CZ 557 20" 30-06 Setup

[Ranger260]

I recently acquired a beautiful CZ 557 rifle in 30-06 with a 20" barrel and 1:10" twist. It came with both a beautiful walnut stock and a Manners synthetic stock for a very fair price. It really handles beautifully in that walnut stock with that short barrel. However, I've had second thoughts about how I want to setup that rifle. I mostly elk and deer hunt in wooded mountain terrain with shots under 500 yards (often under 100). My question is given my base rifle, how would you setup this rifle, and what powder/bullet combination would you use to optimize it?

Initially, my thoughts were to rebarrel to a longer 22-24" 30-06 barrel to gain some additional velocity. It seems though that it is not so popular to use long action calibers in such a short barrel, and that it is much more popular to pair the more efficient 308 with a short barrel. On the other hand, we are starting to see hunters running the 300WSM with shorter barrels, especially with a suppressor.

It seems to me that the 30-06 bridges the gap between the 308 and the 300WSM in energy and velocity, especially with the newer powders. Is there any reason I shouldn't just run it "as is"? Or do you think I should rebarrel it? Alternatively, I am thinking of bedding it into the Manners stock, threading the barrel and purchasing a suppressor for it. What do you think?

 

[Canhunter35]

My buddy has the same rifle and is about to work up a load with the 212eldx in it. I don't know what velocity, but it'll be very effective.
On a rebarrel job, it would be worthless to change for just a cpl inches of barrel in my opinion, but if you were set on wanting the velocity/trajectory increase I'd be hard pressed to not run a 6.5x284 in that rifle. The magazine isn't super long, which will limit the length with the 30-06 style cases

 

[Ranger260]

CZ made these rifles in 30-06, 270 and 6.5 Swede, in both 20" and 24". I suppose another alternative would be to buy a 24" model if I could find one at a good price, and swap it into the Manners stock, then sell off the 20" model with the other stock. But that 212 ELD-X out of a short barrel sounds intriguing. The magazine is approximately 3.4" long, so I should be able to run at least a 200 ELD-X or 208 ELD-M.

 

[imyourhuckleberry]

I've been using a 30-06 for more than 50 years and in my opinion you can use it but this caliber shines best is a 26" barrel. You have to be careful in your bullet selection and powder and find out which bullet will expand at the lower velocities. The following is a little excerpt from a Chuck Hawkes .

From Chuck Hawkes article:

"The Sierra Manual shows that 47.5 grains of IMR 4350 powder behind a 165 grain bullet gives a MV of 2400 fps. A maximum load of 56.0 grains of IMR 4350 powder gives the 165 grain Sierra bullets a MV of 2900 fps.

The Sierra Bullets Reloading Manual also shows that 50.1 grains of IMR 4831 powder behind their 180 grain bullets gives a MV of 2400 fps., while a maximum load of 57.7 grains of IMR 4831 can drive the 180 grain bullets to a MV of 2800 fps. All of these Sierra loads used Federal cases and Federal 210 primers, and were chronographed in the 26 inch barrel of a Savage 116 rifle."

 

[RevJim]

An old saying , when loading for short barrels " Heavy bullets with slow powders". Less blast, more efficient than a lighter bullet/faster powder. Less muzzle flash too. The 200 AB would be a good place to start too. I also prefer the 200 PT in any 30-06, we use the 200AB in my SILs 300 RUM. But too many good reports of the AB/06 working too ignore. Have a ball man!

 

[Ranger260]

I do have some 200 AB and 200 ELD-X at my disposal for load workup. Any recommendations for a slow powder? Reportedly, 168 TTSX over H4350 shoots 0.56 MOA.

 

[RevJim]

If you are shooting that 168 that accurate then "stop right there"! ha I promise you, it will kill everything in North America! It will retain far more weight than a heavier cup n core bullet, or at least end up the same. I loaded the 168 TSX for a friend in his 300 WSM and he has killed elk, axis, red deer, mountain goat, Big Horn sheep, mule deer, and others. It almost always gets total penetration. Sounds like a good set-up to me Pard. If you want to play around with the heavies, try H4831 or R23/R26/R22 ( I used 60gr of R22/200PT in a 24" 30-06) Have a ball.

 

[Ranger260]

Yeah...Im thinking that 168 TTSX would do everything I need...especially in the 30-06. Thanks for the info.!

 

[Cb750]

Hey I realize this post is a couple years old. So I'm hoping you will be able to answer this question given 2 years of trials. I'm kicking tires on a CZ 557 in either .308 or 30-06 and love to hear your experiences. Have you determined a max range of effectiveness on big game?

 

[Ranger260]

I ended up selling this rifle before I ever had a chance to run it through it's paces. Wish I could pass along something useful to you. How far do you want to shoot game at? Perhaps one of the folks on here can give you some pointers based on the bullet/powder combo you want to use and species you want to hunt.