What do ya think?

[Oldschool280]

Picked up this fn benchrest custom for a song. 6 mm rem 11/4 barrel custom stock for my lefthandedness. Hoping to maybe try f class with it , maybe barrel it in 7 stw?

 

[ohiohunter]

STW is a lot of horsepower for fclass. Think your shoulder will handle 3x 15-30 consecutive shots? No brakes in fclass. Your barrel will be toast halfway through your league.

If you're gonna shoot a front bipod might as well make it a 223 or 308, f/tr class. Though I know a guy who cleans house w/ 6br and a sinclair fclass bipod. If you drop coin on a front rest you're gonna want a stock to ride it properly and from the looks of it that one will not.

Sure you can go sling lead, but it doesn't take much to spark the competitiveness in one.

 

[Oldschool280]

STW is a lot of horsepower for fclass. Think your shoulder will handle 3x 15-30 consecutive shots? No brakes in fclass. Your barrel will be toast halfway through your league.

If you're gonna shoot a front bipod might as well make it a 223 or 308, f/tr class. Though I know a guy who cleans house w/ 6br and a sinclair fclass bipod. If you drop coin on a front rest you're gonna want a stock to ride it properly and from the looks of it that one will not.

Sure you can go sling lead, but it doesn't take much to spark the competitiveness in one.

Thanx for the input, i know very little about f class, other than just about anything is allowed. As far as the stw i was thinking to make it nore useful. I might have the barrel turned a little to lihhten it up as it is a train axle. Or maybe it'l make a good chuck gun. The bipod is a chinese harris knockoff and not staying there ., it came with the rig.

 

[toddc]

7 STW for F-class? Probably not. 7 SAUM or 284? All day long. A SAUM will shoot REAL close to a STW and burn 40% less powder doing it.
My 27" SAUM runs 175 ELD-X at 3150. I throttled it back to 3050 and it shoots bugholes.

 

[sable tireur]

Oldschool280,

... i know very little about f class, other than just about anything is allowed.

Here are three articles to help you become better familiarized with the F-Class competition:

https://www.ssusa.org/articles/2016/12/15/getting-started-in-f-class-competition/

Getting Started In F Class | Target Shooter Magazine

http://http://www.accurateshooter.com/guns-of-week/gunweek063/

I might have the barrel turned a little to lihhten it up as it is a train axle.

Check the weight restrictions for F-Class first, then weigh the rifle.

Finished barrels usually don't fare well when re-contoured unless they are cut rifled. I suggest having the barrel borescoped to see exactly what the condition is. If it has some throat problems or the bore looks like a dry lake bottom, get it re-barreled. If it's in good shape, shoot it as is depending on the twist rate. The 6mm Rem. I shoot is an 8.2" twist for the 6mm 140 gr. Berger Hybrid but you could run a little slower twist if you choose a different bullet. Remember that you're shooting out to 1,000 yards so wind drift can be a very decisive factor.

FN Mausers are not characteristic of an F-Class rifle these days although I see nothing wrong with that choice at all. Dance with who you brung! You might catch a little heat for the decision but ignore them and go have a great time.

Read the article above to get a better picture of the sport and what other decisions you might want to consider.

Enjoy!

 

[375fan]

Picked up this fn benchrest custom for a song. 6 mm rem 11/4 barrel custom stock for my lefthandedness. Hoping to maybe try f class with it , maybe barrel it in 7 stw?

I can't tell from picture but is that action long enough for a 7stw?

 

[MudRunner2005]

For F-Class, rebarrel it to a .260 Rem, .260 AI, 7mm-08, or .308 Win.

You will not want a big cartridge, or a magnum cartridge for F-class comp, as was stated before, you will burn your barrel out halfway through the season from hot-laps and high numbered shot strings.

 

[sable tireur]

Oldschool280,

You have a what is essentially a Long Action in the M98 pattern. This action will hold any cartridge up to and including the .30-06 family without too much adjustment.

Like any form of competition, F-Class is a learning curve. No one is born with all the experience, skill and knowledge to make a run at the top spot immediately. Most of us start out cautiously, testing the water before we jump in all the way.

The 6mm Rem. cartridge is a good performer with the 105 grain Berger Hybrids. Why not check the twist of the 6mm Rem. barrel already in place to see if it is suitable for shooting the longer VLD bullets which require a fast twist. If it is, check the condition of that barrel to make sure you have enough life left in it to make it through a season of casual competition. If not, move on to Plan B.

If your FN is a magazine fed action then you can select any of the long action cartridges for the .30-06 family. A 6.5-06 standard or AI version will perform quite well for your introductory participation. You will get the similar performance to the 6.5-284 Shehane cartridge. Or, let your gunsmith chamber the new barrel for the 6.5-284 Shehane which will run nicely in the longer action.

The same situation can be had by stepping up to the .280 AI and shooting those 180 grain Berger VLDs. Be sure to check the twist rate! You may have to scale back a little to the 168 grain VLDs if you don't have the twist rate needed.

You can run those short action cartridges already suggested but you will need to have the Mauser magazine modified if you choose to shoot from the magazine. You could also use a temporary single shot follower for any of the cartridges suggested.

Be aware that as you grow in the sport, you will want to grow with the equipment. Custom actions with custom barrels and custom triggers bedded into a custom made stock are de rigueur for the tougher levels of competition. Add to this the expected cost of those high-end competition scopes and front rests! The U.S. F-class Open Team is shooting the .300 WSM or the 7mm WSM depending on the Captain this year. The Brits, Canadians and South Africans, all top winners and competitors, have chosen the 7mm RSAUM or the 7mm WSM cartridge for the horsepower and BC for wind drift. But don't think you have to start out with these cartridges or that equipment just yet. Work your way up to it and enjoy the process!

Regards.