Fella's;

Since Tikka has released LHB T3's, I've started thinking.  As far as I'm concerned Tikka screwed the pooch by offering the same tired old caliber selection as everybody else, but that's a personal opinion. 

So, since Tikka is not able to sell me a 6.5 Swede, I've decided I might as well make my own.

I can buy a new Tikka in .30-06, no problem.  But I've got a perfectly good .30-06.  But I want a 6.5.  What to do?  That's easy, now which one to rebarrel?  See the Classified ad where I WTB a Winchester stainless 6.5 barrel.  If I can find one, I'll put the 6.5 tube on my Winchester classic model 70 stainless, converting it from .30-06 to 6.5 Swede.  But, if no Winchester stainless 6.5 barrel shows up, I'll send the Tikka to the smith & turn that into a Swede.

Now I wish somebody would tell me what's so damned hard about screwing a barrel into the action at the factory & building what a guy wants instead of having to pay through the nose for "custom shop" work.

900F

Fella's;

The project is now both well underway, and in Rob1's hands.  I got the barreled action back from the smith on Saturday & turned it to Rob today, Tuesday.  Ah well, who knows when I'll see it again?

In any case, the Tikka T3 LHB action is now wearing a 22" Lilja 1:9 twist barrel.  The weird-Alice Tikka recoil lug is gone.  It's been replaced with a very Browning A-bolt like recoil lug that's faceted to match the Tikka receiver like Browning's.

I've already got the scope for this gun, it's a Leupold VX-3 2.5-8 36mm in blue.  However, it's got to go back to Leupold to have the mil-dot reticle fitted to it.  That was a bit of a shock when I asked the Leupold tech rep what it was gonna cost me.  She quoted $159.96!  Holy inflation helium boy, I thought it was gonna run about $60-75.00!!  I had thought to put the scope in the same Talley lightweight rings that I'm so happy with on the Tikka .338.  But, Talley only shows them in aluminum/matte.  Can't blue aluminum & getting aluminum anodized to match bluing is extremely difficult & therefore expensive.  The Tikka rings are also aluminum/matte, bummer.  Therefore, I'll go searching for a decent set of steel rings I'll get blued with the gun.  And for sure, they won't be Burris.  It was a set of Burris mounts & rings that failed on the Tikka .338 Winchester magnum.  That was the last straw for me with Burris.

We'll see how quickly the stock process goes, maybe I'll get to hunt this gun this fall.  Who knows?  But I do know I'm not going to push Rob any on the project.  I'd druther wait a bit than either irk him or get a rush job.  But maybe I can get him to do some pictures.

But I do have the brass bought & 3 different boxes of bullets to try.

900F

 Patience Grasshopper. Order of work, finish pattern stock, send off pattern to duplicator, receive stock final shape and inletting apply finish, get stock checkered and send metal to be blued, final assembly. I can't give a time table, won't even guess other than to say hunting season may not be in the picture. A year and a half to two years from conception to completion is about average on my own projects and probably faster than average. There are too many variables to quote time lines. How long will the duplicator take, the checkerer, the blueing job. How long will it take me to finish the pattern. I'm in the process of finishing up my work shop and moving everything in there from the spare bedroom I work out of now not to mention it's a hobby not a profession. That being said I have no intention of dragging my feet. I will post photos at intervals of completion on both the pattern and actual stock.

Rob;

As I said, don't even want to give the impression I'd be rushing you.  I simply have no idea as to how long it takes.  Now I at least have a better idea, thanks!

900F