]

You can build just about anything on a Remington 700 short action.
That said some combinations are better than others. A 338 Lapua on a short action only needs a different bolt to work but you end up having to remove the bolt to load and unload the gun making it a pain for anything other than target shooting.
For up to 1000 yards the 300 wsm is a tough chambering to beat and the accuracy through a fresh Bartlein Barrel should be fantastic.
The only downside is you would need a magnum boltface. You could buy one trade for one or sell yours and pay the difference.
If you already have all the supplies for 308 the new barrel all by itself should cut your group size considerably and will be the cheapest on your pocketbook as well.
Good Luck with your new project.

 

[vulrath]

Removing the bolt is a no go unless I did something like a side release. I traded the Mod22 trigger off to the competition rifle. This one has a TriggerTech Diamond. No bolt release without removing the stock.

300 WSM did cross my mind. I already have a ton of IMR 4451 for the 6.5.

I'm probably going to just go for 308. I suppose I can revisit it later, too.

 

[Rob01]

Just rebarrel to a .308. Nothing wrong with a good .308. Will do what you need and more and you are set up for it.

 

[vulrath]

That was my default plan; unless I unearthed something absolutely earth-shattering I was going to go get a Clymer or PTG reamer and pass it to the smith when I take it in.

 

[284winner]

Lots of good advice but with a short action, you'll need to pull the bolt to remove loaded rounds with most options. The 30-284 improved looks interesting. It'll still exceed 3.00" with bullets heavier(longer) than the 168s for optimum case capacity. If that isn't an issue for you, you have other options for sure.

 

[wbm]

Remington 700 short action? Personally I would just go with a .308. Why complicate things?

 

[Ned Ludd]

Stick with the .308 Win. You're familiar with it, you already have the dies, etc., and there won't be another choice that has greater availability of commercial ammunition. I would suggest throating it long enough to load some of the heavier bullets (you mentioned 200s). Something like 0.140" to 0.170" freebore will allow you to load the longer (heavier) bullets, but you should be able to select a freebore length that will still allow you to load the 175s; albeit seated much farther out in the neck than with a shorter throat. Making a few dummy rounds with the 175s seated long ought to provide you with enough information to select a throat length that will work with the 175s, and 185s or 200s, provided you plan on single-feeding loaded rounds. I would also suggest switching to .308 Win Palma brass/small rifle primers, if you aren't already using them. Brass life with the heavier bullets will be much better.

 

[Rob01]

You don’t even have to go heavy with bullets. The newer higher BC bullets in the 168-185 range will do 1000 easily. I shoot 168 ELDs in my Tac rifle and hit 1200 yards without a problem.

 

[Sniper338]

Like everyone else has said your limited in a short action. Theres not much in 30 cal to go to with a 10 twist barrel on a short action.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

Unless you go to a long action receiver with a magnum or Lapua bolt face, there’s nothing to get worked up about. The 30 cal world doesn’t get exciting until you step up to the big magnums.

Any wildcat in 30 cal on a short action with .473” rim rounds is a waste of time and money in my opinion. You would see some good performance gains by going to a magnum bolt face in a short action with a 300 SAUM or 300 WSM chambering. But the 308 Win is about as good as it gets with the action you have so might as well stick with what you got.

 

[DaveTooley]

Removing the bolt is a no go unless I did something like a side release. I traded the Mod22 trigger off to the competition rifle. This one has a TriggerTech Diamond. No bolt release without removing the stock.

300 WSM did cross my mind. I already have a ton of IMR 4451 for the 6.5.

I'm probably going to just go for 308. I suppose I can revisit it later, too.

No need to remove the barreled action from the stock. You can go in from the top and depress the bolt stop.
Pocket knife or a small screwdriver works.

 

[vulrath]

Dave, I'll have to take a closer look at it when I get home. That would be a game changer for cleaning, at the very least.

I'm going to rebarrel in 308Win for now. When I get bored I will revisit my options. Thanks for all the help.

My next question is one of freebore. How much do I need? Say, for Berger 200.20X or 200SMK? I don't want to handicap myself by going too short, but how much is actually necessary?