Savage 40 to K-Hornet

[DonT]

Whats the consensus.. Is the action strong enough to take the Savage 40 from .22 Hornet to K-Hornet and would it hold up??

Thanks for your thoughts..

DonT

[myarmor]

If I am not mistaken these were originally offered also in 223. Though they pulled it because of high pressures evidently. Though 223 pressures are much higher than 22 Hornet and K-Hornet here is a link passed on to me:
http://www.leverguns.com/articles/saami_pressures.htm


-Aaron

[1armoured]

Yes, my guess is that the lawyers advised them to can the idea of a .223 in a rear locking beefed up 'rimfire' action.

These type of actions can generally handle up to .222 factory loads, as evidenced by the offerings from European manufacturers such as Anschutz and Weihrauch.

Shouldn't be a problem in converting to K Hornet.

I wouldn't though,
use it as intended !
I have a Model 40, an Anschutz 1742 .222, and a Vanguard Special Varmint in .223 .

They all complement each other.
In the Hornet, I use the lighter pills of 33gr, 35gr and 40gr as fast as I can get them to go,
and they shoot well.
40gr and 50/52 with the .222,
and 55gr with the .223 . GameKings and Nosler Ballistics.

So far, the Hornet has shot the smallest groups at 100mtrs, but I don't experiment and change loads much.
The .222 is ever reliable to produce MOA.
I have to do a bit more work with the .223, though.

I hope to get out this long weekend and shoot some 200mtr groups with them all.

cheers,
Sean in Godzone.

[DonT]

Thanks for the input.  My thought it not to immediately change it but if it didn't group as I wanted as a 22 hornet I figured the K-hornet is always an alternative.

Sean, here is a .223 load that has shot well in all my rifles as a good starting point:
25.5 grains Winchester 748
Winchester .223 Brass
CCI Mag. Small rifle Primers (get more even ignition on W748 ball powder)
Sierra #1410 52 gr Matchking bullets
Loaded to OAL of 2.255 to 2.260

Most of my barrels are 1 in 7 to 1 in 9 twist with 1 in 8 the most common of the 4 .223 I have.  Try it you'll like it.

DonT

[McLernon]

You will have cycling problems that are caused by the 'sharper' shoulder on the case of a K. I would leave it as-is if I were you.

Mc

[Slamfire]

That Hornet brass is pretty fragile. Rechamberin' to K-Hornet would tend to reduce the back thrust on the bolt, the straighter walls grip the chamber better. The brass won't last very long unless you can score some lot of military brass.