Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Options for a 6.5 Swede

I've stumbled into the posession of a 1950 Husqvarna action in 6.5x55 (FN M98 commercial with HVA barrel). The bore is excellent, the action crisp, and bluing at about 90%. The question becomes "how far down the rabbit hole do i go"?

I was thinking of keeping the barrel at 24", adding a Wildcat stock and a Leupold fixed 6 (a solid mountain gun:not too heavy but not too light). Five minutes later it was a full on reblue and custom fancy walnut stock (slim with minimal checkering) for a classic Euro style stalking rifle.

Most of my hunting is backcountry, and i tend to be a little harder on my stuff. But this really and truly is my last rifle, so it would be great to get it right.

Start spending my (limited) money for me...

Depends on if you are going to use it, or look at it. Use it, keep it like it is.

I stood on the edge of the same cliff, but I backed off the edge when I ran the numbers. First, make sure it shoots well!! It would be very frustrating to dump a bunch of cash into a rifle that wasn't accurate. Secondly, how fancy of a stock do you want? There are TONS of options for a 98 Mauser. If you're getting a full custom stock it will be expensive though. Likely much more than buying a new factory rifle that fits your needs.

You always lose money on a custom. Not to put you off, because I fully appreciate the "perfect rifle" goal, but be warned it's a money pit.

bcmtnmonkey;
Good evening to you sir, I trust this finds you keeping warm enough in our latest cold snap.

With apologies to those who've seen this photo previously - it's a commercial marked Mauser 98 military style action, with a broached in 96 Swede military barrel, in a Wildcat stock and a fixed 6 Leupold - sounds sorta close to what you've described.



As far as going down the rabbit hole, I've changed out most of the internal parts - Timney trigger, Buehler safety, Wolff Blitzschnell main spring, FN commercial extractor, PAWS bottom metal and likely some other mods I'm forgetting. All up it weighs 7lb 4oz complete with 5 rounds in the magazine.

There were far more frugal ways to get there I'm sure, but it's somewhat unique and it does fit me quite well.

Our eldest daughter also runs a Swede and we've been very happy with both the 120gr TTSX and 130gr TSX on deer sized game down here in the Okanagan.

Hopefully that was useful information to you or someone out there in ether space tonight. Good luck with your project whichever way you decide and all the best to you as we hopefully head into spring and warmer weather.

Dwayne

Shoot it first. Even if it isn't as accurate as you'd like more than likely it can be made accurate as is. Then, leave it alone.

Good morning, Dwayne.
-22C this fine AM in the sunshine...looks like the snow starts friday (again).

Tell me about working with the Wildcat stock, if you don't mind.

I still have the M38 that my Dad bought from Lever Arms in cosmo and sporterized for my 12th birthday, so i have a few decades of squirreled away brass and bullets and i am looking forwrad to getting the max potential out of the 6.5 round. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot anything here in BC with a good bullet out of it at 2700-2800fps.

I'm a huge fan of 6.5's, and in particular the 6.5x55. I'm also a huge fan of Husqvarnas. Yours is a rare bird, not too many in 6.5x55 made it into the country. We're it mine, I'd be inclined to leave it as is, scope it, and go hunting.

That said, the factory stocks have always been a weak link. Glass bed it and ensure that there is some relief at the rear tang. If your stock is like many and has a crack at the rear tang then by all means restock it. How fancy is up to you and your wallet.

Both my boys and I hunt with Mauser 98's in 6.5x55. My youngest uses a SR Mexican 98 with a takeoff 94 carbine barrel, the oldest a Commercial 98 with a Douglas barrel.

Yeah, I know all about that. I can quit anytime I want.

Lol, I said that at the end of last year when I sprang for a cz527 in 6.5 Grendel. At last night's BOD meeting of my Gun Club, I committed to buying a Kimber 84M Hunter in 6.5 Creedmoor. I'm addicted to 6.5's! In my defense, it was NIB and the price was below cost.

As a back pack hunter my self I know it is hard on stocks. Every one likes nice wood but not practical for crawling thru brush & generally getting knocked around. I see an inexpensive plain synthetic stock for hard knocks. A used one if possible. A low powdered variable scope like a 1 x 6 or a 2x7 . Straight 6x is to limiting especially under 100yds. .I am a hard core 6.5 shooter. 260 , 6.5x55, 6.5-06, 6.5xWSM & 264 mag.My game each season is deer & elk. For deer a bullet like the Sierra 120ghr will take the largest deer For elk the Barnes 120gr TSx gives me complete penetration year after yes . & yes my 6.5x55 with Barnes TSX bullet has taken a fair amount of elk. My suggestion is to leave your rifle exactly as is. Shoot for accuracy & hunt.

Some thing I forgot to mention. Since you 6.5x55 is of European origin it will have a very long free bored throat designed for the long blunt 160RN bullet. The problem with this is shorter bullet may enter the bore canted & accuracy can be terrible. . New style long tapered 143 to 147 gr 6.5's will not be accurate as they have a very long tapered ogive. That is the area from the tip of the bullet back to where the full dia. of the bullet starts. To much jump.. The only way to tell is to shoot. Bullets like the Barnes 120 & 130gt TSX may help here as they like a jump. The Barnes 130gr TSX is almost as long as a 160gr but has the tapered ogive. Of course the 160 RN can always be employed. Wont have the flat trajectory of the lighter bullets but will for sure get the job done. The Europeans use the 6.5x55 & the 160gr for moose, effectively.

bcmtnmonkey;
Good afternoon to you sir, we'd bottomed out at a balmy -16° here so it's nearly shorts weather!

This is one of two Wildcat stocks I've used and based upon that and talking to some other shooters I'd buy one again tomorrow. Since I picked up that one, Stuart has made another 98 mold and it's in a classic Euro stock style.

While I really like the look of the classic Euro stock, I've always fit into Monte Carlo type stocks really well so for me - I'm 5'5", 155lb with Neaderthal length arms - I'd likely buy another of these on a Mauser unless I could try out one of the new ones somewhere.

Stuart molds in pillars, so one can dispense with pillar bedding. They do need to be bedded and finished, but his unfinished stocks - again only two - but those two were filled and easier to finish than a few other stocks I've worked on over the years.

They are also very stiff - no doubt due to the carbon fiber I Beam that's molded into it. For the weight, they're very stiff which I believe is critical to good accuracy and holding zero.

Lastly, he molds aluminum pieces into the stock where one drills and taps the sling swivels into and there's no worries about pulling the sling off/out as there is with other synthetic stocks.

Oh, the recoil pad I picked up from the 'smith at Corlane's - it's the ones he uses for their lightweight builds and it grinds out to an honest 2 oz or a tad less.

Hope that helped somewhat, good luck with your project and if you think I can be of any help then by all means give me a shout.

Dwayne

For backcountry hunting you could talk to the good folks at Bell & Carlson about their Mod. 98 stocks. A durable stock that holds up better in rough usage with an aluminum bedding block that runs from the rear tang up to about the front sling stud IIRC. I have one but it's the Mod. 96 Mauser version that I put on one of those Kimber sporterized Swedish Mausers and it's the best thing I ever did for that rifle. Mine was under 300 bucks and I'm pretty sure your (limited) money could get the Mod. 98 model for about the same price. Just google Bell & Carlson and you can take a peek and get prices. If your FN Mod. 98 action is compatible with their Mod. 98 stock it would be something to consider without spending a fortune.

There are many 6.5s out there, many are popular and a few are not so popular.
6.5 Grendel.
6.5 Carcano
6.5 Jap
6.5 Mann/Scho
6.5X55
6.5 X53 Dutch
6.5 Portuguese
6.5X57 Mauser
260 Rem
6.5 Creedmoor
6.5X284
6.5-06
6.5 Rem Mag
264 Win
26 Nosler
and I probably missed a few, ------- not to mention about 50 wildcats

In my opinion the 6.5X55 is the best one of the whole bunch.

Again, my opinion, I think there's a 2 way tie for 2nd place are the 260 Rem and the 6.5 Creedmoor.
All the rest are good cartridges too, with none I am aware of being devoid of merit.
But the Swede is the very best of the lot.

I think so anyway.

I went almost 20 years before i fell off the wagon last year with a 1974 era B78 in 25-06 that only had 79 rounds down the pipe...and then this Mauser.
OK. I see the point.
Damn. I may be setting myself up for failure here.

Your last rifle is always the next one. As a person who frequently goes down the rabbit hole (and have a bunny circling the gunsmith at this moment) you can always appreciate the beauty of a full custom long after the money has been spent. My current project is a 6.5X55 with a Mannlicher stock.

monkey & GSP, yall are stumbling around all over my fantasy rifle. After thinking it thru in various daydreams it has formed up into a Kimber 84L action with either a .25-06 rebore or new barrel in 6.5x55 crowned at 21 inches. If new barrel it would be of a light contour. Throat to fit whatever bullet I love at the time seated about 0.3 into the neck. In my closest rests a 3 piece laminate from Kilimanjaro in mannlicher length and some pretty nice figure full length. This would be worked into a similar shape of the early MS rifles shown on another thread here with cheekpiece matched to fit my sloped shoulders and longish neck, allowing a low mount scope but with good first glance fit to the optic. Probably full length bed after a close fit. Any money left hanging might go to a Turnbull case hardened receiver and Talley vertical mounts. Pure lust. dang I need the lottery bad.

Large ring action you can shoot CIP level loads @ 55K & not neutered by 45K loads for the small ring Swede Mausers . If barrel shoots well & bore is good that's great . If not I'd rebarrel with a premium tube with a min dimension chamber throated to the heaviest bullet you'll shoot . Wildcat or McMillan stock bedded . If refinishing I'd go with something that would hold up , not bluing or Cerakote . For glass I'd either go with an excellent 1.5-6X42 or 2-7X42 best I could afford . I'd also consider either 6.5X55 BJAI or 6.5-284 chambering both would give you some added reach for high country goat / sheep & a little extra never hurts when elk or moose are a possibility . You could also get dies reamed with same reamer that was used to chamber your barrel .

I bought my last rifle (6.5x55) a couple of years ago. Since then I've bought 2 more in the same caliber. They seem to find me and I have this soft spot for almost any 6.5x55 that needs a good home.
My recommendation would be to shoot it and leave it as is. I'm sure another one will show up that you will find a need for.
Amazing caliber and delightful to shoot.

I have the same rifle, a Husqvarna 640, #606xx that is a good shooter. It is deep throated for the long 156/160 grain RN bullets, but mine shoots good groups with 140 grain BTs and Partitions.