Ultimate Barrel Set

[VertigoBE]

Dear All,

I had posted this question in the thread "Wanted Mauser M03 Barrels". But as I want to get a bit more structured answer, I'll do a poll below.

To describe my reason to ask this question, in short the situation: Mauser has discontinued the M03 line of rifles. The M03 line has a switch barrel system similar to the Blaser R8 (with the exception that optics for the M03 are mounted on the action, and for the R8 attached to the barrel). After some searching and pressuring I have now gotten feedback from Mauser that they will try to source me the barrels I want. (together with bolt heads and magazines).

I already own the .300 WinMag barrel and definitely want a .375H&H barrel. But now I am thinking what else would be worth it to add to this setup. The largest calibre they seem to have is the .458 Lott, which I would request in a shortened barrel lenght, but extra thick barrel profile (Mauser calls them 'Solid') What else would you suggest I get? Due to the fact that I can only list 10 possible options, I have filtered myself (I'm very unfamiliar with the EU cartridges, despite that I am from Belgium). The full list is below:

Magazine A: .222 Rem, .223 Rem
Magazine B: .243Win - .308Win - 7mm
Magazine C: 6.5x55 - 25-06 - 270 Win - 7x64 - 30-06 - 8x57 - 9.3x62
Magazine D: .270 WSM - .300 WSM
Magazine E: 300 Win - 338 Win - 375 HH - 416 Mag - 458 Lott - 404 Jeffrey
Magazine F: 22-250 Remington

 

[Ridgewalker]

Of course your game will determine your choices, but...
JMO, the 300 WM covers 95% of the world’s big game. An excellent choice especially if you handload!
The 223 works great for less costly trigger time and varmints of all sorts.
The 375 H&H has worked for me on my trips to Africa for cape buffalo down to duiker.
Should cover about anything in the world.

Best of luck on a tough decision!

 

[VertigoBE]

Of course your game will determine your choices, but...
JMO, the 300 WM covers 95% of the world’s big game. An excellent choice especially if you handload!
The 223 works great for less costly trigger time and varmints of all sorts.
The 375 H&H has worked for me on my trips to Africa for cape buffalo down to duiker.
Should cover about anything in the world.

Best of luck on a tough decision!

Hi Ridgewalker,

Indeed that’s where my thoughts are going too. Main caliber is the .300WinMag. With the .375H&H to have the DG option. A .223 for practice and small varmints. The .458 Lott, for if I ever go Elephant, land hippo hunting.

Thanks for your input!

V.

 

[BeeMaa]

I voted for 223, 375 and 416.
223 for less expensive practice.
375 for large PG/one safari rifle.
416 for dedicated DG hunt.
Would have voted for a magnum .25 caliber like the 257WBY as a 4th. Perfect for most antelope and NA game hunting.

 

[Adrian]

I too have an M03 and have .375H&H and .300WinMag barrels for it as my hunting abroad set up.

Same bolt head for both calibres and two scopes zeroed for each calibre, that's me sorted.

I already have a .243 rifle and a 30-06 M12 so won't be adding another barrel to my M03 but if you wanted to add another, I would be looking at the .223 or .243 options with my preference being the latter.

 

[spike.t]

223
404
458 lott
And add in 9.3x62

 

[BeeMaa]

I too have an M03 and have .375H&H and .300WinMag barrels for it as my hunting abroad set up.

Same bolt head for both calibres and two scopes zeroed for each calibre, that's me sorted.

I already have a .243 rifle and a 30-06 M12 so won't be adding another barrel to my M03 but if you wanted to add another, I would be looking at the .223 or .243 options with my preference being the latter.

Same bolt head...exactly. That is why I'm considering a 257WBY barrel instead of another sub .30 caliber with a different bolt face. Although mine is a R8.

 

[VertigoBE]

From the responses to the poll, it is starting to look like it will be .223 (.300WM I already have) .375H&H and the .458Lott

For the barrels I have the following in mind:
For the .223REM, standard profile barrel, 18.5" , no open sights, threaded
For the .375H&H, standard profile barrel, 25", open sights, not threaded
For the .458Lott, Africa PH profile barrel, 23", open sights, not threaded

any thoughts? Poll is still open and good hints can still sway me. I'll be sending my wishlist to Mauser on Monday and then it is fingers crossed.

I'll probably will need to have the fore-end opened a bit to accept the larger 19mm barrel of the .458 Lott

 

[Ridgewalker]

I would highly suggest getting the same open sights for the 223 as well as QR scope mounts to duplicate your DG barrel setup. Cheap and easy to shoot, but functionally the same as the DG barrel. This allows lots of cheap practice without going broke, or getting beat up.
This is what I did with my R8 per One Day...’s suggestion and I like it a lot. Even though the reloading isn't quite the same dexterity wise. At least not for my old hands.

 

[VertigoBE]

I would highly suggest getting the same open sights for the 223 as well as QR scope mounts to duplicate your DG barrel setup. Cheap and easy to shoot, but functionally the same as the DG barrel. This allows lots of cheap practice without going broke, or getting beat up.
This is what I did with my R8 per One Day...’s suggestion and I like it a lot. Even though the reloading isn't quite the same dexterity wise. At least not for my old hands.

Good suggestion, thanks @Ridgewalker. For the DG dedicated barrel, I would order the mauser double square mount with picatinny rail, and install a simple small red dot. But indeed good idea to also practice with the iron's as well. So I'll duplicate the setup for the .223 barrel.

 

[IvW]

I would add 375 H&H and 404 Jeff for what you describe....pity they do not make a 7x57mm....

 

[VertigoBE]

I would add 375 H&H and 404 Jeff for what you describe....pity they do not make a 7x57mm....

Thanks for the suggestion IvW, could you elaborate a bit more on why the .404 Jeff over the .458 Lott?

I have zero knowledge about dg cartridges, apart from what I have gleaned from AH in the last few months. But in my mind there would not be sufficient difference between a .375 and a .404?

V.

 

[VertigoBE]

Another possibility could be that I do not take the .458 Lott barrel. Just a .375 and a .223, and later invest in a separate double rifle

 

[BeeMaa]

From the responses to the poll, it is starting to look like it will be .223 (.300WM I already have) .375H&H and the .458Lott

For the barrels I have the following in mind:
For the .223REM, standard profile barrel, 18.5" , no open sights, threaded
For the .375H&H, standard profile barrel, 25", open sights, not threaded
For the .458Lott, Africa PH profile barrel, 23", open sights, not threaded

any thoughts? Poll is still open and good hints can still sway me. I'll be sending my wishlist to Mauser on Monday and then it is fingers crossed.

I'll probably will need to have the fore-end opened a bit to accept the larger 19mm barrel of the .458 Lott

The 223 and 375 are a no brainer IMO, and judging from the poll results, most others agree.

For the dedicated DG caliber, they are only separated by one vote each. 4, 5 and 6 votes for 404J, 416RM and 458LOTT respectively. That's not a big margin by any means. It's your rifle and this is Burger King...so have it your way. If you have not fired a .40+ caliber, I'd suggest trying something out before you put your money down. Investing in a big bore is not cheap, especially when it says Mauser on the barrel. You should make sure you are getting exactly what you are expecting.

Or like you said, wait on the .40+ until later...

 

[Professor Mawla]

I vote for :
- .243 Winchester
- .300 Winchester Magnum
- .338 Winchester Magnum
- .458 Lott

 

[One Day...]

~0.05" increments: .25 to .30 to .35 to .40 to .45 to .50 (okay, .375 instead of .35)...

After 40 years and owning hunting rifles in .223 Rem, .243 Win, 6 mm Rem, .257 Wby, 6.5x54 MS, .270 Win, 7x64, 7x65R, 7 Rem Mag, .7.5x54, .30-30, .308 Win, 300 Win, .300 Wby. .338 Win, .340 Wby, .375 H&H, .416 Rigby, .458 Lott, .450 NE #2, .470 NE, Lord what do I forget!, I have come to a point where I believe that ~0.05" increments make the best sense for a hunting battery: for example .25 to .30 to .35 to .40 to .45 to .50.

Okay, bridge .35 to .40 with the ubiquitous .375 H&H, especially when using both 300 gr and 350 gr slugs that step deep into .416 territory (ref. Kevin "Doctari" Robertson).

In my case, pretty much everything collects dust in the safe except 3 Blaser R8 barrels 257 Wby, .300 Wby, .375 H&H, and a K gun double .470 NE, but I reckon that a .458 Lott R8 barrel would do well too.

American purists may like .270 Win, .338 Win, .416 Rem, .458 Lott.

Note: I realize that many folks equate .416 Rem to .458 Lott, but the same they are not. There maybe only 1 vote difference in this poll as I write, but there is a substantial difference in the field between the 400 gr slug and the 500 gr slug when it comes to "stopping power"...

For the British traditionalists: .275 Rigby, .318 Westley Richards, .375 H&H, 500/465 NE.

Continental Europeans may go 7x57 (or x64), 8x68S, 9.3x64,12.7×70mm Schuler. A 6.5x68 would do well in lieu of a 7x64 too...

Note: of course, Perfidious Albion Britain renamed the 7x57 Mauser the .275 Rigby, and the 12.7×70mm Schuler the .500 Jeffery, but these were true continental developments...

I will not argue with a .350 Rigby instead of a .375 H&H, or a .500 NE in place of a .470 NE, their performances are about indistinguishable in the field.

I shot for 40 years untold tens of thousand .22 LR at 100 yards then 150 yards on an aluminum 6" plate as a training regimen, but have recently moved to .223 Rem (another R8 barrel) in order to extend practice to 300 yards on a steel plate. It is amazing how easy things become in the hunting fields when you reach 90%+ hits on a 6" plate standing off the stick at 300 yards all year long...

 

[Ridgewalker]

It is amazing how easy things become in the hunting fields when you reach 90%+ hits on a 6" plate standing off the stick at 300 yards all year long...

Envious! I obviously don't get enough practice at this since it’s 1 1/2 hrs to a place I can do this! Kudos!

 

[One Day...]

Yes, I am lucky. It is exactly 2.3 miles by county road then fire road from my house to my favorite 300 yards shooting lane on National Forest.

It is a rare week when I do not go for an hour toward end of afternoon on Sunday and shoot 20 to 30 rounds walking with my sticks, stopping at random, ranging, clicking the range on the Swarovski ballistic turret and generally shooting 1 round at a time. I reckon it does as much good to my soul as it does to my shooting... The month before going to Africa I try to go twice or sometimes three times a week. There is enough light between 5 and 7 PM in summer...

This is how it looked with the Win 52 in .22 LR shooting at 150 yards:

The 6" plate is not visible with the naked eye at 300 yards so the R8 .223 setup picture is up close:

 

[IvW]

Thanks for the suggestion IvW, could you elaborate a bit more on why the .404 Jeff over the .458 Lott?

I have zero knowledge about dg cartridges, apart from what I have gleaned from AH in the last few months. But in my mind there would not be sufficient difference between a .375 and a .404?

V.

There is a big difference between a 404 Jeff and a 375 H&H.

Unless you plan on hunting a lot of elephants the 404 Jeff will do all of the dg.

Mild in recoil.
Low in chamber pressure.
No belt on case.
Tapered case not straight walled.
Old classic that has allways been devestatingly effective.

Nobody ever complained aboit. 404 Jeff.

I dont think many realise how much a 458 Lott recoils, a visiting hunter really does not need one

 

[CoElkHunter]

Too many choices. I just can’t decide.