Thisisyourcaptin
Member
You did a beautiful job on that stock. The rest of the rifle seems well done too. The sight is frustrating, so time to go, and a good scope will make that a lot more enjoyable to shoot. My swedish mauser wears a 2-7x Leupold in a Burris Signature mount, and that works well for me.
I will add to the chorus of those suggesting that a new barrel costs money that isn't reflected in the value of the gun, and there are always risks. If economy is a consideration, I see 8mm starting below 50c per round, and available in many different flavors. https://ammoseek.com/ammo/8mm-mauser 243 is likely to be at least as expensive, and SAAMI pressures are slightly higher than 8x57.
I can understand the desire for a smaller diameter, higher velocity chambering, but you could have a new Howa for less than the $900 minimum you would have in this project https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/101810/leg+hs+prec+6.5cr+22+grn+blk+4 or Tikka https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/100642/tikka+t3x+hunter+6.5creed+24+blued+walnut+1:8 for a few $$ more. I had a Husqvarna re-barreled to 6.5 Swede and it turned out OK but my old Tikka T3 does the same job with much less investment.
I’m looking at a Leupold 1x4 vx2. It’s older but in great shape it looks like and gloss blue, which matches the guns finish. Any thoughts on the scope? I’ve never had a Leupold. Only cheap Amazon crap as I’ve never need a real scope till now as my eyes get older.