30-06 to 300 Win Mag

[walters900]

I've been looking at getting a 300 Win Mag. However, I have a Remington 700 BDL long action in 30-06, what sort of expense and work would be involved in converting this rifle to a 300 Win Mag? Or is that even feasible? Thanks

 

[Jerry M]

You could have a gunsmith fit a new bolt like a PTG with a magnum bolt face and either ream the 06 barrel to WM dimensions of replace it with an after market. I did the latter with a .270 Winchester to 7 MM Rem Magnum using a Rock Creek barrel. HOWEVER, the action does not feed reliably. I bought Badger Bottom Metal with a single feed magazine, but have not installed it yet.

You may do better to sell the rifle and buy another. The reason I did not is that my rifle was registered with the RCMP and I have a PAl license which allows me to travel across the USA Canadian border (when I was hunting there often) without doing paperwork and paying each year. I was probably foolish in this regard.

Good luck

Jerry

 

[shortgrass]

I've been looking at getting a 300 Win Mag. However, I have a Remington 700 BDL long action in 30-06, what sort of expense and work would be involved in converting this rifle to a 300 Win Mag? Or is that even feasible? Thanks

This work can be done. It involves opening the bolt face and then soldering a ring into it to cover what is left of the extractor slot, and then boring again to except the magnum. An M-16 or Mini 16 extractor is then installed. requires machining and a bit of fitting, sometimes. A factory barrel is rarely worth the expense to re-chamber, so a custom barrel is recommended if you want it to "shoot" after sinking $$$$ into the project. Lastly, feeding should be addressed. It is not impossible and there's really no need to go to center feed mag set-up. Just takes some know-how to achieve reliable and 'slick' feeding by someone who knows and understands the feed cycle. You're gonna' need a magnum follower for the Remington, also. In the long run, I feel it is better to start off with a magnum action for a magnum rifle. The kind of work you're looking at doesn't come cheap, but if you find someone who will do this work cheap, run the other way. I've seen plenty of half-a$$ed jobs like this 'conversion' that didn't work right, but they were 'cheap'.

 

[LoneTraveler]

I agree with Shortgrass. Too many things to change to get the larger case to fit the action and work dependable when the chips are down.

 

[walters900]

This work can be done. It involves opening the bolt face and then soldering a ring into it to cover what is left of the extractor slot, and then boring again to except the magnum. An M-16 or Mini 16 extractor is then installed. requires machining and a bit of fitting, sometimes. A factory barrel is rarely worth the expense to re-chamber, so a custom barrel is recommended if you want it to "shoot" after sinking $$$$ into the project. Lastly, feeding should be addressed. It is not impossible and there's really no need to go to center feed mag set-up. Just takes some know-how to achieve reliable and 'slick' feeding by someone who knows and understands the feed cycle. You're gonna' need a magnum follower for the Remington, also. In the long run, I feel it is better to start off with a magnum action for a magnum rifle. The kind of work you're looking at doesn't come cheap, but if you find someone who will do this work cheap, run the other way. I've seen plenty of half-a$$ed jobs like this 'conversion' that didn't work right, but they were 'cheap'.

Everyone wants cheap, until it becomes expensive. I'm thinking that just turning it into a custom 30-06 and buying a nice used custom 300 Win Mag is the way to go. Thanks for all of the advice.

 

[shortgrass]

Everyone wants cheap, until it becomes expensive. I'm thinking that just turning it into a custom 30-06 and buying a nice used custom 300 Win Mag is the way to go. Thanks for all of the advice.

Good idea, Walters! The .30/06 might seem boring to many, but it has and will continue to "get the job done". A custom barreled /06 , properly stocked and with better than average optics (and a good aftermarket trigger doesn't hurt either) can cover game from antelope to elk in a respectful manner.

 

[baldhunter]

I think you would be better off either buying a 300 or rebarreling the 30-06.I have a 300WSM and two 300 Win Mags.With a 168gr gr Nosler Ballistic Tip and A-4350 powder,74.0grs in the 300 Win Mag I can get around 3200fps.65.0grs in the 300WSM gives me a little over 3000fps.58.0grs in my 30-06 with a 28" Pac-Nor barrel,I average 3030fps.Factory loads are going to run a lot less in the 30-06,but handloads in the 30-06 are probably going run close to the 300 magnums with factory loads.All that being said.The 30-06 is a great round.Does a lot with less powder and the brass is cheap too.