6BR: reamer/gunsmith question?

T

tiny68

Member
I am building a 6BR for an intro to BR rifle off of a Savage 12 VLP Single Shot. I will barrel it with a Shilen 1:14, probably about 21" with the idea of focusing in on the 65-68 gr match bullets. I have 2 other Shilens that I got as blanks, rented the reamers from Elks Ridge and had my smith chamber and thread. Both are excellent shooters for factory round (6mm Rem and 22-250). I have read that a BR gunsmith does things differently (based on the indexing) to make sure the chamber is exactly true to the bore. I also know that a sharp reamer is a required to get a good uniform chamber. I am going with a 0.272 (no turn neck) with zero freebore. Shilen list this reamer or I can rent it. The Shilen pre-fit price is about $100 cheaper than I can buy the blank, rent the reamer, and have my smith do it. Big question is "how good are the Shilen guys that mass produce the barrels" and what are the quality of their reamers. I am strongly considering buying my own from PTC.

Give me your thoughts for optimum accuracy:

1. Save a buck and go with the pre-fit from Shilen and put the extra $$ in a better scope.
2. Get the blank and send to a "true BR" gunsmith.
3. Get the blank and send to my trusty gunsmith, who doesn't claim to be BR quality.

Is a new sharp reamer a requirement?

I know this rifle will not be competitive. I know I am not a competitive shooter. I just want something I can afford to play with and if I want to spin my 22-250 Ackley barrel on and go wack a coyote I can. I want to start learning how to read conditions and reload for conditions. I have a long long ways to go.

Input please. Thanks, tiny
 
Although the

prefit Shillen is cheaper, the machine work and the reamer will almost certainly be a disappointment. You'll want to have your chamber reamed with a reamer that'll allow whatever bullet you'll be using for your choice of twist to touch the lands. The pre-fits usually are long throated so as to make a one size fits all type of chamber. Also, the tolerances on the pre-fits are really loose.

Your local smith may be fine..... it depends on what kind of equipment and methods he uses. I don't know how you can pre-judge his qualifications and equipment.

A real BR smith will give whatever barrel you choose the best chance to live up to it's full potential.
 
Shilen pre-fit or not

Quality gunsmiths are like good tailors; they will tailor a rifle to your exact accuracy requirements. I have a Savage single shot rig put together by Sharp Shooter Supply that has four Pac Nor pre-fit match grade barrels and one Douglas pre-fit from SSS. Several of the Pac-Nors were reamed with my own reamer that I sent to Pac Nor. These barrels shoot extremely well, but----------

They don't compare to the Kreiger and Hart barrels that are on blueprinted Rem. 40X and 700 actions that were chambered by a renowned benchrest quality smith using his reamers. They are two entirely different animals and you have to understand the limitations of each.

If you want extreme accuracy, a benchrest quality smith will, like a good tailor, give you exactly what you want. You will pay for this extra accuracy. If you want good varmint accuracy for whacking yotes or groundhogs, go with the pre-fits. You really have to decide what you want and go from there.
Chino69
 
Where do you live Tiny?

I was where you are now, about 4 months ago, and the guys on here have given me some great advice that is working well so far.
The fact that you are asking these questions tells me that you want a shooter, not a ok rifle, not a shotgun, but you want a long shooter.

So, No-turn necks, prechambered rifles, off brand actions, cheap triggers, unbedded and cheap stocks, cheap brass, cheap bullets, lousy loading technique etc etc, will all leave you disappointed at some point, when your skills evolve.

I've wasted money for years, looking for deals, and shortcuts on guns. I've never found one.

Start with a clear goal (superb shooting rifle for some discipline of benchrest), and work from the bullet outward, is what I think everyone will tell you.

Other opinions here?
 
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I would buy a quality reamer and head space gauge from Pacific Tool & Gauge. Have it ground for the bullets you intend to shoot. The 6mmBR Reamer I bought from Dave Kiff @ PTG is a live pilot type, has a .269" neck and .103" free bore. I shoot the 105-107's from my rifle. Total cost for the reamer and headspace gauge was $173.00. I would also buy a barrel blank, not a short chambered and threaded barrel. With a blank, it can be threaded to match your receiver. With your reamer, the chamber will be cut to your specs and headspace can be kept to a minimum / custom length. The Savage line of rifles and or receivers wouldn’t be my first choice but, it's what you have, run with it. There are Savages out there that flat out shoot.
 
Actually, perhaps you could ask some of these fine shooters/smiths to sell you a used BR barrel they have and fit to your Savage. Since you're starting out, save a few bucks, and learn on something that will probably shoot as good as the Savage will do anyway.

Just a thought.
 
1. Save a buck and go with the pre-fit from Shilen and put the extra $$ in a better scope.

The Shilen Barrels are quite good. We have had Shilen do 6 PPC barrels for our Pandas and all have been first rate.

I have a Kriger Barrel that Kriger did for my Savage in 6 BR with a 271 Neck. I shoots very good. Beats the 6 PPC when the wind is very heavy. Most of my Savage barrels have a shoulder rather than the Savage nut. Makes switching barrels easier.
 
Tiny
Last year I built exactly what you are contemplaning. A Savage 12 single shot action on a VLP stock, 6BR Norma with .272 nk. I used a 4 groove PacNor barrel and finished it to 24", standard Savage varmint contour with barrel nut. The gun shoots extremely well. I have done very well with it competing against real bench guns at both 600 and 200 yards in informal competitions.
That is my preface for recommending PacNor. I chambered and threaded the barrel so it isn't exactly what you would get with a prechambered PacNor barrel though.

James
 
As you say, you will not have a competition rifle, so it doesn't have winning matches as a purpose. Its purpose is to make you happy; so within your budget, do what gives you the most satisfaction. If you get hooked, you'll get a competition rifle someday, where .050 in groups size makes all the difference.

But technically, remember that all variables sum against you; you have to remove each one to get much of a total effect.

1/R1 + 1/R2 + . . . 1/Rn = 1/Rtotal

Fix any one of the R's and Rt doesn't drop much.

In other words, the best chamber won't be much improvement over a good chamber if your action isn't true, your brass uniformed, case necks turned even, & on & on.
 
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