Caliber selection based on barrel longevity?

[athanasios23]

So I will slowly be buying all the parts needed to build another rifle from scratch. I have purchased a short action with standard bolt face. My next purchase will be the barrel. My question is....Is there any caliber that has a long barrel life like a 308? I have two 308's and two 260's. I am looking for something fun to shoot out to 1000 yards and hopefully one day a little further. With the cost of a custom gun, I want to try and get the most out of the money I spend. By using standard figures I will probably be on my 3rd going onto 4th 260 rem barrel buy the time I get to my 2nd 308 barrel. I could probably pick up an entire factory tikka for the price of a rebarrel.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[NY700]

Performance costs. Not sure how else to view it. But if it's a major sticking point for you why not just stick with the 308 and get flatline bullets for you 1K plus shooting?


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[sierracharlie338]

Yeah there are not a ton of options out there that allow you to enjoy the barrel life like that of a 308. The way i see it have one gun for every situation after all its just money! If it makes you feel better Im not "loaded" by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[athanasios23]

I have no issues with the barrel burners but was just thinking that there might be something a little bit longer lasting. I'll take my time with the caliber selection.

 

[sierracharlie338]

Yeah no point in rushing it if you aren't set on something already. I loved my 260 and will be getting another one as soon as the piggy bank allows

 

[Beneviolence]

From what I've read, the 6.5/.260's are a great balance point of barrel life, recoil and reloading cost. I'll consider it an accomplishment when I burn out the barrel on my new 6.5CM Tikka and get a PVA drop in. The 6's don't do the wind as well AFAIK.

If you want to step into the big bores, 338's aren't that overbored and can last fairly long but any cost savings go out the window with total rifle cost and ammo.

 

[308Gunner]

You might look at a 7-08 with the right powder and a 162 it makes a pretty potent combo with good barrel life, check out WTO they have a 7-08 wildcat that is awesome.

 

[Delicatessen]

In the 308 base class pretty much each step down in diameter slightly decreases barrel life. 6.5/260 is still on the decent barrel life side but will be a bit shorter 7mm-08 a bit longer but harder to get high speeds in the higher bc bullets. It's all perspective but many find the 6.5 area to be a good balance point (unless you go long/mag).

 

[lte82]

The barrel is the cheapest part of the system. Ammo costs much more, travel costs and match fees are usually way more, etc. Consider a $600 custom barrel that goes 3000 rounds vs 6000 rounds, you are only saving 10c/shot or $600/6000 rounds. I spend $200 on ammo, travel, and match fees to shoot one local match. Think about it.

 

[knockemdown]

Build a 1:8 .223AI or neck it up to 6x45AI.
Burn a measly ~25gr of powder, ooodles of barrel life, everywhere brass, and surprisingly decent performance at distance. Can't think of more bang of your buck, than either of those...

 

[lte82]

Or even a standard 223. Run the 80s and you have great practice gun capable of hanging with bigger calibers when the conditions aren't too bad.

 

[supercorndogs]

Or even a standard 223. Run the 80s and you have great practice gun capable of hanging with bigger calibers when the conditions aren't too bad.

And the distances aren't too far.

You can Remage something or get a Savage and cut your rebarrel costs in half. I actually have a 28" 1 in 7 Remage 223 wyld waiting for my factory 223 barrel to crap out.

 

[dryfire]

7mm-08 Rem would be a good cartridge for ya


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[CharlieNC]

I shoot my 223 more than all the others combined. Cheap, accurate, fun. Shoots well to 1100yd, and really makes you focus on the wind. Makes my 6.5 seem like cheating.

 

[Mike Casselton]

Yeah there are not a ton of options out there that allow you to enjoy the barrel life like that of a 308. The way i see it have one gun for every situation after all its just money!

If it makes you feel better Im not "loaded" by any stretch of the imagination.

Then apparently, you're not drinking enough. ☺

 

[rd_kng]

I currently shoot a 223, 6.5 creedmoor, and a 308 at 1000 yds. I'm in the process of building a 6mm creedmoor. I really like the 77 and 80 gr bullets in the 223 at 1000 yds. Looking forward to seeing how the 6mm creedmoor stacks up.

 

[sierracharlie338]

Then apparently, you're not drinking enough. ☺

Touche my friend, touché!

 

[Niles Coyote]

Go traditional... Go 45-70.

 

[IanHusaberg]

Yeah there are not a ton of options out there that allow you to enjoy the barrel life like that of a 308. The way i see it have one gun for every situation after all its just money! If it makes you feel better Im not "loaded" by any stretch of the imagination.

You should be!!!

That's why you choose wisely and picked up an MRAD, so you just pick and choose what caliber when and where with one sweet ass piece of glass!!! A nice little 223 trainer never hurts to change it up to compliment the AR-15 you should have any way.

MRAD= 260 Rem. Competition, 308 Win. Training, 300 Norma Long distance competition, 338 Lapua energy on target @ distance(Hunting).

Alcohol lead me to the MRAD. It was one of those ingenious ideas, I thought I could pull off by selling lots of guns and glass and come out shining like a star!

 

[athanasios23]

So the feeling im getting from this thread I should just get hammered and order a desert tech with a few barrels.

 

[sierracharlie338]

You should be!!!

That's why you choose wisely and picked up an MRAD, so you just pick and choose what caliber when and where with one sweet ass piece of glass!!! A nice little 223 trainer never hurts to change it up to compliment the AR-15 you should have any way.

MRAD= 260 Rem. Competition, 308 Win. Training, 300 Norma Long distance competition, 338 Lapua energy on target @ distance(Hunting).

Alcohol lead me to the MRAD. It was one of those ingenious ideas, I thought I could pull off by selling lots of guns and glass and come out shining like a star!

HAHAHAHA you could not have been more right I suppose. HOWEVER I do not regret my decision in any way shape or form!!! Cant wait to start banging away with that Lapua Magnum

 

[sierracharlie338]

So the feeling im getting from this thread I should just get hammered and order a Barrett MRAD with a few barrels.

Fixed it for you!!

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Barrel (throat) longevity is the key priority in my chambering selection process. I shoot mostly 223 within 300 meters, and out to 600 for F T/R, 260 for out to 1000, and have chosen .280 or .280imp for beyond there, but I haven't made that last jump just yet.

Greg

 

[3rdfocal]

6BR. Try the 110 smk's or 105 bergers. 28" Barrel. Barrel life like a 308, great ballistics. Lapua brass, recoil like a 223, super accurate.

 

[kabarNC]

I'm going thru the same thing now, and have decided on 6.5x47. I think it's a good blend of performance/recoil/barrel life. But this sport does get easier when you start considering barrels as an expendable..

 

[jsthntn247]

6BR. Try the 110 smk's or 105 bergers. 28" Barrel. Barrel life like a 308, great ballistics. Lapua brass, recoil like a 223, super accurate.

^^^ This

 

[earthquake]

^^^ This

I second this^^!

 

[Sheldon N]

Food for thought...

When you start asking about barrel life what you're really asking about is lowering the cost per shot. Cost per shot is affected by not only barrel life, but the cost of bullets, cost/lifespan of brass, amount of powder used, etc.

Smaller 6mm bullets are cheaper than 6.5mm bullets. Then if you go to a small 6BR based case you've got cheaper brass as well as less powder. And if you're not running a hot/fast 6mm then the barrel life can be decent too.

Start doing the math on all the factors and something like a 6 Dasher with 2000 rounds of barrel life is the exact same cost as a 6.5x47 with 3000 rounds of barrel life, shooting Berger Hybrids with both. Then if you go to a 6BR with 3500 rounds of barrel life you are much cheaper than a 6.5x47, both shooting Bergers. Swap out to a cheaper bullet and the total cost per shot goes down to the level of a 308 shooting 175 SMK's with 7000 rounds barrel life, or even lower.

How much this matters of course depends on how much you shoot, but if you're in the range of 3000-4000 rounds a year we're talking about something like $1,000 per year cheaper to shoot a 6BR than a 6.5x47.

Anyone who's interested in running the numbers on this stuff shoot me a PM with your email and I'll send you a spreadsheet that does the math for you.

 

[3rdfocal]

Cost per shot is one reason to desire a long barrel life. Another reason is not wanting your gun down for a few months every year or so waiting for a new barrel. Personally, I don't worry too much about the cost per shot but guns sitting at gunsmiths for months at a time sucks.

 

[Sheldon N]

Time to buy an action wrench and barrel vise!

A good gunsmith should be able to cut barrels to the correct headspace once they've had your action the shop. That way once you get about halfway done with your barrel, send in an order for another one.

 

[SubOptimal]

Once you make up your mind on a caliber, just have the guy who build the gun spin up a second barrel to go along with the build. That way, he should be able to make turn around a matter of days, not months.

 

[Terryw123]

6BR. Try the 110 smk's or 105 bergers. 28" Barrel. Barrel life like a 308, great ballistics. Lapua brass, recoil like a 223, super accurate.

This is exactly what I'm building! For all the reasons listed above.


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