baldie

I've long sold the ASE range Terry. personally, I dont think there is a better mod, but that's just my opinion. The boreloc system works well, but it has to be kept clean, because it has to be tight. Fail to lock it up, and you will get problems. This means that the borelock/threads etc, need a good fettle after use, or they quickly get carbon fouled, and dont lock up. the SL7i is a mod I use on my .338 when not using the brake/Mod system. It tames recoil like you wouldn't believe. Also had a B and T that went over an AI brake a good few years ago. despite it being a .338 mod, it tamed a 6.5 , stupidly quiet. Sold it with the rifle, and wish I hadn't. Sit down if you price one up. Bet they are thick end of a Grand now.

Had a morning with it yesterday. All I had loaded were some leftovers from the AR build. These were 90 grain SMK's and some 85 grain RDF's, in fairly sedate loads. The barrel appeared to break in at around 20 rounds, and the gun then started producing 1/2" 5 rd groups with both bullets. It was limited somewhat by the 10 power scope fitted, but so far seems to be proving my theory that its going to work better in a bolt gun. There is plenty of room for more powder, as the primers were perfectly round, and no hint of stiff bolt lift. It was doing 2750 with an sd of 9 with these underpowered loads. Recoil was very mild, and the gun very pleasant to shoot.

the starline brass is readily available, and its half decent. I also have some Federal inbound to try. The cartridge seems to shoot anything. Its designed for heavies though, and i've finally settled on the 90 grain sierra Matchking. Had great results with the nosler RDF in different weights too.

Just got this back from the proof house . After the success of the .224 valkyrie in both barrel lengths, built on an AR15, I decided to build a bolt action, as I felt the cartridge could be pushed just that little bit more , from a bolt gun. The Bighorn TL3 action is fitted with a 6.8 SPC bolt head, and I then made up a 24" barrel for it. The blank is one of Sassen's cut rifled 1-7" Twists, in a Rem varmint profile. beautiful blanks, and this was no different. No copper in it from proof. Muzzle is threaded m18 x 1 and has one of my brakes. All bead blasted. Trigger is a Bix n Andy. Stock is a McMillan Game scout, and the usual full bedding all the way through. Floorplate is a Stiller unit. Magazines are AI 10 rounders, fitted with my 6mmBr conversion, which feeds Valkyrie, beautifully. Fitted it with my old NXS 2.5-10 and titanium mounts. This will be used by me for CSR this season, along with the AR in the same calibre.

fill your profile in please.

Plus, it keeps the interest going😂

What is doesn't give you...is recoil. The valkyrie is very mild indeed. Faster target re acquisition It also doesn't kill barrels like the 22-250. Federals test barrels were still going at 5000 rounds. It was designed from the ground up, to shoot heavy bullets from an AR15 platform [mag length ] which it does very well. I think it will work even better in a bolt gun.

I've just built another up for myself. The first barrel is a .224 Valkyrie with a 6.8SPC bolt head. The second, i haven't quite decided on calibre yet, but am edging towards a 6mm Creedmoor. When the first one comes back from proof, i'll spin up another and send it back. In theory, yes, you can make a barrel without the action, as the tolerances are that good, but you still need the action to proof it with. From doing extensive testing of the Valkyrie in one of my AR15's in both 20" and 24" barrel lengths, its proved to be good...very good, but i couldn't help but think, a bolt gun would wring that little bit more out of the cartridge. There is a point in the AR where you start to hit hard extraction. i think a bolt gun would allow a little bit more powder. However, I think the weak point will be the brass. Using starline at the moment, and its not bad, but have some federal coming, which may be just that bit better. I can only live in hope, that one day, Lapua take it on. There are a lot of AR's and now American bolt guns, being chambered in it. A very versatile action, is the Bighorn.

i have the Curtis flush fitting 3 rd mags in stock.

Not put anything up for a while, so here is todays gun finished earlier. Enjoy these sort of jobs, where I have a free reign to go at. The customer wanted a Tactical style rifle to shoot tactical, McQueens and CSR with. Calibre of choice being the 6.5 creedmoor. Such a rifle needs to be portable, not overly long, and eminently usable from all positions especially. The heart of the gun is the superb Bighorn TL3 action. Its great feature, is that its controlled round feed. Doesn't jam...period. Fixed lug, and removable bolt head to change calibre if required, giving a very versatile platform. A 1-8" twist Bartlien was fitted, with 24" of bore. Muzzle threaded M18 x 1 and invisible capped. 11 degree target crown. Also, my 3 port brake. The trigger is a Bix n Andy Tacsport model, with the stronger spring in to 1.5 kg practical class weight, for CSR. 2 Stage. All metalwork finished in Cerakote patriot brown. The stock is a McMillan A5. First job was to machine out and bed in the Third eye floor plate. This went in, after I had set up the pillars. I like to do this with the barrelled action in the vice, and adjust to pillars to give the best feed/fit. Its no good whatsoever, using the pillars that come with the floorplate. They are not a one-size-fits-all. I make my own to exact length, adding or subtracting to accommodate each different stock/feed height. Once cured, the action is then machined out for, and bedded. This gives a continuous bed, all the way through the stock. The floorplate cannot then move , independent of the action. Feed stays the same, irrespectively. The ejection port had to be lowered and lengthened for this action. Once done, it was onto the paint. The base is Coyote tan. Then the pattern is Patriot brown, AI dark earth, sand, and armour black. Buried under matt lacquer. Magazines are the American Rifle Co , double stack, central feed units. These have shorter lips, and are designed specifically for CRF actions, but they work perfectly in push feed designs too. About the same depth as an AW 10 rounder too. Enjoyed building this one immensely.

Good to hear you are back Josh. Having seen your barrels in action, including a 30 odd shot string at the RBL one year, and the resultant group, your barrels are the only carbon barrels I would touch. I look forward to using some buddy. Good luck in your venture.

Your reply should be pinned Laurie. More sense talked in that post than has been posted on here in years. The utter marketing bullshit published by the bullet makers beggars belief sometimes. They forget that that 99% of the market just want good results out of a magazine system. My go to .260 bullet, is still the sierra SMK 140/142 grainers. They work. Bergers ? I think I've only ever bought one box . Yes, they are good. I only tend to function properly with two kidney's unfortunately.

Funny you should mention that mr C. I get a lot of squaddie customers. The british army is made up of 50% snipers, the other 50% are in 22 Reg. ? Fitted a 9mm mod to a ruger 77 .357 last week. The guy was a guinea pig for a local club who have noise issues. They simply want to carry on shooting. The club has been there for over 50 years. The local, ever encroaching housing estates...haven't.

Both.?

Heck, if they are making them in Inconel, they aren't messing about. I shudder to think what they will cost.

From what I understand about them, they are printed titanium ? Of course, the big advantage to printing, is that Labyrinth designs are available, that cannot be made by conventional methods. They are supposed to be very quiet indeed.

Not sure where people think the supposed "hype" around the creedmoor is coming from ? The cartridge has been around since 2007. I built one of the very first in the UK, and in that time, think I have worn out several reamers. It is without a doubt, the most popular cartridge today. Yes, it was slow in the early years, and I have to admit, I kept quiet about it, simply because it was so good, and a real breath of fresh air at the side of the .260. Its old ground, but the cartridge, to me, has no drawbacks at all. Not something you can say about any of the other 6.5 chambering really. 1 . It was designed from the ground up to have a similar performance to the .260, but with a better shoulder and neck length. 2. It was designed to take a 120 and 140 grain, secant ogive bullet, and put it onto the lands, out of the industry std AI length magazine. 3. No feed issues. 4. Short action, .308 bolt faced Action. 5. Good choice of brass now. 6. Will run on a wide variety of powders 7. Will run adequately on a 20" barrel, though a bit more length never hurts if real long range is the goal. My last barrel was 20" and I shot it to 1000 yards happily. 8. Reasonable barrel life, certainly no less than any of the others. 9. A wide variety of factory ammunition, should one not reload. I also love the 6.5 x47. I've just put a new barrel on one of my AX's, but specifically for 123's, which I have always liked. I run heavier 140's etc in the creedmoor. The .260, 6.5 x 47, and the swede are all excellent rounds, but do not fulfil the 9 points above, in one respect or another.

The swede is still a performer, but you certainly won't get the best out of its case capacity from a 20" barrel.

Tell that to the 130 or so souls that line up at Bisley to shoot CSR at 600 yards. We do it with 20" or sometimes less. To do it with a .223, you need everything right. Get yourself some decent ammo buddy. ?

The big difference being, this will work in a short action with heavy bullets. The 6.5 x 284 won't. It was designed primarily as a PRS round. They dont use long actions.

Hmm... Been chewing this one over for some time. 1. Looking at the SAAMI spec, the maximum OAL will just go into a AX double stack mag, though it would require modification to the follower. 2. It will runs similar speeds with same bullet weights as a creedmoor, but the CM will need 28" and the PRC around 22" 3. Only trouble is that Hornady make the brass. The CM brass is renowned for getting trashed at top end loads/speeds. Personally, I think it would be better built on a magnum long action , to make better use of seating depths. It would feed from an AI .300wm mag. Sod it, i'll get a reamer. Man's gotta have a hobby. ?

Stainless.

Bluing, is a controlled form of surface reaction, not unlike rust. The tikka steel obviously has a high carbon content [ not good quality steel ] to rust so easily. Pig iron almost. Their "stainless" is as bad. Not all stainless steels are actually stainless however. Its quite frightening how fast their stainless will erode, when a moderator is left on it. A good quality oil will help. WD40 is a water displacer, and not one I would pick for protection personally. Brunox is good, but Birchwood casey Barricade is excellent, i've used that for years, both in the shop, and at home. It also smells nice. Cerakote will stop the problem. If you think the exterior is bad, pay very close attention to the bore. Almost all chrome moly barrels I get through in the shop, have rotted out, rather than shot out. I personally would not have one given....stainless every time.

First thing to do is a get a new titanium extractor...the std ones are not good. The old magazines were not good either, but there are newer versions about. They benefit from an internal tune and spring kit in the trigger. Much the same as a Ruger really.

in a remington 597.....ammunition for reliability and accuracy....will not be your main problem.