Short or Long Action?

[M. Padilla]

What is the 6.5x47 Lapua round considered--short action? or long action?

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

Short action.

 

[Erik Cortina]

Short action.

Correct.

 

[Cort]

I don't want to take over the thread but I am curious. What is the effect of the action length on accuracy? Assuming that the barrel headspaces the same on both actions and that the bedding/stock relationships are equivalent, will a short action shoot tighter than a long action with the same barrel?

Cort

 

[XTR]

I don't want to take over the thread but I am curious. What is the effect of the action length on accuracy? Assuming that the barrel headspaces the same on both actions and that the bedding/stock relationships are equivalent, will a short action shoot tighter than a long action with the same barrel?

Cort

I don't know about accuracy but it adds weight and a long bolt cycle. That said there are a number of bullets that are designed as short action bullets that tactical competition shooters and hunters will put into a long action order to be able to seat long bullets and still feed. The 284Win and any of the short magnums come to mind.

 

[Turbulent Turtle]

I don't want to take over the thread but I am curious. What is the effect of the action length on accuracy? Assuming that the barrel headspaces the same on both actions and that the bedding/stock relationships are equivalent, will a short action shoot tighter than a long action with the same barrel?

Cort

In theory, a short action is more rigid than a long action, in theory. Also remember that in theory, everything works.

 

[VaniB]

The best thing for you to do is to try and determine what kind of bullet you are interested in loading, and what OAL cartridge length you think it will be producing. For example, might it be a long VLD bullet with the base above the shoulder-neck joint? If so, check and be sure then that the OAL will fit in the magazine of a short action.

While I automatically would equate certain cases like the 260 and 284 to be suitable for a long action, in my my mind a 6.5x47 really begs for a short action.

 

[Hombre0321]

I will add this, I bought a stocked Pierce action. Action in a McMillan stock also came with a 1.5 oz jewell. Plans were to just leave it in the safe and maybe do something with it later. The action was a long action. Well after just a couple of weeks it bugged me to see it there and not complete to shoot. So I built it, ordered a Shehane MBR Tooley stock and a Kreiger Barrel's in 6MM and another one in 6.5. First came the 6mmBR and it was just a pain in the butte. Oh the rifle shot very well, but most of the time the short BR case would hang up on the barrel and you had to fiddle with it to get it moving up into the chamber. I then went ahead and had the 6.5 barrel chambered for the 6.5x47L. Same thing sometimes they just catch the edge and you have to get them into the chamber by fiddling with it.

It is not a big deal but it does take time, and when you are trying to run a condition it breaks your rhythm. The rest of my custom rifles are on Farley or Defiance actions and they are both Coned Bolts and there is no edge to catch as the cone is the feeding ramp. I have sense done another 6.5 barrel this one in 6.5 06 Gibbs and it has no problem at all with this.

If I were doing another shorter cartridge like the 6.5X47L I would not use a long action unless it had a coned bolt.

Roland

 

[M. Padilla]

Roland, what in the world is a "coned" bolt??? Can you provide a pix?

 

[Hombre0321]

Sure picture shouldn't be a problem. I hope !! I may not be spelling this correctly, but I think I am. It is coned ( as in cone) the Tenon section of the barrel has the female side and the bolt is the male side. Makes it much easier for the bullet to find the chamber.

Roland

 

[Hombre0321]

Here is a non coned bolt chamber on the barrel side.
RS

 

[M. Padilla]

Thanks Roland. That explains a lot.

 

[Outrider27]

Just as a matter of historical interest, the coned breech system was used in a number of bolt action designs (partially to avoid collision with patents pertaining to the '98 Mauser action). Those that I recall are the 1903 Springfield, the 1917 Enfield, the Remington Model 30, the Winchester model 54 and the the Winchester model 70 (pre-'64 and early post '64). The 1968 redesign of the post '64 Model 70 eliminated the coned breech.