recommendations for 6mm br f class rifle

[pressedRat]

i've been shooting for a while. i have a custom 260 and a off-the-shelf remington 700 5r in 308. i shoot from 100 to 600 yards with an occasional trip to shoot at 1000. both rifles have march glass, with the 260 running 5-40 x 56

im looking to get into a 6mmbr. i like the availability of the brass, the life expectancy of the barrel, the reduced cost and the claimed accuracy. currently, i turn my necks, anneal, and double weigh my powder. so i put a lot of effort into preparation. i shoot for fun but may be interested in competition. i shoot primarily paper and though i dont compete i would say im more like an f-open shooter than anything else. i shoot mostly off a bench with a bipod and rear squeeze bag. i shoot a lot of berger 140 hybrids which i single load due the the length of the round.

after researching this round, i decided that what i want is an f-class rifle. i can afford a fully custom built but after some investigation, i found that savage makes an 12 f-class in 6mm br.

so my question is this, roughly, what is difference between a custom f-class and an off-the-shelf savage? particularly in accuracy. and as for customs, who is recommended for these type of rifles?

thanks for any info.

 

[ShootDots]

Right off the bat I would go with a custom. Get a Kelbly Panda "F-Class" action. With that action you can call up Kelbly (or really any good gunsmith) and they can turn any barrel you want and send you the barrel and it will fit perfectly.Get either a Kelbly or Jewell trigger. Now this next step is purely a personal matter of what fits you best and what you prefer. However, you would be hard pressed to beat a Bill Shehane tracker stock. Talk to Bill at "Scope Us Out" and he will be glad to help in this selection.

Get a .115 Freebore reamer with a .271 neck. Skim turn the necks down to about an 85pct clean-up. Load either 105 VLD's or 108 Bergers, with somewhere between 29.0 and 30.4 grs of either RL-15, Varget or VV N540. If you can't clean a target 2 out of 3 matches at 600 with that on a "wind-favorable" day, you either need more practice or you need to re-visit your loads. With a good load, on a day where the heat waves are minimal or non-existent with almost no wind, you should shoot inside 2" at 600 yards. Now you may not do that on EVERY 5 shot group, but you will do it fairly often under those conditions.

 

[jr600yd]

+1 for Ben. Only thing I'd change is a .272 no turn neck. Just my preference.

 

[gotcha]

+1 for the .272" neck & .015" to.018" F/B, but I'd go with the 6 Dasher if I was going to build a Custom. The Dasher held the 1000 yd record at one time. (Not sure if its still top dog.) The Savages shoot pretty well out of the box (6mm BR) but their barrels are no where as consistent as a hand lapped after market. Give yourself the best odds of shooting a winning score and build a Custom. Or, buy the Savage with full intention of re-barreling immediately. You asked for opinions

 

[LRCampos]

.

I think the main diference is just plain more precision with a custom rifle, specially on more than 5 shots string.

It is a probability game: you can get (by luck) an extremely precise factory rifle, but it is not probable. Quite the oposite.

With a custom rifle, you should get (not by luck...) an extremely precise rifle, being very unlikeable you do not get it. And even if, by an extremely bad luck, you dont get it, the gunsmith will probably make it right.

So, I would say: go with the custom rifle, from a reputable gunsmith and you will be a happy shooter.


LRCampos.

 

[jr600yd]

I'd go for the custom action. Factory actions seem to shoot pretty good but you'll get the bug to shoot better pretty soon. By the time you get done with all the "after market" stuff for a factory action, having the action trued, timed, new bolt, new barrel ect. You'll have spent the same money as just buying a custom action outright. Not to mention the time it takes to send a factory action out to be worked on.
Buy a custom action, build your rifle and be done. Go shoot.

 

[LoganDon]

+1 for all of these replies. When I was thinking of a really accurate rifle, I had my gunsmith, a competitive benchrest shooter, purchase a stolle action. It had a his choice of a custom trigger and he installed his recommended barrel and stock. When I am shooting a hunting rifle and not getting good groups, I pull out this rifle and shoot 5 shot groups in the .1s. Great confidence builder and as a range master, really fun to let persons having a tough time shoot their best group ever (did this yesterday at the range). The young ladies really love it as there is no recoil and they get fantastic groups.

 

[nosualc]

We have an F-Class league here locally, and we start out lots of new F-Class shooters. Inevitably, if they stick to it, they ask what rifle they should get. Generally, our advice is often to get one of the Savage target rifles. Whether they're shooting F-T/R or Open, it's a fine (inexpensive) way to get started.

The differences (IMO) between that and a true custom?

Triggers - For a competition rifle, for a variety of reasons, the Savage target accutrigger is not very good (relative to others). Aftermarket alternatives for the Savage are not much better.

Barrels - Factory Savage barrels (even for their target rifles) are rough as a cob. They foul quickly and are a beast to get clean (if you decide clean is important).

Bedding - From the factory these rifles, are pillared, but not bedded.

Quality - Savage is in the business of mass producing rifles for a reasonable price. I have seen examples with bent barrels, seriously out of square recoil lugs, barrel nuts, etc.

In spite of all of these things, the Savage rifles can shoot! I've seen them shoot high master scores right from the factory.

However, most guys end up getting another barrel (easy to do), playing with aftermarket triggers (without much success in my experience), and bedding them.

Even then, after doing all that, guys who want to be competitive end up eventually going to a full custom, chasing the last little bit of the accuracy curve.

It all comes down to how serious you're apt to be, and how much money you're willing to spend...

If you're likely to go all the way, skip the Savage and go right to a custom. If you're not sure, go the Savage route and enjoy the journey.

-nosualc

 

[pressedRat]

ok. thanks for the answers. this is the sort of info i was looking for.

still would like some recommendations of custom f-class rifle vendors. as for kelby's i did buy both of my march scopes there and they are about the only builder i know of currently for this type of rifle. just would like info on others that might be recommended.

about 6 dasher. seems like the only issue with that round is fire-forming and one way to do that is to partially turn the neck and shoot it and even for that first shot it can be very accurate. in general i dont want to get into fire-forming or COW etc but if that first shot is not a waste of powder and bullet then that round is worth considering.

finally and sheese.. looking into front rests. this is a new area for me as i have always used a bipod or bags. but looks like the top contenders are expensive and in the case of the SEB NEO almost a two year wait..

also, anyone know the wait from kelby's and also for the farley front rest? i know i can call but im still the 'gathering info' stage.

i think that my local club (riverbend) does f-class (merged with other 600yd competitions) so i plan to attend one of their matches to see what folks are using.

 

[nosualc]

There are more than a few long range accuracy gunsmiths out there. Some will turnkey a rifle for you, some will want you to supply them parts. Use the search feature on this forum to build a list of possible candidates, then make old fashioned phone calls to find the one you're most comfortable with.

Once you find a smith, I would take his advice on components. He's likely got opinions on actions, barrels, stocks, etc. You should consider his advice strongly. More strongly than that of complete strangers on the internet, for example

The 6BR wildcats (dasher, BRX, et. al) are awesome mid-range (up to 600 yards) F-Class cartridges, and do most of the winning. Fire forming is a PITA. You have to decide whether the extra performance is worth it to you.

SEBs are great, but there's nothing wrong with a Farley. Put your name down on a SEB, and buy a Farley. Use the Farley until your SEB is ready. You can decide then which to keep. The other one will sell fast.

-nosualc

 

[redrockranger]

Take a look at the Kelbly Atlas action.

 

[wapiti25]

I would go with the custom if you can afford it. I'm sold on the custom actions. Go to a match and look at the equipment used, talk to the people that shoot good. I have a BAT actioned 6 Dasher for F-class and have 2 Borden Rimrock actioned benchrest rifles right now in 6 PPC. I also have a Savage Target actioned rifle and it sets most of the time, the trigger's suck as I have a Rifle Basic's trigger installed and it is just OK. I own 6 Jewels and love them. I use Krieger and Bartlien barrels for most of my riles. Good Luck

 

[Dgd6mm]

ok. thanks for the answers. this is the sort of info i was looking for.

still would like some recommendations of custom f-class rifle vendors. as for kelby's i did buy both of my march scopes there and they are about the only builder i know of currently for this type of rifle. just would like info on others that might be recommended.

about 6 dasher. seems like the only issue with that round is fire-forming and one way to do that is to partially turn the neck and shoot it and even for that first shot it can be very accurate. in general i dont want to get into fire-forming or COW etc but if that first shot is not a waste of powder and bullet then that round is worth considering.

finally and sheese.. looking into front rests. this is a new area for me as i have always used a bipod or bags. but looks like the top contenders are expensive and in the case of the SEB NEO almost a two year wait..

also, anyone know the wait from kelby's and also for the farley front rest? i know i can call but im still the 'gathering info' stage.

i think that my local club (riverbend) does f-class (merged with other 600yd competitions) so i plan to attend one of their matches to see what folks are using.

For forming Dasher brass I understand that DJ's brass service (site sponser) does hydraulic forming Dasher brass. You could buy a Bald Eagle rest for starters and either keep your eyes opened for a used Farley or Seb Neo or put an order in for a new one.

 

[Rustystud]

You can't go wrong with a Kelbly Panda FClass, Borden RimRock, Pierce, or Bat action. Each has it's own best features.
Nat Lambeth

 

[boltfluter]

Norma will be making 6 Dasher brass. Should have all your bases covered shortly. Have fun. ;D

Regards, Paul

www.boltfluting .com