Thread: Factory or custom?

How about .270, 280, 284 or 3006?

The other thing to note is a lot of the time now a factory rifle will do 90% of what a custum will do especially the barrel, action and trigger a simple stock replacement will get rid of the plastic stock and thats as far as you have to go generally.
this coming from a guy who is contemplating 3 different builds currently i guess some of us are slow learners

What accuracy are you getting with your current rifle?
Do you have a rangefinder and know how to apply the readings to shooting conditions in the field using your current setup?
Your current rifle is capable of killing deer out to around 600m with the right ammunition, dependent on your shooting skill.
Improving your marksmanship will make a much bigger difference than changing rifle!
Guys are shooting steel reliably at over a mile with 6.5's with less muzzle velocity than your swede has.
I'm not trying to put you off getting a new rifle, but I suggest you explore the capabilities of your current one before dismissing it for what you have stated that you require of it.

keep the 6.5 and get some high end optics like nf ziess diavari or v8.
once you get your ability to shoot past 600 with the 6.5 then go bigger faster.
a lot of people make the mistake of going big before they are ready.
master what you've got.
I have shot a lot of animals at around 600 with my 6.5 but only when the right time right place and it works well!

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Lots of good advice here the 6.5 is slowly getting more recognised as a very capable calibre for nz hunting

You could always buy my custom .260AI cheaper than building one yourself.

Originally Posted by northdude

Lots of good advice here the 6.5 is slowly getting more recognised as a very capable calibre for nz hunting

Slowly? For the last 5 years if you didn't have one you were a weirdo

I've been using the same one for 33 years now when I first use to talk about it I use to always get wtf is a 6.5x55

Originally Posted by northdude

I've been using the same one for 33 years now when I first use to talk about it I use to always get wtf is a 6.5x55

Lol yep I got the first t3 in taihape and just screwed the 3rd new barrel on!
my kids started shooting it from 7 years old and still going strong.
put it this way I have corrupted a few people to the mighty 6.5!

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Thanks guys. Few responses: I have range finder and drop charts. Got VX6 3-18x44 on it recently. supressor is older gunworks and a bit like walking through bush with a car aerial. I sub MOA if I do my bit. Alan from Ashhurst does my loads. Thanks for offer of longer range practice - away from Palmy for a few days so will follow up when back.

Custom sounds like it's unnecessary for my purposes, but modified factory of some description.

I've been between jobs for 8 months so when things come good I intend to shout myself something memorable. Why not a new rifle!

Ninety percent of people that I know who upgraded to a new (read larger or mag) caliber to shoot animals further away have still shot the animals at the same distances.

The idea of a custom rifle is to not sell them! Well that's my opinion anyway.

Semi-Custom is always the best way to go.

Nothing wrong with a sendero, bed it. Lap the bolt lugs, replace the trigger. Work up an amax load. You won't need a brake or suppressor because of the extra weight. Just get some electronic earmuffs instead. The sendero is good because it's a 26 inch heavy barrel. Which is fairly hard to find in a factory rifle. Or was when I looked.

Also depends on type of hunting and country u be intending be in. my 2c worth - as others have said the 6.5 swede is going to have realistic LR limit of ~500 yds. 7mm RM will get u out past 800 yds easy. But you will have to hand load .... pretty much true for ANY LR shooting options. The Sendero is more like a piece of field artillery than a hunting rifle (i have owned one) - especially if you want to cover everything from bush to alpine hunting & a lot of vertical metres in a day. Plenty of good 2nd hand 7mmRM deals available if you are patient. And if you go with a rem 700 platform you can pick up after market stocks and parts pretty easy & lower cost than others. Tikka probably not the best option from 7mmRM due to mag length restrictions vs COAL you'll need. But given you're going to have to hand load suggest u think about some other options ... eg a wsm 7/300 or 300wsm - about same recoil as 7mmRM but cos its short action you can build (or buy) a lighter/shorter rifle. And a 22 or 23 in bbl is also going to be feasible if u want to. Another one would be 280 AI or SAUM - about 100 fps slower than 7mmRM but still get you to 800 yds.
KiwiGreg had a 6.5wsm for sale recently - this might also tick a few boxes for you. But personally I'd go for 7mm or 30 cal for long range hunting on big animals.

tikka t3 in 7RM
I went to the effort of converting one from 7mm08 to 280Rem to do exactly what you are asking and it works perfectly, its just a bit of messing round to get it there with parts and gunsmiths
I wanted 0-600m ability so coupled it with a march 2.5-25x50 scope
since sold the scope tho

can be done cheeply with a tikka if you like them