6.5 Creedmoor in a 98?

[JHeath]

Would 6.5 Creedmoor feed through a '98? Or does it risk screwing up the feed rails trying to make it work??

[Texas by God]

I'm going to say perhaps.
I've had two 98 Mausers rebarreled to 22-250 and one rebarreled to .300 Savage. All three fed perfectly from the magazine with no problems. They are very close to the 6.5 Creedmoor case size.

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[Remiel]

6.5cm is dimensionally similar to 7x57, and I have seen folks go as small as 257 rob or 243 in a mauser without issues.

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[Larry Gibson]

Depends on the M98 action. Some will feed the shorter cartridges w/o problems but most won't, especially if 4 - 5 rounds are in the magazine. The short case body with minimal taper is the culprit. The case shoulders fill up the mag at their location in the more tapered feed rails with the follower not able to lift the rims up for the bolt to pick up. Also as the rounds are fed forward the shorter OAL does not allow the bullet to cant up the feed ramp at the correct angle. Thus the bullet nose jams into the off side of the barrel face before the rails release the cartridge to slip up under the extractor.

IMHO putting a 6.5 CM on a M98 action is like putting regular gas in a Ferrari....it'll get down the road but performance will suck..... Better to put the 6.5x55 or even better, the 6.5x57 on the M98 action. Loaded to the same pressures with appropriate powders they will out perform the 6.5 CM.

[405grain]

I agree with everything Larry just said, but would like to add an additional item. When modifying a 98 Mauser to feed shorter cartridges I generally shorten the follower and add a spacer to the back of the magazine well. This prevents the cartridges from shifting around in the magazine too much. If your not confident in modifying the feed rails, seek out a gunsmith that is. This is one area of the action where Bubba can cause havoc, and mistakes here are not easily corrected.

[JHeath]

Depends on the M98 action. Some will feed the shorter cartridges w/o problems but most won't, especially if 4 - 5 rounds are in the magazine. The short case body with minimal taper is the culprit. The case shoulders fill up the mag at their location in the more tapered feed rails with the follower not able to lift the rims up for the bolt to pick up. Also as the rounds are fed forward the shorter OAL does not allow the bullet to cant up the feed ramp at the correct angle. Thus the bullet nose jams into the off side of the barrel face before the rails release the cartridge to slip up under the extractor.

IMHO putting a 6.5 CM on a M98 action is like putting regular gas in a Ferrari....it'll get down the road but performance will suck..... Better to put the 6.5x55 or even better, the 6.5x57 on the M98 action. Loaded to the same pressures with appropriate powders they will out perform the 6.5 CM.

Thanks. Good info.

I rebarreled to .257 Bob in Seattle expecting to handload and/or use factory +P . Before finishing the rifle we moved to interior British Columbia and .257 is not a thing here. The gun shop staff would probably have to look up .257 Roberts in _Cartridges of the World_. Ammobin.ca carries 8mm Lebel and .41 short Colt but .257 isn't even listed.

I could rebarrel to 7x57 but that's not universally available either. Or just live with the .257 and handloads.

I thought since 6.5 CM is a good cartridge soaring up the billboard chart and available in outlying areas it might be worth asking. The 7-08 is generally available but another short action case and just duplicates 7x57.

6.5 Swede is a great long action case, not universally available but might be the better option. I've seen a few Norwegian Krags for sale and 96s so it's around.

Project started with an LGS-find Brno/Persian "mannlicher" in 8x57 with a Lyman 48, an early Timney trigger, glass bedded, 19". Weighed 6.5 lbs. I knew it would kick and it did. Recoil is the enemy of marksmanship and I concluded I just don't need another short barreled bench brute. Bought a 24" medium bbl in . 257 and found a used rigby-style stock with drop for irons. I like the action, sight, trigger and stock so willing to spend more than resale value. The Lyman alone is worth most of what I gave for the rifle.

The .280 and .270 are great but I want something more mild, 6.5 - 7mm.

[richhodg66]

"Or just live with the .257 and handloads."

This is the correct course of action. If you already handload for it, why go to the trouble and expense of a rebarrel?

And by the way, I'm a gun nut, want one of everything, and I'm also a fan of the 6.5 Creedmoor, but for what a rebarrel would cost, you could buy a Ruger American or Savage Axis that'll shoot better than that '98 will anyway.

[Larry Gibson]

A "Brno/Persian" M98 action is a standard length action and should have a 3.3" length magazine. The 6.5 CM was made for the shorter "medium" length actions with 2.8" magazines. The "Brno/Persian" is also is made for the taper of the x57 family of Mauser cartridges. Is 6.5 CM ammunition readily available where you are in BC? As mentioned, if you are expecting to handload then what ever factory ammunition is available is a moot point.

[JHeath]

Thanks again.

Like most project guns, economic sense long ago went out the window. A Ruger American will do anything a Rigby "London Best" will do, but if I found oil on my property I'd be on the phone to Rigby.

Canada can get pretty remote. Since I'm swapping barrels and stocks etc., I'm potentially starting over with an action. There's some sense in being able to buy ammo in Yellowknife, instead of carrying a white elephant caliber. I wouldn't have bought a .257 barrel if I knew we would move to BC.

You're right, Larry. It is wasteful to put short cartridges in a 98. Modern popular designs all put moderate calibers in short actions, and powerful calibers in standard actions.

The perfect 98 project cartridge for me would have been:
1) universially available in Canada
2) standard length
3) not overbore
4) power/recoil between .257 and 7x57

6.5 Swede probably comes closest.

[405grain]

If it were me I'd keep the 98 Brno in 257 Roberts, and build a second Mauser in 6.5x55. First off, 257 isn't as common as it used to be and is probably handloaded as much, or more, than is bought. You can make 257 Bob cases from any standard length .473" case with some reforming & a little neck turning. You'll put almost as much money and effort converting the 257 Mauser into a 6.5mm than it would cost to just buy a second rifle. IMHO the 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser would be an excellent choice in a 98 action. The performance of the 257 and the 6.5x55 overlap, with the 257 excelling with lighter bullets and the 6.5x55 being able to handle heavier bullets, and both about the same when shooting medium weight bullets. If your circumstances make access to 6.5x55 cases (which are different from x57 cases) difficult, then either a 6.5 Creedmore or a 260 Remington would make more sense because these can be reformed from other brass.
I've built several different Mauser 98's, with a few still under construction. Two of the ones that are still in progress: one (nearly finished) is a 257 Roberts, and the other is going to be a 6.5x55 (not quite as finished), so I appreciate your interest in these calibers.
A good rule of thumb to remember is that a man can never have too many Mausers.

[Wayne Smith]

I'd go ahead and finish the 257 Bob as you originally planned. It can do 90% of what you need a rifle to do across the continent - and for dangerous game I'd want something bigger than a 6.5 as my 'other rifle'!

[Lloyd Smale]

had a parker hale commercial 98 in 243 and it fed like butter. But that said if i was building one it wouldnt be in a short action round. A 2506 or 3006 would make much more sense. Heck theres nothing wrong with the old 857 it probably came in. I have loads for my 857 rem classic that will smoke my 06s with 150 grain bullets. Velocity wise it gives a 300 wsm all the fight it can handle.

[Deadeye Bly]

It can be made to work, hell, I got one to feed the 7mm BR cartridge. It took about a week of working slowly and deliberately.

[smithnframe]

Why wouldn’t a 6.5 Creedmoor work in a 98…….jeeeeeeez!

[Larry Gibson]

Why wouldn’t a 6.5 Creedmoor work in a 98…….jeeeeeeez!

Read post #4.......

[JHeath]

It may be possible to make 6.5 CM feed through a 98, there are .45acp conversions and Deadeye Bly made 7mmBR work.

But I would rather not risk irreversible filing on the feed rails then still not have it 100% reliable in field conditions. Per Larry's explanation of cartridge shape etc it sounds like 6.5CM is not a good choice for what I'm trying to do.

Even 6.5x55 is shaped differently from the x57 cases, and I'm wondering if I should just bump up to 7x57. I narrowed it to those two choices. The 7x57 is not going to be available everywhere. But it's a lot more available up here than .257, recoil is modest, and it's versatile from deer to moose. The feed rails are designed for x57. I wouldn't want to stop a grizzly with it, which is a potential issue here, but I'm capping recoil on this project at 7x57.

I can carry bear spray on my finger like a key ring, can hardly miss, and it's effective at backing them off. Every once in a while they keep trying. But at least it would give me time to ready a rifle and maybe deal with them when they're not coming at 30mph.

[444ttd]

You what has little bells and smells like peppers ? Grizzly poop.

--Randy-Bohannon

[richhodg66]

It may be possible to make 6.5 CM feed through a 98, there are .45acp conversions and Deadeye Bly made 7mmBR work.

But I would rather not risk irreversible filing on the feed rails then still not have it 100% reliable in field conditions. Per Larry's explanation of cartridge shape etc it sounds like 6.5CM is not a good choice for what I'm trying to do.

Even 6.5x55 is shaped differently from the x57 cases, and I'm wondering if I should just bump up to 7x57. I narrowed it to those two choices. The 7x57 is not going to be available everywhere. But it's a lot more available up here than .257, recoil is modest, and it's versatile from deer to moose. The feed rails are designed for x57. I wouldn't want to stop a grizzly with it, which is a potential issue here, but I'm capping recoil on this project at 7x57.

I can carry bear spray on my finger like a key ring, can hardly miss, and it's effective at backing them off. Every once in a while they keep trying. But at least it would give me time to ready a rifle and maybe deal with them when they're not coming at 30mph.

7x57 is a wise choice if you're going to change the rifle. It's about as close to the perfect rifle cartridge as exists.

[TNsailorman]

I see no real reason for a 6.5 Creedmoore other than to maybe to use in a AR platform. In a bolt, the 6.5X55 Swede is a better cartridge with none of the fitting problems. My take anyway, james

[Lloyd Smale]

I see no real reason for a 6.5 Creedmoore other than to maybe to use in a AR platform. In a bolt, the 6.5X55 Swede is a better cartridge with none of the fitting problems. My take anyway, james

should be a LIKE button here. I had to chuckle. My crop damage shooting buddy has quite a few guns but isnt real gun savoy. He came over with a new browning abolt in 6.5 creedmore. Said he bought it because its the flattest shooting gun out there. I laughed because he owns a 264 mag already. I showed him my 6.5-300wby i nick named the 6.5 crushmore. i told him either on of those guns hits as hard at 300 yards as his creedmore does at the muzzle. Its probably the most over rated cartridge since the 357 came out and everyone claimed it would knock the cork out of any big game animal.