6.5x55 help!

B

Biathlonman

New member
Well I just bought a little rifle that I would like your thought, opinions and comments on. I have read all the old threads, I think I have at least.

It is a 1916, 96 Mauser action, curved bolt for scope clearance, the barrel has been cut down to 20 inches, glass bedded in a laminated thumbhole stock that I would be willing to bet is an older Fajen, Timney trigger, drilled and tapped for a scope, and in 6.5x55 obviously. The inside of the barrel looks really rough so I have my doubts about it shooting well but I am definetly going to try it before I scrap the barrel.

So what exactly do folks use this round for. I have read everything from varmints to moose/elk size game, and even some comments about elephent. The on paper ballistics don't look great, but often "the numbers" don't tell the whole story.

I don't reload right now but plan to be up and reloading by summer at the latest. I have ordered 5 boxes of S&B ammo from Natchezz, do get started with but welcome comments on ammo selection.

I have a ton more questions but we will get to them later :)...
 
Both the rifle and the cartrage have a well deserved reputation for accuracy. If the barrel is really bad that might not appy to yours, but try it to be sure.
If you have fired a 98 in 8 MM you will be amazed by how much less the 6.5 kicks.
If you find that the barrel has had it get a new 6.5. It seems like it would be easy to go to something in the .308 family, but the base of the cartrage is slightly different and more importantly the 96 is NOT as strong as the 98. It is however plenty strong enough for the 6.5 and smoother.
6.5 is plenty big enough for deer, light and accurate enough for targets or just plinking. I would NOT try for elephants!!! Osama maybe, but not elephants. :D

Post a picture when you can and let us know how it works out.
 
I have a very similar set up based on the 96 Mauser, except it's a 26inch barrel in a Fajen sporter stock with the monte Carlo. Yours is about the ideal deer setup(I'm thinking of going shorter on the barrel, but I think I'll just shoot this one out first. The 6.5x55 should be able to toss a nice thin high BC, high SD 140gn bullet at a comfortable 2500-2550fps from that 20inch barrel. This will shoot through a deer, no problem. It tends to be awesomely accurate, and easy on the recoil. My 96 sporter will do 1&1/4" all day long at 100 yds with the original barrel. The other day I had a Winchester M70 Feather weight out, and it stacked ten rounds into 7/8inch at 100yds, with my hasty benchrest technique. If the gun shoots, it's a keeper. Semper Fidelis...Ken M
 
I have become very intrigued by this round. I really hope that the barrel is still good, if not I have been weighing my options. It looks like my choices, according to brownells' catalog and the Shilen barrels they sell for it come in, 6.5x55, .300 savage, 7x57, or .35 Rem.

If I do have to rebarrel I am leaning toward the 7x57 because of the face that it seems to be a little more powerful and the fact that I plan to also be reloading 7mm Rem mag soon, so I get away with stocking only 7mm bullets. I hope the barrel is good though would save a great deal of money!

Who would you all go to for installation of a new barrel?

Anything else I should know about this little rifle?
 
Staying with the 6.5x55 isn't such a bad thing

It really gives up nothing to the 7x57mm Mauser. You'll see more ammo at retail stores in .65x55, to include Remington, Winchester, Federal, and PMC. Handloading is a breeze, there's an excellent selection of 6.5mm bullets out there from 87 all the way to 160 grains.

Then there's the accuracy department. It's not every day when you can buy an old, mil-surp bolt action rifle and put three rounds into an inch at 100 yards using iron sights. I've done that with my M96 Swedes, and witnessed others with the same results. Rebarrel in 6.5x55 and scope it, target bullseyes and deer won't escape it!
 
I've never used him, but I've heard many who are happy with a guy named
Mel Doyle in Idaho. He is apparently first rate as a gunsmith, esp. on long guns.

I'll see if I can find his address. He also has e-mail but no web page.
He is unavailable on Saturdays as he is a 7th-day Adventist.

Here:

Mel Doyle's, 6001 Hells Gulch Rd, St Maries, ID 83861. Phone or fax 208-245-3006. Email jdoyle@nidlink.com
 
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You might check with the Gun Parts Company.

For awhile they were selling new (unissued), 25" in the white replacement barrels without sights for the model 96 rifles. As I recall, they wanted around $35 for one.

I'd stick with the 6.5 if I were you, it's got a great reputation for accuracy and game performance.

Karamojo Bell, the famous Ivory hunter did take some elephants with a Swedish Mauser. I'll bet he was using the old round nose 160 grain bullets which penetrate like nobody's business. Still, I wouldn't try it, there's a reason the man was a legend. He was an extraordinary shot--good enough to reliably hit birds on the wing with a bolt rifle.
 
There are many brands of 6.5 x 55 on the market. Try several boxes of 140 grain ammo before making a judgement on your barrel. If you are willing to start reloading, you can often sweet talk an old worn barrel into shooting well by seating the bullet futher out as the rifleing leads wear some. Use a Stoney Point chamber indicator or equivalent to detirmine the exact distance to the rifleing and start .010 to .015 off of the rifling even if the OAL is longer than the reloading book says it should be.
It sounds as though the rifle recieved a lot of love and attention at some point and was probably someone's hunting companion.
The rifle is worth rebarreling if the old barrel does not shoot well. I have had excellent luck with McGowen super match grade chrome moly barrels.
Finally do not discount the 6.5 x 55 as an option for your rebarreling. It is a fantastic cartridge for deer. boar and small bears. The 1896 Mauser is a fine action but lacks the strength of the 1898. The 6.5 x 55 performs fine at pressure levels designed for the 1896. If you rechamber for a more modern cartridge you may be tempted to load a lot higher pressures than you action is designed for. Hold the rifle to your shoulder and look at the bolt position. That rear of the bolt is pointed at your face, and on the 1896 there is only one lug holding it back.

6.5MAUSER.JPG


1896 Swedish Mauser in 6.5 x 55 sporterized
glass and pillar bedded to refinished original stock
Millet engraved rings
Simmons Whitetail 50mm scope
 
Well I have been wrong before, and I am sure I will be wrong again. I just put a box through the old girl of what must be swedish mil-surplus ammo. I bought the ammo cheap from a local gun shop just to get the scope on paper before I moved up to better ammo that should arrive next week.

Shooting kneeling leaning across the back of a 4 wheeler, on a windy day I shot a group that ran just under 1 inch center to center. No reason to screw with that...:)

Going to try S&B ammo and some Federal Gold Metal Match next week off of a real bench and see what this thing can really do!

One heck of a little rifle for the small amount of money I have invested! Now going to have to get a good scope and possibly a little Harris Bipod!
 
Sounds like a neat sporter

In my favorite metric caliber...got 3, including a sporteer.:)

One suggestion that hasn't been touched on before, as you indicate having a Brownells catalog, is to considering firelapping the bore if it's rough = shooting bullets coated with fine abrasive down the bore to smooth out rhe burrs and dings. I've done this on one of my .223's and it's a much happier rifle for the treatment.
A lot less expense than a new barrel... worth a try;)
 
Clover Valve Grinding compound is a good place to start when
firelapping.

Also, the 96 is a two lug design, not 1 like a Krag.

98s are, I believe, 3 lug guns with the normal 2 + a safety lug somewhere,
if memory serves.
 
I stand corrected on the lug count. It was the 96's lack of a safety lug I was refering to. It is also a good idea to check the locking lugs on your 96 frequently for cracks. I bought one several years ago that had cracks on both lugs. The fact remains, however, that the 1896 Mauser is not as strong an action as the 1898 or its descendants such as the 700 Remington. In my humble opinion it should not be chambered to rounds such as the .308 or its wildcats even though some folks do it. The 6.5 x 55 does fine at its standard pressure levels and should not be hot rodded in the 96.
I also own a Remington classic in 6.5 x 55 and it can be safely loaded to higher pressures with loads I will not list here. In this format it nips closely at the heels of such fine rounds as the .270 and the 6.5-.284.
REMCLASSIC5.6X55.JPG


Remington Classic in 6.5 x 55
glass and pillar bedded
aluminum stiff arm rod embedded in fore end to prevent warpage
Millet engraved rings
Leupold 3.5 x 10 Vari X III 50mm
 
I too own a Remington 700 classic in 6.5x55 and a Mauser 96 and i love them both.My primary rig is the 700 and im shooting Federal premium ammo loaded with a 140gr trophy bonded bear claw bullet.Within 200yds i would not hesitate to shoot an elk with this load.On paper the old Swede looks pretty lethargic but hundreds of scandinavian moose are taken every year with it and nobody complains.When loaded with a 160grainer this cartridge will out perform many newer high velocity cartridges.The very first three shots out of the 700 snuggled into 3/4" at 100yds, who could ask for anything better out of a stock rifle?Good Huntin
 
I am seriously considering using this little gun on a combination mule deer/elk hunt next year in Colorado. I am trying to decide whether it would be best to shoot 140 grain slugs or 158-160 grain slugs. Would like the collective opinions of the group which would be better for wapiti!
 
Riddleofsteel: nice pics! How did you get the scope mounted so close to the barrel on the M96? Did you modify the three position safety? Also, how did you accomplish the tapping and drilling for the scope mounts? I have an M38 Swede that I wish to sporterize, and am looking for ideas.

v/r Dogger
 
How good is the condition of that M38?

I rather buy it off you than have you sporterize a gun that's
becoming harder to find in collectible condition in nice shape.

You could then buy a beater and still have $$ in the pocket.

If it's beat, then what the hell, chop it up.
 
Biathlonman, 6.5 is a little light for elk IMO, but it can be reasonably done, if you are up to the task of putting the bullet in the right spot. 140gn max penetration bullets like Barnes X bullet is the way to go IMO. The 160's penetrate very well too, but the 6.5 is only getting 2450fps or so from them. I'm throwing 140's at 2680 from a 26" barrel, and that's as fast as I care to take it in a M96 action. Broadside shots only. Good test of your stalking skills. Semper Fidelis...Ken M
 
Every year, hundreds of moose in Sweden and Finland are shot with the old swed.From what ive gathered most of the scandinavians use Norma factory rounds with a 156gr s.p. Nothing fancy, obviously if these people were undergunned they would not use the round.I guess what i am trying to say is even people who shoot the round have a tendency to under rate it.It just seems so hard to believe that such a light recoiling cartridge could be so effective.The 129gr Hornady s.p. when driven to modest velocities will easily penetrate the shoulders of all but the biggest whitetail.If i were to go elk hunting with 6.5x55 i would use which ever premium bullet shot best in your rifle ie 140gr Nosler partition, 140gr trophy bonded bear claw,140gr Barnes X,or either 160gr bullets from Hornady or Sierra.If your rifle is shooting sub MOA you could pretty much kill anything in North America except big bears.There is an excellent article on the 6.5x55 in Handloader magazine no.212. The author Al Miller became aquainted with this round through an old friend who had shot several polar bears with it.The hunter picked up one of the cartridges an said"put one of those in the right place and it will kill anything that walks the face of the earth"You know what i seriously dont doubt him. Good Huntin
 
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