Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 9.3 x 62 and big bear?

Thanks for the final word. I had no idea where to get the info.
That Rigby is elegant.
Thanks for the pics.

One thing to check in regards to bear hunting in Kamchatka is that when my cousin and his buddy went there a couple of years ago, the shots could get long. Like 200+ yards. Just something to keep in mind, so if it were me, I would go with the 286 gr. Partitions to get a bit flatter trajectory than the 320 gr slugs. YMMV

duckster,

Thanks for the tip, bud that Im huntin w/ said there were lots of open areas there as well, his last 3 kam. bears were shot @ 22, 42, & 51 yds. he's got a brushy pocket spot that has produced all 3 bears, said thats where were goin.

Just talked to Mike Kuypers @BC about installing a quarter rib and banded front sight on my rifle. now all it takes is time.

Gunner

Rigby does look nice, but I like Mannlicher stocks myself, like to hear more about that rifle.

I assume the 9.3x62 holds one more round than the 9.3/350 B-S?

JB, your B-S on a Rem action? OEM extractor or Sako? Seems Sisks using those and M70 alot correct?

The first one was quartering away at about 100 yards. I hit a rid taking out the onside lung, heart, the upper part of the off side lung and breaking the off side shoulder. The bullet was found just under the hair on the off side.

The second one was a finishing shot on a wounded one. As he came out of the thick stuff I was the first to see him and I shot him at about 50 yards. I hit him in the spine in front of the shoulders. That bullet removed over 4� of spine.

Has anyone used any of Northfork's bullets in the 9.3?

Wondering what they offer in that caliber,and how they have worked for people?

Being there is a ton of 9.3x62 experience on this thread:

Do any of you have thoughts, good or bad, on the current factory 9.3x62 rifles sold in the US?

I've used the CZ 550FS as a loaner, but I see now they offer it as a 550 Carbine-Kevlar which looks interesting. It appears the Ruger African will be offered in this chamber for 2011, and it also appears that a few of the European Zastava M-70s(the standard M-98 Zastavas in European trim) were brought over for sale NIB.

I was thinking of grabbing one of the Zastava M-70s, but they do not appear to be on the same level of quality as my older Mark-X, and I'm thinking they may need a bunch of work to make me happy. I've owned an African and that was a nice rifle, but I'm not sure I want to go that route either. Lastly, my only dislike for the CZ is with the 375H&H as I think the Magnum action too big and heavy for that cartridge. But on the loaner FS 9.3x62 I used, it wasn't bad at all. It appears that this new Carbine-Kevlar is the exact same 20 1/2 inch barreled rifle stuck in the new Kevlar stock. The twist seems fast on paper by Mauser standards, but the one I shot was on fire with good accuracy.

Not trying to steal the thread, but if anyone has some input good or bad on any of those models, I'd sure like to get some feedback.

Thanks!

65BR,

Yes, my 9.3 B-S is on a stainless Remington 700 action. It's all factory, originally from a 7mm SAUM. (Actually it still is, when I screw the factory barrel back on.) Charlie discovered that any action designed for the newer short-fat beltless magnums feeds the .350 Remington case flawlessly. While mine is a 700 action, he built his 9.3 B-S on a Model 70 action.

I'd already shot the action several hundred times so wasn't too worried that the bolt handle would fall off, or that the extractor would fail. (I've never had a 700 extractor fail anyway, in tens of thousands of rounds on a bunch of rifles.) It feeds 9.3 B-S rounds really slickly.

The rifle got used on the grizzly hunt by accident. The trip was supposed to be a black bear/fishing trip, but the outfitter had a grizzly hunter cancel while I was there, and the deal was too good to pass up. Despite the 700 being push-feed, I got 3 shots off in maybe 5-6 seconds when shooting the grizzly.

The first went into the crease behind the left shoulder at 60-75 yards, and exited the middle of the right shoulder. The bear turned around and ran broadside past me, and my second shot missed, when I shot just he turned to bite at his wound. The third shot was taken as he angled away; it went in behind his right shoulder and angled forward through his neck. That bullet was found under the hide, halfway up the neck, retaining 81% of its weight.

I wouldn't back away from a 1000-pound bear if my 9.3 was loaded with 250 AccuBonds, as I've had them perform splendidly on several large big game animals. But the 286 Partition REALLY penetrates, so why not use it instead?

GaryVA,

My 9.3x62 is a CZ 550, purchased new in 2004, if I remember correctly. It shot well well from the start, and the action was also very well-finished and slick. Since then I briefly owned a full-length stocked 550 in 9.3x62, purchased in 2007, and it wasn't as nicely finished, though it also shot well. This lower level of finish quality appears to be a trend with CZ's, though all I have fooled with (several) have all shot well.

I like the 550 action a lot, and also have a 550 Magnum .416 Rigby. The 550 has all the pluses of the basic 98 Mauser with a few refinements. Many people spend another $500 or so getting them spiffed up (M70 safety, new trigger, bolt handle, etc.) but I have never seen any reason to do so. I like the 3-position CZ safety, which like the Model 70 safety holds the firing pin back--but unlike the M70 safety doesn't stick out like a bear's ear, or require a long push. The triggers work fine, as do the bolt handles. I've used mine a lot and never had a problem, even when pumping several rounds into a water buffalo very quickly.

While having no-where near JB's experience level...I agree with his assessment of the CZ. I did quite a bit of work on my stock (refinished and shaped, recut checkering, added grip cap) and polished the action. My came with a plastic follower so I called and complained...they sent me a steel follower for free.

Basically I love the 550. It is the perfect action for this round IMHO. I wouldn't want a smaller caliber in this model as it is big and heavy. Being big and heavy does make it a soft shooter with the 9.3. CZ provides scope mounts that are rather crude but strong. I tried replacements but just went back to the factory rings. With a VX2 2X7 my rifle is an even 9 lbs.

Here's a pic after I had just finished the stock work next to my CZ 527.

so any WSM chambered rifle would work just as well as a SAUM rifle for the 9.3 Barnes Sisk? The CZ rifles seem to be getting cheaper but more expensive, my problem with them was also that the long bolt handle made low scope mounting a bit tough.

a few years back i bought the 550FS in 9.3x62. i pulled it out of the stock and bedded it into a McMillan hunting stock with a fixed 6x swarovski scope. makes for a great rig.

Tim do you have a picture you can share?

Reference the CZ 550 9.3x62:

Are any of you guys seeing any problems with the fast twist CZ uses in their barrels when using the bigger bullets?

If I'm not mistaken, Mauser recommends 14" twist which is what Zastava and Sako uses whereas I believe the CZ is very fast. The CZ loaner I used had 286 Partition reloads and I do not recall any accuracy problems out of the 20 1/2 inch FS barrel. It was a few years back, but my recollection was that the rifle shot extremely well, but I only ran the Partitions given me.

Thanks:)

CZ uses the original traditional twist for the 9.3x62.

Yes, it is way faster than necessary for the available bullet lengths.

The negative accuracy effect of too fast rifling is real but very minor. Noticable in a bench rest rifle but probably not in a sporter weight.

Rifling that is too fast causes increased chamber pressure, increased bore wear, and increased copper fouling.

Barrel life is probably halved, but is still sufficient for 2 or 3 generations of average hunters. Improper cleaning will have a bigger effect.

Factory ammo takes the fast twist rifles into account, so only blindly using max loads developed in slower twist rifles presents any danger.

All things being equal - barrel length, bore and groove diameter, throat length, chamber pressure, etc - you might safely use a bit more powder and squeeze 75-100fps more out of a slow 14" twist barrel.

I'd have to see REAL HARD data to believe a fast twist cuts bbl life in half, sorry. 'Probably' is just not enough science for me.

No doubt pressure goes up and some fouling increase.

I'd reckon as large a bore given capacity ie. GOOD expansion ratio - the 9.3 is VERY efficient no matter the twist. If one got that much more speed out of it, I think no more than half that would be directly attributed to twist rate.

Throat can help, my 338/06 Hart did was cut for 250s, so when loaded w/200-225s, I had them out long, plenty in the case for grip, yet into lands for accuracy. Everything shot 1/2 MOA.

That very rifle WAS a 700, and that handle fell off the bolt the 1st shot at the range after returning from a Colorado Elk/Muley hunt. Fired around 200-300 rounds total before that happened - it was made on a New SS/ADL 270 rifle mfg. the first yr that came out around 95 or so, rough bead blast finish w/MR contour bbl and heavier Hard Rubber, vs the plastic used on later mfg. models.

So JB, No doubt one gets confidence the longer they use something w/o problems. Immediately after that happened, I got home and turned over every Rem bolt I had, inc. a NIB 338 SS/BDL and THAT rifle's bolt Brazing had VOIDS in it, very noticable looking underneath the handle. I'd suggest any Rem owner take a look at theirs. That 338 Win Mag, defective w/alot of VOID of braze - also went back for a new braze job.

I must say, the ADL action that 338/06 was built on had a bolt that was never jeweled. Rem CS felt gracious enough to do so, WITHOUT my requesting w/o charge. Upon return, that bolt was SLAM FULL of lapping compound that had worked itself INSIDE the bolt body - rendering the bolt INOPERATIVE as the firing pin would hardly operate. YET, if it had, all that CRAP left in the bolt from the factory, would have FIRE LAPPED the HELL out of my EXPENSIVE Hart Bbl and Ruined it.

Yep, thas was B-S and I ain't talking Barsness - Sisk!

Later had a 700 that was in 221FB, done by a TOP smith in the USA, on a 223 action. It failed to extract a good % of the time, also eject properly. Not sure if the 223 base action was the issue, as perhaps the 221 is set up to eject differently - timing - being a shorter round, YET the extraction was erratic and would fail quite often.

The extractor issue, if there would be readily apparent I'd suppose, as either defective now, or not, unless IN the Field - it literally breaks, wears out, comes out, or gets fouled w/brass shavings as one author wrote a lengthy article on a few years back.

The bolt handle on a Remmy, although not common, they happen, and have been reported. I can only imagine if someone fires on a large bear, or African animal, and the handle falls off in hand after the first shot, and the animal is not down, what that does to the 'Pucker Factor'.....glad yours performed flawless as intended those 3 rounds.

Btw JB, didn't you know that Bear was dead the first shot

Good shooting, and I agree, no reason NOT to use the 286 PT on the Big Nasties.

Facts do not support this widely held belief. Tests in ballistics lab indicate the difference in pressure difference with the same loads in a slow twist barrel is insignificant when shot in a fast twist barrel

Exactly.

The big factors in pressure are throat length, engraving of the bullet in the rifling, and powder charge. The effect of rifling twist is tiny.

The big factors in bore life are the barrel steel and load used. Again rifling twist is way down the list.

Copper fouling depends on the cartridge, bore surface, bullet and the powder used. I have yet to see any significant difference in copper fouling in faster-twist barrels.

those are a couple of nice looking stocks djb,--especially like the one on the right...:)

Thanks for the feedback on the rifling twist. I reckon it be best I forget about the fast CZ twist rate as it doesn't appear to be an issue at all. Looks like I'll probably order one of those new CZ 9.3 Carbine-Kevlars.

Thanks Again:)