A question for the guys who have handled and shot a bunch of these, what would be a good all rounder chambering in a model 20 Nula? Anything from coyotes to moose, factory ammo isn't an issue as I reload, but brass is. Deer will be the primary target, followed by coyotes, with a possible elk or moose. I have other cartridges when targeting elk and moose, it would be more out of a "chance meeting" that it would be used for them. Shot range would be 20yds-600yds.

I've got a few cartridges in mind, none of which I currently own so I don't have an intimate knowledge of any of them. 6.5 Creedmoor, 260 rem, 260ai, 6.5x264 Norma, 7mm-08, 7mm-08ai, and 284 win.

I like the 284 win but I'm not into the brass work involved in resizing and finding factory brass is like winning the lotto. The 6.5 Creedmoor and standard 260 and 7mm-08 seem like the most logical choices, but added performance of the AI versions and the 6.5x284 are tempting, however I've read that it might not be worth getting the 6.5x284 in a model 20.

So with this info I'm hoping to get a little direction on which way to go with this build.

I'd roll with the 6.5 Creedmoor!!

Because the mag box is a tad over 3 inches, I would go 260 or 7mm-08.

I have a model 20 in 284 and I had no issues finding brass, I bought Norma brass here: https://www.bullets.com/products/-284-Winchester-Brass-Cases-100-Count/BL11927 and it will last a very long time, but I also have necked up 6.5x284, it very easy, just a pass through the 284 sizing die.

I went with a 260 Remington.

My rifle should be done soon.

I'd go with the 7-08 or .260. As lhead pointed out, the mag box length negates the advantage of the creedmoor, since you won't be shooting factory ammo.

I got the .260 but like you I have other rifles I'd use for big stuff (if I ever get a moose tag). Not that the .260 wouldn't work.

So if it'll be used mostly for deer & coyotes, to me that points to a .260. Or even a .243.

no real purpose in the 6.5 Creedmoor as long as the 260 Rem exist

With that mag box length, I'd get a 260 AI w/ a 1-8 barrel. Brass can be formed from any 308 case or you can just order Lapua 260 brass.

.284 Winchester, the original cartridge the Model 20 was designed around.

+1

Yep, and brass isn't a surmountable issue.

What is the reason for picking the 260ai over the 7mm-08?

In my head I've got it between the 260 rem and the 7mm-08 for the simplicity of it, I've been trying to talk myself out of the 260ai but truth be told, the 260ai definitely holds a cool factor over the others imo. Not to mention it would be a neat addition to my model 24 280ai.

308 winchester...great brass available, great loaded ammo available

As I see it, the 260 is a reloading proposition since there isn't a lot of quality factory ammo for it. Since you're going to be reloading, you might as well AI it.

I love the 7-08 but think the new high BC 6.5 bullets rate a build.

Since you have a 280ai, the 260 and 708 would be redundant. Why not go 22-250 with a fast twist barrel to shoot 22 cal heavies? Would be fine for anything through mule deer, you can shoot bigger stuff with the 280.

I should have also mentioned I'm hunting Alberta, 23cal or bigger to hunt big game. I want a short action with shorter barrel than my model 24, it's more about the rifle than the cartridge, but the cartridge has to fit a short action and preferably a 22" barrel.

Is that specifically with respect to a 3" magazine NULA, or is that a general statement?

What about an 8-twist .243, 6mm Rem, or 6-.284?

there is plenty of good 260 ammo out there and with the 3 inch magazine the difference between the 6.5 creedmoor and the 260 when shooting longer bullets is very darn little with the velocity advantage going to the 260

I'd be just as happy with the 7-08AI. With a 3.00"+ mag, you have room to load the best .264" and .284" bullets, and seat them out to the throat without encroaching on powder space. There are awesome bullets made for both. Hornady has the 147 ELD in .264" and the 180 ELD in 7mm, in addition to there being a number of other excellent offerings from Barnes and others. I'd be thinking about bullet availability in our AO as the biggest differentiating factor.

I have a pile of 284 bullets, Barnes LRX, Nosler LRAB, and Hornady ELD-X bullets not to mention a bunch of the regular 120gr and 140gr TTSX, Accubond's, SST's, BST's, Partitions and probably a few from Speer for my 280's, I haven't even looked for any 6.5's since I briefly owned a 260rem a few years back. I only owned that rifle for a couple months before I sold it though, so I didn't get a real feel for the caliber as far as availability of components was concerned.

With those components on hand, a 7-08/AI makes sense.

Do you have any expirience with a 7-08ai?

Shot a friend's AI some and have my own SAAMI though they may get punched. If I had one w/ a 3" mag box it'd definitely be AI'd.

The brass situation isn't so bad. . .get the .284 Win.

Why is this thread continuing? Melvin also says .284 yet other's here disagree.

That being the case, how 'bout a 243 Win/AI or 6x45 or 250SavageAI? And as mentioned, the 6.5 Creemore could be in the mix as well. Fun project, whatever you go with!

Cause he's got a 280AI. And variety is the spice of life!

Well that makes things simple.

It's never been as easy to find 6.5mm bullets around here, as .224, .243, 7mm, .308 bullets. That's why my last few rifles have been in various 7mm chamberings instead of throwing in a 6.5mm or two.

.284-based brass isn't all that easy to find up here, even at the best of times. Finding .308-based brass is effortless.

This.....or 6.5/284. Take advantage of an action that does this well.

Lapua 6.5/.284 brass is probably available, if not exactly inexpensive, and easily necked up.

I haven't looked lately but the last time I did

Nosler/Norma 284 brass was available in 2-3 places.

Has that changed?

Jerry

John, are the .284 Model 20's three down or only two?

As I recall three, but it's been a while since I've seen one.

However, even if they only held two in the magazine, I've never run my 2-down NULA 28 in .257 Weatherby dry.

I just moments ago ordered Norma brand from Graf's. They had Lapua in stock. I didn't even look specifically at the others although there were other brands in stock as well.

With the abundance of 7-08 brass available to me, I'm wondering if the 7-08ai would be the way to go? Like I said, I have limited to no experience with these cartridges, but I think both the 260ai and the 7-08ai would be running on the 6.5x284 and the 284win's tails, but barrel and mag length wouldn't be an issue maybe?

I'd do a 260 AI with the 3" magazine, the 284 based cartridges are pushing it in a 3" magazine with today's long bullets. I HATE being constrained by the magazine, I've run into it too many times and refuse to ever build something that's going to possibly not allow me to touch the lands with plenty of room to spare using any bullet I want.

I also wouldn't pick a cartridge just because I had a bunch of bullets or brass on hand. Seems kind of silly to base a decision on a $3500 rifle over a few hundred bucks worth of leftover components.

Too much is made of barrel length also, any of those rounds will be fine with a 22" barrel.

308 winchester or 284 winchester !

The .284 is slightly over .01" longer than the 7mm-08, so there's no problem with magazine length. With 140-160 grain bullets, it gets about 100 fps more than 7-08 when loaded to equal pressures.

The 7-08 AI gains very little powder room over the standard round. Like most modern rounds with relatively little body taper, the velocity gains of the AI are mostly due to handloaders heating it up to higher pressures. When loaded to the same pressures as the standard 7-08, its velocities are closer to the 7-08 than the .284.

About the only real advantage of the 7-08 AI is almost complete elimination of case stretching. If that's important to you, it would be the choice. Personally, if I were set on the 7-08 case in a Model 20, I'd go with the standard round.

I do differ with this. At 3.000" with a 139 Scenar, a 260 has 48.5gr of usable case capacity and a 6.5-284 has 62.0. No comparison. Any good gunsmith will throat the thing just the way you wish.

257 Weatherby

308 family brass would definitely be cheaper and easier to find than 284.

You didn't mention what you plan to hunt. I've killed about 75 big game animals with a 7-08, including hogs, whitetail, mule deer, antelope and black bear. Ranges were 3 steps (hog) to 500 yards (antelope). None of those were guided hunts - I did all the meat processing myself and I saw first hand what the wound entailed. At no point did I ever say, "Damn, I wish I'd brought a bigger gun." I've also hunted elk with a 7-08. They didn't cooperate for some reason, but I did so with total confidence.

I can't see how you'd be disappointed with a 7-08 (or the 260 or their AI cousins) but you have only yourself to please here. If you're really wanting a 6.5x284, by all means scratch that itch. The only real risk to a 7-08 (or 260) is you might like the new rifle's mild manners and efficiency so much that the .280 doesn't go out the door much.

The stubby 308 based cartridges just can't run with the big dogs.
Go big, go fast.

It'll certainly be faster, but that's not what the OP asked. If you want faster then bigger case is faster, no arguing that. My main deer rifle is a 6.5x47 lapua and I wouldn't trade it for a pile of 260's or 6.5x284's, it just depends upon what he's looking for. There's a lot to be said for smaller cases and less recoil in a light short action rifle.

That 139 scenar is also going to be seated really deep in a 6.5x284 if you have the throat cut to stay within 3.00", same with a 140 berger VLD. Most guys shooting the long 6.5 bullets are around 3.2" with that case. I like plenty of magazine length, I'm tired of trying to stuff too much case in too small a magazine. It's caused too many problems for me over the years. The 284 case was designed for a short action in the years before the long bullets we have now, to get the most out of it now it needs to be on a long action.

I've yet to know a hunter who practiced more and/or shot better with the "big dogs" in a light rifle like the NULA.

260/7-08/AI for the win.

Crow hunter,

The 139 Scenar doesn't have to be seated nearly as deeply as the 140 VLD, which is one of its advantages. But neither one would be a problem in a 6.5/.284 with a 3" magazine, and contrary to popular belief seating relatively skinny bullets a little deeper doesn't reduce case capacity enough to make any significant difference in velocity.

But I don't think RBO is considering the 6.5/.284 anyway. It was mentioned to illustrate the difference in case capacity between the .308 and .284 cases.

Thanks. I'm buying a rifle for my son who is transferring to a technology center in Eastern Europe. He'll join me for the annual hunts in Scotland that we've done each year since 1997.

I understand that 2 down is fine for some, but I spent several years in this same geography and MANY times ran a 4 down rifle dry shooting boar, so 2 down is a non-starter.

I'll probably give him a Blaser R8 in 7x64 as they are ubiquitous with the European employees there who hunt. (And, because I'm a 7mm s!ut)

Also, fwiw, my wife has hunted a pre "N" ULA in 7mm-08 for near 2 decades in 7 countries... Great rifle.

Not on your list the, 257 Roberts speaks dual purpose cartridge "deer and coyotes". All the cartridges above would obviously work but for me I'd work from the bottom up in terms of recoil. Next I'd go 6.5 Creed, 260 R.E.M. etc.ect. ect

Just re read your original post, and saw the 600 yd range. I'd go 6.5 creed or 260.

I am considering the 6.5x284, but like I said I've never had any expirience with it and when I started researching I found most guys were saying a 3" mag box was too short. As a matter of fact, my first call to Melvin on this rifle I was thinking it was going to be a 6.5x284, but then after further research I started thinking 7-08. So I figured I'd post on hear and hear from the guys who actually have, or have had a Nula in one or more of these chambering.

I've got a Forbes 25-06, too close to the Bob I think.

With that said, I'd go with something that isn't hard to reload for, easy brass, not over bore, light on recoil. Fun to shoot.

And there in lays the problem. I seem to be going in circles with this build. I want a handy little rifle that's capable of killing coyotes-moose. So I want a small gun like a 260/7-08, but then I start thinking well why not a small gun that's got some spunk in the likes of the 284win and 6.5x284 Norma. Then I start thinking how much effort do I want to put into loading for this gun, specially since I plan on using it quite often. Then I think, hey, it's a Nula, might as well make is something you don't see that often....... And around I go.

I guess I was hoping to hear get "X" cartridge because it's the best thing since sliced bread. They've all got their pro's and con's, I just want to get the most out of this Nula.

The NULA was originally built around the 284. "Up to moose"..... You have your answer.

If deer and moose were 1&2 I might be tempted to go bigger. With deer and coyote 1&2 the 6.5's with 123-140's for coyotes-deer-moose.

For me it would be an easy choice of 7mm-08 because it is plenty big, and easy to find ammo if I ever didn't want to or couldn't reload.

I haven't had experience with any of the cartridges mentioned in the original post, but I've used a Model 20 in .308 for elk hunting a couple of times during the last seven or eight years. I'm not a long-range hunter, but my rifle has worked well at ranges a little over 300 yards. Never shot a deer with the NULA, but I've used the .308 cartridge in other rifles for deer hunting.

The 3" magazine length of the Model 20 has proven to be an advantage in that my favorite load gets best accuracy by seating the bullet to an OAL too long for the magazines in most other .308-length actions.

Mule Deer,

I'm just trying to illustrate a hypothetical, I personally am not going to shoot either a 139 scenar or a 140 VLD at game. To quote our favorite troll here, "boolits ain't getting any shorter". New bullets are coming fast and furious right now and the last thing I'd want is to be limited by magazine constraints on the newest wonder bullet in my new custom rifle in a couple of years. I understand the NULA was designed years ago for the 284 case and that you can seat bullets deeper, I don't like doing that though because it gets into the donut and the gunsmith that builds my rifle advises against it. I've found better accuracy & less fussiness with rifles properly throated for the bullets I'm using. At one time 3.0" was plenty for a 6.5x284 just like 2.8" was adequate for a 260 Remington. That's not true now so we have the 6.5 creedmoor that better fits in the short action.

I'm just trying to save the OP from some of the troubles I've run into over the years with magazine constraints and let him think about his options. If that ruffles feathers then I apologize.

I'm not sure if I'm off track here, but the advantage I see with the AI's and the .284's is that like on most (not all) rifles I've loaded for it's usually a mid or upper mid range load that has produced the most accuracy. If a guy can load the 6.5mm or 7mm bullets in an AI to an accurate load that would be at the top end speed of the 260rem or regular 7mm-08 but not necessarily at max load for the AI's, or the .284's.


Another question I have is, does a model 20 with a 22" number 1 contour barrel balance as nice as a model 24 with a 24" number 2 contour barrel? The reason I want a model 20 is because I was so impressed with the fit and feel of the 24 that I wanted to see what the lighter virsion does. Maybe I'm best off just to get a 6.5x284 in a model 24 with a 24" barrel if it balances out better than the model 20?

So John, how many .284s do you own?🤔

Cool factor doesn't kill anything and you may find out if you ever want to sell, your cool factor isn't so cool with all that many. Not sure how neat factors into what I would want in a rifle.

AI version of any of them isn't going to kill anything the non-AI will not. Less trimming as JB mentioned is their advantage.

A 20 with a 22in, balances and feels different than a 24 with a 24in. Both balance great, but the 20 will be quicker in the hand. Have a 7mm-08-and a couple others-and sometimes I wish it was a no. 2 contour. Other times I wouldn't change a thing. .22-250 balances much different and the .223AI different again. They all are balanced, but each handles differently. The .223AI seems to disappear in your hand. It definitely would have had a little more barrel.



Get what you want. Or take a tally and get the campfire consensus. Maybe that will be what you want.

+1

Mid to high-end loads shooting best in any given chambering is a matter of pressure in that chambering, not so much absolute velocity. So that will typically apply to any of the chamberings you're considering.

That's what I was getting at. You'll be going faster half throttle in a mustang than half throttle in an escort.

if thats what you are looking for is the most bang for your buck in the velocity department in a model 20 nula then the 284 winchester and 6.5-284 should be your picks in the calibers your looking at....you could also consider the 25-284/6mm-284 for something different but i am thinking to get the most velocity in what calibers fit into the model 20 you would have to go with a 284 winchester based cartridge

Crow hunter,

The "donut" is normally caused by necking cases up, because the top of the shoulder (which is typically thicker brass than the neck itself) becomes the bottom of the neck. It isn't there in factory 6.5/.284 Lapua brass, but can occur when necking up 6.5/.284's to .284, though it's an easy fix with an inside reamer.

But apparently target shooters have been averse to reaming out the donut. David Tubb was even trying to avoid it when he came up with the 6XC, which was partly designed to be short enough so he could seat long 105-115 grain bullets in necked-up .22-250 cases. But once Norma started making 6XC cases, there wasn't any donut, because they weren't necked down .22-250's.

There's also no donut in factory .284 brass (whether the original Winchester or the more recent run made by Norma) which is why there was no problem even though standard hunting bullets had to be seated below the neck in the .284.

In a 2.84" short magazine, the shoulder of the .284 case starts a little over .9" from the front of the magazine. Thus the base of any bullet longer than .9" protrudes below the bottom of the neck. Let's use the 139-grain Hornady flat-base Interlock Spire Point as an example, one of the shorter 7mm bullets in the 140-grain range. It averages 1.135 inch long, so over .2" of the bullet's base is below the .284's neck when seated to an overall length of 2.8".

In fact, if avoiding seating bullets below the neck of the case should be avoided at all costs, then the .260 a 7mm-08 would present the same problem with some bullets, even in the NULA's magazine. I've found about the longest cartridge OAL possible in several Model 20's to insure sure feeding is 2.95", and many bullets of both target and hunting types would have to be seated below the neck to fit.

The cartridge that would avoid seating MOST 6.5mm bullets below the case neck would be the 6.5 Creedmoor. I've played considerably with four 6.5 Creedmoors, and own two right now. The only brass used so far has been Hornady, and I haven't encountered the slightest problem in occasionally seating some bullets below the neck, because there are no donuts in Hornady Creedmoor brass.

But so far RBO's consideration has been pretty much fixed on the .260 and 7mm-08, apparently because of the ease of finding brass. And in either case he'd have to seat some bullets below the neck.

RBO,

I have pointed this out already, though not as specifically: There's so little case capacity gained by AI'ing either the .260 or, especially, the 7-08 that the velocity gained is at most 2%.

I was once sent a custom 7mm-08 for testing, made by a famous gunsmith who really believed in the magic of the cartridge. The gain in case capacity was 7%, which sounds impressive--except any gain in case capacity only results in 1/4 as much gain in velocity, when both cases are loaded to the same pressure. This translates to a gain of less than 2% in velocity, or around 50 fps. The gunsmith's own handloads got just about exactly 2900 fps with 140-grain Ballistic Tips, and a little over 2700 with 160-grain Sierra GameKings. It is pretty easy to get the same velocities using published data in the standard 7-08, and in fact I've done it in every one of the several 7-08's I've owned, all with 22" barrels.

Now, the gunsmith's rifle did have a slightly shorter barrel, as I recall 21". So in a 22" 7-08 AI you might be able to beat them by 25-50 fps.

Melvin doesn't strongly prefer one case to another; he has told me it is a matter of how much horsepower you want for a given bullet diameter. He chose the .284 Win to allow high performance with the .284 diameter. I have a .284 NULA and recently ordered a .260 Rem NULA. I can also tell you from experience that a longer barrel will increase the effective horsepower. When you start with a package as light as a NULA, you can afford to put more weight and length into the barrel and still have a modest total weight. Many people hold the 22" as a sacred length, and it is a reasonable compromise. They then cite its "handiness" for hunting, especially in the thick stuff. When asked what their cousin Bubba uses, he replies that Bubba likes his 12 gauge with "punkin balls" and of course the 30" full choke barrel. I hunt in the West and haven't found a situation where barrel length was all that critical for "handiness." Just as you can go to a "magnum" case capacity and gain 150-200 fps, a longer barrel can do it. No mystery there--see Hatcher's Notebook which reports trials from about a century ago, with the powders available then (you can do better today!)

Melvin has also gone back and forth on the .284 depending on the brass available. For many years Winchester didn't replace their forming dies, and as they wore the uniformity of the brass suffered. As a result, he'd only recommend the .284 to real loony handloaders who'd spend the time "unforming" the cases, and the 7mm-08 to people who didn't want the bother, or non-handloaders.

Then Winchester finally replaced their forming dies, and for a while their brass was pretty good again. And the Norma brass was of course good. But that's the deal with the .284: If you want the most horsepower in a 7mm round in the Model 20, then brass is the key.

RBO,

I have owned several NULA's over the years. 6.5X.284., 280 .308,.260,.300Win, .257ROY, .264, and .223. All had 24 in bbl except the .223 & .264.

I still have the .264, .308, .260, and .223. Of all of those the .308 is by far the one I have used the most. I know it's trajectory and it has been pretty much poison on everything. Mostly deer of various flavors,a moose & cow elk. Been shooting the .260 a lot lately and will probably use it for mule deer this year.
The only one that didn't shoot well was the .280. I bought it used...It was owned by Craig Boddington. The bore was scratched and nicked inside??? Melvin re barreled and we sold the rifle.
The 6.5X.284 was OK, but velocities were on the low side and after 1000 rounds or so it was showing a lot of throat erosion so it was re barreled to .260.
I thought about a .284 before I got the .308 but Melvin actually did not recommend it due to the poor quality brass available at the time.
I prefer the short model 20's with a 24" barrel. Just a perfect combination of balance and handling, and a little xtra velocity. Any of the short action calibers will work for deer, but if I had to do it over again it would be a plain Jane .308.

Lefty C

284

I have a 6.5/284 in a NULA rifle with 24-inch barrel. It's accurate, well balanced and as lightweight as I want it. The magazine is long enough for generous seating of all hunting bullets I can think of and all but freakishly long match bullets. A good idea when ordering any 6.5/284: specify chamber dimensions or send a case or cartridge to ensure the rifle chambers and performs well with the ammunition you have in mind. Several versions of the 6.5/284 have shown up since the .284 appeared in 1963. Differences are small but can be significant.... WvZ

Is yours a model 20?

My Model 20 has a 3" magazine, which is plenty long enough for the .284 cartridge.

I've read a lot of guys saying the 6.5x284 is a barrel burner. I can see that maybe being an issue in a match rifle but is it something to worry about in a hunting rifle like your Nula?

Nope. I have had a hunting 6.5-.284 for a number of years and have not seen any notable erosion. Now I don't go prairie dogging with it, but it seems no more erosive than other cartidges.

I turned mine loose on prairie dogs a couple of times. By 1000 rnds it was pretty well toast.
I also used the cartridge in 1000yd BR,which is also pretty rough on barrels. It was competitive to about 1500 rnds.
The light barrel of the NULA gets pretty hot with 5 or 6 rounds fired close together. Unfortunately I put a lot more down range pretty quickly.

Lefty C.

I've been doing quite a bit of thinking on this over the past couple days and I think I'm going to go with the 6.5x284. I have a Nula 280ai so it's almost a ballisticc twin to the 284 and the 7-08 is just a watered down version. If I get a Creedmoor or 260rem I'm going to be wishing it had a bit more horsepower, and if I get a 7-08 or a 260 AI version I'll be having to form brass.

I would still like a 22" barrel, but going with a 24" barrel wouldn't be a deal breaker. Would it be foolish to get one with a 22" barrel?

I built mine to be medium weight and length as it is an all around gun
so it's 8.5 lbs and has a 23" barrel. I get 3085fps with 139 Scenars using 4831SC.

6.5x55 throated for a 125 gr Partition at 2.95" OAL.

I guess I do't really understand trying to make a NULA be something it isn't designed to be. Personally I would want a NULA to be a very light well balanced rifle for short to medium range hunting. If I needed a long range gun I would build one based on a different set of requirements.

I guess that would depend on how you define short, medium and long range.

One of the interest things about NULAs is, despite their light weight, they're accurate enough to work well at ranges many hunters (though not all) would consider long.

I've shot coyote-sized targets with my 260 at over 1000, and pd's at over 600.

Yeah, they'll do it if the shooter can, but many people equate "light" with "difficult to shoot."

I guess you'd have to understand the terrain I hunt and the animals that roam it.

I hunt the southern edge of the northern boreal forest, where the prairie plains, foothills, and boreal forest meet. Ungulates consist of whitetail and mule deer, elk and moose with the odd wild boar running about, and predators are coyotes, wolves, cougars, black bear, and grizzlies to name a few of the big ones.

I've made shots out to 700+yds with a Kimber Montana so I don't think wanting to do it with a Nula is unreasonable. I don't purposely go out to see if I can shoot something at 600yds, but sometimes that's the shot I'm presented with. I'm not a bench rest shooter for anything other than load development and sighting in. So other than big game hunting, the majority of my shooting is at coyotes, and some of those shots stretch out on on the prairies. I like packing a rifle when I'm out touring around the trails and while I'm shed hunting in the spring with my family and the bears are hungry.

I can't afford a rifle for every occasion so I like them to be as versatile as possible, specially if they cost over $2000.

I can understand that.My thinking is just that if 700 yard shots were more than a slim possibility I would want something more purpose built for that longer range.I know you could customize a NULA to make it fit that purpose better,but I think then you are moving away from it's primary advantages.Maybe that's what you really need though,a long range gun that is a little lighter than one built with a heavier action and stock. That's something only you can decide. I do however think that the more you try to make it excel in every area,the less it really excels in any.

Even in a thread like this,your need will be drastically different from any one else.Where I live you are lucky to ever have a spot open enough for even a 300 yard shot. My needs and desires would be vastly different from yours,so you can get plenty of opinions but none will really be relevant to your particular situation because every opinion is based on a different set of needs.

Melvin is building my .260 with 26" barrel, although he feels 24" is also appropriate. I expect my choice to be as fast as a 22" 6.5-284 and a lot easier on the barrel. Before you say how heavy it will be, remember that the rest of the NULA package is very light, so the rifle will still end up on the light side, and the extra weight out front will help stability, at least it does for me.

Has anyone with a model 20 actually measured the inside of the mag box?

The reason I ask is because I went to the local Cabelas and actually measured (with a tape measure) a factory loaded Berger 140gr HSM VLD and it measured just a hair over 3", if I were to guess I'd say about 3.050". If that would fit into a model 20 mag box it'd be plenty long for what I will ever use.

My model 20 in 284 measures 3.15

longbarrel...what taper is Melvin using for that 26 inch barrel ?

That's perfect, if a factory 140gr VLD will fit I should have no problems with a 129gr LRAB.

I do believe that's the route I'll go. Model 20, 6.5x284 Norma 24" number 2 contour barrel and call it a day.

Thanks for all the helpful info guys.

lhead71,

That's very interesting, because the magazine in my wife's .257 Robert measures slightly over 3.02. But I wouldn't be surprised if Melvin was putting slightly longer magazines in them these days, because there's enough bolt travel to accomodate it.

When was yours made? My wife's M20 is the most recent one we have, made in 2002.

My NULA's

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/2884931/Re:_My_New_NULA__with_Pictures#Post2884931

Mine was made in 2014

I think he said #3 for the 26" .260. My 28" .284 is #4.

Wholly smokes....... Longbarrel, you ain't kidding!

yeah thats what i was thinking a 26 inch would be a #3

I call the .284 a .284 Magnum since it performs like a 7 mag with a "normal" barrel length.