Opinions, re-barrel or buy another rifle?

[justinp61]

After having shoulder a few years ago I had to buy a rifle with less recoil than my old mdl 70 30-06 so I bought a Savage mdl 16 in 260 remington. I really like the rifle it's light and doesn't have much recoil. I load for my 22-250 so I bought the stuff needed to load for the 260. So far I've only loaded 42.0-46.0gr of H4350 under Nosler 120gr Ballistic tips and have not been impressed with the groups. I'm going to try some loads with powders I already have, Varget, H414 and 4064 along with some Nosler 100gr Ballistic tips and Berger 130gr Hunting VLD's.

This rifle is used primarily for whitetail deer at ranges from 50-300 yards and I would like to try some 350-500 yard ground hogs when it's to windy for my 22-250.

My question is if I can't make it shoot should I buy a pre fit barrel or just buy another rifle and send this one along the way? I've looked at the Savage mdl 11 Predator Hunter in 260, it comes with a heavier 24" barrel.

If I re-barrel I'm thinking 24" in a heavier contour than the factory barrel but not a bull as this is a carry around rifle.

Who's pre fit barrel would you guys recommend? Where would I buy the tools needed to make the change?

Thanks.

 

[Berger.Fan222]

Your odds of getting an accurate gun are usually better putting a custom barrel on compared with getting a different factory rifle. I'd try a few different bullets before going either route though.

 

[86alaskan]

You can get a prefit that'll probably bring that rifle around no problem. I run a 260rem with a criterion prefit 1-8 twist and it shoots great. There are more options now for prefits so take your pick of top end barrel makers, they probably make one. All you really need for the swap is the barrel nut wrench and a barrel vise. Also, might as well upgrade to a trued barrel nut and thick ground recoil lug. Check out northland shooters supply, apache barrels, mcgowen, shilen, pacnor

 

[justinp61]

Thanks guys. After turkey season winds down I plan on loading up some more test rounds to see if I can find something this rifle will shoot. I looked around on Mcgowen's site the other day. The options for contours alone is dizzying.

 

[Zero333]

You should be able to assemble a good handload for your 260. It's not often we go to the range with a light weight hunting factory rifle and find the magic load on our first try.

 

[JarheadAZ]

My experience with pre-fits are with L-W and the 260. But their pre-fits are 28" 1:8" Savage Varmint Contour, and not something I'd recommend carrying any significant distance in the woods.

I also own the Predator Hunter Max in .260, and can tell you it's much better to haul around in the woods.

I have a tentative hunting load, Nosler 140 Accubonds and 43.8gr of H4350. It will hit minute of venison, but I suggest doing some additional load development from 43.8gr downward. This mentioned load is my 1000yd match load with 142SMKs and the L-W pre-fit. If you must load higher, be cautious with pressure signs above 44.0gr.

Greg

 

[savagedasher]

If your happy with the gun your shooting .
Re barrel it to the caliber you want. All the above you talked about have a 473 bolt face.
You don't have to buy another scope or mounts. Larry

 

[SFGUY]

Hey Marine,
I agree, screw that barrel off and get another. I'm not a fan of pre-fit barrels. Even with a set of Go/No-Go gauges you will not get any more accuracy than you would from a factory rifle. Mediocre.
I would suggest you find a good gunsmith and buy a barrel blank and give it to him to chamber, crown, and fit. You will get the max out of it that way. If you like your rifle...you can keep your rifle and when the accuracy goes re-barrel and not give it a second thought.

Also, I broke my neck in Iraq and I am shooting the 6.5 creedmoor now with 123, 140 and 142 grain bullets. My rifles are heavy. Palma medium barrels, 30 inches long, and solid McMillan stocks. Heavier equates to lower 'absorbed' recoil too. It will help

 

[savagedasher]

Get the barrel from northland shoot supply. Find a smith to thread for a RAS tuner break. Or order the barrel you want and have Bostrom gun smith do the work.
Larry

 

[JarheadAZ]

I got the barrels from L-W and Woodie treated me really decent. I suspect it was one of the prototypes for the Pre-fits. It was ordered and processed as a custom order sometime back in/around 2003. For a match rifle, heavy is good. For a hunter, match accuracy is nice but not mandatory, and the predator Hunter is a good shooting hunter. All it needs is a good bullet and some serious load development, I use the Accu-Bond 140 for the 260 hunters.

I do my own barrel swaps, and have the proper gunsmithing tools to do the job (mine come from Wheeler). I find that snugging the barrel down on a fired case so I get a mild/noticeable bolt drag gets the barrel back on with very little change in POI.

Now, about light guns and recoil...

The barrel has to move all that stuff hanging onto it before the recoil reaches the shooter. Place a sandbag between the butt pad and the shoulder, and the recoil gets even lighter. Since it's not a part of the gun, it doesn't count as part of the gun's weight...

Somebody out there may benefit from listening to this stuff...

SFGUY, Welcome Home Brother. My shindig was 'Nam. My VA 100% was from two (Hodgkin's and Mixed Cell) bouts with Agent Orange Lymphoma and a Quadruple Bypass (also Agent Orange). Because of two Grand Chest Openings, I have bone chips where the sternum/cartilage ought to be, so the 260, the 20ga, and lighter loads in the '06 are my recoil limit. Two Thoracotomies and two Laparotomies also tend to put a crimp in one's prone scores, but I manage OK...

Greg

 

[mic2377]

IMHO - I would consider one of the Criterion pre-fits (IE Northland Shooter Supply) in either heavy sporter or light varmint. I think it will at least provide somewhat improved accuracy over your factory tube. At the very least, the consistency of something like a Criterion is better than the crapshoot of getting a factory rifle. Then again, perhaps your next trip to the range will reveal that magic load...

I have more than one Criterion and all have provided good accuracy.

 

[jim_k]

I always diamond-lap my barrels. Try to find a gunsmith or high-power shooter who will do that for you, which should be quite cheap, and may fix the accuracy. It is a very quick process. Results will be immediate, whether good or bad.

 

[jmatters]

If you can't get that gun to shoot well with 130 Bergers and H4831 or SC, something else is wrong! H4350 is better (IMHO) for longer barrels and heavier bullets... Remember not to use that danged expander ball!

 

[ND shooter]

You should be able to assemble a good handload for your 260. It's not often we go to the range with a light weight hunting factory rifle and find the magic load on our first try.

^^^^^^^^ This

 

[Bully]

I'm thinking you may need a longer bullet. I would look at 130-140 class bullets as opposed to the lightweights. Also, check ogive to lands so you jump is correct.

I have a x47L and with a pre-fit Shilen Select from NSS I am at .44 with a preliminary load. With some tweaking I should be able to get that a touch tighter. At least that's my hope.

Good luck.

 

[rudysts]

Another option on pre fit barrel would be x-caliber a member here DennisH sells them. I have never bought from him but i do know they are a quality barrel i have one one in 280AI. i believe he has a 260 in stock.

http://www.myaccuratebarrel.com/

 

[justinp61]

I loaded everything .020" off the lands and plan on more tests with seating depth after I find something decent. This is the way I did my 22-250, started at .020" and found a powder range that showed promise and fine tuned both charge weight and jump.

 

[jonbearman]

Don't waste another minute and get anybodys pre-fit as it will cure many ills all at once. The problem with savage barrels is they are so rough with reamer marks that look like threads in the barrel. They need about 200 rounds through some of them to start to shoot again. So get the pre-fit and never look back.

 

[criterionbarrels]

Hey Marine,
I agree, screw that barrel off and get another. I'm not a fan of pre-fit barrels. Even with a set of Go/No-Go gauges you will not get any more accuracy than you would from a factory rifle. Mediocre.
I would suggest you find a good gunsmith and buy a barrel blank and give it to him to chamber, crown, and fit. You will get the max out of it that way. If you like your rifle...you can keep your rifle and when the accuracy goes re-barrel and not give it a second thought.

Also, I broke my neck in Iraq and I am shooting the 6.5 creedmoor now with 123, 140 and 142 grain bullets. My rifles are heavy. Palma medium barrels, 30 inches long, and solid McMillan stocks. Heavier equates to lower 'absorbed' recoil too. It will help

I beg to differ. Pre-Fit barrels are capable of remarkable accuracy in the hands of a skilled shooter. We've had a number of shooters set National F-Class records with both Rem/Age and Savage Pre-Fit barrels.

http://criterionbarrels.com/media/honeycutt-sets-national-f-class-record-with-criterion-barrel

http://criterionbarrels.com/ftr-national-champion-sets-national-records-with-criterion-barrel

 

[Cold Bore]

.....and have not been impressed with the groups.

My question is if I can't make it ....

I guess my initial question would be how does it shoot now, that you "are not impressed with"?

Secondly, what kind of groups would you like it to shoot?

(Forgive me if I missed that info somewhere, but I didn't see it).

Lacking even that much info though, I'd say you need to experiment a bit with different loads before you go tearing things apart.

Just my opinion.....