AusVarmint

G,day all,
My new 11 pound baby has been born

I dont know how this old sako started life, but when i bought her she was a shot out rebarrelled 22-250. I wanted to build something that would shoot a little better than a factory rifle, use less powder than my 243 & less recoil, & be a little different to the rest of the gun safe.

As a single income family man i was on a pretty tight budget, so i had to scrimp & save & steal whatever spare coin that was left lying around, but i still wanted a quality job done.
I decided on 6mmbr norma as the caliber after reading of it's accurracy out to 600m & beyond, also I'm a 6mm fan anyway & have a box full of projectiles



223 22-250 6br 243

The old action was sent down to MADDCO in toowoomba to have a 1:8 twist 26" no.6 barrel fitted. While that was been done a SLEE stock was ordered

XXX walnut english classic with wider forend.
Not much good at woodwork, but managed to shape it & sand it into a reasonable looking stock. At this point it has been finished with tung oil & a wax coating ( dont know whether to coat it with a clear gloss)
After the barrelled action returned ,it was bedded into the stock with a BROWNELLS bedding kit. This was my first attempt at bedding so a lot of homework was done (even read the instructions)(twice)& everything seemed to go to plan. Note:must remember to replace the kids playdough.
The old bridge mounts were a bit sad, so i bit the bullet & payed $190 for a set of Sako opti-locks, which were matched with a leopold vx11 6-18 that i had.
Early testing of loads show promise, however i must improve my shooting technique to produce more consistant groups.

Last 4 rounds left in box
First tests show it will shoot good groups with all types of bullets i have, & print the same spot on target except the 55gn nosler BT which shoot 1.5moa low & 1.5moa right. The little 55g BT's shot groups down in the .3's with BM2 powder, however i would like to try other powders.
The 105 a-max loads where a no-brainer as any load from 29g to 30.5g 2208 shot well. Will try a ladder test to fine tune a bit more
Anyhow, enough chatter for now, must get back to the shed to reload some more shells
regards DT

Very, very nice.

Hi DT, love the piece of timber mate, the gun as a whole looks good as well.

Great work !!

That's a beautiful rifle and a nice project story. I am now sold on the Slee stock idea and will get one. If I could say though, keep it as it is. I think varnish will spoil it. I also plan on a Maddco but maybe fluted for me.
Nice work mate.

Very yummy indeed, right from the action through the stock, and the groups show real promise.
Well done amd good shoting in the future
the WOOB

Nice lookin outfit DT What Sako action was it on and what was the cost of project? (If its not a rude question) Good to see you stuck with aussie made products where possible to complete the job. A piece of real wood for a stock runs rings around that plastic stuff everytime. The stock looks great.
Cheers jethro.

Great pics and story too!
Jethro

Thanks everyone,
Action is a L579 Sako, probably been around as long as me. Serial no.92***, so i guess sometime early seventy's.

DONOR RIFLE $520
BARREL & FIT $770
STOCK $300
OPTI-LOCKS $190
SCOPE $ already had, cost about $680 at time
PRIDE IN MAKING
SOMETHING
YOURSELF $PRICELESS
EVERYTHING ELSE ON MASTERCARD


Made a conscious choice to buy aussie, but only if it was as good as the o/s made stuff.
Could have saved a bit more by buying a MAB barrel, a basic stock & keeping my old mounts.
cheers
DT

Congrats DiamondT, fabulous looking bit of kit, and don't you just love it when they come together that well, AND shoot like the proverbial.
Beautiful job mate, and yes please let us know the costs etc. if your misses isn't gonna kill ya. that is.
Regards Alpal

Looks great. You must be happy to have it looking so good and shooting so well. Is the rifle set up as a repeater or single shot? I would like to hear how well it feeds the 6mmBR if it is a repeater.

Cheers
Shaun

might have been done on a budget but bloody well doesnt look like it. Lovely job. Well done

seriously nice
If mine tiurn out half as good I'll be over the moon

later
p

Whitty,
This thing feeds like a fat lady at a buffet mate.
Honestly, you just stack em in, short or long projectiles & rattle them up fast or slow. I asked a bloke who built one before i started mine, he said "no worries"
I think feeding problems in 6br are a myth, or a remington problem.
DT

Thanks DT. Thats good to know. I am getting things together for my own 6mmbr project and it is good to hear positive results from others.