Help for a first timer

I'm doing a wilcat barrel for the first time.

Application: Hunting rifle, .35 cal., ~20" barrel

Please suggest:

1. What barrel taper I should look at for a .35 cal @ 20" in a hunting rifle?
2. A twist rate for 225gr max prejectiles (180 and 200gr for sure). I'm thinking 1:14"
3. A barrel maker.

I know that the choice of barrel maker is quite subjective but maybe if I could get a "top three" then I could choose based on delivery, etc. I'm leaning toward Shilen.

Also some dumb newb type questions...

4. I'm going to rebarrel myself. Will the barrel maker need my action to chamber the barrel? Since this is a Savage there is no need for him to need the action, right?

5. I want the barrel to be finished in a matte black/blue finish. I don't want stainless. Do the barrel makers finish them or do they all leave them "in the white"? If I want it to match the Savage Action what finish do I tell them to give it?

6. I have a good LGS who will order order whatever I want. Is is better to order just an action or have him order me a Stevens rifle or the new Edge?

7. If rifle, what caliber? I have a .308, so ammo interchangeability is there. I would like a 7mm-08, but not really now that they changed the twist rate. I really can't think of a reason why I would want a .243.

Lot of information needed but will try.

How much power do you want/need?
Hunted a lot with a 358 Winchester and a 35 Whelan and AI version. For many either may be too much or not enough power.

Recoil: The more power going out the end of the barrel the more the recoil. I use to hunt exclusively with 35 calibers except when Nosler came out with the 180,200.225 grain Accubonds in the 338 caliber I switched when they said the smallest Accubond in the 35 would be the 225 grain.

For turn around time on barrels Benchmark!

There are many good barrel makers out there. The wait time for quality I had to choose Benchmark.
Because of wait time I can't advise because in this class of custom barrel makers there are several and I am not sure I could say if Shilon,Brux,Douglass Keiger are better than anyone else's.

Neal

As for power I'm hoping for better than .35 Remington performance, probably 2200-2400 fps with 200 and 180 grain bullets.

I used an E.R. Shaw barrel for my 20in. .300 Savage. Plenty accurate for a hunting barrel and took about 6 weeks to get.

I don't know of any maker who puts finish on their barrels. That is usually the responsibility of the buyer and their gunsmith or coater. GCS did the Duracoat on mine.

http://www.shilen.com/savageBarrels.html

I guess that's why I was leaning toward Shilen.

You may want to check and see what is available and what is on order with a phone call.

You may want to contact Sharp SHooters Supply and see if he has what you are looking for. Not sure if Jim at Northlander has or Devin at Sinarms?

Neal

That's not really much power difference between your desired wildcat and the old 35 Rem there. I seriously doubt any critter would be able to tell the difference between the two.

A 358 Win would surpass the power levels you're after, with a 200 gr bullet at a little over 2600 fps.

I've always thought the biggest handicap to the 35 caliber guns was the poor rifle bullet choices for heavier bullets that are built for higher velocities. The biggest caution for the lighter .35 cal bullets is you have to make sure they're not constructed for .35 Rem speeds, or they simply open too soon and don't give you good penetration, or disintegrate on impact.

You could look at the Barnes TSX 200 gr, but it's going to shoot more like a 225 to 250 gr anyway (it's long for it's weight). Hopefully the Barnes will shoot for you. I've had mixed results with their bullets, some of my rifles shoot them well, and some hate them and throw them like shotgun patterns.

I've always been interested in building either a 35 Whelan, or a 358 Norma Mag, but have always shied away from the bore size from the poor bullet choices. It seems to me they need about a 275 to 280 gr Partition or other bonded core bullet. That would really sing out of a 358 Norma Mag.

I have a 338 Win mag, and a 375 H&H now, so I guess I've bridged the gap of the .35, and don't really "need" it...

a 358 wssm will get you the power levels you want and if you hunt in Indiana it would be legal for hunting

Yes, this is for Indiana hunting. That's why the .35 Rem won't work. This will be a wild cat of my own design. It would be a plus to be able to swap barrels and have a "normal" gun like a .243, .7mm-08. or .308. If it weren't for the fact the my current .308 is a 110FP (long action) I would just rebarrel that one, in fact I still might, but I think I'm just going to buy an action or a whole gun in one of those calibers.

.358 WSSM is up there with (and beyond) the level of the .358 Win. I don't want that much gun.

The 180gr Interlock SSP bullet and the 200gr FTX are my target bullets. I've also looked at the Barnes but Hornady bullets are always much cheaper and 9/10 times I go with a Hornady.

Go with the 358 Win. Same bolt face as 243 and 7-08. More than enough power to meet your needs, you can even load it down a little from max and extend your brass life. A 20" bbl in a sporter contour would point nice for you and be "quick" on target. You could try a bead blasted finish on stainless, or just Alumihyde it when you get it on the action, do the whole barreled action together. If you don't want to paint it yourself, send it off to be Duracoated. I keep threatening to do that with my 'yote rifle.

I would not go with the wssm anything. Been there, done that, the brass absolutely sucks applecrap. Life's too short to deal with lousy brass. Now if Lapua or Norma came out with some good brass, that wasn't granite hard and thick as adobe walls, then that would be different...

I'm sure Sinman can do you up a barrel real easy. Good lead times, and prices. Don't know about lead times to any other makers for "sporter weight" barrels. They all seem to only stock the heavies and varmint bbls.

You won't need to send your action to anyone to get the barrel made for it. That's one of the great things about the Savage's. That and being able to put the whole rifle together yourself.

Unfortunately .358 Win is not legal for deer hunting in Indiana. If that were that case I'd be using my 30-06, or even my SKS.

Min case length = 1.16"
Max case length = 1.625"
Min bullet diameter = 0.357"

Thanks for the Sinman recommendation - sent an e-mail.

What specifically is the requirement for Indiana? Cases not longer than 1.625, or cases not longer than 1.16? I get that it's gotta be 357 or bigger, but the rest has me??

Sorry, typo fixed. ;D 1.16" is min, 1.625" is max.

1.16" = 44 Special, but squeezes out .38 SPL.
1.625" = Allows 500 S&W Mag, but eliminates .460 Mag and .450 Bushmaster.

358wssm & lighter loads?

Sorry guys, maybe I wasn't clear in the OP... I'm not looking for a cartidge, I already have my wildcat caliber in mind, and it's "none of the above"... I'll post progress when there is some...

Right now I'm just looking for barrel recommendations for a .35 cal with a 20" barrel, and what caliber to get as a donor rifle. I will be using the donor rifle for it's 0.473" bolt face, and will have the stock barrel if I ever get the chance to hunt in another state, or for different quarry.

I would have gone with 7mm-08 as my big game cartridge of choice, but Savage changed their twist rate, so no joy with 168 SMK's or similar long big game bullets in the 1:11.5 twist. So right now I'm leaning toward another .308 for the donor rifle, but maybe it'll be a .22-250.

However, if things don't work out on the wildcat front, a .35/.25 WSSM is second on the list, and a .270 WSM will be the donor rifle.