6.8SPC Bolt Gun conversion

[NonTypical]

I recently came across an aftermarket barrel made by ARP for a Savage bolt rifle in 6.8SPC. Nobody makes a bolt gun in that caliber and ARP made a limited run of barrels recently. ARP makes a lot of barrels for the AR15, mostly in 6.8. I have 3 of them and they’re great shooters. I missed out, but acquired it from someone who had one and couldn’t find a good donor that he liked. Savage was making the 110 Prairie Hunter in .224, but they’ve become nonexistent. The .224 uses the same case as a 6.8, but it’s a longer round.

 
 

I ended up picking up a Savage 110 Tactical in .308. It comes with an AICS mag. In order to make it work, I have an 18” 3R/11.25 melonite treated barrel. I also ordered another bolt head from PTG in 6.8, a new barrel nut from NSS, and a new AICS MDT mag in .224, because of course nobody makes an AICS mag in 6.8. 
 

To modify the mag, I got a piece of high density plastic and was able to trim it down to .30” and fit it in front of the mag, since it’s a shorter round than the .224. I also had to trim down the follower a little bit. 

 

The bolt head and nut should be here next week. I’ll post some more pics once I start tearing it apart.

 

 

[NonTypical]

Finally got it all finished. Just waiting on a new set of rings for the scope. These Savage rifles are very easy to work on and a barrel swap actually takes less time than my AR. I can’t wait to send some rounds down range to see how it shoots. 

Edited January 20, 2021 by NonTypical

[NonTypical]

A little overdue but I finally had a chance to send a few down range to see how it shoots. No complaints at all and I’m very happy with the results. I was shooting 115g HPBT. When I go back, I have several different hunting rounds that I’ll be testing to see what it likes. 

[Grouse]

Groups well.  What was the range?  What do you plan to hunt with it?

[NonTypical]

14 minutes ago, Grouse said:

Groups well.  What was the range?  What do you plan to hunt with it?

100 yards. This will be my new deer rifle. 

Edited April 4, 2021 by NonTypical

[Grouse]

What scope did you put on it?

[NonTypical]

I have a Leupold VX3i 1.5-5x20. It should be plenty for where I hunt. 

[Grouse]

I like it!   Enjoy it in good health for many years to come.

[grampy]

Pretty spiffy!!! Looks cool. Shoots nice! Great deer cartridge.

What's not to love! Good luck in the deer woods!

[NonTypical]

It really is a great cartridge. Plenty of energy and low recoil in a lightweight gun with an 18” barrel. What’s not to love. I was really impressed with it when I built my AR, but this bolt gun is something else. And knowing that it’s not a factory gun makes it even better. 

[NonTypical]

Did some more testing today. Top 3 hunting rounds out of 7 tested were SSA 110gr Barnes, Hornady 120gr SST, and 90gr Gold Dots loaded by Druid Hill Armory. Hopefully they shoot as good or better then the Barnes. 

[dbHunterNY]

Interesting gun you've ended up with. Looks like it should do the job well. Can't remember if that stock components swap to shorten the length of pull enough for a kid. Would be a great rifle for any mentee if you could.

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[NonTypical]

6 hours ago, dbHunterNY said:

Interesting gun you've ended up with. Looks like it should do the job well. Can't remember if that stock components swap to shorten the length of pull enough for a kid. Would be a great rifle for any mentee if you could.

Sent from my SM-G781V using Tapatalk
 

I believe the stock can be shortened 1” with the elimination of the spacers. I’m not sure if that’s enough. 

Edited April 20, 2021 by NonTypical