Thinking about getting a new tube stuck on my 300 WSM Montana in 6.5 SAUM at some point and getting a bit more use out of the rifle.

Who would you have do it? Would you dupe the contour? I was thinking of a bit more weight out front on the tube and cutting it at 22-23".

Seems like it'd make a pretty solid backpack hunting rig...

Tanner

I'd go .600 @ 23", keeping the shank the same.

I've always thought the SAUM's and the 8400 were an ideal fit.

I have a couple Pacnors on Montanas and they shoot great. I would dupe contour and go 22" myself.

I've got a Model Seven in 7 SAUM with a 22" barrel and love it. I've read/heard that you could go from SAUM to WSM, but not WSM to SAUM. Either way, I'm interested in seeing the final product. Good luck.

Tanner, the 6.5 Saum is a great choice, I love the ones ive built. I built mine on m70 WSM actions and they have worked great with the longer mag boxes you can use the longer freebore reamer .120" and still have room in the mag box to chase the lands. personally I'm not a fan of short shank barrels, I like them to be 1.5" I have a #3 fluted cut at 25" and my brother has a bartlein #3 which is closer to a #4 cut to 24". I'm getting 3080fps with a 140hybrid and my brother is at 3030fps. Both are very accurate. We use the hornady 6.5 saum brass from Gap and its been doing pretty good about 6-7 firings, not as good as rem brass but we don't have to deal with necking down. Just load and shoot.

I think Brad's idea of 23" and 0.6 is good. I thought the factory barrel on my Kimber 300WSM was a little light.

I had Pacnor re-barrel a Kimber 7 WSM to 7 SAUM with those same dimensions. I had them dupe the contour out to the end of the forearm then taper to .600. Shoots good, as do the other Kimbers I've had them re-barrel. The thing I like about them is, they're turn-key. Including coatings now, if you need that.

I did the same thing with a local barrel maker, KS Arms, except that I had the factory dupe taper from the forearm to 0.600" at 24".

Well, it's true then.

Great minds do think alike. Except on that 24" thing, what's up with that?

I had a 300WSM Kimber that I got at a great price to do this very conversion. I was going to go with the modified factory contour from Lilja so I didn't have to modify the stock. Ended up selling it to help pay for drawing two limited entry tags in Idaho in the same year. Don't regret the trips, but should have kept the rifle anyway...

Tanner,
I'd send it to George Gardner and probably use a #2 or #3 Rock Creek or Brux. 23". He might not want to build on a blind mag, though...
In fact, I'm calling dibs on the rifle you're considering building!

Maybe they changed their policy, but last time I checked, GAP wouldn't do a re-barrel on my Kimber action.

Killjoy

LOL, if they changed their policy I want to know about it!

.920" at 29". 12 twist.

24" is the new 23".

And mine stayed a 7WSM, too.

Pretty sure he's already got one of those. .35 Remington, it's balls out.

I hunt the black timber. Needs to be 28".

Hutch

Because...???

I'm sure they have their reasons. But since you asked me, I'm gonna go with "because they don't have to."

I didn't think to ask them but if I had to guess, it's just what I said above--they have enough business doing what they're doing and they don't have to. Their main business (with bolt actions) is building and selling rifles using their own specs with M700 clones. Lots of gunsmiths pick and choose what kind of actions they'll build rifles on.

If you look at the actions they like to use, the Defiance Templar and the M700, they both have integral recoil lugs; Kimbers don't:

From a quick search: "An integral recoil lug is a benefit for the guy installing it, mitigating the need to line up and hold the lug in place during barrel installation. An integral lug also means fewer facets to machine and worry about squaring up."

PS, Starsky and Hutch? Seriously??

Baywatch is where it's at.

what is the matter with the rifle the way it is?

It doesn't look good with skinny jeans and camo wife-beaters .......

and you can tell that from the caliber of the barrel?

No, I can tell that cause that's how Tanner rolls.

It's a 300 WSM and I do not wish it to be a 300 WSM any longer. Other than that it's perfect.

Tanner

Kind of like daughter's 260 that is soon to be a 6.5x47. I'd go 7mm wsm on yours. 8 twist and shoot heavies.

Or 7 SAUM.....

Went a different direction, from 270 WSM to 350 Rem Mag, had Hart dupe the contour. Already have some weight out front, PO put a mercury recoil reducer in the fore end!

The 3 inch mag well should be fun for the heavier bullets, something that should help with your 6.5 as well.

6.5 or 7 SAUM, both solid choices. Good bullet selection, less recoil, kills animals just as dead...

IIRC Redneck previously said Kimber's action takes a special action wrench due to their petite size, not all gunsmiths have one. That would be my first guess why GA Precision doesn't rebarrel them. Second guess would be they already have a waiting list.

I know the GAP rifles I've bought with a Templar action don't have an integral recoil lug.
The Templar VII action is the same as the Defiance Deviant, which has the integral lug.

Like I said, "if I had to guess...."

Tanner: what did you end up doing?

I'd roll a #2 rock creek in a heart beat on that rig.

Marty, so far I've done a whole bunch of nothing. In the thick of the guiding and hunting season here now. I did shoot that 300 WSM today and sure would like it to be a 6.5.... just need to find the right smith for the project and send it out before I head North again here in a couple weeks.

Tanner

Think a Bartlein 2B would be too thick?

I think it would probably be a bit too thick for that stock to handle without compromising the flats in the forend. I am guessing that most people's #2 is about as much as that stock can take, but I could be wrong. I've been thinking about having Pacnor do a 6.5-300 WSM on it, but there isn't much load data out there...

Tanner

We have had Pac Nor re barrel three for us. Great job. Tight specs, quality work. One was a 358WSM - ACCURATE!
Here are a few 6.5X300WSM loads you may like. http://reloadersnest.com/frontpage.asp?CaliberID=362
That 6.5X300WSM sounds like a great cartridge. I have given it a great deal of consideration. It should be very close to the 7WSM but with those sleek .264 bullets.
Try it. You'll like it!

Jim

I have that rifle sitting in my safe, you're welcome to check it out and shoot it if you come through Denver. Maybe the next time you come through to help fill the corn feeders out at starsky's?

I had Pacnor duplicate the factory contour out to the tip of the forend then taper to .600" at the muzzle so it's a little beefier than the original.

That is good information, thank you Jim. I bet that 358 WSM gets your attention.

Tanner

Phil, did you go with the 6.5 WSM or 6.5-300? Unless I'm mistaken there were some chamber dimension differences in those?

Seems like the easy way would probably be to go 6.5-300, use 270 WSM brass, and use a 270 WSM bushing die for resizing.

Tanner

Yep, 6.5-300 and that's exactly what I do for brass and dies.

I've been pondering doing the same with a Kimber 325 WSM and the biggest unanswered question still seems to be who to use for the project. It sounds like PacNor does other chamberings on Kimber actions, but will they do the 6.5 SAUM? Obviously GAP does the chamber but it sounds like not on Kimbers. I'd be really interested in hearing more on this and how you proceed.

PN isn't set up to chamber a 6.5 SAUM, but they will use a customer provided reamer ( I was told this on the phone in July). So you could either buy or rent a reamer and have them do it...

Tanner

Or... a few of us go in on a reamer together and send it to PN...? Sounds like we are all sitting on 8400 MTs

I'd just jump to 7mm, sling the 180 ELD, and bask in the glory

I know you have a hankering for the 6.5 but I did a 7 SAUM and it shoots 180 Skinners at 2950 with 4831SC at just about any temp into tiny groups. As good as BC and SD are with the 6.5, apples to apples, the 7 is a bit better. Benchmark will make you any barrel you want pretty quickly. Matt Stewart is a magician when it comes to plumbing. If you aren't happy with the end result, I'll buy it from you at your cost plus 10%. Seriously.

Pac-Nor rebarreled my 8400 to 7 WSM several years ago; it shoots great. You'll like the drop in recoil, T.

I have a 6.5 SAUM reamer for the rifle I recently built, and I'm guessing my next barrel on the 8400 will be a 6.5 SAUM. It just makes too much sense.

Keep in mind that 6.5 SAUM brass is easy to get (as 6.5 GAP 4S brass, from GAP) and that's a big plus over a 6.5 WSM, IMHO. And while this ties into the pressures you run, the GAP recipe for the 6.5 SAUM yields fantastic barrel life. You do say you like to shoot....

I've got the reamer & go/ no go gauges. PM me if you want to borrow them.

My gunsmith just got a 6.5 PRC reamer in. Thinking that might be an option for a Kimber WSM rebarrel.....

A #2 rock would be about perfect and pretty close to the 6.00 at 23" figure that Brad suggested.

send it to Mile High
PacNor Brl
ask for Logan

If I was you 6.5 a wssm would be fun 😉

I had a long action that I had Pacnor duplicate the contour but with a little heavier muzzle. I intended to do 0.600 but some way that turned into 25" and 0.620" at the muzzle with a corresponding increase throughout the taper. One of the nicest Kimbers I have ever handled and lighter than I would have thought. I would absolutely do that combo again.