A good target barrel for a Stevens 200 action?

[billy_56081]

My son wants to build a long range rifle, He is looking at buying a Stevens 200 and him and I will put on a new barrel stock and trigger. I have looked at Lother walther and SHilen. Any othe suggestions on barrels? We are planning on a 6.5X284 norma. Any help is appreciated.

[james]

I ordered a McGowan barrel from Kalispell, MT for my Stevens 110.   It only took three or four weeks and they are good to work with. I haven't got to shoot it off a bench but resting on a 4 wheeler, the first two shots were touching at a little over a 100 yards.  I would highly recommend their barrels.
I had them make up a 25" ss in 6.5 x 55 with a target crown and straight taper to a .650 muzzle diameter.  Its a lot beefier than the 22" barrel that I took off but I think the accuracy is worth the extra weight.  You will need extra threads on the barrel or shorten the barrel nut if you put a quarter in thick barrel lug on it. The factory lug is only about 3/16" thick.  I didn't use the heavy ss lug I bought as the nut ran out of threads before the barrel was deep enough in the receiver.  Good luck on your project.  I looked at the Stevens 200 and new Marlin bolt gun before I found an old Stevens 110 in a pawn shop. I was able to tune the factory trigger to a consistent 3 lbs. using a pull gauge. Send me a PM if I can be of any help.   
James

[pdog06]

+1 on a McGowen barrel. I have one in 308 and can usually shoot it in the .3's if I do my part, and I havent even fine tuned the load yet. The are very comparable to a Shilen, and they are very, very easy to clean. I dont think you could go wrong with either brand as they all have a great reputation. McGowen has about a 5-6 wk wait and Shilen is about 16 wks.

If you dont want to wait you could call Northland Shooter Supply@(763)682-4296. Jim Briggs is a great guy to deal with and he stocks pre-fit McGowen and Shilen barrel of all lengths and calibers. And his prices are very hard to beat. A 26"stainless match barrel ready to be installed is only $269 for either brand. He also sells whole guns, just actions, and about anything Savage/Stevens you could want. It dont look like he has a 6.5x284 in stock now, but he has an order due in in a couple weeks. He advertizes over on Savageshooters.com, here is a link to his ad.

http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php?topic=14194.0

Tell him I sent ya, maybe he'll give me a deal on the 2 barrels I'm getting ready to order from him

As for triggers, a SharpShooterSupply(SSS) trigger is the only way to go. Very easy to install and easy to adjust. And smooth as butter!!

http://www.sharpshootersupply.com/

hope this helps, and good luck.

mike

[billy_56081]

Thanks for the great info. guys. I'll check out the McGowen barrels.

[LaOtto222]

I was about to "pull the trigger" on a Shilen Heavy contour 26" Stainless Steel Select/Match Grade in with a chamber for neck turned cases in 223 and 1 - 14" twist for light bullets (50 grains and under). Do you think the McGowen barrels are better, cheaper, same? I am looking at this as a medium range varmint gun (about 400 yards) so I want at least .5 MOA at that distance.

[pdog06]

I was about to "pull the trigger" on a Shilen Heavy contour 26" Stainless Steel Select/Match Grade in with a chamber for neck turned cases in 223 and 1 - 14" twist for light bullets (50 grains and under). Do you think the McGowen barrels are better, cheaper, same? I am looking at this as a medium range varmint gun (about 400 yards) so I want at least .5 MOA at that distance.

I'd bet that either barrel will give you 1/2 moa as long as all the other pieces of the puzzle are solid. I really dont know which is better because I dont own a Shilen(yet), but the quality of them are about the same IMO.

As far as price, if you go thru the link I posted above the prices are exactly the same. The only difference is the wait. He may have what you need in stock, but if not it is 16 wks for a Shilen or 5-6 wks for a McGowen. The prices may be the same direct thru the manufacturer, but I havent looked into it.

Dont think I'm trying to steer you toward a McGowen and not a Shilen cause I'm not. I'm getting ready to order a new one myself and it may very well be a Shilen if it is in stock when I order it. McGowen is just not as widely known(even though they have been around for a long time) and I'm just tellin you that they are excellent barrels.

[LaOtto222]

Thank you for your reply. I looked at the link you posted and the 223 barrels are of a fast twist rate (1-8") for both makers and I would imagine standard necks, and I wanted a tight neck; .246" (standard necks are .254") and 1 - 14" twist rate. He does have excellent prices and if he had some thing that matched what I wanted, would not hesitate to get one. I want to set it up for 40 grain Hornady V Max or Nosler Ballistic tips going in the neighborhood of 3800 fps. I have even contemplated 1 - 16" twist. I am afraid if I go that route, that if the 40s do not shoot, I will not get any 50 grain bullets to stabilize. No one makes a 45 grain bullet with a decent BC. I guess I am going to have to go with the long wait to get what I want. I looked at McGowen's site and I do not think they do custom necks unless you pay extra for reamer rental. I have looked at McGowen, Montana Rifleman, Hart, Douglas, Pac-Nor as well as Shilen barrels. I thought the Shilen barrels are the ones I could get what I wanted, the cheapest.

[jnclement]

I've got a Shilen in 6.5X47 Lapua that shoots very, very well. But I've seen as many good targets from McGowens. Kind of novel these days to see somone looking for a slow twist. My Model 12 with the 1-7 barrel is shooting 80g Bergers and Amaxs really well.

[LaOtto222]

jnclement - I know the trend is toward heavy low drag bullets in the 223. If I was shooting at a fixed distance, say 300 yard matches or 600 yard matches, wind drift is more important that bullet drop, because you can zero in on your target and only have to worry about wind drift, so less of it is better. This is not going to be a match rifle, where a known distance is going to be shot. My intent is to use it for informal paper punching at 100 yards in my back yard, with hopefully an occasional trip out West for PD. Flat trajectory is important too as far as the PD will not be at a set range, they will vary from 100 - 400 + yards, so a flat shooting bullet is as important as wind drift. There again I can concentrate on wind drift instead of wind drift and elevation. A 40 grain V Max (.200 BC) traveling at 3800 fps with a 300 meter zero will be 3.7" high @ 100 meters, 4.8" @ 150 and 4.8 @ 200 and 10.7" low at 400. A 75 grain A-Max (.435 BC) @ 2600 fps with a 300 meter zero will be 6.8" high at 100 meters and 7.8" high at 200 meters. The 40 V Max - Not too bad shooting flat, some thing I can estimate fairly easily, so I only really have to worry about the wind. I also worry about ricochets in my area so a light fast bullet that blows up when it hits the ground is important too. That is my spin - and I am sticking to it

[R.W.Dale]

I built a Stevens 200 SA in 7.62x39mm  using a Shilen slow twist bull bbl. I think the target below says it all



this is my best yet but I literally have a book full of groups in the .3's

[KRP]

I've got a McGowen and a Shilen on Savage rifles.  Both are shooters, my Shilen does clean easier(different cartridge/caliber so maybe not a fair comparison).  I would certainly buy another McGowen and there lead time is appealing.

[wareagleguy]

Krochus,
I just purchased a CZ 527 in 7.62x39.  I need some load data.  Could you give some data?.  What is your twist in that barrel?

[R.W.Dale]

Krochus,
I just purchased a CZ 527 in 7.62x39.  I need some load data.  Could you give some data?.  What is your twist in that barrel?

My bbl is a slow 1 in 15

for heavy bullets H335 is tough to beat

for fast light loads N120 or AA1680 are THE powders for 7.62x39mm

as for data I don't have any magic loads, Hodgon, Speer, VhitaVuori and accurate arms all have what you seeketh, However all my loads are in RP cases with their small primer pockets.

 The little CZ is a nice rifle, I really enjoyed mine and shot it all the time. Mine really loved the 125grn Nosler ballistic tip

[wareagleguy]

So, you used .308 Noslers?

[R.W.Dale]

So, you used .308 Noslers?

I shot way more .308 diameter bullets through my CZ than I did .310

If you'll search my posts you'll find a thread where I tested 150grn sierra gamekings in .308 and .311 against one another in my .310 bored CZ527 carbine. There was no measurable difference in accuracy.

My new .310 bored AR15 is the same way, I don't even mess with any bullets other than .308

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,152856.0.html
more here

[jnclement]

Why would you want to shoot a 75g Amax so slow?