264 Win Mag.....all of a sudden I want one

T

tddeangelo

Handloader
May 18, 2011
2,024
21
Been watching a 6.5x55 M70 FWT on gunbroker for a bit now, and it's clawed it's way up into the mid-$800's. Decent stock on it for a "run of the mill" Winchester, but still, seems to be gettin' kinda steep for a FWT. I know, I know, very few 6.5's were made. Still....

At any rate, an nameless member here who has helped me spend a lot of money on various things over the past couple years mentioned a 264WM to me. I'm sure that narrows the field of potential perpetrators quite a bit.

I did some digging, and can get one in a new-made M70 FWT, which means a 24" barrel, for $718 (plus associated fees), OR.....a SHOT Show special SuperGrade in that round for $1077 (again, plus associated fees).

The Swede on GB has a Buy-It-Now of $1089. I'm liking the SG more now.

I need another rifle like I need hole in the head...talk me out of it!!!!! (Yeah, I know, I came to the wrong place for that...)
 
Tom,

Whats not to like about the 264 WM. Shoots fast, flat as road kill and hits hard. Makes for a great long range deer and antelope round. Load it with the 140 gr BT for target shooting and use the 140 gr AB for hunting.
The Super Grade is nice, all the rifle you could ask for and then some.

Get the Super Grade and don't look back. I am sure it will quickly become one of your favorites.
BTW, I am sure Scotty has already told you all of this already. :mrgreen:

JD338
 
Is this round still a throat burner like it has the rep for being? Anyone know a reasonable round count to expect from the barrel?

JD, Scotty may have mentioned a thing or two about it....maybe. He's not here to defend himself, so I figure I should be good till he returns. Then I can rat him out. ;)
 
Roger that Tom.

As long as you keep the barrel cool and clean, you should not have much of a problem. I would guess you should get 3000 rounds life from a 264 Win Mag if taken care of properly.

FWIW, a 7mm RUM will last 1200-1500 rounds. That one is a barrel burner.

JD338
 
Cool, that's what I needed to know.

Oh man....and of course, the level of glass this would REALLY need to have will not be in the budget soon, as my upcoming windfall is well-accounted for already, and I want to leave SOME for the fam for some household stuff and things to keep the natives happy. Maybe this rifle would be the one I FINALLY put a VX6 on?

You realize this would bring me to 6 M70's..... two pre-64's (300H&H and 30-06), an XTR (257 Bob), Classic (30-06), and Extreme Weather (300WSM). I have all the heavy artillery I'd need in the heavier 30-cals I am running. I can't see me hunting anything a 180gr PT at 2900 wouldn't be able to tackle. Biggest I can see at this point would be elk, and those 30-cals ought to have enough oomph to take on an elk. My '06's should, too.

The Bob is a sweet little deer round. Was really liking the idea of complimenting it with a Swede, but maybe a screamer in a pretty stock like that SuperGrade wouldn't be bad? Make a 130AB go laser flat and watch is pound deer in their tracks....

Oh man...this is bad...
 
Tom,

Just for you buddy........

I shot this buck last year with my M673 Guide Rifle in 6.5mm Rem Mag and a 130 gr AB at 3050 fps through the shoulders DRT. The 6.5mm 130 gr AB is an awesome bullet. I would think you could get close to 3200 fps with the 264 WM.
Valhalla2011019.jpg

JD338
 
Tom go for the Featherweight, I can tell you that a 24" 264 WM does pretty well. With mine I was able to reach 3200 fps with 130's safely, some guys that like to lean on them a little harder and could get more fps out of them. I was able to reach closer to 3300 fps but took the same accuracy and less chamber pressure at 3205 fps with a 130 gr Swift Scirocco. I know I'm out of step with most 264 WM guys that have 26" or longer barrels but a 24" barrel does better than most people think.
 
Tom,

The 264WM is utterly suffused with "cool." I do like Featherweights, and that seems like a fair price. They are no more barrel burners than any other if you shoot them in a reasonable manner. Don't shoot them hot; keep them clean (especially the throat). You need this cartridge.
 
Hey Tom I think you need to go something just slightly different! :shock: How about a 6.5-06 which would be really simple to form using 25-06 brass, or maybe even taking a 270WSM and necking it down to 6.5? You would have a 6.5 WSM!! I think that would be a great one with superb ballistics, great case design, easy to form.

David
 
All neat ideas, but more effort than I care to put in, lol. I don't really want to go custom, and if I did, I'd be ripping the barrel off that friggin' pre-64 '06 I have and having a smith make it a tack-driving Whelen.....

;)

(can you tell I was at the range that the pre-64 is frustrating me????? lol)
 
tddeangelo":3j3at65f said:
What happened to "talk me out of it"???????

;)
Click to expand...

Tom,

We ARE helping you. You won't be happy until you get a 264 Win Mag. :wink:

JD338
 
tddeangelo":25ws9xld said:
What happened to "talk me out of it"???????

;)
Click to expand...

We are only seeking your happiness. As Jim says, you won't be happy until you own one of these. :grin:
 
tddeangelo":31kvoxjl said:
What happened to "talk me out of it"???????

;)
Click to expand...

See if I can help you out

I have had 2 of the 264 win mags, one a pre-64 Model 70 and the other a post-64 push feed Model 70.

The pre-64 I had for a couple of years and as a reloader it was an exercise in frustration. No great dies or great brass and it is so overbore that it is hard to find slow enough powder to get the right performance. In the old days they used to use H870 with good results (so we are told) which I believe is no longer available. I mainly reloaded with RL25/H1000 burn rates and have many stories of no pressure signs and the next load blowing a primer. Never did get to 3400 fps with a 130 gr bullet or 3300 fps with a 140. Did finally find a load that had decent accuracy with a 125 gr Partition in the middle 3300's.

Found someone who wanted a pre-64 "Westerner" who made me an offer I couldn't refuse.

The latest push feed Model 70 was a Featherweight with a 24" barrel. I bought the gun very cheap. He gave me the factory ammo and had only fired 4 shots through the barrel and wanted to sell because of the "excessive muzzle blast" and poor accuracy.

One of the problems with the 264 is the lack of good factory ammo (not a problem for reloaders of course). But the lack of quality also extends to the brass. Here is a pic of the head clearance from the factory ammo I was given

DSCN1696.jpg

DSCN1697.jpg


That is a gap of .041" between a new case shoulder and the chamber shoulder :shock:

So that gun got rebarrelled with a Pac-Nor 3 groove into a 375 Ruger and now shoots lights out!

Now my 6.5 is a 6.5 rem mag which pushes a 130 gr bullet at 3200 fps easy, is easy to find an excellent load for and has good available dies and seasonally available brass (at least Remington).

Won't own another 264 win mag since IMO it is a finicky overbore and accuracy kills not speed.

How's that for talking you out of it?
 
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